Wiring the singer. Classical voice and the microphone

Given the ubiquity of the application of sound technology to the classical voice, this thesis investigates the ways the amplification of the classical voice is a catalyst for new expressive techniques and aesthetics. Such mediation of the classical voice is becoming widespread and pervasive. It is creating new expressive techniques and aesthetics, facilitating the construction of musical ensembles impossible without amplification, transforming non-traditional physical spaces into performing spaces and enhancing the performativity of the classical singing voice. These practices are challenging traditional understandings of the classical voice as a purely acoustic phenomenon and introducing new expressive techniques and aesthetics, some of which were previously considered dysfunctional or bad singing. This creates a problem for classical singers who clearly position themselves within the classical singing tradition and wish to develop new repertoire requiring the use of the microphone.