To: "Vocalist entry" <vocalist>
Subject: Re: whistling
Date sent: Mon, 27 Dec 1999 16:01:43 +0100
Send reply to: VOCALIST <vocalist>

"j. linville" wrote:
What effect does whistling have on the voice/vocal cords?

I'm not an expert, but I think I may safely answer this one.
When you are whistling, you are not using your vocal folds to produce sound.
The thing that happens in your throat is no different from when you blow out
a candle or breathe heavily for other reasons ;-)
The whistle sound is produced in your mouth. In my opinion, the only harmful
thing whistling can do is to cause some muscle tension in the jaw and
tongue. I'm a bad whistler myself and I can tell that I'm very tense. If
anyone knows how to whistle tension-less, I would like to know how.

Karin