THE VOICE IN SPEAKING TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN OF /] ^ 2 / EMMA SEILER MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY AND AUTHOB OP "THE VOICE IN SINGING" W. H. FURNESS D.D. IIEII OF TIIE AMEEICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY PHILADELPHIA J. B. LIPPINCOTT & CO. 1875 Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by J. B. LIPPINCOTT & CO., In the Office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington. PN 54 b CONTENTS. PAGB INTRODUCTION . 5 CHAPTEK I. ACOUSTICS IN GENERAL . 11 CHAPTEK II. THE VOWELS . . 23 .CHAPTEK III. THE CONSONANTS . CHAPTER IV. THE VOCAL TONES G2 CHAPTER V. THE TIMBRE OF THE VOICE 85 CHAPTER VI. REACH OF THE VOICE 95 CHAPTER VII. THE REFLECTION OF SOUND 102 3 CONTENTS. CHAPTER VIII. PAOB FAULTS IN SPEAKING . 131 CHAPTER IX. MODULATION . 131 APPENDIX. CLERGYMAN'S SORE THROAT, BY CARL SEILER, M.D. 155 INTEODTJOTIOS'. SINCE the publication of " The Voice in Sing- ing," I have frequently been applied to for in- formation and instruction by teachers of elocution and by persons whose callings require them to speak in public. My attention has thus been turned to the action of the Voice in Speaking ; and occasion has been afforded me to pursue more thoroughly, with the assistance of my son, Dr. Carl Seiler, the study of the natural laws under- lying these sounds. The results which we have arrived at are given in the first part of this little work. As at the present day, with advancing intel- lectual culture, jt^becomes more and more the aim of individuals to give a higher and more graceful character to the various modes of expressing the inner life, so was it likewise, as history bears wit- ness, among the most cultivated nations of ancient times. In every civilized people the endeavor 2 5 6 INTRODUCTION. to perfect the manner of speaking is always es- pecially conspicuous. Of all our ways of giving utterance to the life within, Speech is the most important. It is the minister of our collective in- tellectual being. This it is that raises man above all other living creatures and renders him capable of constant and illimitable progress, making the conquests of one the property of all. So long ago as the fifth century before Christ there were schools in Greece in which the Art of Speaking was taught. In the convent schools of the Middle Ages it was carefully cultivated, just as at the present day it is made a branch of study in most of the educational institutions of Europe. But, although the Art of Speaking has been so long taught, there has been no guiding principle in the work of instruction. The sole reliance has been a more or less obscure sense of the beautiful. The examples of distinguished orators and dra- matic artists have alone been looked to. The method of teaching has been purely empirical ; and the true and the beautiful in speaking have been unconsciously reached by renowned speakers and actors only by the sure instinct of genius. INTRODUCTION. 1 In works upon Elocution attention is almost exclusively given to the so-called Modulation of the Voice, to Expression and whatever pertains thereto ; while sonorousness and fulness of voice are regarded as incidental gifts of Nature, admit- ting neither of modification nor of improvement. As to distinctness and reach of voice, these, it is considered, are attainable only by the exertion of mere physical force. It is only recently that Science has succeeded in discovering and elucidating the natural laws upon which all the sounds of the human voice depend. These laws of Mature are, in both sexes and in all mankind of every age and tongue, un- changeably the same, irrespective of the manner in which these sounds may be combined in dif- ferent languages. Every normal human being is by nature capable of forming all the sounds that occur in the various tongues and dialects of man- kind, although all the sounds capable of being made by the voice do not appear in any one language. With an accurate knowledge of the laws upon which melody, fulness, distinctness, reach of voice, etc., depend, it becomes possible to communicate 8 INTRODUCTION. these qualities to voices to which they do not appear naturally to belong. Prof. Helmholtz, in his work " Die Lehre von den Tonempfindungen," in which are published his investigations of the vowel sounds, was the first to call attention to the musical properties of the speaking sounds of the human voice. But al- though, since the appearance of that great work, Acoustics, physically and physiologically con- sidered, have been made the subject of new and diligent study, and much valuable information has been obtained in this department of natural science, yet, with a single exception,* no attempt has thus far been made, with favorable results, to ascertain, for the perfecting of the power of speech, the musical character of consonant sounds.f It was with this in view that, with the aid of my son, I began the preparation of this book, the labor of which was at first not a little increased * Dr. Oscar Wolf: Sprache und Ohr. f Jacob Grimm, the most eminent of German students of language, disposes of the influence of physical Acoustics in the improvement of the speaking voice with the jesting remark that " the air was too thin a thing for him." INTRODUCTION. 9 by the many obscurities and contradictions that tended to lead us astray. In investigating the musical qualities of the sounds of Speech, we made use of a series of tuning-forks and reso- nators, and had advanced a considerable way in our inquiries when there appeared the valuable work by Dr. Wolf, of Frankfort, just referred to, in which this portion of our general subject is treated with like results : one of many instances, by the way, of the occurrence of the same thought coincidently to different persons in different places and of the adoption of similar methods of devel- oping it. Although Dr. Wolf has studied the musical qualities of the Consonants only with reference to morbid conditions of the sense of hearing, he has nevertheless pursued his inquiries in the same way as ourselves, and, with slight variations, has arrived at the same conclusions. Dr. Wolf has had the advantage of the Over- tone Apparatus, recently invented by Appun in Hanau, by which the labor of the inquiry was materially lightened. The fact, however, that, pursuing this study independently of each other and with different aids, we have come to so close 2* 10 INTRODUCTION. an agreement in our results, is no slight testimony to their correctness. As Dr. Wolf was the first to publish his work, to him is due the credit of being the first to dis- cover and describe the musical character of the Consonants. This is, however, only a part of the task un- dertaken in this book, which is to investigate specially those functions of our vocal organs not hitherto understood, and to elucidate the results of these investigations as clearly as possible, and so to open a road for the improvement of our mode .of speaking. THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. CHAPTER I. ACOUSTICS IN GENERAL. TN order to be able to give a clear idea of the interesting processes of the organs of the human voice in the act of speaking, we must go back, at the risk of repeating what is well known, to Acoustics in general, as elucidated by Prof. Helinholtz. The movements of the air, which convey sound to our ears, come to us in two forms, as Tone^ and as Noise.* The whistling of the wind, the splashing of water, the rattling of a wagon, are noises. Musical instruments give us tones. When, however, many untuned instruments sound to- gether, or when all the keys of a piano within an octave are struck at the same time, then it is * The Voice in Singing, by E. Seiler. 11 12 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. a noise that we hear. Tones are therefore more simple and regular than noises. The ear perceives both by means of the agitation of the air that sur- rounds us. In the case of noise, the agitation of the air is an irregularly changing motion. In musical sounds, on the other hand, there is a movement of the air in a continuously regular manner, which must be caused by a similar movement in the body which gives the sound. These so-called periodical movements of the sounding body, rising, falling, and repeated at equal intervals, are named vibra- tions. The length of the interval elapsing between one movement and the next succeeding repetition of the same movement is called the duration of vibration, or period of motion. A Tone is produced by a periodical motion of the sounding body ; a Noise, by motions not peri- odical. We can see and feel the sounding vibra- tions of stationary bodies. The eye can perceive the vibrations of a string, and a person playing on a clarionet, an oboe, or any similar instrument, feels the vibration of the reed in the mouth-piece. How the movements of the air, agitated by the vibrations of the stationary body, are felt by the ear as Tone, Helmholtz illustrates by the motion of ACOUSTICS IN GENERAL. \% waves of water, in the following way. Imagine a stone thrown into perfectly smoqth water. Around the point of the surface struck by the stone there is instantly formed a little ring, which, moving outward equally in all directions, spreads to an ever-enlarging circle. Corresponding with this ring, sound-waves go out in the air from an agi- tated point, and enlarge in all directions as far as the limits of the atmosphere permit. What goes on in the air is essentially the same that takes place on the surface of the water ; the chief differ- ence only is, that sound spreads out in the spacious sea of air like a sphere, while the waves on the surface of the water can extend only like a circle. At the surface, the mass of the water is free to rise upward, where it is compressed and forms billows or crests. In the interior of the aerial ocean the air must be condensed, because it cannot rise ; for, in fact, the condensation of the sound-wave corre- sponds with the crest, while the rarefaction of the sound-wave corresponds with the sinus of the water-wave.* The water-waves press continually onwards into the distance, but the particles of the water move up and down periodically within * Tyndall. 14 THE VOICE TN SPEAKING. narrow limits. One may easily see these two movements by observing a small piece of wood floating on water: the wood moves just as the particles of water in contact with it move. It is not carried along with the rings of the wave, but is tossed up and down, and at last remains in the same place where it was at first. In a similar way, as the particles of water around the wood are moved by the ring only in passing, so the waves of sound spread onwards through new strata of air, while the particles of air, tossed to and fro by these waves as they pass, are never really moved by them from their first place. A drop falling upon the surface of the water creates in it only a single agitation ; but when a regular series of drops falls upon it, every drop produces a ring on the water, every ring passes over the sur- face just like its predecessor, and is followed by other rings in the same way. In this way there is produced on the water a regular series of rings ever expanding. As many drops as fall into the water in a second, so many waves will in a second strike a floating piece of wood, which will be just so many times tossed up and down, and thus have a periodical motion, the period of which corresponds ACOUSTICS IN GENERAL. J5 with the interval at which the drops fall. In like manner a sounding body periodically moved pro- duces a similar periodic movement: first of the air, and then of the drum in the ear ; the duration of the vibrations constituting the movement must be the same in the ear as in the sounding body. The sounds produced by such periodic agita-* tionsof the air have three properties: 1. Strength; 2. Pitch ; 3. Timbre. The Strength of the tone depends on the greater or less breadth of its vibrations, that is, of the waves of sound ; the higher or lower pitch of the tones, upon the number of vibrations, that is, the tones are always higher the greater the number, and lower the fewer. A second is used as the unit of time, and by number of vibrations is understood the number which the sounding body gives forth in a second of time. The tones used in music lie between 40 and 4000 vibrations per second in the extent <>f -i -veil octaves. The tones which we can per- ceive lie between 16 and 38,000 vibrations to the second within the compass of eleven octaves. The one-lined a I d\ ^ I from which all instruments 1(5 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. are tuned, has now usually 440 to 450 vibrations to the second in England and America. The French Academy, however, has recently estab- lished for the same note 435 vibrations, and this lower tuning has already been universally intro- duced in Germany.* The octave of a tone has in the same time exactly twice as many vibrations as the tone itself. The fifth above the first octave has three times as many; the second octave, four times; the major third above the second octave, five times; the fifth of the same octave, six times; and the minor seventh of the same octave, seven times. In no- tation it would be thus, taking as the lowest note C, for example : | etc. 3: 2 3 4~tf 5 6 7 8 16 32 * Radau, in his " L'Acoustique ou les Phenomenes du Son," states the difference between the concert pitch and the natural pitch to be, as is shown in the following scale, within an octave : Concert Pitch 258f 290 325* 345* 387* 435 488* 517* in Germany A . i I and France, ^ \(\) | I J~ J d ^ lg *~ y JL J ^ ^ Natural Pitch. 258J 291 323* 344* 388 431* 485 517* ACOUSTICS IN GENERAL. J7 The figures below the lines denote how many times greater the number of vibrations is than that of the first tone. In the first octave we find only one tone ; in the second, two ; in the third, all the tones of the major chord with the minor seventh. In the fourth octave we find eight tones, which, however, we divide in our system of music into twelve. Likewise, there are in the fifth octave sixteen tones, which number is doubled in the sixth. Hence the Greeks, follow- ing the natural laws of Acoustics, had quarter and eighth tones, which we, in our moderated scale, have done away with.* The production of a higher pitch in a tone de- pends in all sounding bodies upon the uniform law which we may observe in the strings of musical instruments, whose tones ascend either by greater tension, by shortening, or through a diminution of the density of the strings. It is the same with sounding air-columns, as in organ-pipes and flutes, * So long as melody alone was aimed at in music, and was accompanied only by octaves, the tones preserved their natural purity. But with the rise of harmony (the accord of different tones) there was rendered necessary a more regu- lar system, to which the purity of the tones was sacrificed. 18 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. the vocal cords of the human voice, and all tone- producing bodies. Strength and Pitch are the first two properties of Sound. The third property of Sound is the Timbre. When we hear one and the same tone sounded successively upon a violin, trumpet, clari- onet, oboe, piano, by a human voice, etc., although the tone is of the same strength and pitch, yet the character of it is different, and we very easily dis- tinguish the instrument from Avhich it comes. The changes of the timbre seem to be infinitely mani- fold, for, not to mention the fact that we have a multitude of different musical instruments all of which can give the same tone, and that different instruments of the same kind as well as different voices show certain differences of Timbre, the very same tone can be given upon one and the same instrument, or by one and the same voice, with many differences of Timbre. Since now the strength of the tone is determined by the breadth (amplitude) of the vibrations, and the pitch by their number, so the varieties of Timbre are owing to the different forms of the sound-waves; for, as the surface of the water is stirred differently by the falling into it of a stone ? by the blowing over ACOUSTICS IN GENERAL. 19 it of the wind, and by the passing through it of a ship, etc., so the movements of the air take differ- ent shapes from sounding bodies. The movement proceeding from the string of a violin over which the bow is drawn is different from that caused by the hammer of a piano or by a clarionet. That Timbre is dependent on the form of the vibrations is confirmed by Helmholtz, and ac- knowledged as so far correct that every different timbre requires a different vibratory form ; but different forms sometimes correspond to nearly the same timbre. We have learned by the ste- reoscope that we perceive two different views of every object, and that we compose a third one from those two. In like manner the ear per- ceives different tones which come to our con- sciousness only as one tone. It is in general very difficult, especially in the case of the human voice, to distinguish these single parts of tone, because we are accustomed to take the impressions of the external world with- out analyzing them, and only for the sake of their practical utility. But when we are once convinced of the exist- ence of partial tones, we can, if we concentrate 20 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. our attention, also distinguish them.* The ear hears, then, not only that tone the pitch of which is determined, as we have shown, by the number of its vibrations, but a whole series of tones be- sides, which are named "the Harmonics, or over- tones" of the tone, which are arranged in a certain order above the first or fundamental tone, which is generally the strongest. Helmholtz has shown that all sounds have overtones, which are a production of sound form- ing itself in the air. But to dwell upon this point here would lead us too far away. The series of these overtones has for each perfect musical tone the same order which has already been given (p. 16). Imperfect musical tones contain so-called inhar- monic overtones, which lie close together higher than the harmonic overtones, and hence cause the lower harmonic overtones to be weak or to dis- appear altogether. The different timbre of tones thus depends upon the different forms of the * "When we strike strongly on the piano the low contra C fig: I and press the pedal at the same time, and ^ then silence the string of the struck note with the finger, we hear quite plainly several overtones as soon as the fundamental tone ceases to overpower them. ACOUSTICS IN GENERAL. 21 vibrations, whence arise various relations of the fundamental tone to the overtones, as they vary in strength and number. The mast thorough inquiries have led to the following results, of the first importance in every formation of tone : that the appropriate form of the vibratory waves, which is the most agreeable to the ear, as well as the fullest, softest, and most beautiful timbre which cor- responds to that form, is 'produced when the fun- damental tone and its overtones so sound that the fundamental tone and the overtones are per- ceived together, the former most strongly, while the latter are heard more and more faintly in the inter- vals of the major chord with the minor seventh, so that with the fundamental tone still further sound seven overtones. If the higher harmonic overtones grow stronger and even overpower the fundamental tone, the sound grows shrill, but when the dis- cordant overtones lying close together, higher than the tones just named, overpower the fundamental tone, the timbre becomes sharp and disagreeable. In bass voices which use too great an amount of breath, the overtones up to the sixteenth are sometimes heard, which gives such voices a harsh and disagreeable timbre. But as the tones of 3* 22 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. different voices have their harmonic overtones that properly belong to them, so every singing as well as every speaking voice has its characteristic tim- bre, i.e. its peculiar ring by which we distinguish it from other voices.* Every voice has one, often two overtones, which predominate in every tone; and this it is that gives the voice its peculiar quality. This peculiarity is due to the particular form of the cavity of the mouth. * The Voice in Singing. CHAPTER II. THE VOWELS. nriHE vocal organ in man is a musical instiu- ment, which is commonly compared with a so-called reed instrument as we see it in organ- pipes. The lungs are the bellows, the windpipe is the feeding-pipe, the larynx with the tone-gener- ating vocal cords represents the reed instrument, and the cavity of the mouth the resonance-tube. Among all musical instruments, however, there is no one that, like the vocal organ of man, com- bines in itself the peculiarities of them all, no one that even approaches it in perfection, or is capable of such a vast and delicate variety of tones. But what distinguishes the organ of the human voice from all other instruments is the extraordinary rapidity and accuracy of its movements : not only do the vocal cords change their action and the degree of their tension with every diiferent grade of tone, but all the parts of the cavity of the mouth put themselves in varying relations to one 23 24 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. another with the slightest change of a sound. As every syllable which we utter consists of several sounds, the tuning of the cavity of the mouth must, even for the shortest syllable, change several times. Of this ceaseless activity of the vocal instrument in speaking we may easily satisfy ourselves by simply observing the movement of the lips and lower jaw of a person speaking, and by considering how much activity of the vocal organ this movement implies. The sounds we make in speaking consist of tones and noises. The noises and characteristic tones of the speaking sounds, as we hear them in whispering, are formed in the cavity of the mouth, and are supported in speaking aloud by the tones of the larynx. Speech thus requires a very com- plicated mechanism, as it results from the com- bined working of two very different actions of our vocal organs. About ten years ago, Prof. Helmholtz, in his " Lehre von den Tonempfindungen," published his scientific investigations of the vowel sounds. He found, for instance, that in every vowel sound the cavity of the mouth is tuned to a certain definite tone by the changes of its several parts, tongue, THE VOWELS. 25 lips, etc., and by the rise and fall of the larynx, and that this tone is wholly independent of age or sex, and is always the same, by whatever musical tone produced, or by whatever action of the vocal cords accompanied. What the cavity of the mouth in a child lacks in respect of room is supplied in a grown person by a greater closing of the aperture of the mouth, so that the resonance is the same in both cases. Only the different shades of the vowel, as pronounced in different dialects and languages, change the pitch of the peculiar characteristic tone of the vowel.* Thus it makes no difference whether, for example, the vowel o be spoken with the note r Jj> =3 The tone with which the air in * :& the mouth accords will be the same, whether it be a man or a child who speaks it. Vowel sound Jfe ^ : = Vowel sound ...ip^fe ^Kefnote Overtones rg: 1 Overtones Keynote * This tone is not an overtone, as it is universally repre- sented. Even the most acute investigators have not hitherto regarded the voice in speaking in its true light, as the result of two different actions working together. 26 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. Though the vowel sounds in German are sus- ceptible in pronunciation of but little change, yet the following tables indicate variations due to the different localities in which the investigation of this subject has been pursued ; but in English, where every vowel undergoes so many variations in pronunciation, it is hardly possible to fix the precise pitch of its proper tone. This, however, is not important, the chief point being that the cavity of the mouth tunes itself for every vowel to a certain fixed tone, which gives it its char- acteristic clang. The following are the tones to Avhich the cavity of the mouth is tuned in the sounds of the different vowels as they have been ascertained by Helm- holtz and Donders, and as they are set down in "Die Lehre von den Tonempfindungen." There- with are given also the results of our investiga- tions. I. Helmholtz. The results No. in. are given according to the American orchestra pitch, which is about half a tone higher than the European. Helmholtz saysf that the vowels u, o, a, have only one tone, while the vowels ai, e } i } o, u, have two very distinct tones,| and this is explained by the fact that in the case of the latter vowels a sort of enclosure is formed in the cavity of the mouth, dividing it into two spaces, each of which keeps its own pitch. He compares this form of the cavity of the mouth to a flask, the neck of which corresponds with the * I as it is spoken in the English word ring. f Lehre von den Tonempfindungen. J It should be constantly borne in mind by the reader that the examples given are taken from the German language. 28 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. tongue and lips in the front part of the mouth, and the body of it with the back part.* Donders, as may be seen in the foregoing scale, gives for each vowel only one proper tone, and neither I nor my son was able, in the vowels ai, e, i, b, u, to distinguish the two tones claimed for them by Helmholtz, either by the unassisted ear or by the resonators expressly made for the pur- pose and consisting of two globes shaped like the cavity of the mouth as this disposes itself for ai, e, i, d, and u. As only the size, but not the form of a hollow globe, has influence upon the number of vibrations of its proper tone, so our resonators, connected with each other by a narrow opening, gave a tone corresponding to that of the two hol- * In the investigation of these facts, Helmholtz made use of a row of tuning-forks and resonators. He held one after the other while sounding before his mouth, distinctly articulating the vowels. As soon as the cavity of the mouth was in accord with the vibrating tuning-fork, the latter began to sound more strongly ; and so it was with the resonators. After he had thus found the proper tones of the vowels, he attempted to imitate the vowel sounds artificially, which he succeeded in doing tolerably plainly in the case of a, o, and u, but with the others only approx- imately, because the noises which accompany the vowel sounds could not be imitated. THE VOWELS. 29 low globes taken together; and not until the open- ing between the two was entirely closed which, however, never happens in the cavity of the mouth when pronouncing the said vowel sounds could each globe be set vibrating by itself. To the vowel o, as in the German ' Voter* or the English 'father,' corresponds a funnel-shaped form of the cavity of the mouth, enlarging upward from the larynx with tolerable regularity, whereby the lips open wide, the tip of the tongue is lightly pressed against the lower teeth, and the root of the tongue is somewhat raised. In uttering the vowel e, as in the German 'Set? or the English 'may,' the lips are not so far apart as in the case of a; the opening of the mouth is more like a slit, as its corners are somewhat drawn back; the tip of the tongue presses against the lower teeth, and the body of the tongue against the roof of the mouth, in such a way, however, as to form a tubular opening between it and the tongue. The root of the tongue is drawn somewhat down, so that a second smaller space is made in the back of the mouth, which is connected with that in front by the tube-like opening we have just described. In forming the vowel i, as in the German 4 30 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. 'Ring' or the English 'ring,' the slit-shaped opening of the mouth is narrower and longer than in e; the back of the tongue presses rather more broadly against the roof of the mouth, the front space of the cavity of the mouth becomes smaller and the back space greater, while the larynx is raised, and the tube-shaped opening between the tongue and the roof of the mouth is longer. In the case of the vowel o, as in the German or English 'So,' the cavity of the mouth is narrowed in front by the lips, and the opening of the mouth is round. The tongue lies entirely flat, and the root of the tongue is drawn back against the palate, while the larynx is drawn downward in order to render the cavity of the mouth as spacious as possible. In making the vowel u, as in the German 'Hut? or the English 'boot' the mouth is less open and less round than in o, the lips are set closer to the teeth, and the back part of the tongue touches the palate lightly, so that the air in the nasal cavity is made to vibrate in accord, which gives to the vowel u its peculiarly dull sound. The cavity of the mouth is narrowest in the case of u, and broadest in that of a. THE VOWELS. 31 The so-called Umlaute, in German, a, o, w, as also the different shades of the vowels as they are made in the English language, are formed by a disposition of the mouth corresponding as closely as possible to that by which the vowels of which they are composed are formed. Thus, the tongue in a, as in the German 'Bar' or the English 'bear,' has almost the same position as in e: that is, the same lowering of the tongue in its centre from the back towards the front; only, instead of the sides of the tongue pressing against the roof of the mouth, the tongue merely rises a little and allows the cavity of the mouth to be almost as broad as in the case of a. In the formation of o, as in the German 'schon,' and of ti, as in 'fruh,' the tongue keeps the same position as in e and i, while the cavity of the mouth is formed as for the o and u. The diphthongs, such as d, ai, oi, au, au, etc., in which two vowels sound, one immediately after the other, require two different dispositions of the mouth, and accordingly each of their constituent vowels has its proper tone. All vowel sounds are accompanied by noises, arising from the striking of the air upon the soft 32 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. and hard parts of the interior of the mouth, and from the consequent rapid discords produced. Even before Helmholtz, Willis and Donders had discovered the characteristic tones of the vowels formed in the cavity of the mouth. From the foregoing description it appears first, that in speaking, the cavity of the mouth in the formation of every vowel adapts itself to an en- tirely distinct tone, which is the peculiar charac- teristic clang of that vowel; secondly, that these proper tones of the several vowels, made in the mouth, are wholly independent of the tones of the voice that come from the vocal cords vibrating in the larynx, and at every age and in both sexes are always the same ; but the various shades given to the vowel sounds in the pronunciation of the different languages, and of different dialects of the same language, have, and they alone have, an influence upon their pitch. The extent to which the larynx moves up and down in the forming of the vowels is about half an inch. Beginning with A in its natural position, it moves upward in E and I, downward in O and U, as they are pronounced in the previous examples. THE VOWELS. 33 VOWELS. HELMHOLTZ. DONDERS. SEILER. U f f f bb d b fL A bb bb bd 1 *| I % tJ f S a a_ E f bb *c bb I f d f i Al I -I " " VOWELS. WITH WOKDS. WILLIS. HELMHOLTZ. O No c . Ao Nought be be Paw 1 1 A Part bd bd Paa t_ bb E Pay d *| Pet I See & d 4* CHAPTER III. THE CONSONANTS. so much has been accomplished by recent investigations in the domain of Acoustics in respect to the formation of the vowel sounds, as we have shown in the foregoing pages, little or nothing, on the other hand, is to be found in scientific works on the subject of the musical character of the Consonants. Helmholtz remarks, in passing, that the conso- nants m, n } and / have overtones: beyond this brief observation, the consonants are almost uni- versally treated as mere noises. It is only neces- sary, however, to use the whispering voice to be satisfied that, with their characteristic noises, most of the consonants have also a distinct musical clang. These proper tones are distinguished from those of the vowels by the fact that difference of lan- guage or of dialect has no effect in changing their 34 THE CONSONANTS. 35 pitch, which is always the same in the speaking voice of man, in all conditions, that is, so long as the consonant is spoken alone without any connection with other sounds of speech. One may easily satisfy himself of the fact by requesting several individuals to sound a consonant, &,/, or , for example, and endeavor to change its pitch. They will not be able to make the sound higher or lower than the rest. Thus, in setting the key-note of a song, instead of giving the note with a tuning-fork or whistle, one who knows the proper tone of a consonant has only to whisper that consonant to be able to give the key-note quite correctly. Only when the consonants g, k, d, t, and / are uttered in connection with such sounds of speech as have a higher pitch than their own do their proper tones seem to sound higher, but this only to a certain limit. In the word Stick, for instance, the proper tone of the t, placed as it is between s and i, the proper tones of which are much higher than its own, ap- pears to be higher than in the word to, or than when it is uttered by itself; and this is probably because the cavity of the mouth in such rapid utterance cannot accurately enough accommodate 36 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. itself to a lower tone standing between two higher Dr. Wolf places the limit of the highest pitch of all self-sounding consonants, spoken in connec- tion with higher sounds of speech, a whole octave above that of their individual proper tone. But the results of our most careful investigations do not go beyond a fifth or sixth. Most of those who have written upon Speech have invented names and divisions for the dif- ferent classes of sounds made in speaking. Dr. Wolf arranges the consonants according to their musical character into four groups, which I shall adopt, and which are as follows : I. The simple self-sounding consonants, which can be sounded purely and independently of the vowels. These are r, hard ch, 6, p, g, k, d, , /, v, s, and the soft g and oh. II. The compound self -sounding consonants, such as sch, x, z. III. The simple tone-borrowing consonants, which borrow their musical sound from a vowel sound and are distinctly audible only in con- nection with it, as h, I, m, n. IV. The compound tone-borrowing consonant, which is the w. THE CONSONANTS. 37 In the formation of all the consonants there is found somewhere in the cavity of the mouth an enclosure or narrower space, against and through which the exhaled breath presses, and so is pro- duced a distinct noise quite independent of their musical proper tone. The pitch of the musical tone which accompanies this noise is dependent upon the size of the resonant space in the cavity of the mouth, which space is largest in 6 and p and smallest in s. I. The Simple Self-sounding Consonants. THE B AND P SOUNDS. To form the 6 sound the lips are first firmly closed, and the breath, compressed as much as pos- sible, is forced against them. The lips then part- ing by a rapid movement, the confined air escapes with a sudden puff, like a miniature explosion. Given the same disposition of the mouth and the action just described for the formation of the 6 sound, only executed with more force and energy, and we have the p sound, the proper tone of both these consonants being very nearly 38 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. one and the same; at the most the pitch of p is the higher by something more than half a tone. The tone to which in b the air in the cavity of the mouth is tuned has 320 vibrations in a second, and comes nearest to the note e with 323J vibra- tions (natural pitch). The p has 346 vibrations, and comes near to the f with 344J vibrations. B P When the disposition of the mouth for the formation of the sound b is kept unchanged, one may easily satisfy himself in regard to its pitch by snapping the finger against the cheek. One may also by the same means distinguish the proper tones of the vowels. For mast of the consonants, however, the cavity of the mouth is too small to allow their proper tones to be heard in this manner. THE O AND K SOUNDS. The part played by the lips in the formation of b and p as above described, in the case of g and k devolves upon the body of the tongue; THE CONSONANTS. 39 these sounds being formed by its pressure against the roof of the mouth and quick withdrawal from it, the point of impact being found more or less farther back in the mouth as the modes of speak- ing vary with different peoples and in different languages, without any influence on the pitch of its proper tone. As in the case of p as com- pared with 6, the k has a higher pitch than g by something more than half a tone, which is due to the greater force required in its for- mation. The proper tone of g has 576 vibra- tions, and comes nearest to the note d, which has 582; while k has 616, nearest to fee with 614 J vibrations. G K THE D AND T SOUNDS. As with b and p it is the lips and with g and k the body of the tongue that are brought into requisition, so in the case of d and t it is the tip of the tongue that makes the enclosure, by first pressing against the upper front teeth and then 40 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. quickly withdrawing with a snap, thus letting the confined air escape, both the lips and the upper and lower teeth being slightly parted. Their proper tones are likewise almost the same, that of t being the higher by about half a tone, and for the same reason as before given. The proper tone of d has 720 vibrations, and lies nearest to *f, which has 726, while t has 768, lying nearest to g with 776 vibrations. T The six consonants described above are all formed in precisely the same way, by the pressure and sudden withdrawal of the lips, by the body and by the tip of the tongue. , THE V AND F SOUNDS. These sounds are made when the under lip, pressed against the front upper teeth, forms with the upper lip in the middle of the mouth a small opening, on the edges of which the stream of breath, inhaled or exhaled, breaks and is set THE CONSONANTS. 4} vibrating. The air pressing through this little opening forms the sound of /. By a weaker expulsion of the air there is produced the German v. The difference between these two sounds de- pends only upon the stronger or weaker impulse given to the breath. The noise, however, accom- panying the/ is attended by a greater number of high inharmonic overtones, which are formed at the opening of the mouth. The pitch of / with 862 vibrations is like the a of the natural pitch with 864 vibrations. limit THE S SOUND. Like the /, the s is formed by the emission of the breath. While the tongue lies near to the lower teeth and the lips are parted, the air is driven between the upper and lower teeth. As the tongue thereby is somewhat raised, and the upper and lower teeth are brought together, there remains for the sound of s in the cavity of the mouth only a very narrow space, whence it natu- 5 42 THE .VOICE IN SPEAKING. rally follows that the pitch of this consonant is very high. By a gentle emission of the air the sound of s has 3750 vibrations, being nearest to b b with 3666 vibrations. THE SOFT a AND CH SOUNDS. These sounds, as they are given in German after e and i, do not occur in the English lan- guage. They are- likewise formed by expelling the compressed air through a narrow passage formed by the pressure of the tongue against the roof of the mouth, in such a manner that the middle of the tongue is lowered from the back towards the front, and a narrow, pipe-shaped opening is formed for the passing air. In form- ing these narrow passages the points of impact are different in different persons and countries, being more or less forward in the mouth. The cavity of the mouth has in the soft g and ch the same THE CONSONANTS. 43 pitch as the vowel i, namely, the d with 2328 vibrations. : limit G CH The hard ch, as in the German words machen, lachen, etc., is formed by pressing the root of the tongue against the roof of the mouth, expelling the breath at the same time; thus very differ- ently from the soft ch in the words Bache, ich, gliicklich, etc. If the quick movement which the root of the tongue makes in forming the ch be made energetically and very far back in the mouth, the palate is set vibrating by the impulse of a stronger stream of air, and there instantly comes the sound of r as it is heard in the North of Germany and in English. This is the so-called uvular or palatal r. The proper tone of the hard ch is the same as that of the palatal r. Its pitch will be given hereafter when we come to speak of the latter. The above-described manner of form- ing the hard ch as well as the palatal r, inas- much as it takes place so far back in the mouth, 44 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. is very unfavorable to a good development of the speaking voice, and especially, as we shall see by- and-by, to its reach. In English the hard ch does not occur, and it is certainly for all English-speak- ing persons who are learning to speak German the most difficult to imitate correctly. I have often been asked why German dramatic artists pronounce the hard ch as if it were equivalent to the English sh, and I have found that precisely those among our German actors who use the vocal organ in the most correct and beautiful way, in the endeavor to give more reach to this unfavorable sound, form it unconsciously farther forward in the mouth, where the position and pitch of the cavity of the mouth are such as to produce the sh. THE R SOUND. THE LINGUAL R. As the uvular r is produced by the vibrations of the uvula, so the lingual r is formed by the vibrations of the tip of the tongue. When the tongue is allowed to be in the same position in which the sound of d is produced, and the tip of the tongue is raised and set vibrating by the breath, we can distinguish in the rattling, intermit- THE CONSONANTS. 45 ting sound of r certain other very low sounds. According to Wolf, in the uvular r the low c with 16 vibrations is produced most strongly. In the lingual r comes the C with 33 vibrations. With these lowest tones he found several overtones, of which he distinguishes the C with 129 vibrations as the proper tone of the r. The lowest tone mentioned by Wolf the ear cannot distinctly perceive. According to our investi- gations, the C with 64 vibrations is the proper tone of the lingual r; and for the uvular r } D with 72J vibrations. Lingual R Palatal R 9 C II. The Compound Self-sounding Conso- nants. THE GERMAN SCH OR ENGLISH SH. In the formation of the sch (sh) the vocal ap- paratus is adapted at one and the same moment to the utterance of two different consonants. There are created in the mouth two narrow passages through which the air is expelled : the one like 6* 46 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. that which is made forward in the mouth for s, the other as in forming the German hard cA, the root of the tongue being pressed against the roof of the mouth, and its edges lying round in con- tact with the teeth, while the centre is raised, so that the resonance-space between the two passages is enlarged. It is evident that by the breaking of the stream of air at two different places two different sounds are made ; but, as one can in a flute clearly distinguish two tones, one of which, the flute-tone, is produced in the hollow space of the instrument by the vibrations of the air, the other by the breaking of the stream of air on the sharp edges of the aperture, so in pro- nouncing the sch what one hears is in reality three tones, the d formed in the cavity of the mouth, the Mb formed by the breaking of the air on the teeth, and a third resultant tone, which is pro- duced in the air by the other two sounding to- gether, and which is the f. The d has 2328 vibrations, the bb 3666, and the f 1378. This third tone is often so prominent that one hears .very clearly the fourth sixth chord of B>> major. THE CONSONANTS. 47 SCH A stronger expulsion of the breath in uttering the sh causes the vowel t to be heard quite plainly sounding with it, because the pitch of the cavity of the mouth is the same as that of this vowel. The English oh is composed of the sounds of t and sh. In the English th, which is composed of two sounds, of which one is produced by the striking and the other by the friction of the air, i.e., the t and a sound similar to the s, the cavity of the mouth is tuned to the proper tone of the sound of t; for, instead of the tip of the tongue lying, as in the s, near the lower teeth so that the breath can pass unimpeded between, in forming th it continues, after bringing out by a sudden stroke the sound of t to be raised in the same place, and thus forms a narrow passage through which the expelled air must pass before it presses through the narrow slits between the teeth. The German z and x are likewise two com- pound sounds, which, however, are heard one after the other in rapid succession, of which one 48 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. is produced by the striking and the other by the friction of the air. In the z, s follows t; in the x, s follows k, the proper tones of which have already been given. III. The Simple Tone-borrowing Conso- nants. THE H. H has no proper musical tone, and can be heard only in connection with a vowel. The Greeks did not hold h to be a consonant. In its formation there is nowhere in the mouth any enclosure, or, indeed, any obstacle to the passage of the breath, producing the noises by which the other consonants are accompanied. The h is thus nothing more than the breath itself more vigorously expelled and driven along the walls of the mouth and the cavity of the larynx, as is the case when the action of the lungs is increased by running or fast walking. THE L. L is formed, like d, with the tip of the tongue; but, while in d the point of the tongue is put in contact with the upper teeth and the roof of the mouth and then suddenly withdrawn, allowing THE CONSONANTS. 49 the compressed air to escape, in I the tongue slowly touches the same places forward in the mouth, and allows the breath to flow quietly out, only slightly kept back. The air thus detained divides and streams out on both sides of the tongue along the cheeks towards the opening of the mouth. L, like h, has no proper tone, which is evident from the slow movement of the tongue and the division of the stream of air. So soon, however, as any tone sounds with it the I sounds also, and, although the cavity of the mouth is not in accord with any proper tone, one hears a tone similar to that of the vowel i, often entirely con- cealing the L This peculiarity of the I may be the reason why it is often considered as a semi-vowel. According to Valentin, the Komanic languages appear to regard I in this light, often using i in place of it: as, for example, planus (Latin), piano (Italian), flos (Latin), fiore (Italian), etc. THE M AND N. These two so-called resonants are in their forma- tion very much alike. According to Czermak's investigations of the utterance of the vowels, the palate is so raised that no air, or only a very little, 50 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. can pass out through the nose. In the utterance of m and w, on the contrary, the palate is so placed that the larger portion of the breath passes through the nose. The resonance, then, for these sounds is mostly in the space above the soft palate. M and n have no audible tone of their own, and can be considered only as, so to speak r grace-notes before or after the tone of the vowel. They cannot be used in connection with conso- nants, because they are heard distinctly only when joined to vowels. Neither have they, like the other consonants, any independent characteristic noises: they depend entirely upon their resonance. When one attempts with the whispering voice, that is, without the help of the tones of the larynx, to pro- nounce m and n, only a sort of audible breath is perceived, generated by the friction of the air in the nasal cavities. In forming these sounds, the way for the air through the mouth is entirely closed, and opens only through the nose. The m is formed when, as in the case of 6, the lips are shut, and instead of allowing the compressed breath, by a sudden motion, to escape, the lips are kept closed and the air passes out through the nose. When, on the other hand, having the THE CONSONANTS. 5J mouth in the same position as in forming d, the enclosure in the mouth is formed by the tip of the tongue pressed against the upper teeth, there is produced the sound of n. According to Helm- holtz, through the changing position of the soft palate a larger quantity of air passes through the nose in the formation of m, and a less in that of n. A marked difference between m and n is perceived only when a vowel sounds before or after them. IV. The Compound Tone-borrowing Con- sonant. The sound of w in German is, according to Briicke, the mingling of a consonant and a vowel. The German w, like m and n } cannot be heard without an audible vowel sound. When it is uttered audibly there is heard a weak sound of w. Let the mouth take the same position as in the formation of /, and let the sound, shorter and weaker, be joined at the same time with the vowel u, the mouth being quietly opened wide, and we have the German w. The English w (double u) is a sound between the pure u and the German w; it is heard when one begins to sound the vowel u and then gradually contracts the cavity of the mouth. 52 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. A TABULAR STATEMENT OF THE PITCH OF THE SELF-SOUNDING SPEAKING SOUNDS. WOLF. R c c c c BP GK d DT VF limit lmnds. g Pitch. SCH ad*f THE CONSONANTS. WOLF. 53 54 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. Although it is attempted in the foregoing table to give the pitch of the several proper tones of our speaking sounds as accurately as pos- sible, this is not, however, I conceive, essential. The main point is this: That most of the conso- nants, as well as att the vowels, have distinct tones of their own, characteristic of each, to which the cavity of the mouth is tuned, as we have shown; and, furthermore, that these proper tones of the speaking sounds, independently of age and sex, keep approximately the same pitch in the speech of all human beings. Consonants are not, therefore, as has hitherto been assumed, indefinite noises. As with the vowels, the main fact is the proper tone of the sound forming in the cavity of the mouth ; the larger portion of the air is employed in the formation of this proper musical tone with its regular vibrations, and only the lesser portion breaks upon the obstacles which it meets, thus becoming noise with irregular vibrations and dis- sonant overtones. The tone in the cavity of the mouth gives to the vowels their characteristic timbre, and is more prominent and perceptible than their accom- panying noises. But the consonants derive their THE CONSONANTS. 55 peculiar character from their noises, which are so prominent that their proper tones have hitherto escaped observation. Differ ever so much as nations may in speech, still, vowels and consonants ever alternate, the one with the other, and indeed mostly in such a way that the cavity of the mouth is not forced to too great a change in its tuning. Thus they mutually relieve one another, so that the speaking organs are less fatigued, and with the same impulse of breath are able to produce a great many different sounds. The words which we put into sentences in speaking are composed of syllables. A syllable consists of one vowel sound, or two vowel sounds immediately following each other, and one or more consonants. The vowels require for their char- acteristic tones a larger space in the mouth than the consonants, and while the mouth is tuned and untuned for the vowel sound of a syllable, the parts of the mouth on their way forward and backward form the consonants belonging to the syllable. In other words, a syllable is a group of speaking sounds produced by one pulse of breath, with various quickly succeeding movements of the speaking mechanism, the mouth opening and 56 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. closing for the tuning or untuning of the vowel. It is on this account difficult to pronounce two consonants, similarly formed, coming close to- gether in the same syllable, as, for instance, d and fc, and impossible to form double consonants in the same syllables, as tt, pp; but it instantly becomes easy when they are separated by a vowel, as tat, pep, etc. When, for example, the syllable run is pro- nounced, the tip of the tongue, while the cavity of the mouth sets itself in tune for the u, forms the r ; and as it untunes itself the mouth closes with the n, with which the syllable is ended. And for the speaking of another syllable there is re- quired a new opening of the mouth and a new pulse of the breath. In looking over the proper tones of the sounds in speech, we find that the lowest, the tone of r, the C MS I* i s separated full six octaves from the proper tone of s. When one considers the vast compass in which the proper tones of the speaking sounds range, in THE CONSONANTS. 57 reference to the manifold movements made in forming the noises which accompany them, and the rapidity and certainty with which all these variations of activities are carried on, the vast capa- bility of the speaking organ seems hardly conceiv- able. There is certainly no artificial instrument that approaches it in this respect. And the greatest artist, if such an instrument were put into his hands, would be utterly unable to overcome the difficulties which we in speaking unconsciously make light of every day. The whispering voice, with which we are able to make ourselves heard within narrow limits, consists merely of the tones and noises of the cavity of the mouth made with a quiet flow of the breath. Only in speaking aloud are these tones and noises supported by the tones produced by the vibrating vocal cords in the larynx, and which give to speech fulness, melody, and reach. Our common speaking, therefwe, is to be regarded as the result of the combined action of two dif- ferent instruments, which also act separately; the tones and noises made in the cavity of the mouth alone, that is, the speaking sounds, as in the whis- pering voice, are made by one of these instruments, 6* 58 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. and the musical tones of the vocal cords, as in singing without words, by the other.* In speaking aloud, and in singing with words, both instruments * It has recently been proved by several cases that dis- tinct, although soft and low, speaking is possible even when the larynx is closed so that no breath passes through it. The air contained in the mouth alone can be applied to the production of speech when no assistance can be had from the larynx. Through the kindness of Prof. Stork, of Vienna, my son was made acquainted with a case in point. A patient in the insane-asylum in that city cut her throat and wounded the vocal cords, which, in healing, grew together so that she could not breathe, and it was necessary to introduce a small tube into the windpipe below the larynx to keep her from suffocating. After some months she began to speak, and yet no opening of the glottis could be discovered with the laryngoscope. The opinion of Prof. Stork, that the patient was enabled to speak, by means of the air in the mouth and nasal cavifies alone, was opposed by many of his colleagues, who in- sisted that there must be some opening between the vocal cords. In a second attempt the patient succeeded in kill- ing herself, and a post-mortem examination revealed the fact that the vocal cords had BO grown together that neither water nor air could pass through tEern. At the suggestion of Prof. Stork, a young man undertook to prac- tise in speaking with a closed glottis, and, to make sure that no air was allowed to pass through it before speak- ing in the above-mentioned way, he inhaled the smoke THE CONSONANTS. 59 are employed. All the characteristic tones and noises of our speaking sounds, as they are formed in the mouth and shown in the whispering voice, be- come, when spoken aloud, supported and strength- of a cigarette. The closest observation could not detect any escape of the smoke thus inhaled. Prof. Valentin and Dr. Wolf also mention each a case in which, in consequence of unsuccessful attempts at suicide, the glottis had so grown together that the breath- ing had to be through a small silver tube, which was intro- duced between the two uppermost rings of the windpipe. As soon as this little tube was closed by the finger, instantly there came a fit of suffocation. In both cases the sufferers learned by degrees to make themselves understood, al- though only in a whisper. The sounds that they made most distinctly were b,p, g, k,f, d, t, s, sch. The vowels were more difficult, and could be uttered only in connec- tion with other sounds, and it was the same with m, n, h, I, r. These last were difficult, because the air in the mouth, not being increased by the breath from the lungs, did not suffice for their formation. Of the vowels, t was the easiest. Speaking is also possible even without the tongue, for there are cases on record in which the whole of the tongue had been removed by a surgical operation, and still the patients were able to articulate, with the exception of those consonants which are produced by the tip of the tongue.* * Tongue not Essential to Speech, by Twisleton, London. gO THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. ened by musical tones. These musical tones, ac- cording to their own laws, are produced with great rapidity and certainty by the vocal cords in the larynx. And to them we give in speaking a cer- tain musical arrangement, according to the emotion for which we seek expression. Musical tones have thus their own instrument, different from that of the speaking sounds as shown in the whispering voice; and the action of this instrument will be described in the fol- lowing chapter. It is here for the first time that this path has been trodden in the study of the speaking voice, by which the fact is arrived at that it is the combined result of two wholly different actions of our vocal organs. That hitherto in all the in- vestigations of this subject, sounds of Speech as heard in the whispering voice have never been separated from the vocal tones, and that the two actions, so very different from each other, have been studied together and considered only as one, is owing, I suppose, to the fact that it is but recently that Science has turned its attention in this direction at all. Up to this hour, in all that has been written on the subject, the voice has been THE CONSONANTS. $} treated almost exclusively from the aesthetic side: that is, expression in speaking has mostly been considered, while the physiology of the voice, owing to the obscurity in which the subject was involved, has been almost entirely neglected. My son, Dr. Carl Seiler, has rendered me great assistance both in determining the proper tones of speaking sounds as given in the foregoing pages and in executing the drawings for this book. CHAPTER IV. THE VOCAL TONES. rTIHE laryngoscope was hardly invented before it came to be widely known and used ; and many persons, without the necessary musical or scientific qualifications therefor, have under- taken to observe with it the mechanism whereby tones are produced in the larynx. Many results of such superficial observations have been pub- lished even as new discoveries, and systems of teaching have been founded thereon.* * A physician who handled the laryngoscope with great skill affirmed that the mechanism in the larynx was the same for all the registers of the voice, and a singing teacher instantly published a manual based upon this strange assertion. As a proof of the correctness thereof, they sang to me the scale up and down, and really suc- ceeded in singing within the compass of two octaves, with the second chest-register. The gentlemen did not appear to be aware that these unnaturally produced tones were wholly devoid of musical character. THE VOCAL TONES. g3 Every one who in any department of science seeks with an honest zeal for truth knows how such inexactly observed facts, instead of promoting knowledge, always hinder its progress. On this account, it is proper that I should briefly state the way in which I have investigated the vocal tones and the mode of their production. When I proposed to myself to study more care- fully the mechanism of the human voice, it did not escape my attention that the tones of one and the same voice are divided into groups, the pecu- liar timbre of which shows a more or less ob- servable difference. But before I permitted myself to attempt, by the help of the laryngoscope, to seek for the cause of this fact, I considered it indispensably necessary first to know what was to be understood by a perfectly correct natural tone of voice, and also to learn to sing such tones. By the kindness of Prof. Helmholtz, I became acquainted with the physical conditions upon which pure musical tones depend, and, after long- ccntinued practice, I succeeded in producing such tones and in making them habitual. Not until I had prepared myself by years of faithful study, and knew the several physical sensations accompany- 64 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. ing a perfectly natural musical tone in the dif- ferent groups, did I 'begin to observe in myself, with the laryngoscope, the movements in the larynx during the production of tones. In order to draw correct conclusions from such observa- tion, attention must be specially directed to the physical sensations which, in a correct position of the mouth, accompany the formation of a perfect musical tone. For, in using the laryngoscope, the mouth must be opened very wide, and all its parts be so drawn aside and so posed that a full view of the glottis shall be afforded. As in this way the resonance and reflexion in the cavity of the mouth become disturbed, it is not possible to distinguish the different groups of tones by their timbre alone. When I succeeded at last in obtaining such com- mand of the parts of the mouth that I could see the whole glottis, I always found the same move- ments in the formation of the same tones, changing and returning in the same manner. I then sought to make like observation in others, and selected for the purpose persons who never had had any instruction in singing, and whose voices were con- sequently entirely natural. Professional singers, or such as had received instruction in singing as THE VOCAL TONES. Qfr it is commonly given, I found for the most part to be wholly unfit for the desired observation. For, with a few distinguished exceptions, the voices of such singers are so artificially vitiated that they are no longer in a natural normal condition. The results of the observation of such voices would belong to the class of facts inexactly observed, from which every honest inquirer cannot keep too far aloof.* The larynx is the funnel-shaped termination of the windpipe, widening upwards. It consists of differently-shaped cartilages, more or less movable, ligaments, and muscles. The case of the larynx consists of the thyroid cartilage (a) and the cricoid cartilage (6), as the following drawing of a larynx (Fig. I.), somewhat reduced, shows. The inte- rior of the larynx consists of the arytenoid carti- lages, the cartilages of Wrisberg, the two pairs of vocal cords, the cartilages of Santorini, and the cuneiform cartilages. The cuneiform cartilages reach from the vocal * In The Voice in Singing, the laryngoscope, as well as the way in which it is to be used, is described, and what is stated there need not be repeated here, since this method of observation is generally known. 7 66 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. process of the arytenoid cartilage, within the edges of the vocal cords, half the length of the same. FIG. I. THE LARYNX. a. Epiglottis, b. Thyroid Cartilage, c. Cricoid Cartilage, d. Trachea. In the drawing (Fig. III.) we see,* stretched from the anterior surface of the arytenoid cartilages extending towards the centre of the inner wall of * The Voice in Singing (Appendix). THE VOCAL TONES. 67 the thyroid cartilage, the two pairs of cords, con- sisting of folds of the mucous membrane which FIG. II. THE INTERIOR OF THE LARYNX IN QUIET BREATHING AND IN WHISPERING. a. Arytenoid Cartilages, b. Vocal Cords, c. Epiglottis, d. Trachea. FIG. III. THE INTERIOR OF THE LARYNX IN THE FORMATION OF TONES IN SPEAKING ALOUD. Vocal Cords, b. False Vocal Cords, c. Epiglottis, d. Arytenoid Cartilages, e. Wrisberg Cartilages. (}g THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. lines the whole larynx. The two lower of these cords (a, a, Figs. II., III.), the vocal cords strictly so called, into which the cuneiform carti- lages project, have their points of attachment at the arytenoid cartilages, somewhat lower than the upper pair. Each of these parallel pairs of cords forms, between their edges, a slit running antero-pos- teriorly. The lower, or true vocal cords, approach in vocalization to close contact, while the upper cords scarcely move, and leave a wide elliptical opening between them. As the upper cords have their points of attachment posteriorly and higher, they form with the lower cords two lateral cavi- ties, the ventricles. The two pairs of cords, therefore, are the free interior edges of the mem- brane lining the whole larynx, and extending into it to the right and left. Only the lower vocal cords serve directly for the generation of sound. More or less stretched, and presenting resistance to the air forcibly expelled from the lungs through the trachea, they are thus made to vibrate. The upper or false vocal cords do not co-operate with them to generate tone, but, like all the remaining parts of the mouth and THE VOCAL TONES. QQ throat, belong to the resonance apparatus of the voice, to which also appertains the back part of the mouth, the pharynx, above the oesophagus, i.e., the throat or gullet. This is separated from the anterior cavity of the mouth by the soft palate, the form and place of which in the mouth every one knows.* When a normal voice utters its lowest tones Woman's Voice. Man's Voice. upon the vowel a, as it is pronounced in the Ger- man word Bar (English bear), this being the vowel sound most favorable for observation, the following may be observed in the mirror : The arytenoid cartilages, with great rapidity, raise their points, the cartilages of Santorini, * The reader, if particularly interested in the anatomy of the vocal organ, is referred for a more minute descrip- tion of it to the Appendix to The Voice in Singing, and to any Manual of Anatomy. I have given above only what is necessary in treating of the character of those parts of the larynx which co-operate in the formation of sound. 7* 70 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. in their mucous membranous covering, and close firmly together, as is shown in Fig. III.- In like manner, with equal swiftness, the vocal cords ap- proach each other, until their edges touch through their entire length. The upper, or false vocal cords, likewise approach each other, leaving, how- ever, as may be seen in the drawing, a relatively wide, elliptically-shaped space between them. When the scale is slowly sung upward legato, step by step, the above-described movement of the arytenoid cartilages and the vocal cords is repeated with every new tone, partly separating and quickly closing again. The vocal cords, in the production of the lowest tones of the voice, are moved through their whole length and breadth by large, loose vibrations, which are communi- cated also to the other parts of the interior of the larynx. With every higher tone the glottis* is some- what shortened, and the vocal cords are more and more stretched. The raising of the pitch is thus effected by the greater stretching and short- ening to a certain point. * The glottis is the narrow slit between the two vocal cords and the arytenoid cartilages. THE VOCAL TONES. 7J The first chest register of the male voice. [*&' J j J j The first chest register of the i 9 female Toice. (fU , 3 dk With the !>b 3 in the man's voice, and the *c IdS i | m tne woman's, another action of the vocal cords suddenly comes in. They appear again to be as relaxed as in the forming of the lowest tones of the above-mentioned group, and to be moved in their whole length and breadth by large, loose vibrations ; in going up the scale, the arytenoid cartilages, then firmly closed, as well as the other parts of the interior of the larynx, are unmoved. But by the closing of these cartilages the glottis is shortened about one-third. In sing- ing the scale upward legato, the vocal cords now alone move, being more and more stretched and shortened Avith every higher tone, just as in the above-described lowest register of the voice, that is, in the first series of the chest register. The move- ment of the second series of the chest register con- tinues up to *f in every human voice, whether of man, woman, or child. This *f is the point of 72 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. transition from the chest tones to the falsetto tones. Second chest register of i / f T~ \ , man's voice. Second chest register of women and children. I f\\ \ I J J j-] t ?F J- J J * - IrJ That this f |(J> r j | is the natural point of transition, in all voices, from the chest voice to the falsetto, was known to the old Italian singing masters; for the a t'dj) ^ 4 by which instruments are usually tuned, and which was regarded by them as the highest chest tone, had, two hundred and fifty years ago, 370 vibrations, the same number as our present jf. With the rise and development of instrumental music, the orchestra pitch has steadily but quite imperceptibly risen higher and higher, as stringed instruments sound more beautifully when higher tuned. In the year 1700, the a had 410 vibrations, and to-day, here in America, from 450 to 458, in Germany and France 435, i.e., just half a tone low^r than in this country. But as, while the pitch has thus been rising, human voices continue THE VOCAL TONES. 73 the same, it is very natural that a can no longer be sung with the chest register, as was the rule in former times, lying as it now does so far above the natural limit of the chest register. As soon as, in singing the scale upward, the *f is passed, instantly with the g the glottis again takes part in its whole length. While, however, in the production of the tones of the two chest registers the vocal cords are seen to be moved by large, loose vibrations through their whole length and breadth, when the voice enters the falsetto register, only their fine inner edges are seen to be vibrating. While the ary- tenoid cartilages separate and quickly close with every new tone, higher or lower, of this group, just as in the case of the lowest series of the chest register, the vocal cords shorten with every higher gradation of tone, and show greater tension up to the le in man's voice and to the *c in First Falsetto Register. I /f f ? f M f*~~\ Man ' 8 Volce - First Falsetto Register. I/, , m * F tP \ Woman's Volca 74 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. At these points of the scale the arytenoid car- tilages are instantly firmly closed again, whereby the glottis appears shortened a third, as in the transition from the first to the second chest reg- ister. The vocal cords again relax their tension just as suddenly, only their fine inner edges vibrating, as in the first falsetto register, and as in the other registers, shortening and stretching more and more with every higher gradation of tone to *f, at which tone the head voice in women and children begins. Second Falsetto Register, j-^ [ ' f [* ^T^J Woman's Voice. The second falsetto register of man's voice is commonly thin, and is very rarely used. The head tones belong almost exclusively to women and children, and are found only very rarely in men's voices. The head voice embraces five to ten tones, and comes from a repeated partial closing of the glottis. The fine elastic pair of cartilages, the cuneiform cartilages, which are hidden within the mucous membrane of the vocal cords, extend from the arytenoid cartilages half the length of the vocal cords. In the head tones THE VOCAL TONES. 75 they close firmly together with the arytenoid carti- lages, just as the arytenoid cartilages do in the FIG. IV. THE INTERIOR OF THE LARYNX GIVING THE HEAD TONES. a. Vocal Cords, b. Arytenoid Cartilage. c. False Vocal Cords. d. Cuneiform Cartilage, e. Epiglottis. first chest and the first falsetto register. Hence there appears, forward, directly under the epi- glottis, an oval opening, which with every higher tone grows smaller and rounder, and the fine vibrating edges of which produce the highest tones of the voice as seen in Fig. IV. Head tones of women's and children's voices, b 76 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. These two registers, the second falsetto and the head register, are not used in speaking even by women, but only by little children. The move- ments of the vocal cords above described, in the different groups of tones or registers, always change at the same tone of the scale in all men's voices, wJiether the voice be deep or high. The transition from the first to the second chest reg- ister in man's voice is at ^b [(* \ 1, and in woman's voice at *c fojfo | -L whether it be a soprano or an alto. The difference in voices lies only in the greater fulness and beauty of the higher or lower registers, which registers usually are the easiest and most natural. THE VOCAL TOXES. 77 t|| 'D v 1 B i ^]l * . 1 1 1 1 i : f E 1 f- W I 4 f > 1 i t 5 ^ * ^ s p 1 ! _ o 5T O ^ P 5 i _ i 1 1 aj i j[J~ en i _ p I tj! '" H - g / In speaking, on the other hand, the cavity of the ^ mouth is smaller, and the breath goes directly . out before such a form of vibration can be at- \ tained ; consequently, the voice in speaking has, / with many inharmonic, but few harmonic over- / tones, which takes from the timbre brightness / and ring. But the most important difference between the timbre of the vocal tones in singing and in speak- ing lies in the time which is given to the vocal tones to be formed. When we sing with words, the tone rests and forms itself upon the vowel of the syllable, and needs for its development more time than is allowed in speaking, no matter how small the difference of time may be. The sounds of speech quickly follow and crowd after one another. But for the shortest tone in singing much more time is required to render it perfect. Let any one try to allow the syllables to follow one another as rapidly in singing as they do in speaking, and it will be seen at once that the tones instantly lose in melody, and their timbre becomes more like 92 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. /~the timbre of the same tone in speaking. In like manner, the voice in speaking gains in melody when we let our words follow one another as slowly as they do in singing, and permit the voice to dwell awhile upon the vowels. When several quickly succeeding tones are to be sung, they are formed as much as possible upon one and the same syllable with one and the same vowel sound, and this is done so unconsciously that the short time which is given for the formation of such tones is not interfered with by the change in the cavity of the mouth required by the speak- ing sounds. In speaking, on the other hand, several syllables are generally formed upon one and the same vocal tone. The common idea that the difference in timbre } between "singing and speaking arises from the fact that in speaking the tone is veiled and muf- ' A fled by the noises of the speaking sounds, finds ats contradiction in the fact that, in singing, the speaking sounds must be made more distinct if they are not to be veiled by the vocal tones, and if they are to be clearly understood. The old opera-composers, with true tact, had an eye to the slurring of the words which is THE TIMBRE OF THE VOICE. 93 unavoidable in singing. Their operas consist of single pieces, arias, duets, quartettes, etc., in which, by simple sentences mostly, the sentiment of the music is supported. The speeches, dialogues, etc., by which the action of the piece is carried on are spoken (not sung), whereby the action is made more lively and not retarded in its denouement. In place of these spoken passages, we have now in our modern operas the Recitative, which is con- sidered a great point gained, as we thus can have musical dramas. But if a recitative be well sung, i.e., with the greatest possible beauty of timbre, the words are unavoidably slurred and lengthened, or are uttered quickly and distinctly, and then it is impossible to produce with them a good musical tone. A recitative is therefore usually either badly sung or unnaturally spoken : hence we may de- termine the pretensions of some modern com- posers, whose operas, as is well known, consist mostly of recitatives, so that a good singer must look chiefly to the correct enunciation of the words, and treat the voice and its management as secondary matters. The difference in timbre between the speaking and the singing voice consists, then, 9* 94 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. 1. In the different direction of the breath. 2. In the different roominess of the cavity of the mouth. 3. In the different length of time afforded for the development of the vocal tones. So, in speaking, the vibrations of the vocal tones have a less favorable form, and consequently also fewer harmonic overtones, than in singing. CHAPTER VI. REACH OF THE VOICE. fTlHE waves of sound, like all undulatory -* movements, flow out on all sides from the point at which they begin, and their amplitude decreases with the distance until it vanishes alto- gether. The greater or less distance which the sound-waves run through until they are lost and no longer heard constitutes the reach of the sound. It depends, like their timbre, upon how and where the tone begins, i.e., upon the starting-point, and whether the air be free or confined. We see that upon a surface of water it is not the force that comes slowly in contact with it, but the quick, light, elastic touch, that sends out its undulations most quickly and farthest. Just so it is with sound. It is the sudden, elastic origin of a sound that makes it perceptible at a greater distance than when it is produced by a greater force slowly applied. For how very much elasticity increases 95 96 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. speed and force is well known. By the elastic blow of a small hammer a nail may be driven into a board more easily than if one undertook to press it in with his whole strength; and the more elastic the .motion with which a boy throws his ball, the farther and more quickly does it fly through the air. Just so a tone will sound farther and more quickly when it can spread out unhindered from the place of its origin. Persons who form their speaking sounds far back in the mouth are not heard so far off, although they exert the greater force, as those whose words are formed in the right way: as much as possible forward in the mouth. In relation to the Reach of Sound, modern books on Acoustics have communicated some very interesting results of scientific investigations, which may properly find a place here, as they furnish many useful hints in regard to public speaking. In a place exhausted of air no sound is possible; in rarefied air sound is weak, and when persons in a balloon have risen very high in strata of thin air, they have had difficulty in making themselves mutually understood. Prof. Saussure discharged a REACH OF THE VOICE. 97 pistol on the top of Mont Blanc, and it sounded no louder than a fire-cracker. Sound is carried farther when it goes from below upward than when its direction is the reverse. Heat and cold, dryness and moisture of the air, have only a slight influ- ence upon the Reach of Sound. At the freezing- point the reach of a sudden sound, as, for example, the report of a musket, is one thousand and ninety feet per second, and its speed is increased about two feet with every degree of heat. The waves of tne have the same swiftness as a cannon-ball. A beam of light that sends its waves so much more swiftly through the air would, at the above- mentioned slower rate of motion, cease to be light. That the wind has a great effect upon the Reach of Sound is well known ; but not only does the wind blowing against it lessen the reach, but also when it crosses its direction, and when, as in a v storm, it has the same direction as the sound. A ^ moderate wind, on the other hand, blowing the same way with the waves of sound, considerably helps the reach. Strong draughts of air in a room are very unfavorable to it. When the ventilation of the two Houses of Parliament in London was so arranged that there was a draught 98 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. of air in the middle of the hall from the floor to the ceiling, it was impossible for the speakers to be heard on the opposite sides of the room. In like manner, solid bodies which oppose the spread of the waves of sound have an ob- structing influence upon its reach, and if they are of great size, they cause even a sort of sound shadow. The sound continues on the other side of such bodies, as a stream flowing towards an island reunites beyond it. We know that the smallest object standing in the way of the waves of light casts a shadow, i.e., the light-waves, which are very much smaller than the waves of sound, are parted by it, and reunite at a short distance behind the object that separates them, and move on. We see also in water, that immediately beyond a large rock or island lying in the current of the waves the surface of the water is more quiet, although the large waves roll around it. r So behind a large, firm body, which interrupts the / sound, one hears as in its shadow far less clearly / than he would if he were at that distance on the opposite side, where the waves of sound, running V round it, again unite. Two persons separated by a rising ground, though they cannot see each other, REACH OF THE VOICE. 99 may yet hoar each other well; but they would hear each other better if nothing stood in the way, A/ 1 * although the sound goes off over the elevation. /U)'^ Only when the sound is conducted through a pipe or a canal closed on all sides, in which it cannot spread itself, is it possible to give it any direction one chooses without the sounds being weakened. When solid, firmly-set bodies standing parallel in the same direction, such as Avails, passages, and pipes, enclose the sound, the reach of the sound is increased, as the sound-waves are on one side or on all sides prevented from spreading, and they keep their form and direction longer. It is, in fact, as if the waves found, as it were, a sup- port enabling them to run along farther and more quickly. Long before the sharpest ear detects the\ approach upon the highway of a wagon or a troop ) of horses, the noise may be heard by laying the/ ear close to the ground. Over the water also, music, or the voice in reading aloud, is borne a V third of the distance farther than it is heard on land. Under the domes of churches, or in halls I in which the ceilings and the walls make no angles, one may learn how the sound travels along the ceiling. When in such places a person 100 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. in one corner whispers with his face turned to the wall, another person in the opposite corner, with his ear against the wall, may hear every word, while one in the middle of the room hears nothing. Such is the case, for example, in the great gallery under the dome of St. Peter's in Rome, in St. Paul's in London, in the great entrance-hall of the royal castle in Wiirzburg, and in other similar places. The speaking-trumpets used on board of ships, the speaking-tubes in hotels, conduct the sound far beyond its usual reach, because they prevent the waves of sound from being diffused, and thus they keep their direction and form much longer when they pass through the tube, as water flow- ing through a pipe keeps its direction long after it has left the pipe, and before it is lost in the water into which it flows. To prove this : a speaking-trumpet of brass plate may be lined with cloth without producing any difference in the reach of the sound. That at night, not only in the populous city, but also in the lonely country, every noise is heard at a greater distance and more plainly than in the day-time, is due to the fact that by day the air is filled with all sorts REACH OF THE VOICE. 1Q1 of noises, which disturb the development of the waves of any single sound. Prof. "Wertheim has investigated the reach of sound through different substances. He states that water conducts sound four times more swiftly than air; lead, silver, and platinum about eight times as fast; zinc and copper, twelve; iron and steel, fifteen; glass and ice, sixteen times; and that sound is conducted by the wood of the fir- tree eighteen times more quickly than in the open air. 10 CHAPTER VII. THE EEFLECTION OF SOUND. OOUND is reflected when the waves of sound strike against any object and rebound, just as it is with light; and as the beams of light are thrown back from a hard, smooth, and pol- ished surface better and more quickly than from a surface that is rough and soft, so also firm, hard bodies best reflect sound; and, indeed, the more directly the source of the sound stands before the body reflecting it, the more acute will be the angle in which the sound is thrown back, and the more obliquely the sound-waves strike the object, the more obtuse will be the angle of reflection, the angle of incidence being the same as the angle of reflection. As it very often happens that the reflection of sound is confounded with the resonance of objects, it will be well here, for the better understanding of the matter, to state briefly what resonance is. 102 THE REFLECTION OF SOUND. JQ3 As a body upon which the rays of the sun fall becomes so heated thereby that it gives out heat of itself, so also many objects which are struck by the waves of sound become self-sounding, and mingle their proper tones with the sound received. The so-called resonance-boards, with which we are familiar in musical instruments, are all made of the wood of the fir-tree, as this is the only wood the fibres of which run straight without interfering with one another. These woody fibres begin to vibrate as soon as the waves of sound pro- duced by the strings strike them, and strengthen thereby the thin, weak tone of the strings to the degree in which we hear it, full and strong, in our pianos and stringed instruments. On account of its resonance, fir wood is the best conductor of sound, because the sound strengthened by it keeps its own strength so much the longer. A vibrating tuning-fork sounds much stronger the instant it is placed upon wood, which immediately vibrates with it. In the human voice, as well with the noise of speaking as with the vocal tones, the resonance is the air vibrating in the cavity of the mouth, which, stirred by both noises and tones, vibrates of itself. On the other hand, 104 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. when the sound-waves are thrown back by objects which are not themselves stirred, and do not vibrate with the sound-waves, it is Reflection. Rocks, caves, trunks of trees, grouped in certain ways, and even high billows, and sails which are rendered concave by the wind, as well as smooth walls, etc., reflect sound. Soft and elastic sub- stances, such as carpets, heavy curtains, padded furniture, cork, rubber, and felt, dampen the sound ; they do not reflect it. To reflection is owing the well-known natural phenomenon, the Echo, which Radeau explains in the following way. We first hear the sound of our own voice, and then the reflection of the sound from some object a little later. When opposite to the reflecting object there stands another, upon which the sound that is thrown back can fall and be again thrown back, we hear the sound again somewhat later the third time, and so on. The distinctness of the echo depends upon the distance of the reflecting body from the source of the sound. According to Radeau, one cannot speak more than five to ten syllables in a second.(?) Hence if the reflecting body is so near that the sound comes back before the speaker is ready with the next THE REFLECTION OF SOUND. 1Q5 syllable, there is only a confused noise ; the farther off, then, the reflecting body is, the more distinct is the echo. To hear only one syllable distinctly repeated by the echo, the reflecting body must be from ninety to one hundred and ten feet distant from the speaker, and he must utter the syllables in a manner favorable to the reach. Two syllables require twice, three syllables three times, the dis- tance of the reflecting body. If it is farther off, there occur pauses between the repetitions. Ac- cordingly, as the articulation of the speaker favors the reach, a distinct echo of seven syllables may be heard at a distance of four hundred or six hundred feet. When we pronounce more sylla- bles than the echo from its distance can return to us, the first syllables are not heard at all, only the last distinctly. We often hear in the street a noise which ap- pears to come from quite an opposite direction to that from which it really does. When houses or walls are in front of the sound, conducting it away, we hear only the reflection from the oppo- site houses. All arched buildings reflect sound very strongly,* as a concave mirror reflects light. * In the vaulted cellars of the Pantheon in Rome the 10* 106 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. In fine, upon the same laws that are familiarly illustrated in the action of light reflected from two concave mirrors placed opposite each other, depends the reflection of sound in vaulted build- ings. The most opposite views prevail as to the way in which a room should be constructed so that the voice in singing and speaking may be best heard. The main thing in such a room must be that it shall reflect sound neither too much nor too little. In ancient times, they had amphitheatres cir- cular or elliptical in form, with seats all round rising step by step. These buildings had no other roofs than the sky above them, or, when it was necessary to protect them from the sun, awnings extended over them. Although they were so krge, as we see in their rains, as to hold many thousands of spectators, people seated in the high- est places and most remote from the stage heard reflection is so great that when the guide only strikes upon his clothes it sounds like the report of a gun. And in the grotto of Dionysius, in Syracuse, in Sicily, the tearing of a piece of paper resounds like the firing of a platoon of infantry. THE REFLECTION OF SOUND. 1Q7 with the greatest ease. It is evident that the ancients paid attention to the acoustic qualities of their theatres and halls. In many of their buildings of this class, it appears that there were niches, in which were hung large bells, or huge earthen vases, which, tuned to certain tones, were designed by their resonance to strengthen the sounds of the voice. But when civilization spread over more in- clement climes, and Art could no longer be en- joyed in the open air at every season of the year, a mode of building different from that of the ancients had to be resorted to. Most of our present concert-halls, play-houses, and churches appear to be constructed not for the ear, but for the eye. The pillars, columns, galle- ries, boxes, pews, and prominent ornaments of all kinds, greatly interfere, as must be apparent from what has been said, with the reach and reflection of sound. Elliptical, circular, or highly-vaulted buildings are injurious to the distinct development of sound, because they have too powerful or too irregular reflection; for as two concave mirrors placed opposite each other concentrate the light upon one point, so it is with sound. That 108 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. much prominent ornamentation affects the reflec- tion of vaulted roofs and of the walls is shown in the concert-hall of the Art Academy in Berlin, and in St. Mary's Church in Dresden, which, though both vaulted, are so overloaded with dec- orations that the fault in their construction is in a measure remedied, and in both music sounds tolerably well. The concert-hall of the Gewandthaus in Leip- sic is celebrated for its acoustic qualities. It is about half as broad as it is long, and some- what less in height than in breadth, and, except a gallery, it has no projecting decorations ; ceiling and walls run straight, only at the farther end, where the orchestra has its place, the walls form a half-circle. The Musical Fund Hall in Philadelphia is unquestionably the finest room in the world both for speaking and singing. It is one hundred and thirty feet long, sixty feet broad, twenty-two feet high in the corners, and twenty-eight feet in the centre, the ceiling being thus but slightly arched. Only on the long sides of the hall are there windows, otherwise the side walls are smooth. When the place is empty, and a brief, elastic tone THE REFLECTION OF SOUND. 1Q9 is uttered quickly, it may be heard repeatedly from five to seven times, but very rapidly, so that the repetitions can just be distinguished. A strong tone suddenly broken off sounds long after. But when the hall is filled, and the surface of the floor is consequently covered, this reflection ceases, and every one who speaks or sings there must observe how little exertion of the voice is needed, and how beautiful and distinct is every sound. Bearing in mind the natural laws upon which the reach and the reflection of sound depend, and what practice has taught us, it is not difficult to frame a theory according to which a room may be constructed most favorable to the distinct de- velopment of the sound. A smooth surface throws back sound just like light, in an angle ; a concave surface, on the other hand, reflects all rays of light as well as all sound-waves, coming from one point, in parallel rays. It will, therefore, be seen that it is better to have only one concave surface or wall in a music-hall, as otherwise the reflection would agaiu come to a focus, even though the sound-waves are parallel. When, therefore, there stands directly opposite to a concave, surface a flat surface from which the sound is reflected, HO THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. a favorable reflection of the tone is afforded. The size of a building, provided it is not too small, has much less effect upon its acoustic properties than one would suppose. In the theatres the spectators' seats are com- monly in a half-circle, because the stage with its movable coulisses, linen and paper walls, is wholly unfavorable to reflection. A great fault in our modern theatres is, that sound finds so little of flat surface from which to be reflected, and the reach of the sound is hemmed in by numerous projecting decorations, statues, pillars, etc. Upon almost all stages the singers and speakers have to find and mark the places where they are to stand in order to be the most easily heard. The Opera House in Munich has some benches in the parquette, where the reflection is so power- ful that there, instead of music, only a confused noise is heard. A theatre renowned for its acous- tic properties is an old Grecian one in Athens. The present Opera House in Venice is also ex- cellent in this respect. It is built like all our modern theatres, except that instead of the open galleries for the spectators, a smooth flat wall decorated with paintings forms a half-circle, in THE REFLECTION OF SOUND. \\\ which are the spectators' boxes, opened towards the stage like windows in a house, and taking up no more space from its flat surface than windows would. In the European churches there is often too much reflection, and that reflection is rendered irregular by the columns, galleries, and decora- tions upon which the sound breaks, all of which injures its reach and renders the words of the preacher often unintelligible. In a room with unfavorable acoustic properties, it sometimes suf- fices for the speaker or singer to change his place ; but, as this depends upon the quality of the voice and the manner of speaking, no strict rule can be given. When it is considered that in the case of the loud utterance of a man's voice the sound-waves are ten or twelve feet long, if it be sought to estimate the reflection accordingly, very often incor- rect results will be arrived at, because, as we have seen in relation to the reach and timbre of sound, the form as well as the length of the vibrations de- pends upon the way in which the tone begins, and this is different in different persons. Prof. Rood found that when he walked forward and back- ward before a wall with a tuning-fork in vibra- 112 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. tion, he came to a place where the sound could no longer be heard, and that is the point where the vibrations reflected from the wall interfere with the vibrations coming from the fork; so, likewise, a place is found where the fork sounds loudest, because the reflected waves meet with the direct waves in such a way that the latter are rein- forced by the former. When a speaker finds such a place, he may be heard plainly notwithstanding the faulty construction of the room. CHAPTER VIII. FAULTS IN SPEAKING. A LMOST simultaneously with the ideas which -*-^- arise in the awaking mind of a child is born the power to speak the few words needed to ex- press them. And merely by imitating the persons around him, he gradually becomes accustomed to give expression to his feelings and wishes. As we learn speaking in childhood, so we use it all our lives, without a thought of the wonderful mechanism and perfection of the Vocal Organ. With truly inconceivable skill we unconsciously use an instrument, with which we could not pos- sibly accomplish anything if we had, at a later period, to learn how to use it as a thing external to us. We avail ourselves of the vocal organ with just as little thought as we do of so many other miracles of creation, without troubling ourselves about their wonderful mechanism, until science directs our attention to them, and then a glimpse 11 113 114 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. into the order and harmony of Nature is afforded us. Then, indeed, a feeling of devout admiration fills us, and we are impressed with a sense of a power before which, with all our wondrous intel- lectual faculties, we sink into insignificance. But of what practical use is it for the speaker to understand the wonderful organism of his voice, since it has never yet occurred to any one playing upon any other instrument to trouble himself particularly about the acoustic laws of its construction, those laws in conformity with which this natural organ is also constructed? AVhy should we, consciously, and with painstaking, seek to change and improve what we have naturally and unconsciously become accustomed to use ? The answer is this : The human voice is no common instrument, none other is so flexible 'and so changeable at will, and for that reason none other is so often improperly and unnaturally used. The knowledge of the natural laws of the voice teaches us to distinguish the correct from the incorrect use of the vocal organ, the failure to distinguish which is very common, and which leads to very serious consequences, producing dis- FAULTS IN SPEAKING. \\ eases that render speaking difficult, and sometimes wholly impossible. And again, will not this knowledge teach us also to employ our means of speech in the best and most fitting manner, i.e., to render speech more far-reaching and full-sounding, with less ef- fort, and at the same time give not only the most correct but the most beautiful expression to our thoughts and emotions? Through neglect of the faults and bad habits which children, in learn- ing to speak, catch from those around them, as also through ignorant attempts to improve the speaking voice, so much that is neither beauti- ful nor natural has gradually slipped into our manner of speaking and become habitual with us, that in order to be able to speak well and naturally one must become acquainted with the laws which lie at the foundation of the mech- anism of the human organ of speech. Nature, in her unapproachable sovereignty, enables us always to produce what is most beautiful and most perfect, with less exertion of our physical powers than is required for the artificial and the unnatural. The sounds made in speaking are, for the reach 11(3 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. of the voice, so perfectly formed when naturally produced that the arrangement therefor admits of no improvement. The characteristic noises of most of the consonants must be formed with elastic quickness altogetJier forward in the mouth. And all the rest of the consonants, as well as all the vowels, can be the most easily produced in the same way. When this takes place with the ap- propriate elastic abruptness, speech will have its greatest reach. Instead of this, the noise accompanying the vowels is very frequently made slowly and feebly, ' more or less far back in the mouth. Even in scientific works the place for the formation of the vowels is so given that a, as it is pronounced in fattier, is the farthest back, and u (as in lute) the farthest front, in the mouth. The uncertain im- pulse which is given to the air so far back in the mouth, and by which the noise attending the vowels is made, hinders the sound from moving the external air quickly enough, and at the same time gives the voice a hollow, muffled timbre, as though the speaker had something in his mouth. It is evident from what has just been said that FAULTS IN SPEAKING. H7 every vowel needs for its peculiar tone a certain tuning, which requires a certain definite space. In addition to the careless, uncertain formation of the vowel sound so far back, there is the common fault of not properly opening the mouth for the formation of the proper tone of the vowel, and hence is set vibrating the air of the nasal cavity, which, in the correct utterance of the vowel sounds, is shut off by the soft palate, and the voice thus acquires an extremely disagreeable nasal timbre. As such an incorrect forming of the vowels de- mands a far greater expenditure of force, in the consequent effort to render the voice intelligible the speaker expels the sound with increased amount of breath, which naturally is more fati- guing, and needlessly so. It is evident that, in speaking, the vocal sounds of the glottis, even when their sole service is to elevate whispering into speaking aloud, need for their development at least as much room in the cavity of the mouth as the proper tones of the vowels. The more room that is given them, the more overtones are heard accompanying the vocal tones, and the more mu- sical and full-sounding is the timbre of the voice. 11* 118 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. It cannot escape the attention of any observer that this nasal or hollow timbre of the speaking voice is very prevalent, especially in this country. But, although the force of life-long habit i.s to be contended against, it is not so hard as one may suppose, with due attention and perseverance, to overcome this fault. The best way to do it is to take pains to pronounce the vowels quickly and distinctly, in connection with such consonants as are formed the farthest forward in the mouth, and then to practise with such syllables as produce the vowel noises at the same place, taking care to see that this is the case. For we must remember not only that the reach, but also, in great part, the timbre, of the tones depends upon the manner in which the beginning is made. I often hear it objected, and especially by young ladies, that it is ugly to open one's mouth in speaking, and that the teeth should be kept closed and the lips as quiet as possible. It is true the timbre of the sounds is injured as much by too great an opening of the mouth as by the closing of the teeth. The correct state of the cavity of the mouth requires only a moderate opening, which, provided no needless grimaces FAULTS IN SPEAKING. H9 accompany it, secures graceful and fine speaking. With but slight movements of the upper lip, it is the lower jaw that, with the tongue and low r er lip, is most moved. The rest of the features have nothing to do in speech, save as they are invol- untarily affected by the import of what is spoken. It would be extremely ridiculous if one were to treat light topics with a sad countenance, or give expression to pain and grief with a smiling face. The characteristic noises of many of the conso- nants come from expelling the breath quite for- ward in the mouth suddenly and with elasticity, and at that place where it may, unobstructed, move the external air. Thus produced, these noises are favorable to the reach, while the conso- nants g, r, It, and I can be just as well formed farther back in the mouth. But it is necessary to the reach of the voice that these sounds also should have their inception as far forward as pos- sible. To form g and k in this way requires only a little attention. It is somewhat more difficult to accustom one's self to a correct utterance of /. It is quite common to form the spoken I in the way already described, with the slow movement of the 120 TH E VOICE IN SPEAKING. edges of the tongue towards the roof of the mouth, instead of with the tip of the tongue. With attention and practice, however, one may accustom himself to form the I with the tip of the tongue. But it is very difficult to form the r in this way if we have been used to form it with the uvula. The palatal r, as is so commonly heard, is formed entirely back in the mouth by the tremulous motion of the uvula. To the lingual r, made by the vibrating tip of the tongue, it is objected that it sounds aifected; but merely be- cause it is not usual. It can be made so lightly and softly as not to be distinguished in sound from the palatal r. It is evident, however, that speakers as well as singers, with whom distinct- ness and reach are important, should use only the lingual r. To learn to make it is sometimes rather difficult, but it can be done by repeating frequently and rapidly, one after the other, the syllables hade, hado, or ode, ado, ada, etc. In this way the tongue becomes accustomed to the right position, and the motion by-and-by becomes rapid enough for the formation of the rolling r. By means of the A, the breathing, somewhat strengthened, sets the tip of the tongue vibrating, FAULTS IN SPEAKING. J21 which is raised for the d, if the motion is often made in quick succession. But it frequently needs years of practice to render the lingual r habitual.* The thrusting forward of the tongue, which is so common, or lisping, as it is called, proceeds from an incorrect formation of the s. Instead of allowing the tongue to lie near the lower teeth, and giving free way to the air between the teeth, the tongue is raised for the , as for the English th, against the upper teeth. The great portion of the narrow opening between the teeth is thus closed, so that the many dissonant overtones which are formed in the noise of the s, at the sharp edges of the teeth, are so diminished that the s thus lisped sounds like a muffled blowing, which obtains some degree of reach only by a compara- tively greater expenditure of breath. As the s, both in English and in German, is very frequently used, this wrong method of forming this one sound gives to speech the very remarkable peculi- arity which we call lisping. "With some attention this defect may be easily corrected, especially in early youth, since it does not arise, as is commonly * The Voice in Singing. 122 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. supposed, from any fault of the vocal organs, but is the result of a faulty habit which clings to persons the whole life long, because they never thoroughly understand the cause of it. Another common fault, which is, however, less striking, owes its origin to the fact that too much time is given to the formation of the consonants and too little to that of the vowels. The slow, careless pronunciation of the consonants makes speech indistinct, while the slighting of the vowels, not giving time for the development of their proper tones, makes it unmelodious. Again, we often find that indistinctness of speech is caused by the speaker's not tuning prop- erly the cavity of his mouth for each vowel sound : this fault is invariably indicated by the insufficient motion of the lower jaw. There exists with women as well as with men another very ugly and injurious fault, caused by contracting the soft palate and the parts lying in the back of the mouth, so that the air for- cibly pressed through this narrow passage meets with unnecessary resistance. The same action takes place as in clearing the throat, only in a higher degree. This fault produces the same FAULTS Iff SPHAKING. 123 rattling noise, a kind of twang, which not only gives a disagreeable clang to the voice, but also tires the organs, and is often a cause of chronic sore throat. It is not necessary to particularize the numer- ous bad habits of speaking which may be daily observed. Keeping in view the natural laws of speech, as we have endeavored to set them forth in the foregoing pages, every intelligent person may of himself learn to apply them. Although the incorrect formation of the speaking sounds is very tiresome, and also unfavorable to the reach of the voice, it has not by any means the inju- rious influence which an incorrect formation of the vocal tones has upon the vocal organs, and even upon the general health. The different modes of formation, or rather the Registers, of the vocal tones arising in the larynx from the . vibrations of the vocal cords, and accompanying the vocal sounds in speaking aloud, have been particularly described. And it lias been stated that the vocal tones used in speaking in men's voices are within the limits of the low chest register. ' When these tones are correctly and naturally 124 THE VOICE IN SPEAKING. formed, their clang is always full, pleasing, and sonorous, and more capable than the tones of any other register of expressing the tenderest and most passionate emotions, never fatiguing the vocal organ even when the speaking or singing is long continued. But, unhappily, these fine, deep chest tones are rarely heard in singers or speakers. Instead thereof, we commonly hear them sing and speak in the so-called Straw bass register, which not only has a dry, raw clang, but is also extremely fatiguing, and in the same degree in- jurious to the vocal organs.. This is mostly the cause, especially in an advanced period of life, of chronic inflammations of the throat, which defy all medical treatment so long as this unnatural mode of forming these tones is continued. The so-called Straw bass register is a needless and unnatural way of enlarging the windpipe for the passage of the full column of air required for the formation of the low tones, instead of leaving this formation, as has been before described, to the air alone. The chronic inflammation, thence arising, of the vocal organs, is generally known under the name of " clergyman's sore throat." * * See Appendix. FAULTS IN SPEAKING. J25 That tliis disagreeable and injurious use of the voice is so common, and that even bass singers so rarely sing the deep chest tones in the natural and much easier way, is probably the reason why the false idea is so prevalent that it is only by a very powerful use of the breath and by downright bodily exertion that greater force and reach can be attained for the voice. Every child that amuses himself with blowing soap-bubbles very soon finds out that it is only by blowing moderate!}' through his little pipe that the largest bubbles are made. And we are taught by all that has been said in the foregoing pages that the broadest vi- brations i.e., the vibrations which give the strong- est tones without destroying their form (timbre] are obtained only by a quick and elastic beginning of the tone with but a moderate expenditure of L i'c