Eighth octave C

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The musical note C8 is the C two full octaves above soprano high C. The note is one octave above the top of common musical keyboards, but the highest note of an 88-key piano. The pitch vibrates at 4,186 Hz (the A note below middle C vibrates at 220 Hz in comparison).

For a vocalist to hit a note of this pitch, their vocal cords must vibrate at over 4,000 times per second. This is nearly impossible because of the muscular control required in adducting the vocal cords that high. Adam Lopez and Georgia Brown have reached C8, and Minnie Riperton and Mariah Carey are able to sing quite near this note. Mariah may possibly be able to hit it, in fact she hit B7 (possibly ad-libbed high) in a live performance in Switzerland [link] (on celebrity vocal coach Mark Baxter's website, he claims to have "heard her sing over the top of the piano" or surpass this note, and Minnie is well-rumored to have been able to hit a C8 in live performances). Every octave jump doubles the rate of vibration (i.e. C5 vibrates twice as fast as middle C (C4) and soprano C two octaves higher vibrates four times as fast). The Guinness record, for highest note by sung a male is now held by Adam Lopez, singing an astonishing C#8 live on the Australian Television Broadcast of Guinness World Records.

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