• MeSH
• Acoustic Stimulation MeSH
• Music MeSH
• Voice Quality MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH

Tato systematická přehledová studie pojednává o psychologických souvislostech sborového zpěvu. Zaměřuje se zejména na přínosy sborového zpěvu, na vztah mezi sborovým zpěvem a osobní pohodou. Tyto cíle jsou mapovány na základě analýzy výzkumných studií. Do systematické přehledové studie bylo zahrnuto 17 výzkumných studií (kvantitativních i kvalitativních), které byly podrobně analyzovány. Výsledky těchto výzkumů poukazují na pozitivní přínosy sborového zpívání u klinické populace, u neklinické populace (přínosy u některých zdravotních problémů – např. duševní poruchy, neurologické poruchy, rakovina), u vězňů. Na základě uvedených výzkumných studií lze sborový zpěv považovat za přínosnou volnočasovou aktivitu. Sborový zpěv má i terapeutický účinek a může napomáhat k resocializaci u některých znevýhodněných skupin obyvatelstva. V systematické přehledové studii jsou také uvedeny doporučení pro další výzkum sborového zpěvu.

This systematic review discusses the psychological context of choral singing. It focuses especially on the benefits of choral singing, on the relation between choral singing and well-being. These targets are mapped based on the analysis of research studies. 17 research studies (quantitative and also qualitative) were included in the systematic review and analyzed in detail. Results of these research studies show positive benefits of choral singing in a non-clinical population, clinical population (benefits for some health problems – e.g. mental disorders, neurological disorders, cancer), for prisoners. On the basis of listed research studies, choral singing may be considered as a beneficial leisure time activity. Choral singing has also a therapeutic effect and may assist in the resocialization of some disadvantaged groups. Recommendations for further research of choral singing are also given in the systematic review.

• MeSH
• Quality of Life psychology   MeSH
• Qualitative Research MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Personal Satisfaction MeSH
• Social Facilitation MeSH
• Leisure Activities psychology   MeSH
• Singing * MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Publication type
• Review MeSH

Previous research suggests that independent variation of vocal loudness and glottal configuration (type and degree of vocal fold adduction) does not occur in untrained speech production. This study investigated whether these factors can be varied independently in trained singing and how subglottal pressure is related to average glottal airflow, voice source properties, and sound level under these conditions. A classically trained baritone produced sustained phonations on the endoscopic vowel [i:] at pitch D4 (approximately 294 Hz), exclusively varying either (a) vocal register; (b) phonation type (from "breathy" to "pressed" via cartilaginous adduction); or (c) vocal loudness, while keeping the others constant. Phonation was documented by simultaneous recording of videokymographic, electroglottographic, airflow and voice source data, and by percutaneous measurement of relative subglottal pressure. Register shifts were clearly marked in the electroglottographic wavegram display. Compared with chest register, falsetto was produced with greater pulse amplitude of the glottal flow, H1-H2, mean airflow, and with lower maximum flow declination rate (MFDR), subglottal pressure, and sound pressure. Shifts of phonation type (breathy/flow/neutral/pressed) induced comparable systematic changes. Increase of vocal loudness resulted in increased subglottal pressure, average flow, sound pressure, MFDR, glottal flow pulse amplitude, and H1-H2. When changing either vocal register or phonation type, subglottal pressure and mean airflow showed an inverse relationship, that is, variation of glottal flow resistance. The direct relation between subglottal pressure and airflow when varying only vocal loudness demonstrated independent control of vocal loudness and glottal configuration. Achieving such independent control of phonatory control parameters would be an important target in vocal pedagogy and in voice therapy.

• MeSH
• Speech Acoustics MeSH
• Adult MeSH
• Endoscopy MeSH
• Glottis physiology   MeSH
• Kymography MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Singing physiology   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Adult MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: Listeners often describe the voices of solo child singers as being "pure" or "clear"; these terms would suggest that the voice is not only pleasant but also clearly audible. The audibility or clarity could be attributed to the presence of high-frequency partials in the sound: a "brightness" or "ring." This article aims to investigate spectrally the acoustic nature of this ring phenomenon in children's solo voices, and in particular, relating it to their "nonring" production. Additionally, this is set in the context of establishing to what extent, if any, the spectral characteristics of ring are shared with those of the singer's formant cluster associated with professional adult opera singers in the 2.5-3.5kHz region. METHODS: A group of child solo singers, acknowledged as outstanding by a singing teacher who specializes in teaching professional child singers, were recorded in a major UK concert hall performing Come unto him, all ye that labour, from the aria He shall feed his flock from The Messiah by GF Handel. Their singing was accompanied by a recording of a piano played through in-ear headphones. Sound pressure recordings were made from well within the critical distance in the hall. The singers were observed to produce notes with and without ring, and these recordings were analyzed in the frequency domain to investigate their spectra. RESULTS: The results indicate that there is evidence to suggest that ring in child solo singers is carried in two areas of the output spectrum: first in the singer's formant cluster region, centered around 4kHz, which is more than 1000Hz higher than what is observed in adults; and second in the region around 7.5-11kHz where a significant strengthening of harmonic presence is observed. A perceptual test has been carried out demonstrating that 94% of 62 listeners label a synthesized version of the calculated overall average ring spectrum for all subjects as having ring when compared with a synthesized version of the calculated overall average nonring spectrum. CONCLUSIONS: The notion of ring in the child solo voice manifests itself not only with spectral features in common with the projection peak found in adult singers but also in a higher frequency region. It is suggested that the formant cluster at around 4kHz is the children's equivalent of the singers' formant cluster; the frequency is higher than in the adult, most likely due to the smaller dimensions of the epilaryngeal tube. The frequency cluster observed as a strong peak at about 7.5-11kHz, when added to the children's singers' formant cluster, may be the key to cueing the notion of ring in the child solo voice.

• MeSH
• Acoustics MeSH
• Child MeSH
• Voice Quality * MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Auditory Perception * MeSH
• Pressure MeSH
• Age Factors MeSH
• Singing * MeSH
• Sound Spectrography MeSH
• Check Tag
• Child MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH

V oblasti uměleckého zpěvu jsou preferováni pěvci - sólisté, kteří jsou stavěni umělecky i společensky nad ostatní zpěváky. Existují však vysoce umělecky i profesně výkonné pěvecké sbory, jejichž členové - zpěváci - mají minimálně stejně vysoké hlasové zatížení jako pěvci sóloví. Je nepochybné, že do oblasti nejvyšší úrovně pěveckých dovedností je možno počítat jak pěvce sólové, tak také zpěváky sborové. Jejich umělecký projev se však významně liší, i když obojí užívají k jeho vyjádření zpěv. Pokud se odlišuje pěvecký projev, což je pravdou, pak se musí odlišovat i pěvecká technika a následně i pěvecké zatížení, a tím tedy i poruchy hlasu, které přivádějí zpěváky obou skupin do foniatrických ambulancí. Z tohoto pohledu je pak vysoce významné poznávat, nacházet a posuzovat rozdíly v sólovém a sborovém zpěvu. V práci jsou porovnány nahrávky zpěvu sólového a stejné party pak technikou zpěvu sborového, stejným pěvcem. Zpracování bylo provedeno metodami hudební akustiky. Výsledky potvrdily předpoklad, že sólový zpěv se od sborového zpěvu odlišuje. Nejvyšší rozdíly byly nalezeny v intenzitě pěveckého projevu a jeho frekvenční struktuře. V ukázkách sólového zpěvu jsou více projasněny oblasti vyšších harmonických tónů, a tím se hlas stává nosnější se zvýrazněnou individualitou. Pokud se objevují známky postižení hlasu, pak nejvyšší foniatrickou péči vyžadují jak sóloví pěvci, tak i zpěváci ze sborů.

In the area of artistic singing the unaccompanied singers - soloists are artistically and socially preferred to other singers. There are, however, highly artistically and professionally performing choirs, where the members – singers – are burdened with at least the same vocal load as soloists. It cannot be doubted that the area of the highest singer skills includes both soloists and choral singers. Nevertheless, their artistic expression differs significantly, although both groups use signing for the display. If the singer manifestation differs, which is common then the singer technique and consequently the load and related voice disorders differ as well and bring the singers of both groups into phoniatric outpatient departments. This view is important for finding, recognition, and evaluation of differences between the soloist and choral singing. The contribution compares the recordings of the same singer singing identical part by the soloist and choral technique, respectively. The processing used the methods of musical acoustics. The results confirmed the presumption that the soloist singing differs from the choral one. The highest differences were found in the intensity of the singer’s effort and its frequency structure. In the examples of soloist singing the areas of higher harmonic tones are more illuminated which make the voice more inspiring with more expressed individuality. If the signs of affected voice become obvious, the higher phoniatric care should be provided to soloist as well as choral singers.

• Keywords
• hudební akustika, foniatrická péče,
• MeSH
• Speech Acoustics MeSH
• Music MeSH
• Cooperative Behavior MeSH
• Voice Quality MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Otolaryngology MeSH
• Sound Spectrography statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Publication type
• Comparative Study MeSH

Syllable rate has been shown to play a role in male-male aggressive interactions and has been proposed to serve as a male quality indicator in several bird species. In those with fast syllable rates, males often increase rates when singing in aggressive context, and respond differently to test stimuli of varying rates. We asked whether the syllable rate fulfils a similar signalling function in the chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita), a songbird species with a slow syllable rate. We confronted 36 chiffchaff males with one of three playback types differing in syllable rate: control (non-manipulated rate), fast, or slow (artificially increased and decreased syllable rate, respectively). We recorded tested males' songs and behaviour before and during the experiment. Our results indicate that syllable rate might be an aggressive signal in chiffchaff. Males that physically attacked the loudspeaker during experiments sang faster songs spontaneously, and those that continued singing during the playback responded to fast and non-manipulated stimuli with substantial increase of syllable rate. Indirect evidence further suggests that syllable rate in chiffchaff is unlikely constrained by respiratory demands; thus, we propose that syllable rate in this species functions as a conventional signal of male aggressiveness rather than an index of quality.

• MeSH
• Aggression physiology   MeSH
• Motivation physiology   MeSH
• Vocalization, Animal physiology   MeSH
• Anger physiology   MeSH
• Songbirds physiology   MeSH
• Animals MeSH
• Check Tag
• Male MeSH
• Animals MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH

Bird song plays an important role in the establishment and maintenance of prezygotic reproductive barriers. When two closely related species come into secondary contact, song convergence caused by acquisition of heterospecific songs into the birds' repertoires is often observed. The proximate mechanisms responsible for such mixed singing, and its effect on the speciation process, are poorly understood. We used a combination of genetic and bioacoustic analyses to test whether mixed singing observed in the secondary contact zone of two passerine birds, the Thrush Nightingale (Luscinia luscinia) and the Common Nightingale (L. megarhynchos), is caused by introgressive hybridization. We analysed song recordings of both species from allopatric and sympatric populations together with genotype data from one mitochondrial and seven nuclear loci. Semi-automated comparisons of our recordings with an extensive catalogue of Common Nightingale song types confirmed that most of the analysed sympatric Thrush Nightingale males were 'mixed singers' that use heterospecific song types in their repertoires. None of these 'mixed singers' possessed any alleles introgressed from the Common Nightingale, suggesting that they were not backcross hybrids. We also analysed songs of five individuals with intermediate phenotype, which were identified as F1 hybrids between the Thrush Nightingale female and the Common Nightingale male by genetic analysis. Songs of three of these hybrids corresponded to the paternal species (Common Nightingale) but the remaining two sung a mixed song. Our results suggest that although hybridization might increase the tendency for learning songs from both parental species, interspecific cultural transmission is the major proximate mechanism explaining the occurrence of mixed singers among the sympatric Thrush Nightingales. We also provide evidence that mixed singing does not substantially increase the rate of interspecific hybridization and discuss the possible adaptive value of this phenomenon in nightingales.

• MeSH
• Phenotype MeSH
• Genetic Loci genetics   MeSH
• Hybridization, Genetic * MeSH
• Evolution, Molecular * MeSH
• Passeriformes classification   genetics   physiology   MeSH
• Sympatry MeSH
• Singing * MeSH
• Animals MeSH
• Check Tag
• Male MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Animals MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH

Objective: Classification of voices into types depends on several factors: physiological - the size of the laryngeal and vocal tracts; acoustic-musically acceptable vocal range; position of formants; and properties of timbre. The aim of the study is to verify whether a group of experienced voice pedagogues and singers can determine the vocal type of the artist based on listening to a part of the aria better than a group of musicians can, and to determine what acoustic properties of the recordings are linked with the perceptual results of their evaluation.Methods: Freely available recordings of 11 females of different vocal categories of Rossini's aria "Una voce poco fa" from the opera Il Barbiere di Seviglia were selected for listening tests performed on examples of recitatives and coloraturas. Seven voice teachers (experienced group) and seven musicians non-teachers (laypeople group) evaluated the properties of the vocal category, timbre (dark-bright), resonance, vowel placement, suitability of vibrato, aesthetic impression, and voice flexibility.Results: The results showed a significantly higher inter-judge reliability in the experienced group. The highest reliability was achieved in timbre and vocal category evaluation, the least consistent was the evaluation of resonance. Factor analysis of the assessment variability showed dependent ratings of the vocal category, brightness and vowel placement for both groups in recitative. The experienced group similarly evaluated the brightness and the vocal category in coloratura. Assessment of the vocal category correlated with the reported categories of singers only in the experienced group. The categories mezzo-soprano and soprano were differentiated by spectral levels (based on FFT analysis of whole stimuli) in the 3.5-4.1 kHz spectral band in the recitative and in the 1.3-2.1 kHz and around 2.5 kHz bands in coloratura, and by the position of the local minimum after the fifth maximum for both kinds of stimuli.Conclusions: By means of correlation with ratings by experienced listeners, it is demonstrated that the voice category is mainly connected with the levels of specific spectral peaks, while brightness is correlated with the frequency positions of spectral maxima.

• MeSH
• Acoustics MeSH
• Voice Quality * MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Judgment MeSH
• Observer Variation MeSH
• Sex Factors MeSH
• Auditory Perception * MeSH
• Singing * MeSH
• Sound Spectrography MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Comparative Study MeSH

Příspěvek je zaměřen na identifi kaci zvláštností základních parametrů hlasu, řeči a komunikace, tak jak se jeví partnerům ve formální i neformální komu nikaci. Cílem úvah a výzkumného šetření je zdokonalení konstrukce technik výcviku komunikace (interakce) i práce s hlasem v kontextu komunikačních (problémových) situací profese, v nichž je hlas jedním z pracovních nástrojů (výchova, péče, vedení, řízení, terapie). Autoři stati se zabývají technikami výcviku ve svých profesních oblastech. Soustředili se na průnikovou oblast: lidský hlas a řeč v komunikaci (komunikačních situacích). Vycházejí z představy, že základní parametry hlasu a specifi ka řeči vytvářejí jeden z předpokladů úspěšné komunikace, zvláště v jejich formálních charakteristikách (využití barvy hlasu, modulace, artikulace, kadence) a dalších charakteristikách, řazených obvykle mezi charakteristiky metakomunikační. Inspirací pro zaměření šetření byla i účast na konferenci ISME (Mezinárodní společnosti pro hudební vzdělání) v Bologni 2008.

The present contribution is directed to the identifi cation of the peculiarities of the basic parameters of voice, speech and communication as they are perceived by the partners in formal and informal communication.The aim of these refl ections and investigation is to improve the techniques of the training of communication (interaction) and the work with voice in the context of communicative situations, including problem ones, occurring in professions where voice is one of the working tools (education, care, leading, management, therapy). The authors of the present paper have been working on the techniques of training in their professional fi elds.1 Thy have concentrated on the intersection fi eld, namely the human voice and speech in communication (communicative situations). Their refl ections are based on the idea assuming that the basic parameters of voice and specifi c features of speech, especially their formal characteristics (the use of the voice timbre, modulation, articulation, cadence and others, mostly called nonverbal or metacommunicative characteristics of speech) belong to the prerequisites of successful communication. One of the inspirations concerning the theme of the authors´ research was their participation in the ISME (The International Society for Music Education) Conference in Bologna 2008.

• Keywords
• Interakční cvičení, Kondiční hlasová cvičení,
• MeSH
• Voice * physiology   MeSH
• Interpersonal Relations MeSH
• Communication MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Voice Disorders prevention & control   rehabilitation   therapy   MeSH
• Speech physiology   MeSH
• Statistics as Topic MeSH
• Research Design MeSH
• Singing physiology   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH

During phonation, the respiratory, the phonatory, and the resonatory parts of the voice organ can interact, where physiological action in one subsystem elicits a direct effect in another. Here, three major subsystems of these synergies are reviewed, creating a model of voice subsystem interactions: (1) Vocal tract adjustments can influence the behavior of the voice source via nonlinear source-tract interactions; (2) The type and degree of vocal fold adduction controls the expiratory airflow rate; and (3) The tracheal pull caused by the respiratory system affects the vertical larynx position and thus the vocal tract resonances. The relevance of the presented model is discussed, suggesting, among others, that functional voice building work concerned with a particular voice subsystem may evoke side effects or benefits on other subsystems, even when having a clearly defined and isolated physiological target. Finally, four seemingly incongruous historic definitions of the concept of singing voice "support" are evaluated, showing how each of these pertain to different voice subsystems at various levels of detail. It is argued that presumed discrepancies between these definitions can be resolved by putting them into the wider context of the subsystem interaction model presented here, thus offering a framework for reviewing and potentially refining some current and historical pedagogical approaches.

• MeSH
• Models, Anatomic * MeSH
• Biomechanical Phenomena MeSH
• Respiration * MeSH
• Phonation * MeSH
• Vocal Cords anatomy & histology   physiology   MeSH
• Voice Quality * MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Nonlinear Dynamics * MeSH
• Airway Resistance MeSH
• Systems Integration * MeSH
• Trachea anatomy & histology   physiology   MeSH
• Vibration MeSH
• Singing * MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Review MeSH