A soprano is the highest singing voice, whether for a woman, girl, or young boy. In a choir or musical performance, sopranos sing the highest notes, often carrying the main melody that floats above the other voices. Think of Julie Andrews singing “Do-Re-Mi” in The Sound of Music: that clear, bright, high voice is a classic soprano sound.

The word comes from Italian, the language of opera, where sopranos often play leading roles like princesses or heroines. In school choirs, sopranos typically stand on one side while altos (lower female voices) stand on the other. Many famous singers are sopranos, including Maria Callas and Renée Fleming in opera, and Ariana Grande in pop music.

Soprano can also refer to the highest instrument in a family of instruments. A soprano saxophone or soprano recorder plays higher notes than the standard versions of those instruments, just as a soprano voice sings higher than other voices.

When boys go through puberty, their voices typically drop lower and they can no longer sing soprano parts. But before that change, many professional choirs feature boy sopranos whose pure, high voices create a distinctive sound in classical and sacred music.