Abstract
Vocal performance often requires excessively high vocal demand. In particular “high-risk”
performers, a group of individuals who use their voices at their maximum effort level,
are often exposed to unique vocal abuse characteristics which include high environmental
and performance demands and inconsistencies of cast performance. Three categories
of high-risk performers were studied: musical theater, choral ensemble, and street
theater. Musical theater performers produce a Broadway, West End “belting” style voice.
Street theater performers use a high-energy pitch varying dialogue in order to imitate
a desired character voice. Choral ensemble performance requires group cohesion and
blending of four-part harmony. The melodies require sustained vocal durations within
each of the respective registers. For each of these studied groups vocal tasks of
sustained production of /i/ and /a/ were subjected to analysis. Acoustic measures
included fundamental frequency, standard deviation of fundamental frequency, jitter
percent, shimmer percent, and noise-to-harmonic ratio. Laryngostroboscopic parameters
were assessed during sustained /i/. Environmental acoustic sound field measurements
were made using an A weighting and linear weighting sound pressure level. These weightings
were used to describe noise levels and vocal output, respectively, within the performance
environments. Results of the analysis suggest that high-risk performers are a unique
performance type defined by distinctive, acoustic, laryngostroboscopic, and environmental
characteristics.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
April 3,
2001
Footnotes
☆Portions of this paper were presented at the 28th Annual Symposium on Care of the Professional Voice, Philadelphia, PA, June 1999.
Identification
Copyright
© 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
