Altos

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of singing voice usually associated with the lower range of female or male vocalists in choral music
2. A voice part in a choir that typically lies between the soprano and tenor ranges
3. Referring to the second highest vocal range, often represented in musical compositions and performances

Etymology: "Altos" is the plural of "alto", so it names the singers or instruments that take the alto part, and the singular form carries the history. The term comes from Italian "alto", meaning "high", which is the same word that gives English "old" through a separate path: the two are doublets, sharing one Latin ancestor, "altus", meaning "high" or "grown up", that split into Italian on one branch and Old English "eald" on the other. The musical sense is a case of a word describing physical height being applied to pitch. In medieval and Renaissance polyphony, the part sung above the tenor was called the "altus", and the name reflected its position in the musical texture rather than the singer's stature. Over time the Italian form "alto" became the standard English term, and the word now refers to the vocal range sitting just above tenor.

Synonyms: singers, musicians