Effects of vocal training on the acoustic parameters of the singing voice (original) (raw)
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Journal of Voice, 2014
A longitudinal study was performed on the acoustical effects of singing voice training under a given study program, using the voice range profile (VRP). Pretraining and posttraining recordings were made of students who participated in a 3-year bachelor singing study program. A questionnaire that included questions on optimal range, register use, classification, vocal health and hygiene, mixing technique, and training goals was used to rate and categorize self-assessed voice changes. Based on the responses, a subgroup of 10 classically trained female voices was selected, which was homogeneous enough for effects of training to be identified. The VRP perimeter contour was analyzed for effects of voice training. Also, a mapping within the VRP of voice quality, as expressed by the crest factor, was used to indicate the register boundaries and to monitor the acoustical consequences of the newly learned vocal technique of "mixed voice." VRPs were averaged across subjects. Findings were compared with the self-assessed vocal changes. Pre/post comparison of the average VRPs showed, in the midrange, (1) a decrease in the VRP area that was associated with the loud chest voice, (2) a reduction of the crest factor values, and (3) a reduction of maximum sound pressure level values. The students' self-evaluations of the voice changes appeared in some cases to contradict the VRP findings. VRPs of individual voices were seen to change over the course of a singing education. These changes were manifest also in the average group. High-resolution computerized recording, complemented with an acoustic register marker, allows a meaningful assessment of some effects of training, on an individual basis and for groups that comprise singers of a specific genre. It is argued that this kind of investigation is possible only within a focused training program, given by a faculty who has agreed on the goals.
Effects of singing training on the speaking voice of voice majors
Journal of Voice, 2004
This longitudinal study gathered data with regard to the question: Does singing training have an effect on the speaking voice? Fourteen voice majors (12 females and two males; age range 17 to 20 years) were recorded once a semester for four consecutive semesters, while sustaining vowels and reading the "Rainbow Passage." Acoustic measures included speaking fundamental frequency (SFF) and sound pressure level (SLP). Perturbation measures included jitter, shimmer, and harmonic-to-noise ratio. Temporal measures included sentence, consonant, and diphthong durations. Results revealed that, as the number of semesters increased, the SFF increased while jitter and shimmer slightly decreased. Repeated measure analysis, however, indicated that none of the acoustic, temporal, or perturbation differences were statistically significant. These results confirm earlier cross-sectional studies that compared singers with nonsingers, in that singing training mostly affects the singing voice and rarely the speaking voice.
Journal of Voice Official Journal of the Voice Foundation, 2011
Objectives: This prospective cross-sectional study examines the effects of voice training on vocal capabilities in vocally healthy age and gender differentiated groups measured by voice range profile (VRP) and speech range profile (SRP). Methods: Frequency and intensity measurements of the VRP and SRP using standard singing and speaking voice protocols were derived from 161 trained choir singers (21 males, 59 females, and 81 prepubescent children) and from 188 nonsingers (38 males, 89 females, and 61 children). Results: When compared with nonsingers, both genders of trained adult and child singers exhibited increased mean pitch range, highest frequency, and VRP area in high frequencies (P<0.05). Female singers and child singers also showed significantly increased mean maximum voice intensity, intensity range, and total VRP area. The logistic regression analysis showed that VRP pitch range, highest frequency, maximum voice intensity, and maximum-minimum intensity range, and SRP slope of speaking curve were the key predictors of voice training. Age, gender, and voice training differentiated norms of VRP and SRP parameters are presented. Conclusions: Significant positive effect of voice training on vocal capabilities, mostly singing voice, was confirmed. The presented norms for trained singers, with key parameters differentiated by gender and age, are suggested for clinical practice of otolaryngologists and speech-language pathologists.
Effects of Vocal Demands on Voice Performance of Student Singers
Journal of voice : official journal of the Voice Foundation, 2014
The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of cumulative vocal demands on the voices of music students majoring in voice throughout an academic semester. Acoustic and aerodynamic voice parameters captured across an academic semester were analyzed. This study was designed as a time-course investigation, in which all participants were tested individually at three separate times distributed equally over an academic semester. General effects were verified with the application of one-way within-participants analysis of variances with repeated measures. The equipment used for monitoring vocal behavior consisted of the Computerized Speech Lab, the Phonatory Aerodynamic System, and the Ambulatory Phonation Monitor, computer-based systems for the assessment of voice. Self-reported data regarding voice usage were also collected. In this study, comparisons of voice parameters of student singers repeatedly measured throughout an extended period of time did not lead to statistical...
Journal of Voice, 2010
The male classical singing voice is a musical instrument that is very important in western culture. It has many acoustic features which should change and improve over the period in which the singer trains. In this study we compare nine singers in different stages of training, from university level students through to international soloists. Typically, Energy Ratio (ER; a measure of mean spectral slope) and mean sound pressure level (SPL) may be calculated to summarize an entire singing sample. We investigate an alternative approach, by calculating the time-varying ER and SPL. The inspection of the distribution of these descriptors over an aria's time period yields a more detailed picture of the strategies for high-frequency energy production used by singers with different levels of training.
Influence of Singing Activity, Age, and Sex on Voice Performance Parameters, on Subjects Perceptio
The aim of the study was to investigate the extent to which regular singing activity and voice training in children and adolescents enhance their voice performance parameters and their perception of their own voice and the extent to which their voice control is improved. At the same time, additional effects of age and sex were also taken into account. We investigated 183 children and adolescents between 6 and 19 years of age (mean age: 13.5 years) and assigned them to groups with different levels of voice strain and training with voice specialists. This was done on the basis of a classification of singing activity which we developed ourselves. We measured the voice parameters, and all of the test subjects were asked to appraise their perception and conscious control of their voices based on a questionnaire comprising 21 items. The higher the degree of vocal strain (taking regularity and organization of singing into consideration) and voice training, the more the perception and conscious control of the voice. Furthermore, the more intense the voice training, the wider the voice range becomes; the stronger the vocal strain, the better the capacity for messa di voce. On the other hand, the maximum duration of sustained phonation unexpectedly decreased, which we attribute to methodological reasons. Older children evince more differentiated perception of the sound of their own voices and imitate other voices more frequently. Boys show better values than girls as far as maximum voice intensity, maximum duration of phonation, and capacity for messa di voce are concerned. Boys also control their voices more consciously than girls. The results underscore the positive effects of regular singing and individual voice training on voice performance, sound perception, and conscious control of the voice. These results should encourage parents and pedagogues to provide opportunities for regular (organized) singing and voice training for as many children as possible. Moreover, age and gender have additional effects which should be taken into account in phoniatric and voice pedagogical counseling.
Effect of Training and Level of External Auditory Feedback on the Singing Voice: Volume and Quality
Journal of voice : official journal of the Voice Foundation, 2015
Previous research suggests that classically trained professional singers rely not only on external auditory feedback but also on proprioceptive feedback associated with internal voice sensitivities. The Lombard effect and the relationship between sound pressure level (SPL) and external auditory feedback were evaluated for professional and nonprofessional singers. Additionally, the relationship between voice quality, evaluated in terms of singing power ratio (SPR), and external auditory feedback, level of accompaniment, voice register, and singer gender was analyzed. The subjects were 10 amateur or beginner singers and 10 classically trained professional or semiprofessional singers (10 men and 10 women). Subjects sang an excerpt from the Star-Spangled Banner with three different levels of the accompaniment, 70, 80, and 90 dBA and with three different levels of external auditory feedback. SPL and SPR were analyzed. The Lombard effect was stronger for nonprofessional singers than profe...
Perceptual and acoustic study of professionally trained versus untrained voices
Journal of Voice, 2000
Acoustic and perceptual analyses were completed to determine the effect of vocal training on professional singers when speaking and singing. Twenty professional singers and 20 nonsingers, acting as the control, were recorded while sustaining a vowel, reading a modified Rainbow Passage, and singing "America the Beautiful" Acoustic measures included fundamental frequency, duration, percent jitter, percent shimmer, noise-to-harmonic ratio, and determination of the presence or absence of both vibrato and the singer's formant. Results indicated that, whereas certain acoustic parameters differentiated singers from nonsingers within sex, no consistently significant trends were found across males and females for either speaking or singing. The most consistent differences were the presence or absence of the singer's vibrato and formant in the singers versus the nonsingers, respectively. Perceptual analysis indicated that singers could be correctly identified with greater frequency than by chance alone from their singing, but not their speaking utterances.
International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 2013
The present study examined the possible relationship between classifi cation of professional singing voices and their vocal tract parameters including vocal tract length and volume, and vowel formant frequencies. Acoustic refl ection technology (ART) was used to measure vocal tract length and volume of 107 professional singers: 32 tenors, 25 baritones, 27 sopranos, and 23 mezzo-sopranos. The fi rst three formant frequencies (F1 -F3) of the English vowels /a, ae , i/ produced by the professional singers were also obtained. Results indicated signifi cantly shorter oral and vocal tract length, and smaller oral and vocal tract volume associated with sopranos when compared with mezzo-sopranos. Acoustically, sopranos had higher F1, F2, and F3 values than mezzo-sopranos. The present fi ndings suggest that, in addition to vocal tract length, vocal tract volume may also affect formant frequencies, implying the possibility that classifying professional singing voices is based on both vocal tract length and volume information.
Measurements of the Acoustic Speaking Voice After Vocal Warm-up and Cooldown in Choir Singers
Journal of Voice, 2017
The aim of this study was to evaluate the acoustic measurements of the vowel /a/ in modal recording before and after a singing voice resistance test and after 30 minutes of absolute rest in female choir singers. Study Design. This is a prospective cohort study. Methods. A total of 13 soprano choir singers with experience in choir singing were evaluated through analysis of acoustic voice parameters at three points in time: before continuous use of the voice, after vocal warm-up and a singing test 60 minutes in duration respecting the pauses for breathing, and after vocal cooldown and an absolute voice rest for 30 minutes. Results. The fundamental frequency increased after the voice resistance test (P = 0.012) and remained elevated after the 30 minutes of voice rest (P = 0.01). The jitter decreased after the voice resistance test (P = 0.02) and after the 30 minutes of voice rest. A significant difference was detected for the acoustic voice parameters relative average perturbation (RAP), (P = 0.05), and pitch perturbation quotient (PPQ), (P = 0.04), compared with the initial time point. Conclusions. The fundamental frequency increased after 60 minutes of singing and remained elevated after vocal cooldown and absolute rest for 30 minutes, proving an efficient parameter for identifying the changes inherent to voice demand during singing.