Vocal Range

D3 ~ C6 (2 octaves and 5 notes)

Supported Range

G3/G#3 ~ C#5/D5 (without head voice)

G3/G#3 – C#5/D5 ~ F5/F#5 (with head voice)

Voice Type

Light Lyric Soprano

Strengths/Achievements Consistent forward placement in the A4~D5 range Consistent resonance in the A4~C5/C#5 range Consistently supported up to C#5/D5 Occasional resonance up to D5 Forward masked placed sound in the chest voice Supports and projects down to G3/G#3 Has done supported Eb5s At times head voice can be produced up to F#5/G5 Head voice Bb5 Capable of doing runs with good flow and pitch accuracy Healthy vibrato is produced with good support Stable pitch majority of the time Weaknesses Inconsistent head voice Pitch can be inconsistent Faster runs can be sloppy and inaccurate Support above C#5/D5 is inconsistent Lower register below G3 becomes really airy Inconsistent with vowels Registers Lower register: Since her debut, Taeyeon’s lower register has improved significantly expanding from Bb3/B3 to G3/G#3 since 2007. Her lower register has far more connection and projection than it did before.  Taeyeon carries decent support down to G3/G#3, however her voice has the most projection in the G#3/A3 range. Below G3 Taeyeon’s voice becomes very airy and unsupported, but she maintains a neutral larynx. Mixed register: Taeyeon has consistent support up to C#5/D5 and consistent resonance up to C5/C#5. She generally produces very open and resonant notes in the A4~C5/C#5 range and occasionally up to D5. Above D5 Taeyeon’s voice becomes tight and strained. Upper register:  Although Taeyeon actively switches back and forth between falsetto and head voice it is safe to assume she uses head voice. Taeyeon, when not using falsetto, can carry a supported head voice up to F5/F#5 though not resonant. Above F#5 her head voice and falsetto become very tense and shrill. Agility

As a vocalist that trained under The One, who incorporates many runs into his performances, Taeyeon herself has developed a fair share of agility. Though overlooked in previous years, in 2015 Taeyeon made point to demonstrate her skill when it comes to agility. The most noticeable piece is “Check” from Girls’ Generation’s Party single which is filled with numeous runs from Taeyeon, similarly “Bump It” from the Lion Heartalbum also features many runs from TaeYeon as do many of the songs from that album. However in 2012 Taeyeon showed she was definitely capable of doing complicated runs live with her various performances of “Lady Marmalade” with Tiffany.  Taeyeon has shown she is best suited for slow to mid-tempo runs with faster runs she tends to lose control and rhythmic flow and her pitch tends to go off.

Overall analysis

TaeYeon made her debut in 2007 as the main vocalist and leader of South Korea’s leading girl group Girls’ Generation. Since her debut Taeyeon has made a name for herself as one of South Korea’s top idol vocalist and one of their most respected singers because of her many OST with her 2008 OST “If” being her most popular and the one that put her in South Korea’s eyes as a vocalist. TaeYeon is often praised for her ability to convey emotions as a singer. Composer Yoo Youngseok expressed his feeling about TaeYeon’s voice saying “Taeyeon feels like a woman who has been divorced 7 times”, meaning she is able to sing about heart break and parting well. Label mateJongHyun of SHINee expresed his agreement with composer Yoo Youngseok’s comment about Taeyeon saying, “I also feel that [Taeyeon’s] voice sounds like a woman with lots of experience of love and parting.” He reveals that he has felt this way about her ever since they were both trainees and Taeyeon “was born with the talent of expressing her sensitivity” showing he acknowledges his label mate’s skill.

During her debut years, Taeyeon used much more chest resonance in her singing, causing her to have a much richer and fuller tone production. However it seems after 2009 she switched to a lighter and brighter tone quality with some slight airiness as well. This is best exemplified in her radio performances prior to 2009, for example her performance of “Reflection” with Tiffany. In this performance TaeYeon is using a significant amo