Vocal Type: Mezzo-soprano
Vocal Range: 2.6 Octaves and a semitone (C3-Bb5)
Whistle Register:No
Vocal Pluses: Naya Rivera has great control of her instrument. This allows her to sing complex melisma; hold notes for extended periods of time without wavering in pitch; and helps her to excellently control the dynamic and timbre of her voice [Hear Songbird]
Strong lower-range that extends to the bottom of the third octave. The notes produced here are full, rounded and of medium weight, but are accessed effortlessly meaning they don't have the foggy quality some Divas exhibit when hitting lower notes [hear Boy Is Mine].
Her belting range as a whole has a light, bright, and youthful colouring to it with a slight rasp at times. Both the notes at the top of the fourth octave and those well into the fifth octave sound to be achieved via great technique, thus producing notes that have an easy quality to them, with a consistent tone and timbre.
Naya Rivera primarily uses falsetto to reach the higher notes. This means notes produced have an airy sound, with a warm and light quality to them. Using her falsetto to hit notes makes it easier for her to flip between registers, but it is possible for her to create notes with her head voice- like the exclamations in Smooth Criminal- which are weightier and have a stronger dynamic.
Vocal Negatives: The voice can sometimes have a slight nasal quality to it.
Her lower range and her mid-voice is definitely where she shines and her instrument has the most power and resonance in those areas. Her chest voice progressively thins as the belts get higher but stays strong enough to issue the notes with a good balance of power and control. Because Rivera's tone is less strident than Lea Michele and blends more easily, I find she has a fair amount of versatility.
ReplyDeleteI wasn't too familiar with her voice before I did this profile, but out of the three Glee females I have completed she has been my favourite voice.
ReplyDeleteI am not a fan of Glee, never have been! Lea's voice just about decapitates me everytime I hear her and the same goes for Amber. But I do like this ladies voice, the smoky and earthy texture is lovely also the lack of that whole (overkill) showmanship that seems to go hand in hand with the programme in the voice is extremely pleasant. Well done DD great profile!!!
ReplyDeleteAnd ps. I will eventually get round to Delta, I toyed with Charlotte Church too but there is not any vids for either so it might take me a touch longer. Hope you are well btw :)
Yes, I like Naya's voice the most out of the three ladies profiles so far. It's smoky, balanced, and flexible.
ReplyDeleteI agree. She's my favorite of the three Glee divas.
ReplyDeleteI like her a lot, but I still have that thing for people who belt, so I still love Lea more than her; but Naya's voice is actually the most pleasant one.
ReplyDeleteOnly thing is that Glee producers always tend to auto-tune the songs and therefore you can't really decide whether she actually has the range or timbre or not.
I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS FOR SO LONG. THANK YOU
ReplyDeleteI'm not a fan of Glee also and yes i hate Lea too but she's a good singer.
ReplyDeleteNaya is a soulful singer with good techniques but i just don't find her voice too special. It sounds different but it falls flat ME. She sounded more like a contralto for me
She has a great voice, that much is clear BUT much like with all the actors on Glee she sounds very "kiddish". While Rumor Has It/Someone Like You was a great cover, I don't think it was anything compared to the original. And the fact that her voice does have such a unique quality to it, I think is one of the reasons she cannot sing numerous genres. Especially is she was singing with the boys they put on lead. I don't think her raspy-ness and whatever you call Cory's voice would mesh well together at all. Yes they did Like A Virgin together but most of Glee's songs, especially in the beginning had an 80's rock theme. A lot of the songs they give Lea do have a big theatrical feel to them, which is why (since so many don't like musical theater) I think a lot of ppl don't like her voice but I think Spring Awakening is a perfect example of how she can do songs with a more, not pop or even rock but songs with a bit more of a "rock feel" like the ones in Spring Awakening. Cause there were quite a few more "rock sounding" songs in there and they all sound good. Plus hearing her in Glee's covers of Cry, Go Your Own Way, and Paradise of The Dashboard Light, you can tell she is capable of something other then Broadway. I think they both should consider another genre besides pop for their debt albums. They both want to do pop but I think they can do better.
ReplyDeleteI'm dying to see Dianna Agron's profile! Love her voice soo damn much, even though her singing isn't as good as Lea's
ReplyDeleteShe has a very bright, very special voice. That stands out even in small batches.
ReplyDeleteIf you like Naya, you should definitely check out her song from "Diva" episode, especially http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAbD1uCJrcQ ... Alicia Keys, watch and learn!
ReplyDeletePersonally, despite her amazing technique, extremely pleasant, smoky timbre (I simply can't imagine someone disliking it), great harmonies with itself and everyone else in Glee, I still... don' feel anything hearing her and I've never felt like listening to her solos.
Maybe it's because I always prefered singers you either love or hate, Lea Michele being the perfect example (I'm currently obsessed with "Being Good"... well I'm obsessed with every song from 4th season). BTW I missed the beginning of the episode and I've heard she's (Lea) doing some warm-ups in head register, so possibly we'll be able to hear a couple notes more, once it's available online :)
I agree she is also my favorite on the show. I'm glad she got signed to Columbia records. Wonder what hee album would be like?
ReplyDeletei LOVE Naya's vocal, makes me feel like little Adele, little Amy Winehouse, and she can handle the different type of music.. that why i love her vocal, i heard the Amy covers MJ - beat it, and... really weird, but not bad, just a little bit weird, and i thought Amy still be a jazzy lady would be great, haha, but not mean she can't sing another styles, just not like Naya's flexible, but i like they all, cus i love the smoky vocal..!!
ReplyDeletei think Naya's more of a high contralto. she can also belt an A5! pretty impressive for a contralto! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_yEqawq9ro
ReplyDelete...always and forever will be a higher set mezzo-soprano, possible lower set soprano. Don't let her vocal color fool you. She has to sound completely manly to be even a higher lyric contralto.
ReplyDeleteHer voice screams higher mezzo based on the tessitura, the strength and darker resonance in the lower range but the brighter, feminine, youthful nature of the rest of the voice. I think a lot of people assume because someone would sing "alto" in choir that means they would be a "contralto." Of course, these are two different concepts entirely.
ReplyDeleteI mean at my church, the contraltos sing tenor parts along with the high baritones because we have no tenors. LMAO We only have about 3 contraltos and about 4 really deep mezzos. But since my church goes by choral systems, really deep mezzos and contraltos are labeled alto #2s while medium set mezzos to high mezzos are labled alto #1s. I don't care for sopranos but still there are some sopranos that are lower set and sing alto #1. I don't blame them, my church is just brutal. ROFL
ReplyDeleteI would probably be Alto 1 in that church since I have natural countetenoring placement but who knows? Maybe they'd kidnap me and have me sing tenor. Unfortunately, most of the my range and money notes would be unused since choral tenor parts seldom ever come above A4 which isn't past my second passaggio.
ReplyDeleteI'd sing second tenor, you know the semi-baritonal big sounding tenor who bridges the altos to the sopranos? I am placed like a second tenor but sound like a first tenor most of the time.
ReplyDeleteSo it's 23th August and I find myself listening to this constantly http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GxwcZYaGt4 She sounds like and angel!
ReplyDelete