Effects of Literal and Metaphorical Language Use on Acoustic and Perceptual Measures of Choral Tone
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Date
2024-01-09
Authors
Taylor, Kendra
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Oregon
Abstract
Researchers have demonstrated that imagery and odorants can influence the physiological and psychological state of humans (Dayme, 2009; Hongratanaworakit, 2009; Song et al., 2014). Singers’ “physiological state and concept of sound all have an effect on the activity of laryngeal muscles” (Dayme, 2009, p. 51). As the vocal tract changes the sound is filtered through the altered resonator to amplify or suppresses different harmonics, thus changing the tone quality perceptually and objectively (spectrum analysis) (Bozeman, 2015; McCoy, 2020). While these topics have been researched separately, to the researcher’s knowledge, there has been no research on the effect of scent inhalation on choral tone quality or language preference within the current context.
The purpose of this study was to examine singer preference and understanding of instructional prompts related to tone quality. A secondary purpose of the study was to determine what effects the experimental conditions had on choral tone. Treatment conditions included:
• Sing as if you are performing (control);
• For every inhalation, inhale slowly and deeply with an open throat (metaphorical language condition);
• For every inhalation, imagine you are inhaling the aroma of a fragrant rose (semi-direct/literal language condition);
• Choose your favorite prompt. It can be the imagery of the rose or thinking about an open throat, or a combination of both (singer preference condition);
• For every inhalation, inhale the aroma of the fragrant rose (experiential condition).
Results indicated an overall singer preference for a combination of both literal and figurative language. Singer interpretation of figurative language used in this study was varied. The experimental conditions had varying effects on choral and individual tone as perceived by singers. Expert panel ratings of choral tone were not significant. Acoustic measures indicated significant differences in long-term average spectrum results for most experimental condition pairings.
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Keywords
Choir, Imagery, Literal, Pedagogic Language, Singing, Voice Pedagogy