Vocal Vibrato in Early & Baroque Music

[MRC01]

As an amateur musician (not vocalist) and avid listener of early music, I wonder how this music was performed in its time. Early music before this period, such as Hildegard of Bingen's from the early 1100s, is often performed with little or no vibrato, and I find this suits the music well. It seems that vibrato became more accepted and common later in the renaissance and into the baroque period. We aren't talking about modern or pop music, where vibrato tends to be grossly exaggerated perhaps as a way to mask the fact that singers can't sing in tune.

I enjoyed this video on the subject.

 

[Titurel]

I personally don't care for the straight as a train whistle hooters any more than I do for singers with wobbles you could drift an 18-wheeler through. An even, moderate amplitude vibrato (in both pitch and volume) is acceptable as long as it does not obscure pitch or hamper tuning. So, the amount of vibrato acceptable in a given situation depends on the tempo, harmonic style (and density) and the acoustics of the venue. Also, vibrato rates between 6-8 Hz tend to be more pleasing. Faster or slower is distracting. Beyond that, we open up a very large can of worms, with performers saying one thing (not always the same thing) and musicologists saying something else, typically with nothing to support their suppositions except the testimony of other "scholars."

In general (within the Italianate tradition), an even, narrow compass vibrato is usually associated with good technique and a healthy voice.

 

[Eric Natural]

I sang Plainsong & early Liturgical in College and was instructed to not wobble my cords
it's a lost technique these days