Falsetto vs. Alto — What's the Difference?

Falsetto (, Italian: [falˈsetto]; Italian diminutive of falso, "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal cords, in whole or in part.

The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: altus), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In 4-part voice leading alto is the second highest part, sung in choruses by either low women's or high men's voices.

A voice in a register higher than a person's usual register, resulting from a change in the way the vocal cords are vibrated.

A low female singing voice; a contralto.

One who sings or talks in this register.

A countertenor.

The "false" (singing) voice in any human, usually airy and lacking a purity of vowels; created by utilizing the next highest vocal folds above those used for speech and normal range singing. It is commonly confused with the head voice register.

The range between soprano and tenor.

A person who sings in falsetto.

A singer whose voice lies within this range.

To sing or utter in falsetto.

An instrument that sounds within this range.

A false or artificial voice; that voice in a man which lies above his natural voice; the male counter tenor or alto voice. See Head voice, under Voice.

A vocal or instrumental part written in this range.

A male singing voice with artificially high tones in an upper register

A musical part or section higher than tenor and lower than soprano, formerly the part that performed a countermelody above the tenor or main melody.

Artificially high; above the normal voice range;

A person or musical instrument that performs the alto part.

An alto saxophone

Formerly the part sung by the highest male, or counter-tenor, voices; now the part sung by the lowest female, or contralto, voices, between in tenor and soprano. In instrumental music it now signifies the tenor.

An alto singer.

A singer whose voice lies in the alto clef

The lowest female singing voice

The highest adult male singing voice

The pitch range of the lowest female voice

Of or being the lowest female voice

Of or being the highest male voice; having a range above that of tenor

(of a musical instrument) second highest member of a group;