Even Yma Sumac, who is often cited when it comes to the widest vocal range, was just barely short of 6 octaves.
Since I've just looked this up: Tim Storms (
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Storms), the current world record holder when it comes to vocal range, has one of 10 octaves (with the lower end extending into infrasound, i.e. being inaudible to the human ear)!
Mike Patton from Faith No More/Mr. Bungle/Tomahawk supposedly has a range of 6.5 octaves, but some people say it doesn't count because it includes screaming. He does a lot of weird stuff but he's one of my favorite vocalists. Regardless of whether or not his range is 6.5 octaves it is definitely extraordinarily wide.
Tim Storms is an interesting case, I've heard of him before but honestly before I heard his music I would have thought it would be impossible to have the widest vocal range in human history and at the same time make music sound so boring and lifeless.
I'm not into Christian music at all but even still Amazing Grace is a legendary song. However, Tim's rendition of it makes me want to fall asleep.
The deepness of his voice is interesting, but out of all the clips of him singing I haven't heard anything that made me feel like he was a world class talent.
Which is quite different from everyone else mentioned in this thread. I don't particularly like the work of many of the musicians mentioned here but their performances are often astonishingly good.
Nothing IMO, just mentioned that some people have challenged the idea that his vocal range is 6.5 octaves because of it. I didn't say I agree with them.
Unfortunately, Pat Benatar and her guitarist husband went on some kind of holy war against their record label, which diverted their artistic energy.
Another mistake was the title and lyrics to her song "Hell is for Children" - her label should have asked for more precision, since it confused a lot of radio stations and listeners (is she pro or anti?). I can only imagine the drama in the Bible Belt over that.
Damn, now I have to listen to that again. You're a real tough cookie.
Now, I'm missing Ann Wilson here. I've had friends decide they want to try singing Heart songs at karaoke, and I have to warn them: danger! You do not have that much range.
And honestly, Luciano Pavarotti? Frank Sinatra? Frank wasn't known for his range, but kinda strange to leave him of a list of "greatest singers".
Honestly, you could make an entire list of greatest singers just by looking at whoever worked with Ayreon. That project introduced me to SO many great singers and bands.
Interesting list, surprised to see Doug Pinnick on there. I'm mainly familiar with his bluesy style with Kings-X in the early 90s and would not have suspected he had that kind of range.
Yes, Mike Patton has even a larger range than Axl Rose. He is also much more innovative and experimental, trying a variety of vocal techniques and song styles, which is quite exciting.
If you're interested in this sort of thing, there's actually an internet forum of geeks who are quite dedicated to collecting and reviewing the ranges of many, many singers:
No Kate Bush? I suppose everyone will have their own favourite omission, though.
I'm surprised that Karen Carpenter is not much different to Taylor Swift. The former sounds a lot deeper, but I guess the difference is in timbre rather than pitch.
I had no idea about the range of Axl Rose. But male singers always have an advantage in that they can hit very low notes and also have access to falsetto. Mariah Carey is also exceptional due to access to the whistle register. Christina Aguilera is one of the more impressive singers on the list for me.
Does "vocal range" necessarily mean the singers can hit every note (or every possible pitch) between those notes? I know from singing myself that the notes in the "overlap" portion between different vocal registers can be difficult. Also some vowels are harder to hit at certain notes than others. This can make some songs problematic even if they are technically within your range.
This would be super cool if you could play audio of the artist, or just some representation to give an idea of what this means in real life.
I've got no idea what keys play what sound, and even less idea what a "range" is. It would be cool to hear something that would help me understand this.
As an amateur singer, I feel deeply disappointed by the fact that Chris Cornell isn't on this list. The range this guy had was unbelievable, even in his later years. I personally find it easier to sing Guns and Roses songs than to sing Audioslave or Cornell's solo songs. Such a beast of a singer and composer.
It would be nice if the register(s) used by the artist for different parts of the range were shown in the diagram.
For example it is much easier to sing in head register in the higher ranges than in chest register. And as another example, Mariah Carey's famous high notes are sung in flute register.
113 comments
[ 3.4 ms ] story [ 178 ms ] threadDimash Kudaibergen is a rare combination of uncanny natural ability and a hell of a lot of training.
If you are interested in vocal range, I don't know anyone with a greater set of vocal texture.
Opera musicians aren't on this list, but wide vocal range is table stakes for that genre.
F2 - D8 ( clips of his range: https://youtu.be/-ra6JS-qSRY )
Even Yma Sumac, who is often cited when it comes to the widest vocal range, was just barely short of 6 octaves.
Since I've just looked this up: Tim Storms ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Storms), the current world record holder when it comes to vocal range, has one of 10 octaves (with the lower end extending into infrasound, i.e. being inaudible to the human ear)!
Tim Storms is an interesting case, I've heard of him before but honestly before I heard his music I would have thought it would be impossible to have the widest vocal range in human history and at the same time make music sound so boring and lifeless.
I'm not into Christian music at all but even still Amazing Grace is a legendary song. However, Tim's rendition of it makes me want to fall asleep.
The deepness of his voice is interesting, but out of all the clips of him singing I haven't heard anything that made me feel like he was a world class talent.
Which is quite different from everyone else mentioned in this thread. I don't particularly like the work of many of the musicians mentioned here but their performances are often astonishingly good.
This list is just so many promises in the dark without her.
Another mistake was the title and lyrics to her song "Hell is for Children" - her label should have asked for more precision, since it confused a lot of radio stations and listeners (is she pro or anti?). I can only imagine the drama in the Bible Belt over that.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Benatar
I remember when she was one of the top acts - a real trailblazer in rock.
Now, I'm missing Ann Wilson here. I've had friends decide they want to try singing Heart songs at karaoke, and I have to warn them: danger! You do not have that much range.
And honestly, Luciano Pavarotti? Frank Sinatra? Frank wasn't known for his range, but kinda strange to leave him of a list of "greatest singers".
(from the album with the same name)
Michael Kiske (Halloween) and Rob Halford (Judas Priest) also had decent ranges.
https://www.vintagevinylnews.com/2014/05/digging-deeper-axl-...
https://therangeplanet.proboards.com
Here's the Dimash Kudaibergen page, for example:
https://therangeplanet.proboards.com/thread/30/dimash-kudaib...
Also, dudes have an advantage in falseto.
Men reach way into female range by virtue of falseto.
I submit: Axl Rose, at the top of the charts as an example.
I'm surprised that Karen Carpenter is not much different to Taylor Swift. The former sounds a lot deeper, but I guess the difference is in timbre rather than pitch.
I had no idea about the range of Axl Rose. But male singers always have an advantage in that they can hit very low notes and also have access to falsetto. Mariah Carey is also exceptional due to access to the whistle register. Christina Aguilera is one of the more impressive singers on the list for me.
Does "vocal range" necessarily mean the singers can hit every note (or every possible pitch) between those notes? I know from singing myself that the notes in the "overlap" portion between different vocal registers can be difficult. Also some vowels are harder to hit at certain notes than others. This can make some songs problematic even if they are technically within your range.
I've got no idea what keys play what sound, and even less idea what a "range" is. It would be cool to hear something that would help me understand this.
As a side note, I'm glad Madonna didn't make the list.
While there are some amazing voices on the list, it is mostly commercially successful.
Since I saw Whitney Houston mentioned, Steve Perry would be a noteworthy 80s omission.
For example it is much easier to sing in head register in the higher ranges than in chest register. And as another example, Mariah Carey's famous high notes are sung in flute register.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whistle_register
Chester Bennington: G#2 - F5
https://youtu.be/ZT9y0GkHtW4
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kupamanduka