Vocal warm-ups are widespread and comprehensive in the singing community. Although it is well recognised and practised by professionals, warm-ups are sometimes bypassed and neglected by singers and voice teachers. The objective of this study is to assess the impact of vocal warm-up on vocal quality through acoustic parameters of jitter (%), shimmer (%), and harmonics-to-noise (HNR [dB]) in two-pitch conditions, A3 (chest register) and C5 (head register), before and after vocal warm-up. Forty untrained female singers were recorded twice while uttering the vowels /a/, /o/, and /i/ in two different pitches: Low—A3 (220.0 Hz) and High—C5 (523.2 Hz) for at least five seconds. A standardised warm-up protocol with a duration of 20-minute was carried out in this study. The subjects were recorded immediately before and after a 20-minute vocal warm-up session. Significant improvements were found in the mean values of measured acoustic parameters. A decrease was observed compared with the mean jitter and shimmer values before and after a vocal warm-up, while the HNR increased. All the acoustic variables, jitter, shimmer, and HNR were found to have significantly larger improvements in the lower pitch, A3 (chest register), compared to the higher pitch, C5 (head register). The findings of this study provided empirical evidence for the beneficial effect of vocal warm-up on the voice quality of untrained female singers. The positive effects of the findings indicated that the vocal warm-up should be encouraged and not bypassed.
Vocal warm-up has garnered much research attention these recent years. This study compared the short-term effects of straw phonation (SP) with a traditional vocal warm-up (TVW) on the vocal quality of untrained female singers. It also determined the effect of exercise type on the vocal economy and skill acquisition. Vocal quality was measured using voice range profile (VRP), multi-parametric index, acoustic, and aerodynamic parameters. Eighty participants were randomly recruited and divided into two equal groups to perform vocal warm-ups at a frequency of two 10-minute sessions per day for three weeks. Voice data were collected using Praat and Vocalgrama software, while the statistical results were analysed using Statistical Product and Service Solution (SPSS). As a result, some parameters, i.e., fundamental frequency maximum (F0-max), maximum intensity (max Int) and area of VRP, fundamental frequency (F0), jitter, shimmer, harmonics-to-noise ratio (HNR), and dysphonia severity index (DSI), projected significant changes after three weeks of warming up exercise in TVW group. In the SP group, the participants experienced significant changes in max Int and area of VRP only. Both groups did not exert significant changes to min Int, which indirectly measures phonation threshold pressure (PTP), signifying no improvement for the vocal economy. Participants from the TVW group benefitted the most from vocal warm-ups due to notable improvement in vocal quality, technical singing skills (i.e., skill acquisition), and vocal efficiency. Meanwhile, the SP group only benefitted in terms of enhanced vocal efficiency. Acoustic parameters, aerodynamic, dysphonia severity index, semi-occluded vocal tract exercise, traditional vocal warm-up, vocal quality, voice range profile
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.