Chest voice is a term used within

vocal music Vocal music is a type of singing performed by one or more singers, either with instrumental accompaniment, or without instrumental accompaniment (a cappella), in which singing provides the main focus of the piece. Music which employs singing but ...

. The use of this term varies widely within vocal pedagogical circles. There is no consistent opinion among vocal music professionals regarding the term. Chest voice can be used in relation to: * A particular part of the

vocal range Vocal range is the range of pitches that a human voice can phonate. A common application is within the context of singing, where it is used as a defining characteristic for classifying singing voices into voice types. It is also a topic of stud ...

or type of

vocal register A vocal register is a range of tones in the human voice produced by a particular vibratory pattern of the vocal folds. These registers include modal voice (or normal voice), vocal fry, falsetto, and the whistle register. Registers originate in lar ...

* A vocal resonance area * A specific vocal

timbre In music, timbre (), also known as tone color or tone quality (from psychoacoustics), is the perceived sound of a musical note, sound or tone. Timbre distinguishes sounds according to their source, such as choir voices and musical instrument ...

History

The first recorded mention of the term chest voice was around the 13th century, when it was distinguished from the

throat In vertebrate anatomy, the throat is the front part of the neck, internally positioned in front of the vertebrae. It contains the Human pharynx, pharynx and larynx. An important section of it is the epiglottis, separating the esophagus from the t ...

and the head voice ( pectoris, guttoris, capitis—at this time it is likely head voice referred to the falsetto register) by the writers Johannes de Garlandia and Jerome of Moravia.''

The New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language '' Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and th ...

''. Edited by

Stanley Sadie Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was a British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was published as the first edition ...

, ''Volume 6. Edmund to Fryklund''. , Copyright Macmillan 1980. The term was later redefined during the

bel canto , )—with several similar constructions (, , , pronounced in English as )—is a term with several meanings that relate to Italian singing, and whose definitions have often been misunderstood. ''Bel canto'' was not only seen as a vocal technique ...

period when it was identified as the lowest of three vocal registers: the chest,

passaggio Passaggio () is a term used in classical singing to describe the transition area between the vocal registers. The ''passaggi'' (plural) of the voice lie between the different vocal registers, such as the chest voice, where any singer can produ ...

and head registers. This approach is still taught by some vocal pedagogists. However as knowledge of human anatomy has increased over the past two hundred years, so has the understanding of the physical process of singing and vocal production. As a result, many vocal pedagogists have redefined or even abandoned the use of the term chest voice. In particular, the use of the term chest register has become controversial since vocal registration is more commonly seen as a product of laryngeal function that is unrelated to the anatomy of the chest and lungs. For this reason, many vocal pedagogists argue that it is meaningless to speak of registers being produced in the chest. The vibratory sensations which are felt in these areas are resonance phenomena and should be described in terms related to vocal resonance, not to registers. These vocal pedagogists prefer the term "chest voice" over the term "chest register". These vocal pedagogists also hold that many of the problems which people identify as register problems are really problems of resonance adjustment. This helps to explain the controversy over this terminology. Also, the term chest register is not used within speech pathology and is not one of the four main vocal registers identified by speech pathologists. For the purposes of this article, the term "chest voice" is adopted as it is less controversial. The contemporary use of the term chest voice often refers to a specific kind of vocal coloration or vocal timbre. In classical singing, its use is limited entirely to the lower part of the modal register or normal voice. Chest timbre can add a wonderful array of sounds to a singer’s vocal interpretive palette. The introduction of chest timbre is common to singers trained in the historic Italian school, but largely shunned among singers who have emerged from the Nordic/Germanic tradition. Such approval or disapproval is largely an aesthetic decision. However, the use of overly strong chest voice in the higher registers in an attempt to hit higher notes in the chest can lead to forcing. Forcing can lead consequently to vocal deterioration.''The Oxford Dictionary of Opera''.

John Warrack John Hamilton Warrack (born 9 February 1928) is an English music critic, writer on music, and oboist. Career Born in London, Warrack is the son of Scottish conductor and composer Guy Warrack and Jacynth Mary Ellerton. He was educated at Winches ...

and Ewan West,

Physiological process

As the opinions on what exactly chest voice is vary greatly, there is no one consensus on the physiological production of chest voice. However, there is a developing body of scientific knowledge regarding the production of various definitions of chest voice:

Laryngeal registration understanding

This viewpoint considers “chest voice” as the result of

phonation The term phonation has slightly different meanings depending on the subfield of phonetics. Among some phoneticians, ''phonation'' is the process by which the vocal folds produce certain sounds through quasi-periodic vibration. This is the defi ...

where thyroarytenoid muscle function heavily dominates

cricothyroid muscle The cricothyroid muscle is the only tensor muscle of the larynx aiding with phonation. It is innervated by the superior laryngeal nerve. Its action tilts the thyroid forward to help tense the vocal cords, thus increasing the pitch of the voice ...

function. It is generally also characterized by a higher closed quotient value (a quotient of how long the vocal folds are touching to how long the cycle of vibration lasts) than “ head voice”. A closed quotient ratio obtained by EGG ( Electroglottography) around %65 and above is considered as a full chest singing (adducted chest voice) and a result around %48 can be viewed as a lyrical style singing (abducted chest voice).

Vocal resonance understanding

This view believes that the chest voice is a product not of vocal registration but

vocal resonation Vocal resonance may be defined as "the process by which the basic product of phonation is enhanced in timbre and/or intensity by the air-filled cavities through which it passes on its way to the outside air." Throughout the vocal literature, variou ...

. Opinions within this understanding vary. Although some pedagogists believe the chest is an effective resonator, most agree that chest voice actually resonates in the vocal tract while creating vibratory sensations in the chest. French otolaryngologist and phoniatrist says,

"during singing, the vibration of the
vocal folds In humans, the vocal cords, also known as vocal folds, are folds of throat tissues that are key in creating sounds through Speech, vocalization. The length of the vocal cords affects the pitch of voice, similar to a violin string. Open when brea ...
impresses periodic shakes on the laryngeal cartilage which transmits them to the bones in the
thorax The thorax (: thoraces or thoraxes) or chest is a part of the anatomy of mammals and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main di ...
via the laryngeal depressors, and to the bony structures in the head via the laryngeal elevators. Singers feel these shakes in the form of thoracic and facial vibrations".

These internal

phonatory The term phonation has slightly different meanings depending on the subfield of phonetics. Among some phoneticians, ''phonation'' is the process by which the vocal folds produce certain sounds through quasi-periodic vibration. This is the defin ...

sensations produced by laryngeal vibrations are called "resonance" by singers and teachers of singing. During singing in the lower register, the

larynx The larynx (), commonly called the voice box, is an organ (anatomy), organ in the top of the neck involved in breathing, producing sound and protecting the trachea against food aspiration. The opening of larynx into pharynx known as the laryngeal ...

is lowered since the muscles which connect it to the rib cage are tensed whereas the muscles above the larynx are not tensed. Consequently, a large proportion of the vibratory energy is transmitted to the thoracic area, giving singers the impression that their voice is resonating in the chest. This impression, however, is false. The chest by virtue of its design and location can make no significant contribution to the resonance system of the voice. The chest is on the wrong side of the

vocal folds In humans, the vocal cords, also known as vocal folds, are folds of throat tissues that are key in creating sounds through Speech, vocalization. The length of the vocal cords affects the pitch of voice, similar to a violin string. Open when brea ...

and there is nothing in the design of the lungs that could serve to reflect sound waves back toward the

Acoustic buzz

Singing voice produces harmonics (a.k.a. buzz). The intended fundamental frequency along with the harmonics is known as pitch construct. Tenor, baritone, bass, alto, mezzo-soprano singers produce pro-dominant harmonics during singing when they perform in full chest voice. This allows us to determine if a voice is produced via full chest singing simply looking at the spectrogram. Sopranos and countertenors mainly produce the first four harmonics strongly and these harmonics are counted as a pure part of the pitch construct. Spectrogram images of a soprano or a countertenor indicate the strongest first four harmonics in full chest singing.

Notes and references