[en] We present results of Raman-scattering experiments in differently doped YBa₂Cu₃O_6+x (Y-123) and Bi₂Sr₂(Ca_xY_1-x)Cu₂O_8+δ (Bi-2212) single crystals. When reducing the doping level x the scattering intensity in B_1g symmetry increases while it decreases in the B_2g channel. This anisotropic behavior can be attributed to a qualitative change of the Fermi surface topology. At B_2g symmetry we find evidence of a pseudogap Δ^* in the normal state below a characteristic temperature T^* ∼ 180 K. In the superconducting state, the spectra obtained from overdoped samples show the well-known pair-breaking (2Δ) features in both B_1g and B_2g symmetries while in the underdoped regime pair-breaking maxima can only be observed in the B_2g channel. The magnitude of the gap can be estimated to be approximately 8kT_c and is, from our experiments, different from Δ^*. (orig.)