CHAPTER VIII

BRIEF OUTLINE OF THE ANATOMY OF THE VOCAL ORGANS

In giving a brief survey of the anatomy of the vocal apparatus we will avoid as much as possible scientific terms, exhibiting in simple form only what is indispensable for singers to know about the physiological functions of those organs which represent the essential factors of voice production.

The mechanism of the human voice consists of three elements: the moving power, or breathing apparatus; the producing power, or laryngeal apparatus; and the resonating power, or resonating apparatus.

These three elements are organized as follows:

1. The moving power consists of the lungs, the respiratory muscles, the bronchial tubes, and the trachea.

2. The producing power, the larynx, its muscles, cartilages, and vocal cords.

3. The resonating power, the pharynx, the mouth, and the chambers of resonance.

The author includes among the chamber of resonance all the body’s cavities.

The _lungs_ are two bellows of spongy tissue which contain a large number of little cavities filled with air (the air we inhale). To these cavities are joined numerous small tubes, called bronchial tubes, which run into the lungs carrying the air and becoming gradually larger in size and fewer in number. Toward their exit from the lungs the bronchial tubes are reduced to two—the large bronchiae, and finally to one—the trachea (Fig. 1).

In the second figure the lungs are contained in a cage (the chest) which is formed by the ribs and the intercostal muscles, attached between the ribs. Under the lower border of the lungs, adherent to the spinal column and to the lower six ribs, lies a large and strong muscle called the diaphragm. Its function, very important, though very much exaggerated by some improperly called physiological schools of singing, is a coördinate movement of contraction and relaxation, which, in connection with the movement of the other muscles of respiration, establishes the mechanism of breathing by enlarging and reducing the chest and lungs to their normal position.

The _larynx_, the second element of the vocal apparatus, represents the sound box of the vocal organs (Fig. 3) and embraces its cartilages and muscles, and, most important, the two elastic bands called the vocal cords.

The cartilages of the larynx, situated above the trachea, are the following: the cricoid and thyroid, the arytenoids and epiglottis (Fig. 4), and the two smaller cartilages (Santorini and Wrisberg) which are of minor importance. All of these cartilages are joined by ligaments and muscles, which move the larynx, and adapt the vocal cords to the different adjustments for producing the relative sounds.

The vocal cords (Fig. 4) are two elastic bands, inside of the larynx, kept in tension during their vibratory function by the cartilages and the muscles, so that they can be put in vibration by the blast of air pushed by the lungs and produce the sound. The fissure between the vocal cords is called the glottis. The vocal cords, in a position of rest, are relaxed and wide open, thus leaving a larger space for the passage of the air, which is called the glottis.

In the upper part of the larynx there exists a very important cartilage called the epiglottis (Fig. 5). The epiglottis is flexible and is situated between the base of the tongue and the opening of the larynx. Its function is doubly important, since it acts as a protective lid to the glottis, by closing the larynx in swallowing, so that food and drink may pass over it without exposing the breathing apparatus to any danger; and in singing it lends free passage to the sounds, from the vocal cords to the mouth and chambers of resonance, by holding itself in an erect position, so as to leave the larynx wide open. The epiglottis is attached to the base of the tongue and their relationship is very important, as together they play one of the most essential rôles in the mechanism of voice production, to which, unfortunately, not enough consideration has thus far been given.

The third element, _the resonating power_, consists of the pharynx, the mouth, and the chambers of resonance.

The pharynx (Fig. 6) extends from the opening of the larynx to the opening of the posterior nasal cavities, and includes also the uvula, which represents the boundary between the pharynx and the mouth. The upper part of the pharynx is called the nasopharynx and is an important factor for the resonance of the voice. The uvula is attached to the soft palate and is prominent in the mechanism of the voice, because it has the faculty of controlling the opening and the closing of the posterior nasal fossae. By this function the nasal resonance can be improved or checked.

The mouth (Fig. 7), the very important organ of voice production, is the cavity which contains the tongue—the invaluable factor in speaking and singing—the palate, and the lips. Above the palate are the chambers of resonance, which consist of the so-called masque, made up of all the cavities, frontal sinuses, antrum, etc., of the upper maxillary and frontal bones.

All of these organs above described are parts of one single apparatus, which is formed by a long tube going from the mouth to the lungs, called the vocal apparatus. This apparatus has the mission of producing and carrying the breath from the lungs to the vocal cords, which puts them into vibration and produces the sounds. From the vocal cords the sounds are carried, by the breath, to the mouth, where they are transformed into voice, and to the resonance chambers, where they get their full resonance.

The resonating power, however, is not represented by the resonance chambers alone, but by all the cavities of the entire body, according to the author’s view, which will be more fully discussed in a later chapter devoted to resonance.

In order to enable the reader to obtain a full view of the entire vocal apparatus, the author has condensed in the accompanying illustration (Fig. 8) all the organs that take part in the formation of the voice. The most important of them are specially indicated.

The illustration is a transverse section of the vocal apparatus. Familiarity with it is of great help in the study of the mechanism of voice production. Therefore we recommend to the reader a thorough examination of it, starting from the bottom and working up. Held by the convexity of the diaphragm are the lungs. From them originate the small bronchial tubes, which gradually become the two large bronchial tubes which, in their exit from the lungs, converge into the trachea. At the top of the trachea is the larynx, which contains the vocal cords. At the opening of the larynx stands the epiglottis, which is attached to the base of the tongue. Then follows the pharynx, the uvula, the mouth, the palate, and the resonance chambers.

The task of demonstrating the important functions of these organs belongs to physiology, which, by means of its natural rules, can give the very correct exhibition of the mechanism of the voice. This preliminary knowledge of the vocal apparatus and of the fundamental laws of acoustics prepares the ground for the development of our principles, in reference to voice production, the aim of which is centered, according to our conception, on closely following the dictates of nature.