ABSTRACT
The aim of this chapter is to outline a theory of the voice that relates specific vocal fold articulations to acoustic parameters that are perceptible to listeners. The “voice” here is defined narrowly as sound generated by different articulatory configurations of the vocal folds. However, even when so narrowly defined, voice production and voice quality perception are inherently multidimensional. Phonological analyses of the voice provide one way of constraining its multidimensionality, because the voice plays an essential, though restricted, role in phonology. The sounds of the world’s languages can be characterized by their voicing – the presence or absence of vocal fold vibration – and the absence of voicing can be achieved through vocal fold spreading or constriction. When voicing is present, it can have different rates of vibration, which alter the pitch of the voice; the vocal folds can also exhibit different manners of voicing, which result in changes in voice quality. These main articulations of the vocal folds are modeled in terms of their acoustic characteristics, using measures that can link voice articulation and voice quality perception.
