the upper part of the pyramids (surmounted by two little bodies called
the cartilages of Santorini, pl. XII, 7, 8) behind; the lid or
epiglottis (pl. XII, 9) in front, and sideways by two folds of mucous
membrane running up from the pyramids to the lid (pl. XII, 14, 10 and
15, 11). These folds are in many cases supported by two small
cartilages, which we will call the Wedges (pl. XII, 12, 13). These,
according to Madame Emma Seiler, are the chief factors in the formation
of the highest register of the female voice. In some physiological works
they are treated as of very little consequence, and in others they are
not mentioned at all.
These wedges are two thin strips of cartilage running in front of the
pyramids (pl. XII, 12 and 13) where they are embedded in a number of
glands. Their upper ends terminate in the cartilages of Wrisberg (pl.
XII, 14, 15), and their lower ends gradually dwindle away in the
direction of the vocal ligaments.
Madame Seiler says that they "reach to the middle of the vocal
chords, by which they are enveloped."[I] She comments in the same
book on the fact that German anatomists have been reluctant to
admit the existence of these cartilages; and she adds on page 61,
"It was, therefore, a great satisfaction to me to find them
described under the name of the cuneiform cartilages in Wilson's
'Human Anatomy.'" It must be confessed, however, that Wilson's
description of them is totally different from Madame Seiler's. He
says, "The cuneiform cartilages are two small cylinders of yellow
fibro-cartilage, about seven lines in length and enlarged at each
extremity. _By the lower end or base_ the cartilage is attached _to
the middle of the external surface_ of the arytenoid (the pyramid),
and by its upper extremity forms a prominence in the border of the
aryteno-epiglottidean fold of membrane"[J] (_i.e._, the fold
running up to the lid). According to Seiler, therefore, the wedges
reach from the pyramids to the middle of the vocal ligaments, but
according to Wilson their bases are attached to the middle of the
outer surface of the pyramids, so that they cannot even touch the
vocal ligaments. As Madame Seiler assigns very important functions
to these wedges in the formation of the highest register of the
female voice, and as she quotes Wilson in a manner that must lead
the reader to suppose he gave a similar description to hers of
these cartilages, I have thought it right to give Wilson's
statement in full.
But there is a description of these cartilages by Dr. Witkowski
which corresponds very closely with Madame Seiler's. Speaking of
some of the glands of the voicebox, he says in the work mentioned
before, on p. 12--"They are arranged in the form of an L, whose
vertical branch goes along the arytenoid cartilages (the pyramids),
_the horizontal branch following the direction of the vocal cords_.
_There is often found situated in the midst of this group of glands
the cuneiform cartilage of Wrisberg_, sometimes reduced to a mere
cartilaginous granule."
Dr. Elsberg also describes them on p. 37 of the treatise before
mentioned as "elongated nodules" in the hinder portion of the vocal
ligaments, and says they are found "more often in the female than
in the male sex." He calls them the "posterior vocal nodules," and
gives on p. 36 a diagram which shows them most clearly and
unmistakably. This point would therefore seem to be settled.
=The Resonator.=--We now come to the last part of our instrument, namely,
the resonator, which is formed of (1) the pockets of the larynx; (2) the
tube above the pocket ligaments; (3) the upper part of the throat; (4)
the mouth; and (5) the nose. Before giving a description of the
resonator, it will be necessary to make a few introductory remarks on
certain laws of the philosophy of sound, which have been so clearly
demonstrated that they admit of no contradiction.
=Tone=, as we have seen, is the result of rapid periodic vibrations.
The =Loudness= of tone depends upon the _amplitude_ of the vibrations.
This is easily shown by drawing a bow over the string of a violin: while
the vibrations of the string are largest, the tone produced is loudest,
and as the vibrations get smaller, so the tone becomes fainter.
The =Pitch= of tone depends upon the _number_ of vibrations in a given
period of time. The greater the number of vibrations the higher the
pitch, and _vice versa_.
The =Quality= of tone depends on the _form_ of the vibrations, "which also
determines the occurrence of upper partial tones."[K]
Now, to make the sound of any tone-producing element more intense, and
to give it some special quality, is the work of the resonator. If we
simply fix a fiddle string at either end, and, after giving it a certain
amount of tension, draw a bow across it, we shall certainly produce a
tone, but a very poor and faint one. Put the same string with the same
amount of tension upon a cheap violin, and the tone will be intensified,
and its quality changed, though that quality may be of a very unpleasant
kind. Repeat the experiment upon an Amati or a Straduarius, and not only
will the tone be more powerful still, but it will also have a full,
round, and beautiful quality. Something, it is true, depends upon the
string and upon the bowing, but we are here supposing the same string
and the same player, our object being to show how the _resonator_,
which, in this case, is the body of the violin, intensifies the tone of
the string, and affects its quality.
Illustrations exemplifying the same thing might be multiplied to any
extent, but the one I have just given will suffice. As with the string,
so with the vocal ligaments. Cut a larynx out of a dead body, put it in
proper position on the top of a bellows, and force the air through it,
and you will produce tone, but faint and poor tone. Now add a resonator
to the larynx, and the tone of the vocal ligaments will be intensified,
and its quality altered according to the kind of resonator you make use
of.
It is clear, therefore, that the human voice does not only depend upon
the vibrations of the vocal ligaments, and the corresponding vibrations
of the air passing between them, but also upon the resonator as defined
on p. 9. According to the natural formation of our resonator, and
according to the infinite variety of shapes which every one has it in
his power to give to it, our voices will be, always supposing the
conditions of the vocal ligaments to be the same, either full, round,
sonorous, and _beautiful_, or they will be poor, cutting, muffled,
guttural, nasal, and _ugly_.
As we have, or may easily acquire, absolute command over the resonator,
or, at least, over the greatest part of it, it is a comfort to know that
so very much depends upon it, and I trust my readers will now, with some
amount of pleasure, look with me at this part of the vocal apparatus.
The 1st and 2nd divisions of the resonator--namely, the pockets of the
larynx and the tube above the pocket ligaments--have been fully
described on pp. 52, 53, and no more need be said on the subject here.
The upper part of the throat, called in scientific works the "Pharynx"
(pl. I, P), is a cavity, the largest part of which may be seen through
the arch at the back of the open mouth. Its hinder wall is formed by the
spinal column, and it extends upwards as far as the Eustachian tubes
(pl. I, E) which communicate with the middle part of the ear. Here it
joins--
The =Cavities of the Nose= (pl. I, N), which have for their base the hard
and soft palate (pl. I, H and S), and which are divided by a bone
partition.
The only part of the =Mouth= which requires a particular description is
the soft palate. This is a movable partition by means of which either
the mouth or the nose can be completely separated from the throat. If
the nose is to be shut off from the throat the soft palate is _raised_,
and pressed against the back of the pharynx. If the mouth is to be shut
off the soft palate is _lowered_, and rests closely upon the back of the
tongue. This partition plays a most important part in vocalization. In
the formation of all pure vowel sounds it is _raised_, thereby closing
the nasal cavities, and it has been found that the closure is loosest
for "ah" (as in "father") and tightest for "e" (as in "bee"), the
intermediate vowels being "a" (as in "name"), "oh" and "oo" (as in
"food"). This has been clearly shown by Czermak in the following manner.
Lying down on his back, he had the nasal cavities filled with tepid
water. He then uttered the various vowel sounds, and ascertained from
the quantity of water required to force open the closure formed by the
soft palate the degree of tightness for each vowel. He afterwards
constructed a very ingenious little apparatus, by means of which, in one
of his lectures, he demonstrated this fact to his audience. It will be
easily understood from the above explanation that, if the closure of
the nasal cavities is sufficiently imperfect to allow any considerable
amount of air to pass through the nose, the result will be a nasal tone.
I am aware that the very opposite is taught by some. There are
those who maintain that nasal tone arises from the air _not_ being
able to get through the nose. I am even informed that in some parts
of England where nasal tone seems to be a general affliction, it is
the practice of teachers of singing to cause their pupils to bathe
their noses in hot water in order to relax the muscles which are
supposed by their contraction to produce nasal tone. I would,
however, in support of my statement, draw attention to the
following indisputable facts:--(1) It is quite possible to
completely close the nostrils, and yet to produce pure vocal tone.
(2) Persons who are either partly or entirely without the soft
palate can _under no circumstances_ utter a single sound without
the most pronounced nasal quality. It seems to me that these facts
sufficiently speak for themselves; but if any of my readers are not
convinced by them, let them try this experiment: Take a thin mirror
and hold it flat against the upper lip, with the glass upwards. Now
sing a pure vocal tone, and the mirror will remain perfectly
bright. Sing, on the contrary, with nasal quality, and the mirror
will at once be completely dimmed. This shows conclusively that
nasal sound is produced by singing _through_ the nose, and this
cannot be done without lowering the soft palate. Teachers of
singing know well enough that guttural tone is caused by the
obstinate arching up of the tongue, and if they understand their
business they eventually succeed in teaching a pupil labouring
under this disadvantage to get perfect control over his tongue. But
nobody thinks of the soft palate, though that can be brought under
subjection just as well as the tongue. Let singing masters see to
it, and young ladies will no longer be laughed at for having to
put their noses into hot water before charming their friends with
a song.
It now only remains to be added that the interior of the windpipe and of
the voicebox, as well as that of the throat, the mouth, and the nose, is
lined with a thin mucous membrane of a pinkish colour. This concludes my
description of the Vocal Organ as a musical instrument.
DIFFERENCES OF THE VOICEBOX, OR LARYNX, IN CHILDREN, WOMEN, AND MEN.
The voicebox of a newly-born baby is about one-third the size of that of
a grown woman. It is therefore rather large in proportion to other parts
of the body, with the exception of the head, which comparatively is
larger still. The horizontal outline of the shield cartilage is a very
gentle curve, and the upper horns are short, in consequence of which the
voicebox is close to the tongue. The wedges, according to Merkel, are
strongly developed; the vocal ligaments are short and thick, and the
pockets deep. Up to the third year the voicebox grows very considerably,
but no particular alterations take place from that time to the period of
puberty, which generally occurs at the age of 14 or 15, rather earlier
in girls than in boys. This period of change lasts from six to twelve
months, or sometimes even two or three years. During this time the vocal
organs undergo a marked change. In boys, the angle at which the two
plates of the shield meet becomes more and more acute, and the length of
the vocal ligaments increases only in the proportion of five to ten. In
girls, on the other hand, the horizontal outline of the shield does not
lose its evenness, and the length of the vocal ligaments increases only
in the proportion of five to seven. The cartilages would seem,
especially in boys, to grow more rapidly than the muscles, so that the
slowly-growing muscles do not, at first, control the newly-developed
cartilages. This accounts for the unmanageable state of the voice at
this period. The changes which take place in the female voicebox are
very imperceptible, so that they do not materially affect the character
of the voice. In the male voicebox, on the contrary, the alterations are
very marked, and the result is that the high voice of the boy is changed
into the tenor or the bass of the man. While, therefore, before the
period of puberty the voicebox is materially the same in both sexes,
there are, afterwards, considerable differences noticeable, not only
with regard to size, but also with regard to shape. This seems, indeed,
sufficiently obvious, and any one can see it by simply comparing the
outside of the throat of a man with that of a woman.
Nevertheless we are told by Mr. Lunn[L] that "Anatomy teaches us
that there is no difference between the male and female larynx save
in size;" and by Dr. Garrett (on page 13 of the book quoted before)
that "The male larynx does not differ anatomically in the least
from that of the female, except in size."
My readers may judge for themselves whether these statements are
borne out by facts or not.
It must further be observed that the whole upper part of the shield in
the female voicebox is less developed than in the male. The upper horns
are short, so that the voicebox is more closely attached to the
tongue-bone, and its position in the throat is altogether higher in
woman than in man. To show more clearly still the difference in the
proportions of the male and the female voicebox, I give below some
average measurements (taken from Luschka's great work on the Larynx)
which I have, for the convenience of English readers, reduced, as nearly
as possible, from centimetres and millimetres to inches.
MALE. FEMALE.
Height of the voicebox in } 2-4/5in. 1-9/10in.
front, with the lid raised } (7 cent.) (4.8 cent.)
Greatest width between the } 1-3/5in. 1-2/5in.
plates of the shield cartilage} (4 cent.) (3.5 cent.)
Depth between the lower }
border of the shield cartilage, } 1-1/5in. 1 in.
and the opposite point } (3 cent.) (2.4 cent.)
of the ring cartilage. }
Length of the vocal chink ... 1 in. 3/5 in.
(25 mm.) (15 mm.)
According to this eminent anatomist, therefore, the differences between
male and female larynges are as follows: In height, 9/10; in width, 1/5;
in depth, 1/5; in the length of the vocal chink, 2/5 of an inch. As it
is plain that if there were "no difference between the male and the
female larynx save in size," all their proportions would be alike, I
think I may safely assume that I have proved my point, which is a rather
important one, as the reader will see when the registers in the male and
female voice come up for discussion.
We will now consider the question how the various classes of
voice--_i.e._, Sopranos, Contraltos, Tenors, and Basses--are to be
accounted for by corresponding differences in the voicebox. We know that
tone is produced by the vibrations of the vocal ligaments. It is clear,
therefore, that a voice will be high or low according to the number of
vibrations which the ligaments are capable of producing, or in other
words, according to their dimensions and their tension. This difference
is easily seen by comparing the voicebox of a soprano with that of a
bass, because there the proportions are so manifestly smaller in the one
than in the other. There are similar distinctions between soprano and
contralto on the one hand, and between tenor and bass on the other, but
they are not so striking. Neither can they, for various reasons, be
demonstrated with the laryngoscope; but they exist nevertheless.
It is true that the vocal ligaments of a soprano are sometimes longer
than those of a contralto, just as the ligaments of a tenor are
occasionally longer than those of a bass. But I maintain that the longer
ligaments of sopranos and tenors are correspondingly thinner, and that
their tension is greater, owing to the ring-shield or stretching muscles
being more powerful than their opponents--the shield-pyramid muscles.
Where this is the case the ligaments are more slanting than they would
be otherwise, and the consequence of this is that less power of blast is
required to make them speak. With this mechanism the higher registers
are very readily united with the lower ones, and the voices so produced
are of a light and flexible kind. Where, on the contrary, the vocal
ligaments of contraltos and basses are comparatively short, they are
also thick in proportion, and the shield-pyramid muscles are more
powerful than the opposing ring-shield muscles, so that there is less
tension. I shall be asked how I can prove this tension theory, and my
reply is this: The diameter of the vocal ligaments depends in a large
measure on the magnitude of the shield-pyramid muscles. If, therefore,
the ligaments are exceptionally thick, the muscles just named must of
necessity be very powerful, and can easily resist the pulling of the
ring-shield muscles. If, on the contrary, the ligaments are
exceptionally thin, it is equally certain that the shield-pyramid
muscles are weak in proportion, and then the stretching muscles can
easily overcome their resistance.
* * * * *
I may add that I came to the above conclusions about the various classes
of voices years ago, when commencing the study of this subject. Not only
have I never since seen any reason to alter my views--although I have
not failed to notice and carefully examine the theories of others
denying my doctrine--but I am more than ever convinced that my
explanations are correct. I have now the gratification of seeing my
theory confirmed by so great an authority as Dr. Merkel, of Leipzig, who
most elaborately explains the subject in his latest work on the larynx,
to which I have already alluded in these pages.
* * * * *
Besides the factors enumerated above, there are, no doubt, others which
are also of consequence in determining the particular kind of voice to
be produced by this vocal apparatus or by that; as, for instance, the
windpipe, or the resonator, or both. The capacity of the chest--nay, the
structure of the whole body, may have a more or less direct influence
upon it. But there are absolutely no statistics to proceed upon, and in
the absence of these it is vain to indulge in any speculations on the
subject.
MOVEMENTS OF THE VOICEBOX, OR LARYNX, WHICH CAN BE SEEN OR FELT.
The voicebox in a man is situated almost exactly in the middle of the
throat; in woman its position is, for reasons partly explained on page
64, considerably higher. It moves downwards in inspiration, and upwards
in expiration; and the more vigorously we breathe, the more marked are
these movements. In the act of swallowing the voicebox rises quickly,
and in yawning it goes down so completely that the whole windpipe may
vanish into the chest, and even the part of the ring cartilage may
disappear.
When singing in what is called chest-voice the voicebox rises gradually
with each higher tone. Changing the mode of tone production, and
singing--say an octave higher--in falsetto, the voicebox makes quite a
leap upwards, and then again rises gradually with each higher tone,
just as in chest-voice, but in a lesser degree. The voicebox, however,
does not stand so high for the lowest falsetto as for the highest chest
tones.
It is possible, of course, to limit these movements to a minimum,
but a teacher who insists upon his pupils keeping their voice-boxes
perfectly still commits a serious mistake, because it is always
injurious to do violence to nature. It is one thing to keep the
voicebox steady, thereby facilitating the working of some of those
muscles which act immediately upon the vocal ligaments; it is quite
another thing, as will be seen below, to attempt to prevent
movements which have to serve a great purpose.
In _whispering_, the voicebox occupies a different position in the
throat for each vowel. I invite the reader to try the following curious
experiment. Let him take the larynx gently between the thumb and the
first finger, and then _whisper_ OO (as in "food,") OH, AH, A (as in
"name,") and E (as in "bee"). He will find that the voicebox rises with
every succeeding vowel until at last it has completely slipped away from
between the finger and thumb. Each one of these _whispered_ vowels has,
as first ascertained by Helmholtz, its exact pitch, whether uttered by a
little child or by an old man, and the effect of the rising of the
voicebox is to shorten the resonator, whereby the raising of the pitch
is produced.
I stated on page 41 that the vocal ligaments were capable of being
stretched by the ring-shield muscles, and that the pitch of the tones
produced by their vibrations depended mainly on their tension. As we
are now taking note of such movements of the voicebox as may be either
seen or felt in the throat, we will take the opportunity of trying
whether my statement can be verified. Let the reader, therefore, do as
follows:--(1) Place the finger on the shield cartilage, and press it
vigorously backward. (2) Sing loudly any high tone that is well within
your compass. Hold this tone steadily, and _be quite sure you do not
alter its pitch_. (3) Now suddenly remove your finger, continuing to
sing as before. What is the result? Your tone is raised by a third, or
even more, according to the amount of pressure you exercised on the
shield. And how did this result come about? In this way: By pressing the
shield backwards you elongated the ring-shield muscles, thereby
counteracting their stretching influence, and at the same time
slackening the vocal ligaments. The tone you sang while doing this was,
we will say C'. By releasing the shield you enabled the ring-shield
muscles to contract again, thereby putting the vocal ligaments on the
stretch as they were at first. That changed your C' to E', or higher
still. Have I proved my assertion?
Now one more test, if you please. I pointed out to you on page 34 an
opening between the shield and the ring. You will see it on plate V, No.
10. Please sing a low tone; place your finger gently on the shield, and
move it downwards. You will soon discover a little hollow which
corresponds with the opening I just mentioned, and into which you can
easily put part of the tip of your finger. Now sing up the scale, and
take care to keep the tip of your finger in the hollow. Remember that in
singing up the scale your voicebox will rise, which movement you must
follow, or you will lose the place. If you do this carefully, you will
find that the hollow gets smaller and smaller by degrees until at last
it closes entirely, and you can no longer find a trace of it. Now sing
down again, keeping your finger on the same spot. You will soon notice
the hollow again, and it will continue to get larger and larger until
you arrive at the bottom of your scale.
This, of course, is but another way of showing the mechanism by which
the pitch of your tones is raised or lowered, and we have proved the
same thing by our preceding experiment. But I asked you to try this
chiefly because it will enable you to put a check upon my statements
with regard to the registers of the voice, a subject which I propose to
discuss in another chapter.
THE LARYNGOSCOPE, AND HOW TO USE IT.