Page 15 - ChorTeach vol14-1.indd

Words Are in the Mouth—Quality is in the Throat

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air flow through the vocal tract without the true vocal folds impact the sustainability of those sounds. The likely result

set into vibration. Within these exist common consonants will be a constricted voice quality, breathy voice quality, or
named by the manner of articulation: plosives, fricatives, pressed (over-adducted) voice quality due to the interaction

affricatives, nasals, liquids, and glides (Table 1). of the voice quality and the high airflow rate of the “s.”

Another example might be when asking for a stronger
Table 1. initial “g” as in the word give. This could cause a larger
Consonant Chart Categorized by the Manner of build-up of subglottic pressure below the closed vocal folds
Articulation causing a pressed sound to occur on the subsequent vowel.
Therefore, care should be taken to avoid fl ow-on eff ects of
Manner Voicing Common Consonant
Examples consonants to preceding and subsequent vowels. Students
can learn to sustain stopped voice plosives, such as “b” and
Plosive Voiceless “p, t, k” “d,” with a reduction of the constriction and subglottal
pressure. Have singers explore the sensation by singing suc-
Voiced “b, d, g” cessive “b’s” and “d’s” as quickly as possible.

Fricative Voiceless “f, th (thin), s, sh, h”
Consonants and Onsets
Voiced “v, th (these), z, zh (pleasure)”
There are three vocal onsets that can occur at the true
Aff ricative Voiceless “ch” (choice) vocal folds: glottal, aspirate, and smooth (simultaneous or
balanced). These can be performed at various eff ort levels

Voiced “j” or dg” (judge) of vocal fold closure and rates of airflow. Voiceless conso-
nants do not have an onset since the vocal folds are not set
Nasal Voiced “m, n, ng” into vibration and can therefore intentionally or uninten-
tionally cause a change in a subsequent vowel onset. For ex-
Liquids Voiced “l” ample, sing the word happy on a comfortable pitch. If you

sustain the initial “h” with a high airflow rate and then pro-
Glides Voiced “w” or “y” (yellow)
ceed to sing the [a] vowel, the vowel quality of the [a] will
either be breathy from an aspirate onset or pressed from an

What follows are a few possible interactions between effortful glottal onset. Both could have been caused from

consonants and voice quality. Conductor-teachers should the high level of airflow in the initial “h.” Singers should be
keep these in mind when working with consonants in order trained to perform any desired onset regardless of how the
to develop consistency in desired voice qualities. preceding consonant is produced.
Voiced consonants all have an initial onset, which can

have a direct effect on the voice quality as well, although
Consonants and Airfl ow/ these can be adjusted with training. For example, an aspi-
Subglottic Pressure rate onset, with air starting before vocal fold closure will
Conductors-teachers should be aware of the level of sub- likely produce a voiced consonant with a breathy quality.
glottic pressure in voiced consonants and the level of con- This may be advantageous for certain pop styles that use a

striction and airflow rate in voiceless consonants, which can microphone. A low effort glottal onset may help produce a

be adjusted with training. For example, when conductor- closure of the vocal folds prior to airflow, which will likely
teachers ask singers for louder voiceless fricatives (e.g., “s”), produce a louder dynamic result. This can be due to the in-
the constrictive behavior in the throat will likely increase teraction of glottal onsets thus helping to achieve a thicker
and the abdominal muscles will contract abruptly. Is this vocal fold body-cover or chest register voice quality.
the goal? If that bodily behavior is maintained into the sub- A smooth onset can help achieve a softer dynamic. Try

sequent vowel, or if students anticipate this instruction too to first practice these onsets with a vowel of your choice,
early while singing the preceding vowel, it can negatively such as [i]. Then have students sustain the vowel and then

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