Inspired by a brief chat I had with John Driscoll (but not linked to or aimed accusingly at his own recent post), here's something I do as standard: write the range at the start of choral works. I started merely because some other scores I studied did it, and multiple directors/conductors have appreciated it in the years since. I assume it allows an immediate assessment of suitability for any given choir without needing to trawl through a piece, and makes the task of vetting and rejecting the slush pile easier.
My current approach attached, I'm assuming the site code will do something awful to the formatting.
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I did not expect this kind of music from you. It's beautiful, but because of the style.
Yeah, the exact vocal range strongly depends on the specific individuals who will be performing. General guidelines can be given, but for maximum effectiveness your best bet is probably to consult the specific singers who will be giving the actual performance.
John, in all my years in music, I've never heard the term 'ambitus' so thanks for that, it's my new favourite word. - so much so that I'm going to use it twice more in this short post. Another good use for ambitus is to signify altered tunings when using scordatura.
Extremities in range for singers have much in common with those for instruments. Factors involving dynamics, timbre, approach, context, skill level et al, all have a say in how effective a passage can be. There is more consensus on what is practical, reliable and effective for instrumentalists depending on the level of expertise, however one is definitely advised to check with singers and choirs beforehand and the ambitus certainly plays its part as a time saver in this regard.
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