Phonation Totally Explained

Everything about Phonation totally explained

Phonation is the effect of the larynx on the airstream produced by the lungs and diaphragm, creating an audible source of acoustic energy which is then modified by the articulation of the rest of the vocal tract. It is a primary component of voice quality. For example, voiced phonation takes place when the vocal folds are brought together and breath pressure causes them to vibrate in such a way that a buzzing sound occurs; this vibration is the source of acoustic energy which is then modified by the articulatory actions of the rest of the vocal apparatus. The vocal folds are brought together primarily by the action of the interarytenoid muscles, which pull the arytenoid cartilages together. With recent advances in imaging technology, it has become apparent that in many languages phonation involves more than just the vocal folds.
Phonation has traditionally been seen as one dimension of phonetic voicing. The other dimension is timing, called voice onset time or VOT.
Outside of linguistics, as when describing singing or animal vocalizations, the word phonation may be synonymous with voiced phonation.

The phonatory process

A voiced sound is produced when air expelled from the lungs causes the vocal folds to vibrate. This produces a fundamental tone accompanied by several harmonic overtones. The resulting sound is modified by movements in the vocal tract, by the volume of the airflow and by the degree of constriction of the vocal cords. (During speech the flow of air is relatively small because of constrictions of the vocal cords.) Vowels are usually voiced, as are many consonants.
If the vocal folds are lax and not sufficiently close to vibrate, then the sound (usually a consonant) is voiceless.. These two theories are not in contention with one another and it's quite possible that both theories are true and operating simultaneously to initiate and maintain vibration. A third theory, the neurochronaxic theory, was in considerable vogue in the 1950s, but has since been largely discredited. is essentially a combination of the two described above and is currently the most accepted theory of phonation by voice and speech scientists and vocologist.

Phonation as the state of the glottis

In classic treatments of phonation, such as those of Peter Ladefoged, phonation was considered to be a matter of points on a continuum of tension and closure of the vocal cords. More intricate mechanisms were occasionally described, but they were difficult to investigate, and until recently the state of the glottis and phonation were considered to be nearly synonymous.
If the vocal cords are completely relaxed, with the arytenoid cartilages apart for maximum airflow, the cords don't vibrate. This is voiceless phonation, and is extremely common with obstruents. If the arytenoids are pressed together for glottal closure, the vocal cords block the airstream, producing stop sounds such as the glottal stop. In between there's a sweet spot of maximum vibration. This is modal voice, and is the normal state for vowels and sonorants in all the world's languages. However, the aperture of the arytenoid cartilages, and therefore the tension in the vocal cords, is one of degree between the end points of open and closed, and there are several intermediate situations utilized by various languages to make contrasting sounds.

glottal (the vocal cords), producing the distinctions described above
ventricular (the 'false vocal cords', partially covering and damping the glottis)
arytenoid (sphincteric compression forwards and upwards)
epiglotto-pharyngeal (retraction of the tongue and epiglottis, potentially closing onto the pharyngeal wall)
raising or lowering of the entire larynx
narrowing of the pharynx

Until the development of fiber-optic laryngoscopy, the full involvement of the larynx during speech production wasn't observable, and the interactions among the six laryngeal articulators is still poorly understood. However, at least two supra-glottal phonations appear to be widespread in the world's languages. These are harsh voice ('ventricular' or 'pressed' voice), which involves overall constriction of the larynx, and faucalized voice ('hollow' or 'yawny' voice), which involves overall expansion of the larynx. The term register can be somewhat confusing at it encompasses several aspects of the human voice. The term register can be used to refer to any of the following.:

A particular part of the vocal range such as the upper, middle, or lower registers.

A resonance area such as chest voice or head voice.

A phonatory process

A certain vocal timbre

A region of the voice which is defined or delimited by vocal breaks.

A subset of a language used for a particular purpose or in a particular social setting. In linguistics, a register language is a language which combines tone and vowel phonation into a single phonological system.
Within speech pathology the term vocal register has three constituent elements: a certain vibratory pattern of the vocal folds, a certain series of pitches, and a certain type of sound. Speech pathologists identify four vocal registers based on the physiology of laryngeal function: the vocal fry register, the modal register, the falsetto register, and the whistle register. This view is also adopted by many vocal pedagogists.

Vocal resonation

In singing, vocal resonation is a term for the process by which the basic product of phonation is enhanced in timbre and/or intensity by the air-filled cavities through which it passes on its way to the outside air. Various terms related to the resonation process include amplification, enrichment, enlargement, improvement, intensification, and prolongation, although in strictly scientific usage acoustic authorities would question most of them. The main point to be drawn from these terms by a singer or speaker is that the end result of resonation is, or should be, to make a better sound. There are seven areas that may be listed as possible vocal resonators. In sequence from the lowest within the body to the highest, these areas are the chest, the tracheal tree, the larynx itself, the pharynx, the oral cavity, the nasal cavity, and the sinuses.Further Information

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