Does Taylor Swift Have Perfect Pitch?

People know that Taylor Swift is a true artist who writes her own songs and conveys a lot of personal emotion in her singing. But how good is her singing and does Taylor Swift have perfect pitch?

Taylor Swift does not have perfect pitch, which is when a singer can sing a musical note perfectly without a reference tone or accompaniment. She does, however, have an excellent singing voice that spans 3 octaves.

While having perfect pitch is a great thing, it is not the end-all and be-all. Taylor Swift is not a less-than singer because she does not have this.

There are many great singers who do not have perfect pitch.

I wanted to understand more about Taylor’s voice, so I did some research. How is her voice rated, is she a soprano, and most of all, is she a versatile singer?

Those questions and more will be answered in the text to follow.

Does Taylor Swift use pitch correction?

Taylor Swift does use pitch correction, commonly referred to as autotune, in her studio recordings. Her studio recordings are often highly produced and polished.

And interestingly, many of the live solo acoustic renditions of her songs are even performed in a different key from the studio version. That begs the question as to whether autotune is used on her albums to help her hit notes she can’t actually hit in real life.

But that doesn’t mean Taylor doesn’t have a great voice and needs autotune to sing in key.

It’s just that many big labels and top-name producers insist on using autotune for how it alters the sound of the voice. So, it’s not always about fixing wrong notes.

The level of use of autotune makes a difference.

Listen to an artist like Childish Gambino or Post Malone, and you’ll hear super-obvious and ridiculously high levels of autotune.

That’s not how Taylor does it.

I discussed Taylor’s use of autotune in a recent article. In it, I fully dive into the extent to which she uses it. I also gave examples and discussed the studio aid in general to provide a better understanding.

Just click that link to read it on my site.

How many octaves does Taylor Swift have?

Taylor Swift’s voice spans 3 octaves. The average for most singers is two octaves, and only a few gifted singers such as Brendon Urie or Celine Dion have 4 or more octaves.

Taylor Swift is a skilled singer but not considered one of the greats.

This is perfectly fine as not everyone has to have the biggest voice. Taylor is still extremely talented. Her voice spans three octaves. Taylor’s vocal range is B2- G5- D6. Although pleasing to the ear, her range is not the reason why people love Taylor’s music.

Vocal range is not the end-all and be-all.

Taylor Swift has grown as a singer over the years. While it’s not clear that her range has extended, her voice is stronger.

This has come from both age and experience.

Is Taylor Swift an alto or soprano?

Taylor Swift is a soprano. Soprano is the highest register for a female voice. But Taylor is most likely a coloratura soprano which has the same range but a lighter, slightly less powerful voice.

Almost without question, Taylor Swift is a soprano, or perhaps even a light-lyric soprano which is akin to the coloratura soprano I mentioned above.

However, unlike many sopranos, especially a mezzo soprano, her voice is not very large or aggressive. She has very low tessitura, which is uncharacteristic of a soprano.

Despite people liking her voice, Taylor has been ridiculed before for her singing.

Early on, many people felt that she was not deserving of her success. The reason detractors gave was that her voice was extremely regular.

Taylor Swift indeed has a regular voice.

However, what makes her different is that she has mastered the art of showing the best parts of her voice. This shows that learning a great technique can make up for a singer not having the best voice.

Is Taylor Swift a versatile singer?

Taylor Swift is a versatile singer in that she is equally comfortable with country, pop, and folk songs and can easily alter her voice to fit with the style of the particular song she is performing.

One of the things that makes people like Taylor’s music is her versatility as a singer. This makes up for her smaller range in comparison to other singers. Many fans say that Taylor could sing almost any music because of this.

A versatile singer is a singer with longevity.

Taylor Swift has been a hitmaker for years now. She still knows how to surprise an audience. Being a versatile singer has helped her last in an industry that seeks to replace female pop stars.

Taylor’s change in genres is also an example of her being a versatile singer.

She went from being a mostly country singer to being a solidified pop singer. In fact, there are many fans who may not even remember that Taylor began her career as a country songstress.

Taylor does not get the credit she deserves.

People don’t realize the amount of talent it takes to switch genres in the way Taylor did. Her approach to music changed, her live shows were altered, and she was able to not only retain her fanbase but to grow it.

Swift is denied her proper credit because she does not have the strongest voice.

People who are not fans of her find it easy to say she’s not talented for this reason. However, her longevity proves otherwise.

Does Taylor Swift have a good singing voice?

Taylor Swift has a very good, but not great, singing voice. But she makes up for a less-than-powerhouse vocal style with a great ability to tell a story and to emotionally connect with her fans through her singing.

When it comes to singing, Taylor Swift is good.

She’s not the best, but she is not the worst. She also proves herself singing live when she’s not moving around a lot.

Great lyrics are key.

Taylor’s voice is easy to listen to. She’s not a singer people listen to and say she can’t sing. This is the case for many more modern artists. Lyrics are the real stars of the show when it comes to Taylor.

One of the many great things about Taylor’s success is that it shows artists don’t have to be perfect. She is a great artist despite vocal shortcomings.

Taylor’s influence helped give rise to Olivia Rodrigo.

In a recent article, I discussed Taylor’s influence on Olivia Rodrigo. Olivia is a huge fan of Taylor, and the two artists are similar. Olivia is who Taylor would have been if she did not start as a country singer. But some people even think Taylor might be her mom. Is it true?

Just click that link to read it on my site.

Does Taylor Swift lip sync in live performances?

Taylor Swift does sing live during her concerts. And her live performances always have a solo acoustic segment where she’s clearly singing totally live.

But like a lot of modern performers, she does use some backing tracks on her pop hits which often include extra vocal parts (which include her voice as well as others) and added instrumentation beyond what her band is playing live.

If you don’t have perfect pitch can you sing the notes correctly?

In short, yes; especially with music playing behind you.

Perfect pitch, as we’ve discussed, is the ability to sing the pitch of a note perfectly without any backing music. I say “sing an A flat” and you sing a perfect A flat.

But many famous singers don’t have perfect pitch.

It just means they are less apt to sing acapella (without any instruments; like you see in the Pitch Perfect movies). And it means they are reliant on their band, or the instrument they play, to make sure they know what notes to sing and what the key of the song is.

What is a head voice and does that help control pitch?

Head voice is similar to falsetto where a singer sings notes in a higher, almost whisper-like singing voice that is above the range of their normal voice (chest voice).

It’s not as powerful for sure, but it does allow a singer to sign high notes they wouldn’t otherwise be able to sing.

So if, for example, a singer wanted to sing a high note in their chest voice that was a little too high for them, if they tried to sing it anyway, they might not sound very good or they might go sharp or flat on the note.

So in that sense, singing in their head voice will allow them to hit the note with a greater chance of hitting the note correctly.

What other current pop singers have perfect pitch?

There are a number of other singers in Taylor’s generation that have perfect pitch. Those include:

  • Lady Gaga
  • Charlie Puth
  • Jungkook (BTS)
  • Ariana Grande
  • Keith Urban
  • Mariah Carey

And while outstandingly talented, Swift’s frequent duet partner Ed Sheeran does not, in fact, have perfect pitch.

Conclusion

Taylor Swift is considered one of the most successful artists of all time.

She may not have a powerhouse singing voice, but she is very talented. Taylor has more than enough star power to make up for her less-than-perfect voice.

As years have gone on, Taylor has started using autotune. Not to the point that it makes her less of an artist, but she uses it as an aid. Many fans welcome this change.

In many ways, Taylor has helped define the modern age of pop music. With her emotional lyrics, versatile voice, and approach to being a superstar, Taylor Swift is a true artist.

To see more of her evolution, listen to her two most recent albums, folklore and evermore.

I discussed them at length in a recent article and even tried to determine which was better. The article also discusses why Taylor recorded the albums.

Just click that link to read it on my site.


Photo which requires attribution:

Taylor Swift by Eva Rinaldi is licensed under CC2.0 and was cropped, edited, and had a text overlay added.

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