On Tue, 30 May 2000 12:29:59 EDT, vocalist-temporary@egroups.com wrote:
> Okay, here goes the explanation. Not sure how I got everything turned
around
> so thoroughly.
> Zemlin: "The folds vibrate and come into contact only at the free
borders
> and that the remainder of the folds remains relatively firm and
nonvibratory.
> Furthermore, the folds appearr long, stiff, very thin along the edges,
and
> somewhat bow-shaped.
> Brodnitz: "The falsetto is sung with only the foremost parts of the
cords
> left free to vibrate at the margins, the rest being dampened.:
List,
As many of you know, this debate comes up every 3 months or so.
In the normal, healthy state, the full length of the vocal folds vibrate
freely AT ALL TIMES. There is never any dampening of vibration, nor is
there a physiologic mechanism available to do so. As with all vibration,
the amplitude of the mucosal wave decreases as the frequency increases
(basic physics) but the area of the cords affected by the traveling wave
never changes.
It's true that a shorter vibrating surface (shorter cords) would give a
higher pitch, but this is not the human mechanism. We have only two options
for increasing pitch: stretching tighter (cricothyroid) and stiffening
(thyroarytenoid - the harder the substance, the faster it vibrates, the
higher the pitch.)
Hope this helps.
John M. Schweinfurth, MD
Laryngology and Professional Voice Care
Assistant Professor
Penn State University Medical Center
Hershey, PA
(717) 531-6822
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