These are cola nuts.
In 1975, Pepsi-Cola launched an advertising campaign called The Pepsi Challenge. It is an example of what I call a false dilemma. What one "likes" does not matter. A true test is if a test subject can tell which-is-which. That would be an objective test. Give me the percentage of a random sample that cannot tell the difference between Pepsi and Coke. That would present a problem, a dilemma; why cannot some taste the difference? The no-difference cohort would appear to be a problem for both Pepsi and Coke: what is the rate of tasters who can't tell the difference, and how do we get them to taste the difference?
When I was a child I loved “7-up” brand soda pop. I was always begging for it. Once, as a joke, my father gave me a cup of water instead. I took one sip, looked up, and said, "What is this?" It wasn't that I didn't know the difference between water and soda pop. It was that he was testing me—teasing me—and I have been wary ever since. I screamed, "Adonnnaaaaai!" (and cried.) At the playground, when the kids talked about getting fooled, we had a word for it: "gyp." Never trust a grownup. They are too smart. Don't get gypped.
Later, as a juvenile (about age 11), my voice started cracking. The family drama then took a turn for the ludicrous. I took the laughter in good stride. Everyone assured me it was natural, and that I was growing up. At about the same age, I advanced to a Jr. High School, where music was a requirement for everybody. The teacher's name was Micheletti. The course was mostly listening, and a few, practical, singing activities. The final exam was to correctly sing the pitch of the notes played by Mr. Micheletti on the piano. When my turn to take the test was over, Mr. Micheletti said to me, "You are an alto." I was indignant. I felt like arguing with him, not because of what he called me, because of the way he said it.
In retrospect, what I resented was being told, that's what you are (labeled), instead of being told what I was capable of doing. Can I sing, Mr. Micheletti, or did I just pass the test? Like most kids, I sang without prompting, before Jr. High School. That's when I quit singing. Now, as a seasoned adult, I am capable of appreciating that the little scene with Mr. Micheletti may have been the point of his course. It was not a test of singing ability. It was a test of my mettle. I shall never forget the doubtful look in his eye as he graded my pitch. After the ordeal all the students asked one another, "What are you?" I felt like lying. I was cast in a role not of my own choosing.
It was never my intention to sing or perform music. My satisfaction has always come from being a listener. My present level of music appreciation is a tenuous grasp of the subtleties of opera. In spite of listening for a long time, my appreciation is still rudimentary. Music appreciation is like building a house. My knowledge of which voices are appropriate to which roles, the sopranos (particularly the coloratura), the contraltos, the tenor and countertenor, baritone range, and the rest, gives me some confidence. Appreciation is its own reward.
My focus is on how operatic performers are cast in the right role. The singer must be a good match for the part. Take this test: What part would you perform, and why? The individual singing voices (except the contralto) are well-defined and easily identified. It is the ambiguity of the contralto which makes it so interesting. There are both male and female contralto roles, for both men, and women. Both men and women may be capable of singing a specific contralto role. Their respective performances will have, however, a distinctly different effect. It is a unique character of a performer's voice which makes it suitable for a particular role.
To be clear, it's not playing guessing games with the audience -is the singer a man, or a woman? This goes back to the hypothetical Pepsi taste test. Are you willing to take the contralto test? It's not a matter of what you “like.” Can you hear the difference between a male contralto and a female contralto by listening? The test will consist of playing recordings in alternation for comparison. By listening, tell which performance is by a male, and which by a female. Watching videos of performances helps immensely. One may know it is a man singing, or a woman, although they sound the same.
Well, almost the same, with imperceptible differences. What is it that sounds male, or female, about a contralto? It is an essence which makes a singer right for the role. Know the roles. More advanced still, the performer in the role brings to the role the qualities that are right for the role, after years and years of practice. Let's say the sheet music calls for a contralto (and there are as many contralto parts as there are plays); next, find the singer who can best express the role. That's the object of audition, and, while everyone auditioning is talented, just one stands-out for the part.
Soon, I shall listen to performances by acclaimed stars of the opera stage -for what makes it a great performance (or not). Before that, I must be competent to define the qualities of a voice. I'm picking up a lot of chatter about singing "from the mask," as opposed to, "from the heart," from which I gather "the mask" means comedy, or satire, while "from the heart" should be obvious. The role of "the mask" is as a page, a herald, or an announcer—literally an errand boy—one not acting for himself, alone. The role to be sung "from the heart" is one who is nobody's water carrier, heroic, an individualist.
The contraltos are as different as the songs of the Mockingbird and the Canary. While performing, the male contralto can be seen to contort his face. The effect is enhanced by stage make-up. I am picking up on discussion about the difference between singing "from the larynx," and singing "from the diaphragm." I have even picked-up on the pejorative "nasally," to describe an obnoxious, arrogant, male contralto. It's not meant as an insult. To repeat: "liking" (or not) is irrelevant. It's a display of the power of voice control (not of taste). That is not to say a male contralto cannot sing soft (likable), contralto roles. The male contralto dominates church music. What would not seem to work is a "nasally" male contralto singing a sympathetic woman's part.