BEL CANTO AND CHINESE VOCAL PHONETICS: GENDER DIMENSION OF INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE

Abstract

The article is devoted to a comprehensive analysis of the Bel Canto phenomenon compared to Chinese vocal phonetics through the lens of gender semiotics. The European tradition of Bel Canto, formed in the seventeenth and 19th centuries, is based on the principles of cantilever, Legato, timbre equality and perfect breathing, as well as on transparent loud articulation. It distinguishes various roles of soprano (colorful, lyrical, dramatic, spinto), which symbolize archetypal models of femininity: from tenderness and purity to tragedy and heroic passion. Instead, the Chinese vocal tradition, represented by the theaters of Jinjiai and Kuntsii, as well as the chamber-vocal work of the XX–XXI centuries. Singing in it is at the same time "recitation" and "speech", where phonetics and articulation carry a semantic load. A special role is played by the feminine roles of tribute (price, Hua-Dan, Tao-Ma-Dan), which reflect the range of cultural archetypes: nobility, playfulness, heroic. In this way, phonetics becomes a tool for fixing gender codes in musical practice.In the article, as in the XX–XXI centuries. The intercultural dialogue of European and Chinese vocal schools generates new phenomena – including the formation of "bifonetics" that integrates Western and oriental articulation models. Examples of adaptation of Chinese vocalists to Bel Canto technique and interpretation strategies of European singers in the Chinese repertoire are analyzed. The research methodology is based on historical, comparative, analytical, semiotic and gender approaches. The scientific novelty is the systematic comparison of the phonetic bases of Bel Canto and Chinese tradition in the gender aspect, and practical importance is the possibility of using results in modern vocal pedagogy and cross-interpretation.