Matthias Echternach1, Louisa Traser2,
Bernhard Richter1, Michael Markl3
1Institute of
Musicians`Medicine, Freiburg University Medical Center, Freiburg, Germany; 2Charite,
Berlin, Germany; 3Department of Radiology, Medical Physics,
Freiburg University Medical Center, Freiburg, Germany
Aim of this study was to analyse vocal tract shapes in male alto register functions. Dynamic real time MRI of 8 frames per second was used to analyze the vocal tract profile in 7 professional male altos who sang on the vowel /a/ an ascending and descending scale from G3 to E4. The scale included their register transition from modal register falsetto. Register transitions from modal register to stage falsetto were associated with increased lip opening, jaw retraction, elevation and back positioning of the tongue, pharynx narrowing, uvula elevation, drop of larynx height and tilting of the larynx.