Instruments

Mezzo-Soprano (Vocal)

A mezzo-soprano is literally a "medium soprano"; the term describes a female (or castrato) voice range below that of the soprano but above the alto, running from just below middle C to perhaps the G in the second octave above. The mezzo-soprano, in classical circles often referred to simply as a "mezzo," might be regarded as the female counterpart of the male baritone, whose range lies between bass and tenor. The mezzo-soprano classification was first defined by writers of the middle 18th century, just as operatic composers began to write more technically challenging soprano lines that extended the upper end of the range considerably. Parts were written for sopranos whose talents were unsuited to the new range, and gradually a new and distinct voice type evolved.