Italian for 'beautiful
singing',
bel canto refers to both a specific period in the musical history of Italy, 1800-1850, and also to a very appealing and light
vocal quality
cultivated by Italian
Opera singers, especially
sopranos and
tenors during this period. A prime aspect of the style is the
continuity of
tone, and the flowing,
vowel-rich Italian language lends itself to this. There was emphasis on expressing emotion while sounding as natural as possible.
Puccini and
Rossini (The
Barber of Seville, for example), among others, wrote Operas with bel canto style in mind.
The popularity of the
bel canto style
waxes and wanes, but it never seems to go completely
out of style (for good reason).