Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
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79
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E. V I L K M A N E T AL.
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T A B L E 1. A summary o f the results o f pull and stimulation studies on external muscles in relation to vocal f o l d
length adjustment
Study
Dreyfuss (30)
Schilling (8)
Sonninen (12)
Minnigerode (23)
U e d a et al. (27)
Martin and
Klingholz (32)
Material
Method
Muscle
Phonation
Pitch
range
Pitch
lowering
Pitch
raising
Dog
Human
Cadaver
Human
Cadaver
Several
humans
Ape
Dog
Myotomy
Manual
Pull
Manual
Pull
Stimulation
CP
ST
Phonation
n/a
n/a
+
-
ST
n/a
n/a
+b
+b
ST
Sustained
Stimulation
Stimulation
Phonation
Phonation
Rhesus
macaque
Dog
Stimulation
2 Males
Sphincter
pressure
CP
SH
ST
IPC
GH
ST
GH
TH
ST
TP
CP
CP
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
Stimulation
Phonation
Singing
Extremes
IPC, inferior pharyngeal constrictor; G H , geniohyoid muscle; CP, cricopharyngeal muscle; TP, thyropharyngeal m u s c l e ; ST, sternothyroid muscle; SH, s t e r n o h y o i d m u s c l e ; T H , thyrohyoid muscle. + , effect; - , no effect; n/a, not applicable.
a Widening o f the C T space.
b Widening or narrowing o f the C T space d e p e n d e n t on head position.
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E. V I L K M A N E T A L .
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E. V I L K M A N E T AL.
EXTERNAL LARYNGEAL
FRAME FUNCTION
85
TABLE 2. A summary o f the results o f electromyographic studies on external muscles in relation to vocal fold
length adjustment
Study
Faaborg-Andersen,
and Sonninen (58)
Zenker and Zenker
(10)
Hirano et al. (59)
Minnigerode (23)
Ohala and Hirose
(54)
Vennard et al. (60)
Shipp (62)
Baer et al. (64)
Material
7 Males,
7 females
Human
3 Males
25 Humans
3 Males
1 Female,
2 males
6 Males
Human,
several
I Male
2 Males
Human
1 Male
Erickson (57)
I Male
Atkinson and
Erickson (65)
Atkinson (67)
I Male
1 Male
Muscle
Phonation
Pitch
range
Pitch
lowering
Pitch
raising
+
+
+
+
+
(+)
(+)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
(+)
+
+
+
+
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
+
+
(+)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
(+)
(+ )
(+)
o
o
o
o
+
(+ )
(+)
+
o
o
o
-
+
(+ )
(+ )
ST
MH
TH
TP
CP
SH
CP
SH
Singing,
sustained
Extremes
Singing
Extremes
Singing
Phonation
Sustained
Extremes
TH
SH
DG
LP
pp
ST
TH
TH
SH
CP
LP
MH
GG
SC
LP
PP
GH
MC
GGP
TH
ST
ST
SH
Singing
Extremes
Singing
Extremes
Singing
Extremes,
arpeggio
Singing
Two
octaves
Singing
Speech, stress
Vibrato
Speech
SH
ST
TH
GH
SH
ST
TH
SH
Speech,
intonation
Speech
Speech, stress
and
intonation
Speech
Speech,
intonation
Speech,
intonation
Speech
SH
ST
Extremes
Speech
IPC, inferior pharyngeal constrictor; DG, digastric muscle; GGP, geniogiossus, posterior part; LP, ievator palatini; MC, middle
constriction; GH, geniohyoid muscle; MH, myohyoid muscle; SC, superior constrictor; CP, cricopharyngeal muscle; TP, thyropharyngeal muscle; SH, sternohyoid muscle; ST, sternothyroid muscle; TH, thyrohyoid muscle; GG, genioglossal muscle; PP, palatopharyngeal muscle. +, effect; - , no effect; o, not studied; (+), inconsistent.
m a x i m a l f o r c e s d u r i n g i n s p i r a t i o n v a r i e d f r o m 430
to 1,480 g (n = 3) a n d d u r i n g e x p i r a t i o n f r o m 320 to
1,300 g. It c a n b e s p e c u l a t e d that a c o n s i d e r a b l e
e x t r a load is i m p o s e d o n the C T m u s c l e b y s i n g i n g
high p i t c h e s w i t h a high l a r y n x p o s i t i o n . A c c o r d i n g
to Z e n k e r a n d G l a n i n g e r , t r a c h e a l pull is p r e s e n t
e v e n w h e n t h e s u b j e c t is in s u p i n e p o s i t i o n a n d in a
state o f artificial a p n e a d u e to a n e s t h e s i a .
A s c a n b e e x p e c t e d , t r a c h e a l pull f o r c e s also affect the f u n c t i o n o f the C T m u s c l e . S u n d b e r g et al.
(74) r e c o r d e d the E M G a c t i v i t y o f t h e C T m u s c l e in
t h r e e s i n g e r s f o r d i f f e r e n t t r a c h e a l t e n s i o n s . All
t h r e e s u b j e c t s s h o w e d a n i n c r e a s e d C T m u s c l e activity for a d e s c e n t o f the d i a p h r a g m d u r i n g sust a i n e d p h o n a t i o n . T r a c h e a l pull w a s c h a n g e d e i t h e r
b y high l u n g v o l u m e s o r c o n s c i o u s d e s c e n t o f the
d i a p h r a g m , o r b o t h . A c l e a r i n d i c a t i o n o f t h e effect
o f t r a c h e a l pull is t h a t as t h e l a r y n x d e s c e n d s d u e to
strap m u s c l e a c t i v i t y d u r i n g i n s p i r a t i o n , t h e C T dist a n c e still r e m a i n s c o n s t a n t (3). I n o t h e r w o r d s , tra-
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E. V I L K M A N ET AL.
Muscle
CP
ST
IPC
GH
TH
TP
SH
Pitch
lowering
Pitch
raising
Pitch
raising
iii
ii
iii
iiiiii
i
i
ii
ii
iiiiiii
i
ii
i
i
i
i
ii
iiiiii
iiiiiii
(-)
i
iiii
(+)
(-)
iii1
HM
Pitch
lowering
(+)
ii
iiiiii
i
iiiii
TP
CP
'\ \\\ /
4
_1
ST
(A)
SH / /
I
ST
tracheal pull
(B)
FIG. 1. Schematic representation of external laryngeal forces.
A: Forces lengthening the vocal folds and raising Fo. B: Forces
shortening the vocal folds and lowering F o. CP, cricopharyngeal
muscle; ST, sternothyroid muscle; TP, thyropharyngeai muscle;
AE, aryepiglottic muscle; HM, hyomandibular muscles; HT,
hyothyroid muscle; SH, sternohyoid muscle.
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E. V I L K M A N E T AL.
89
90
E. V I L K M A N ET AL.
voice production
External forces together with CT activity may, as
some cadaver studies suggest, also contribute to the
transsectional shape of the vocal folds. This is important from the point of view of controlling registers and modes of phonation. Rotation seems to increase adduction through an increase in the folding
of the vocal folds, whereas gliding mainly affects
the longitudinal tension of the vocal folds and is
more likely to cause abduction (13,85). Thus, rotation in the CT articulation seems to produce a setting for the control of phonation different from the
one produced by gliding in this joint. This conclusion is supported by observations in a radiograph
study in which singers were found to use a greater
amount of ventrodorsai gliding for length adjustments of the vocal folds compared with nonsingers,
who preferred rotation, i.e., increased folding of the
vocal fold s (3); the untrained singers also used a higher
laryngeal position (13,36).
Vertical changes in the laryngeal column may, in
addition to slight Fo changes and abductory-adductory influence, also affect the register control of
phonation (25,86), as suggested by Schilling as early
as 1940. These findings in experiments with cadaver
material imply that the state of tension of the vocal
fold mucosa and the supporting connective tissue
structure of the vocal folds, conus elasticus, may be
important from the point of view of vocal physiology. The high larynx position in high-pitched singing probably makes delicate adjustments, such as
the so-called covering of the voice (e.g., ref. 40)
with rising pitch in classical singing, difficult or
even impossible, because of the circumstances created in the vocal fold tissues.
Changes in vocal fold stiffness and shape may
affect the wave mechanics of the vocal fold mucosa,
which is known to be of central importance in sustaining vocal fold vibrations (87--89). The effects of
these external adjustments on the transsectional
shape of the vocal folds, however, have neither
been studied thoroughly with living subjects nor
simulated with computer models.
In both speech therapy and singing pedagogy,
maintaining a low position of the larynx has traditionally been considered favorable for good quality
voice production. Clinical and pedagogical experience suggests that the physiological basis of this
Journal of Voice, Vol. 10, No. I, 1996
concept is related not only to resonatory and muscular tension aspects in general, but probably also
to an intentional avoidance of excessive vocal fold
folding, such as observed in an effort type of glottal
closure in connection with a TH approximation.
Considering the external factors and changes in the
laryngeal column, there seem to be some grounds
for a tentative formulation of a basic principle probably underlying the laryngeal control of voice production as follows: In good quality voice production, the intrinsic laryngeal muscles have to be allowed maximum independence in the delicate
control of the stiffness and transsectional shape of
the vocal folds. In this framework, increased folding, due to either articular rotation in the CTjoint or
a hyoid-thyroid approximation, would be a violation of an important laryngeal setting.
The deformation of the laryngeal tract, i.e., folding, associated with pitch lowering and the activity
of ST and SH that pull the hyoid bone downward,
has sometimes been interpreted as a sphincter constriction of the larynx typical of the low pitch area
(90). However, anatomical and physiological facts
clearly indicate that the change should really be
considered a result of the folding of the laryngeal
structures due to vertical changes in the structures
rather than a true sphincter action (3,25).
CONCLUDING REMARKS
To summarize, it would seem that in modeling the
contribution of the external laryngeal mechanisms
to voice production, Kenyon's reminder (7) to the
effect that the physiological larynx has to be considered a complex interactive system is still modern
and important. Significant factors in this interactive
system that have often been neglected, both in studies of the external frame and in the interpretation of
physiological data on external laryngeal forces, include tracheal pull and its interaction with CT activity, the gross vertical movements of the larynx,
the interplay between thyroid cartilage biomechanics and CP muscle function, and finally, the sparse
muscular connections to the cricoid cartilage. The
models presented herein, into which we have tried
to synthesize the salient external factors relevant to
pitch control, cannot be considered comprehensive.
However, formulating a more strict and a more
comprehensive model of external frame function in
pitch control on the basis of data as diverse as the
one reviewed may turn out to be impossible. The
major problems that still need to be resolved arise
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
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