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Kim Taehyung’s Vocal Range Qualities - a thread
It’s known that Taehyung’s incredibly wide range is full of potential, but his versatile processes on how he navigates along his range need to be discussed further as he is already beyond “potential”. He is incredibly pro.
It’s known that Taehyung’s incredibly wide range is full of potential, but his versatile processes on how he navigates along his range need to be discussed further as he is already beyond “potential”. He is incredibly pro.
Before we get going, we’d like to warn readers that this is slightly loaded with jargon. This was written with the expectation that people who will read this are already acquainted with simple, basic terminology and a particular interest in going into Taehyung’s applied
and technical processes. The reason we are writing a series of commentaries on Taehyung’s techniques is to deepen and have a more nuanced appreciation of his craft. A craft that he is very serious and passionate about.
We already love and appreciate his voice, but the more we explore and go in depth, the more we are just amazed. Taehyung’s overall technique is quite diverse and chameleon-like. He shows versatility and skillfulness - as these techniques equip him to be a smart singer -
This deserves our attention.
All right, enough of this long preamble and let’s get to it!
All right, enough of this long preamble and let’s get to it!
If you aren’t familiar with the vocal register mechanism yet, do watch this series. We’d have recommended something shorter, but the goal is to be sufficiently versed. So take your time, there’s no need to rush!
We wrote a short bit about his range in another thread ( https://twitter.com/taefolio/status/1262654942549958656?s=21) but it seems this is the more updated vocal range of Tae, which is Eb2-Eb6, which is four octaves.
Cr. wildfvire
Cr. wildfvire
However, this thread will focus more on his supported range, tessitura, & passagi (more on the other 2 later), which are aspects of his range that need to be expounded more!
Vocal range refers to the scale of notes a person can phonate, from lowest to highest; supported range is the scale of notes in which one can sing with breath support.
So, how does one tell which register they’re coming from? It’s where you can feel the vibrations come from, but that’s easier said than done. Truthfully, quite difficult to tell especially if we talk about professional singers, simply because singing lower/higher notes +
do not automatically mean you are on your chest or head/falsetto respectively; high notes can be achieved through your chest/full voice with a belt or a heady mix, as with some low notes can be achieved by the mix or head. High notes are not exclusive to the register;
it’s just easier to reach them on that register. There’s also something about head voice&falsetto: there are people who trained their falsetto to sound like head voice (stronger, stabler sound) — and in my humble opinion, applies to Taehyung’s falsetto/head. +
Also, in some instances, it’s difficult to ascertain that he’s also singing in falsetto when he uses a breathy style with head at times. I just want to put this out there on how wonderfully complex vocal techniques are, and so that we approach this with a broader understanding.
Taehyung’s Lower Range:
Historically, Taehyung’s lower range gets limited room to shine in BTS repertoire as many of the songs utilize more of the mid and upper ranges. At most, for his lower, he is consistently supported down to C3. +
Historically, Taehyung’s lower range gets limited room to shine in BTS repertoire as many of the songs utilize more of the mid and upper ranges. At most, for his lower, he is consistently supported down to C3. +
The reason for this seems largely related to style. BTS songs’ melodies are mostly in the middle&higher ranges, so a full, operatic chest voice won’t be often heard here. Because chest voice is so strong in sound production, there are ways to temper it to accommodate BTS’ style.
Being baritone means having thicker chest resonance, thus many times Taehyung adds breathiness to make the vocal sound more fitting to the style and genre when he sings from chest. This is very common in pop singing.
For example, Taehyung’s opening verse in DNA. There’s also a bit of rasp textured in his live singing. A bit of edge on his 2nd-octave notes provide a nice accompaniment to the DNA’s clear brightness.
You can hear more of the obvious rasp in Taehyung’s voice in this particular performance for DNA.
Same chest tone but sans the rasp quality in Taehyung’s DNA bridge:
Another airy chest voice is Taehyung’s opening verse of Make It Right comes to mind. The projection is also lighter as he moves between his chest and mix frequently.
Taehyung’s verses in Singularity are sung in low-breath. R&B singers also employ this dark&cloudy style. Love how he applied the diminuendo while retaining the sound and timbre here ^_^
Dark and cloudy refers to Taehyung’s tone. We’ll be saving this topic for another thread when we talk about his resonance (anticipate it!)
In this portion in Stigma, Taehyung vocal folds are more thickened, giving ample vocal strength needed before he thins a bit into a mixed sound.
It’s rare for us to hear Taehyung’s bold chest tone within BTS repertoire, but he is capable. A more “traditional” example of his lower range in chest voice (with the true chesty resonance 
) is heard in his karaoke cover of “Le Temps Des Cathedrales".
) is heard in his karaoke cover of “Le Temps Des Cathedrales".
It’s just a casual karaoke cover but damn. I like that Taehyung’s dynamics are so controlled here — not too loud nor soft, and there’s just the right amount of projection. . Also, he is able to transition from his first passagio (B3) with relative ease,
you can barely distinguish him moving up to his mixed sound from chest.
Taehyung’s Higher Range:
We’ll discuss his head voice first before mixed voice, but first..
We’ll discuss his head voice first before mixed voice, but first..
There are many interpretations, conflict of terminology by different schools of thought regarding the head voice, so before diving into this, let’s clear our definitions in the context of this commentary. For male singers, their head voice is connected to the chest in contrast +
to the female head voice where the sound is disconnected. So, when we talk about the male head voice, we are talking about a connected sound, while falsetto isn’t. This register isn’t connected to the chest voice, so when one tries to do a siren from falsetto, they will +
experience a vocal break.
Meanwhile, falsetto does not have to be breathy as it can be strengthened and reinforce its sound. It can sound very much like head voice. To put simply... the difference between falsetto and head is really on “being connected” to the chest voice.
Meanwhile, falsetto does not have to be breathy as it can be strengthened and reinforce its sound. It can sound very much like head voice. To put simply... the difference between falsetto and head is really on “being connected” to the chest voice.
Okay, going back to the topic, For Taehyung is able to navigate and sustain power on both his head voice and falsetto. The latest recorded supported note on his upper is up to C#4... which I am curious about. An updated look on this seems necessary +
as he sounds constantly supported a few more notes up from C#4. Again, just my humble opinion based on observation of more recent performances, given that in these times his health was in good and optimised condition.
Taehyung’s head voice can easily be mistaken as a falsetto, and even more so when he’s using a breathy style head voice. His falsetto is also very strong (quite frankly I tend to struggle to plot where his high notes come from... and this is a GOOD thing!)
I will admit, it does get hard to say which register he comes from. Take for example Taehyung’s singing w/ Nive around 1:06 as to how the high notes are produced with connected sound. There’s also that “ping”, twangy quality with a connected head voice. https://twitter.com/bts_twt/status/1254828284308668421?s=21
The clip above is also an example of Taehyung singing through and above his second passagio (E4, 1:00 and 1:06)
Compare that with his high notes in this other clip, which is just slightly more disconnected and looser sound, more obvious in falsetto. Taehyung’s falsetto is so free and open he is able to let out his natural vibrato. https://twitter.com/bts_twt/status/1254817417273851904?s=21
A good falsetto register is also a signifier of good vocal health. With a mastery of falsetto singing sought after right now, Taehyung’s definitely flourishes.
Now here’s how Taehyung’s head voice sounds when he lowers his larynx just quite a bit in a verse in Let Go. Around the chorus is where he seems to position his larynx on neutral and shows off a “headier” head voice.
Taehyung’s Mikrokosmos chorus and bridge are sung in HA too, way up above his 2nd passagio, and it’s a head voice w/ ample power. Just the right amount of compression to make these high notes sound strong..+
Now compare the chorus part with Taehyung’s mini solo bridge part. This is still head voice, not falsetto, but the sound is thinner compared to his chorus part. That’s what we call CONTROL! A bit more on that in the next tweets ~
You can also hear the same tone quality from Taehyung in Whalien 52. Taehyung’s quality control on his head voice means he’s developed it pretty well too so he could employ his stylistic choices. Very versatile head voice. 
Taehyung’s flexible falsetto register at work in Make It Right. This is the kind of control we want to have on this register. There’s also just a bit of thickness to the sound, and it’s sustained. You can even hear a bit of vibrato at 0:15.
Taehyung’s flexibility and agility on the upper range! The chorus in his impromptu Lay Me Down karaoke cover is mostly sung in head with quick transitions into his falsetto (mostly his runs).
Of course, this portion wouldn’t be complete with Taehyung’s high notes in Stigma. He seems to starts with a quick belt (which comes from chest) for the vowel, then opens up the vowel so can freely navigate into that iconic falsetto. + https://twitter.com/taefolio/status/1257047421286150144
Very smart technique from Taehyung, and it’s such a feat to sustain the quality of dynamic and resonance this high.
Taehyung’s Middle Range, Mixed Voice:
We’re finally here now, my favorite part, and you will all know why
We’re finally here now, my favorite part, and you will all know why
The mixed register is the combined use of both chest and head voice. The sound will be distinct from chest and head voice. Sometimes it’s a balancing act, while sometimes either chest or head resonance will dominate, +
but not enough to be fully described as “singing in head/chest voice”. Singing in mix is also healthier for your vocal folds, minimizing risk and strain. It’s not easy and will take practice, though! Unlike the chest&head which naturally come to us, this register must be learned.
Developing the chest and head voices are important prerequisites. We could argue too that Taehyung is most comfortable in this range as he’s able to go low or high while remaining supported and sounding clear. +
Taehyung is very comfortable with mixing, able to phonate clean, resonant notes. The mixed voice is an asset to be acquired as it makes you even more versatile. Also, since BTS songs’ melodies are mostly around the mid-upper notes, Taehyung seems to often sing in this register.
Integrating his vocal color and resonators make his mixes very diverse and unique-sounding, but to make it simpler for us, mixing mostly comes into two resonances: chest-dominant or head-dominant. Since other resonators and larynx position can affect tone (Tae at times drops +
owers his larynx to deepen his voice), the easiest (tho not surefire) way find out which is which by feeling out where the vibrations are coming from when singing in mix. Again, this isn’t necessarily accurate since resonance placements also matter in describing the mixed sound.
Taehyung’s chest-mix is simultaneously thick, but not dark. Usually, he sounds sweeter in here compared to when he’s using chest voice. An example of his chesty, airy mix is his first verse in Lights. He sounds brighter than when he uses his chest alone:
Taehyung’s vocals in “It’s Definitely You” is majorly produced with more chest tone and open sound. Also love the synergy between their vocals here!
You can hear it here too in Taehyung and Jin’s quick backstage practice. For this song, he always uses neutral larynx position and the phrasing becomes clearer, cleaner, while retaining depth through chest tone.
Taehyung in Just One Day. Chest-dominant here, with larynx in neutral position again. There’s ample tone-richness without sounding heavy. ( )
It’s another story when Taehyung mixes with his head. He sounds brighter but not too light and thin as with head voice. There is a more masked placement of resonance, twang quality present in this example in ON. https://twitter.com/btsvts95/status/1234431001113137152/video/1
Just plugging this particular clip of Taehyung from another performance, I just love hearing that bright twang more clearly 
https://twitter.com/btsvts95/status/1235887970386731013/video/1
https://twitter.com/btsvts95/status/1235887970386731013/video/1
Another favorite: Taehyung’s opening verse in “I’m Fine” from the Tonight Show. Singing above his second passagio, he sounds sweet and soft without fully going to head voice. The disciplined and breath control here is 
++ https://twitter.com/btsvts95/status/1170360134284890113/video/1
++ https://twitter.com/btsvts95/status/1170360134284890113/video/1
while it’s not advisable to sing in the supine position, it can have some benefits; in a way, it helps singers to release tension and align the spine and head, but note that Tae isn’t in a fully supine position at all nor his back is fully supported +
so I am really amazed how Taehyung easily settled in that position & execute an upper-mix opener.
His TTU chorus line is also sung in a head-mix, singing around his 2nd passagio but doesn’t make the transition. This skilled man’s sense of control is
His TTU chorus line is also sung in a head-mix, singing around his 2nd passagio but doesn’t make the transition. This skilled man’s sense of control is
Taehyung’s bridge part in Magic Shop is also in upper mixed here. The blending remains in the middle, thus the sound is fuller. +
Sometimes this is also called the “full head voice”, when singing in head voice doesn’t sound thin as resonance comes from the chest. Strengthening the head voice takes time, especially for men as this register is usually underdeveloped for them.
We mentioned that mixed voice can either sound chest-dominant or head-dominant, but remember that these sounds can come in gradation, e.g. in Taehyung’s cover of Paul Kim’s Green Light, which is basically a balancing act of his mixed voice.
https://twitter.com/bts_twt/status/1218258658351411200?lang=en https://twitter.com/BTS_twt/status/1218258658351411200
https://twitter.com/bts_twt/status/1218258658351411200?lang=en https://twitter.com/BTS_twt/status/1218258658351411200
Do mind that the notes are in the lower range, but resonance is also a huge factor that renders mix-made notes to be non-exclusive to the registers (as well mentioned above, high notes are not always in head, nor low notes always in chest). +
It takes time to notice and needs familiarity of Taehyung’s vocal habits and techniques, but the subtle change of tonal quality is present.
Taehyung has a very developed mixed register and is, in my opinion, his best, where his natural lyric baritone shines more, and conditions his resonance with a -balance of dark and light- (called “chiaroscuro”). We mentioned before in another thread about +
Taehyung’s chiaroscuro-like resonance, where his vocal color is more of a gradient than a single swatch of color.
And that’s why it’s a personal favorite. For him to have learned and achieved a certain level of mastery of this register + https://twitter.com/taefolio/status/1262654425086058496?s=21
And that’s why it’s a personal favorite. For him to have learned and achieved a certain level of mastery of this register + https://twitter.com/taefolio/status/1262654425086058496?s=21
needs more commendations. The mix is a challenging register. I’m also really happy with this because as mentioned earlier, it’s healthier for any singer to sing in balance, & this means that Taehyung will be able to sing for as long as he pleases, w/ little to no limitations
Notes on Taehyung’s Tessitura and Passagio:Tessitura, in the context of one’s vocals, is the range of notes in which one is most comfortable with singing. You can say this is your “vocal sweet spot” too! Why do we need to learn more about this?
As mentioned earlier, there’s more emphasis on his wide range and though this is good, we overlook the tools and techniques on how he navigates across his range. It takes discipline and professionalism to be able to sing the way Taehyung does. Let’s get on with this quickly~
As a baritone, Taehyung’s comfortable range (tessitura) would lie somewhere between A2 to A4. This range supposedly would also lie somewhere across his supported range +
which is said to be C3-C4/C#4. As mentioned earlier, I feel his supported upper range should be looked into again. We can make specific assumptions as to where he sounds comfortable the most, but do note this is all in theory and there’s no accurate way we can quantify the voice.
With that said, to me he sounds most comfortable on his supported range and a few notes up C4; 1-2 notes up E4 (don’t quote us on this though!) This means that songs with an average of notes keyed bet. these notes will highlight his vocal type and technique the best, +
as he moves and easily sings above both his first and second passagi with ease at most times. +
So.. throughout the thread, I also kept mentioning the term “passagio” (pl. passagi). I just want to quickly mention Taehyung’s passagio again as this is largely the reason how and why his transitions sound so seamless. +
A quick definition of the passagio: it’s a classical term referring to 1-3 semitones where a singer enters a “transitional” area to change registers. There are a lot of passagi but the most important ones are 1st (bet. chest & mixed) and 2nd passagio (bet. mixed & head).
This is also called as the “break” or “vocal break”, and EVERYONE has these. For the lyric baritone type, their passagi are in B3 (1st) and E4 (2nd). This is also where Taehyung’s passagi are, where his “breaks” or “transition points” lie.+
The challenging part for singers is how they will navigate through these breaks/transition areas as they sing. Nothing but sheer dedication and practice aids the singer to navigate the break. Taehyung though, is amazingly smooth with these areas. +
Let’s have some examples of Taehyung smoothly and unnoticeably passing through his first passagio, starting with this clip (his line particularly from 0:33 to 0:37) https://twitter.com/bts_twt/status/1254817417273851904?s=21 https://twitter.com/BTS_twt/status/1254817417273851904
Honestly wouldn’t notice Taehyung passing through B4 in his first line in Magic Shop. So effortless 
And another example of Taehyung, smoothly navigating his first passagio in Whalien 52. Point has been made.
Now, some examples of Taehyung’s seamless transitions above his second passagio.
His transition in TTU from his mixed to upper can be heard smoothly. Love as well that he moves back up and down the 2nd passagio zone easily. Very stable and agile.
His transition in TTU from his mixed to upper can be heard smoothly. Love as well that he moves back up and down the 2nd passagio zone easily. Very stable and agile.
Another smooth transition above the second zone around 0:30 mark in Taehyung and Jungkook’s downtime cover of A Daily Song. And what a beautiful blending between their voices!
In Lights chorus, Taehyung uses “covering” of the vowel to aid him into his 2nd passagio. This is a very smart decision to keep the sound connected.
Final notes: You may notice that we used more recent, live clips of Taehyung’s singing. It’s a fact that there’s wear-and-tear with the human voice as it ages, and depending on a singer’s technique, vocal health can either strengthen or deteriorate chronically. +
Thus the use of more recent clips is to further prove our point about Taehyung’s vocal progress and professional maturity with technique while he navigates through his blessed range.
If you reached the end of this thread, our sincere thanks for reading! This has been unusually long but we hope you find any part of this insightful, useful, and that we are more appreciative of Taehyung and his skills more than ever now. +
We could only write these things because Taehyung’s passions, music and character truly resonate with us, and that’s all thanks to him. Here’s to the past 7 years with Taehyung and the future to come #뷔 #BTSV #TAEHYUNG #방탄소년단뷔
#뷔 #BTSV #TAEHYUNG #방탄소년단뷔
+1: Taehyung just chilling around with Jin and of course he’s singing and smoothly transitioning above that break on the upper range. Easy to miss it because he’s so damn good with his passagi 
https://twitter.com/briller613_bts/status/1278283767065440259/video/1
https://twitter.com/briller613_bts/status/1278283767065440259/video/1
+1: For missing clip on tweet: https://twitter.com/taefolio/status/1267464802097483776?s=21
+1: for missing clip of I’m Fine on tweet: https://twitter.com/taefolio/status/1267489513086914560?s=21
+1: for missing abridged clip of Taehyung in ON encore in tweet: https://twitter.com/taefolio/status/1267488594110771201?s=21
+1: missing clip of Taehyung’s more twang in another ON Encore tweet: https://twitter.com/taefolio/status/1267489208022663169
