passagio

pas·​sag·​gio. pəˈsä(ˌ)jō plural -s. 1. : an improvised embellishment or flourish found especially in 16th century music and usually excluding plain scale passages or trills.

Some people call it their “break,” “bridge,” or “that horrible place where it all falls apart!” We like to refer to this part of your voice as a passage or passagio because it is a transitional place in your voice - a passage from one place to the next!

Sounds a bit like this. Oh. A good exercise for accessing. This is. This ah so making a very light sound you slide up and down a fifth. Make.

The primo passaggio takes place in between the chest and middle registers, while the secondo passaggio lies between the middle and head registers. For most sopranos, the primo passaggio is located around Eb4 (below middle C), and the secondo lies usually between C#5 (one octave above middle C) and F#5.

The first passaggio marks the end of the chest register and the beginning of the zona di passaggio (in men) or middle register (in women). At the first passaggio, you may notice a lightening of timbre or a physical sensation that the voice is becoming lighter or 'lifting' up out of the chest.

Both falsetto and head voice refer to notes sung above the passaggio (main bridge, transition) of the voice. These notes constitute the extended range and are higher in pitch than the speaking (chest) voice.

You don't “get past” your passaggio you go through it. In Italian, Passaggio simply means passage. It is commonly referred to as a transition from “chest voice” to “head voice”. Although that doesn't exactly describe what is happening.

The primo (first) passaggio lies between the chest register and the middle register in women or between the chest register and the zona di passaggio ('passage zone') in men. The secondo (second) passaggio is located between the middle register or zona di passaggio and the head register.

Soprano: Primo passaggio – E♭4. Secondo passaggio – F♯5.

The singer wants to keep their larynx in a mid-lower position, so when they start going into their passaggio, the tongue goes backwards and forces the larynx down. Only this also blocks a lot of your pharynx-space and dulls the resonance.

The first passaggio marks the end of the chest register and the beginning of the zona di passaggio (in men) or middle register (in women). At the first passaggio, you may notice a lightening of timbre or a physical sensation that the voice is becoming lighter or 'lifting' up out of the chest.

As we're seeing, opera arias can be difficult in a lot of different ways: the range, the lyrics, the element of individuality expected of the singer, all combine to make many operatic arias some of the hardest songs to sing.