Many singers have unusual abilities to hit high notes and when you mention singers with the highest vocal range, Mariah Carey easily comes to mind. However, even though the singer has an amazing vocal range of 5 octaves, she is not the singer with the highest range.
A vocal range is simply the range from the lowest to the highest note that a voice can produce. Singing teachers define a vocal range as the total range of “musically useful” pitches a singer can do.
Many singers have wowed the world with their amazing vocal range and you might be wondering how far these singers can produce vocal sounds. Ideally, singers should have between 2 and 3 octaves, however these exceed these limits. In this article, RNN highlights the top 10 female singers with the highest vocal range.
10. Beyonce
Yes, Beyonce has an amazing vocal range, but if we were to put her on a list with all the singers who have ranges of 4 octaves and above, she definitely wouldn’t be in the top 10. That’s because the vocal range by Beyoncé is higher than 3 octaves but not up to four.
She has one of the loudest voices in the industry and even though she doesn’t have a whistle range, her vocal dexterity is to be envied.
9. Britney Spears
Britney Spears has a vocal range of 4 octaves and the singer is known for her incredible ability to sing high and low notes with great force and control.
Its strength lies in its unusual vocal timbre. Her nasal, babylike sound sets her apart from other singers. Spears has a great ability to hold notes and explore different octaves. She is definitely one of the greatest singers of our time!
8. Hayley Williams
Hayley Williams boasts of a 4 octave range. The American soprano singer is known for being the lead singer, keyboardist and main songwriter of the rock band Paramore. According to Emilee Lindner of MTV News, Williams also has the ability to sing in the whistle register, although she barely shows it.
The singer has the ability to hold quite low notes and maneuver high notes with incredible balance.
7. Ariana Grande
Ariana Grande is known for her wide vocal range and incredible tone. She has a 4 octave range even as a light lyric soprano. Grande has an excellent low range and an impressive ability to hit high notes as well.
The Grammy winner is widely respected for her range and vocal prowess. She also has a whistle register. Grande drew a lot of comparisons to Mariah Carey when she released “Yours Truly,” a song that exposed the world to the power of her voice.
6. Christine Aguilera
Christina Aguilera is another 4 octave soprano singer the world is blessed with. The American singer was tagged “The Voice of a Generation”, an honorary nickname that she now wears as a badge.
Aguilera has also been compared to Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston, 2 great singers the world has known so far. However, it is not without criticism. She was criticized for her excessive use of melisma (riffs and runs).
5. Stacy Francois
Stacy Francis has a rich 5 octave range as a contralto singer. She is known for having participated in the first season of X Factor USA. She caught the eye of the public during the competition where judges LA Reid, Paula Abdul, Cheryl Cole and Simon Cowell were present. She sang “You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman” by Aretha Franklin and received four yeses from the judges.
She wowed the judges and audience with her vocal prowess, pitch, and ability to hold the notes. Since then, she has become one of the singers with the highest vocal range in the world.
4. Celine Dion
Celine Dion has a wide range of 5 octaves. Although she once claimed to be a mezzo-soprano, Dion is actually a full-fledged lyric soprano, as Carmen had imagined.
Charles Alexander of Time once said that “her voice shifts effortlessly from deep whispers to high notes, a gentle siren that combines strength and grace”. No truer words.
3. Mariah Carey
You’re probably shocked that Mariah Carey isn’t first on the list, contrary to popular belief that she has the highest vocal range in the world. Carey has a 5 octave vocal range and an incredible whistle register.
She is known for her melismatic singing style and songwriting. She is labeled “Songbird Supreme” and “Christmas Queen” due to her beautiful Christmas renditions.
2. Rachelle Ferrel
Rachelle Ferrell is an American singer and musician who started music at the age of six. She has a range of six octaves and an ability to sing in the whistle register. An example of her incredible vocal ability can be heard in “It Only Took a Minute”, which has been described as “Minnie Riperton-esque moans”.
Ferrell is most respected for her skill as a contemporary jazz singer, delivery, range, control and improvisational vocal percussion.
1. Georgia Brown
Georgia Brown tops the list of singers with the highest vocal range. It has an incredible 8 octave range (G2 to G10). This was verified at the Aqui Jazz Atelier music school in Sao Paulo, Brazil in August 2004.
According to experts, its highest note (the G10) is technically a frequency, not a musical note. Its range has been expertly verified using a Hammond organ, violin and piano. Brown is the singer with the highest vocal range in the world.
Top 10 singers with the highest vocal range
Here are the top 10 female singers with the highest vocal range as highlighted in this article.
- Georgia Brown – 8 octaves
- Rachelle Ferrell – 6 octaves
- Mariah Carey – 5 octaves
- Celine Dion – 5 octaves
- Stacy Francis – 5 octaves
- Christina Aguilera – 4 Octaves
- Ariana Grande – 4 octaves
- Hayley Williams – 4 octaves
- Britney Spears – 4 octaves
- Beyonce – 3.5 – 4 octaves
