On Thu, 13 Apr 2000, Sally Bradshaw wrote:
> Someone mentioned new research or information on the maturing of the larynx
> on a posting recently and I would be very interested to hear what that
> might be. Does anyone have access to findings on the subject? It was
> mentioned in the context of raising the age limit for auditions.
>
> I was discussing the recent huge improvement in her voice with a mezzo
> yesterday who is around 49 and wondered if her larynx has modified in some
> way.
Dear Sally and Vocalist:
I was the one who mentioned this. I wrote a post earlier this year about a
NATS Journal article that discusses laryngeal maturation. But darn it, no
archives!
The article is in the Journal of Singing Vol. 56, No. 3 pp. 67-69
(January/February 2000). It is titled "Voice Teaching and Laryngeal
Maturation," and was written by Jean Westerman Gregg.
The article talks about laryngeal maturation from the embryonic stages
throughout the duration of a lifetime. To sum up laryngeal maturation in
adults, let me quote from page 68 of the article:
"The thyroid, cricoid, and the greater part of the arytenoid cartilages are
of the hyaline type, which ossifies as the individual matures. The thyroid,
and then the cricoid cartilages, start to ossify in the early twenties of
one's age, while the arytenoids delay this until the late thirties. These
structures are completely ossified by the age of sixty-five (Aronson 1985,
Sataloff 1997).
What does all of this mean to the singer? In order to achieve the full
vocal volume of the adult singer, it would appear that we need the strength
available from the ossified cricoid cartilage and the stability of a firm
thyroid cartilage for the vocal folds to firmly adduct when the subglottal
breath pressure reaches the amount necessary for loud singing. It is no
wonder that most professional singers do not achieve prominence until their
mid-to-late thirties. It would seem that training of the vocal mechanism
takes this long, based on the length of time for maturation of the
structures, to say nothing of the time required to achieve complete
coordination of the muscles, nerves, and so forth, for fine, artistic
singing.
Hence, we as voice teachers need to be aware of the status of vocal maturity
of each of our students and not be in a rush to push them beyond what their
physical structures are capable of at the time of study."
Interesting, yes?
Jana
--
Jana Holzmeier
Dept. of Music
Nebraska Wesleyan University
5000 Saint Paul Ave.
Lincoln, NE 68504
jjh@n...
402-465-2284
Visit the Music Department website at http://music.nebrwesleyan.edu/
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