THE DEVELOPING VOICE, EDUCATION AND VOCAL EFFICIENCY - A PHYSICAL PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

There i8 a growing body of research evidence to suggest that children's singing is subject to developmental processes. To date, however, there has been little research into the underlying physiological development of the singing voice, especially in younger children. The present study reports an investigation into the effects of education on singing development through a comparison between the voice production of sample (untrained) five-year-olds and groups of older, trained singers. Recently developed methods of voice measurement, namely closed quotient analysis and spectral analysis, were used to determine differences in vocal fold and vocal tract configuration. Results provide an insight into the effects of education on the physiological coordination and development of the singing voice.