michael gordon typed:
<< COMMENT: Tako has several times mentioned his neurological wiring theory about the ability of certain males to sing high. It is an interesting theory. From my experiences as a motor control theorist for human movement (walking, etc.), I believe there is a good bit of evidence to back up a different theory, namely that the intrinsic mechanical behavior of the system being controlled determines significantly what motor strategies the nervous system utilizes. Said another way, I would be less inclined to attribute the ability of certain males to sing high to "neurological wiring" and more inclined to say that for some physical reason, owing to the 3-dimensional geometry and physical characteristics of the vocal mechanism, the physical apparatus of certain males more readily operates in a manner to allow these high notes. >>
michael and tako,
there is ample evidence to suggest that the human voice is capable of many things. and it is capable of doing many things without having a clue as to how. if you have an alto and a high tenor with roughly the same length and guage of vocal folds, and if that alto is able to soar up to A5, as tako, you had suggested, and the tenor is not, you have to look at how each one is attempting to do so. if the alto gets to A5 she will probably be praised for her beautifully modulated 'head' voice. if the tenor gets to A5 the same way, he be criticized for singing in falsetto (unless he's morten harket). if he tries to sing in a way that is acceptable for a classical tenor, he won't make it. classical standards allow for one type of sound in women but not in men.
michael,
if, in tako's example of tenor and alto, the size of their vocal folds are roughly the same, where does physical scaling apply?
mike
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