Speaking and Singing

Speaking and Singing
What and where is it?
*Throat = larynx, voice box
-voice box- not a box, is part of the airway between lungs and mouth where
vocal cords are located
-vocal cords- bands of muscles that vibrate as air whistles when you breathe out
-speak or sing- cords tighten, vibrate, produce sounds, muscles vary the pitch
-vocal cords wide open= low-pitch, slowly vibrate
-vocal cords close together= high-pitch, vibrate rapidly
-speaking- by changing shape of pharynx (upper throat), lips, mouth, tongue -
change sounds into words
Facts:
*Newborns - 1/4 inch across vocal cords
-Man- 1 1/4 inches long, since longer vibrate more slowly = deeper voice
-Woman - 3/4 inch across
-Boy during childhood same length as girls, in teenage years grow, voice breaks,
gets deeper
*At front vocal cords attached to small piece of cartilage- Adam’s Apple,
(front of the neck) during teenage years a boy’s Adam’s Apple is visible
*Glottis and slit between them= vocal cords
*Epiglottis - fold of the cartilage above the glottis, blocks the larynx when
swallow food