It now only remains to be added that the interior of the windpipe and of the voicebox, as well as that of the throat, the mouth, and the nose, is lined with a thin mucous membrane of a pinkish colour. This concludes my description of the Vocal Organ as a musical instrument.

DIFFERENCES OF THE VOICEBOX, OR
LARYNX, IN CHILDREN, WOMEN,
AND MEN.

The voicebox of a newly-born baby is about one-third the size of that of a grown woman. It is therefore rather large in proportion to other parts of the body, with the exception of the head, which comparatively is larger still. The horizontal outline of the shield cartilage is a very gentle curve, and the upper horns are short, in consequence of which the voicebox is close to the tongue. The wedges, according to Merkel, are strongly developed; the vocal ligaments are short and thick, and the pockets deep. Up to the third year the voicebox grows very considerably, but no particular alterations take place from that time to the period of puberty, which generally occurs at the age of 14 or 15, rather earlier in girls than in boys. This period of change lasts from six to twelve months, or sometimes even two or three years. During this time the vocal organs undergo a marked change. In boys, the angle at which the two plates of the shield meet becomes more and more acute, and the length of the vocal ligaments increases only in the proportion of five to ten. In girls, on the other hand, the horizontal outline of the shield does not lose its evenness, and the length of the vocal ligaments increases only in the proportion of five to seven. The cartilages would seem, especially in boys, to grow more rapidly than the muscles, so that the slowly-growing muscles do not, at first, control the newly-developed cartilages. This accounts for the unmanageable state of the voice at this period. The changes which take place in the female voicebox are very imperceptible, so that they do not materially affect the character of the voice. In the male voicebox, on the contrary, the alterations are very marked, and the result is that the high voice of the boy is changed into the tenor or the bass of the man. While, therefore, before the period of puberty the voicebox is materially the same in both sexes, there are, afterwards, considerable differences noticeable, not only with regard to size, but also with regard to shape. This seems, indeed, sufficiently obvious, and any one can see it by simply comparing the outside of the throat of a man with that of a woman.

It must further be observed that the whole upper part of the shield in the female voicebox is less developed than in the male. The upper horns are short, so that the voicebox is more closely attached to the tongue-bone, and its position in the throat is altogether higher in woman than in man. To show more clearly still the difference in the proportions of the male and the female voicebox, I give below some average measurements (taken from Luschka's great work on the Larynx) which I have, for the convenience of English readers, reduced, as nearly as possible, from centimetres and millimetres to inches.

According to this eminent anatomist, therefore, the differences between male and female larynges are as follows: In height, ⁹/₁₀; in width, ¹/₅; in depth, ¹/₅; in the length of the vocal chink, ²/₅ of an inch. As it is plain that if there were "no difference between the male and the female larynx save in size," all their proportions would be alike, I think I may safely assume that I have proved my point, which is a rather important one, as the reader will see when the registers in the male and female voice come up for discussion.

We will now consider the question how the various classes of voice—i.e., Sopranos, Contraltos, Tenors, and Basses—are to be accounted for by corresponding differences in the voicebox. We know that tone is produced by the vibrations of the vocal ligaments. It is clear, therefore, that a voice will be high or low according to the number of vibrations which the ligaments are capable of producing, or in other words, according to their dimensions and their tension. This difference is easily seen by comparing the voicebox of a soprano with that of a bass, because there the proportions are so manifestly smaller in the one than in the other. There are similar distinctions between soprano and contralto on the one hand, and between tenor and bass on the other, but they are not so striking. Neither can they, for various reasons, be demonstrated with the laryngoscope; but they exist nevertheless.

It is true that the vocal ligaments of a soprano are sometimes longer than those of a contralto, just as the ligaments of a tenor are occasionally longer than those of a bass. But I maintain that the longer ligaments of sopranos and tenors are correspondingly thinner, and that their tension is greater, owing to the ring-shield or stretching muscles being more powerful than their opponents—the shield-pyramid muscles. Where this is the case the ligaments are more slanting than they would be otherwise, and the consequence of this is that less power of blast is required to make them speak. With this mechanism the higher registers are very readily united with the lower ones, and the voices so produced are of a light and flexible kind. Where, on the contrary, the vocal ligaments of contraltos and basses are comparatively short, they are also thick in proportion, and the shield-pyramid muscles are more powerful than the opposing ring-shield muscles, so that there is less tension. I shall be asked how I can prove this tension theory, and my reply is this: The diameter of the vocal ligaments depends in a large measure on the magnitude of the shield-pyramid muscles. If, therefore, the ligaments are exceptionally thick, the muscles just named must of necessity be very powerful, and can easily resist the pulling of the ring-shield muscles. If, on the contrary, the ligaments are exceptionally thin, it is equally certain that the shield-pyramid muscles are weak in proportion, and then the stretching muscles can easily overcome their resistance.

I may add that I came to the above conclusions about the various classes of voices years ago, when commencing the study of this subject. Not only have I never since seen any reason to alter my views—although I have not failed to notice and carefully examine the theories of others denying my doctrine—but I am more than ever convinced that my explanations are correct. I have now the gratification of seeing my theory confirmed by so great an authority as Dr. Merkel, of Leipzig, who most elaborately explains the subject in his latest work on the larynx, to which I have already alluded in these pages.

Besides the factors enumerated above, there are, no doubt, others which are also of consequence in determining the particular kind of voice to be produced by this vocal apparatus or by that; as, for instance, the windpipe, or the resonator, or both. The capacity of the chest—nay, the structure of the whole body, may have a more or less direct influence upon it. But there are absolutely no statistics to proceed upon, and in the absence of these it is vain to indulge in any speculations on the subject.

MOVEMENTS OF THE VOICEBOX, OR
LARYNX, WHICH CAN BE SEEN
OR FELT.

When singing in what is called chest-voice the voicebox rises gradually with each higher tone. Changing the mode of tone production, and singing—say an octave higher—in falsetto, the voicebox makes quite a leap upwards, and then again rises gradually with each higher tone, just as in chest-voice, but in a lesser degree. The voicebox, however, does not stand so high for the lowest falsetto as for the highest chest tones.

In whispering, the voicebox occupies a different position in the throat for each vowel. I invite the reader to try the following curious experiment. Let him take the larynx gently between the thumb and the first finger, and then whisper OO (as in "food,") OH, AH, A (as in "name,") and E (as in "bee"). He will find that the voicebox rises with every succeeding vowel until at last it has completely slipped away from between the finger and thumb. Each one of these whispered vowels has, as first ascertained by Helmholtz, its exact pitch, whether uttered by a little child or by an old man, and the effect of the rising of the voicebox is to shorten the resonator, whereby the raising of the pitch is produced.

I stated on page 41 that the vocal ligaments were capable of being stretched by the ring-shield muscles, and that the pitch of the tones produced by their vibrations depended mainly on their tension. As we are now taking note of such movements of the voicebox as may be either seen or felt in the throat, we will take the opportunity of trying whether my statement can be verified. Let the reader, therefore, do as follows:—(1) Place the finger on the shield cartilage, and press it vigorously backward. (2) Sing loudly any high tone that is well within your compass. Hold this tone steadily, and be quite sure you do not alter its pitch. (3) Now suddenly remove your finger, continuing to sing as before. What is the result? Your tone is raised by a third, or even more, according to the amount of pressure you exercised on the shield. And how did this result come about? In this way: By pressing the shield backwards you elongated the ring-shield muscles, thereby counteracting their stretching influence, and at the same time slackening the vocal ligaments. The tone you sang while doing this was, we will say C'. By releasing the shield you enabled the ring-shield muscles to contract again, thereby putting the vocal ligaments on the stretch as they were at first. That changed your C' to E', or higher still. Have I proved my assertion?

Now one more test, if you please. I pointed out to you on page 34 an opening between the shield and the ring. You will see it on plate V, No. 10. Please sing a low tone; place your finger gently on the shield, and move it downwards. You will soon discover a little hollow which corresponds with the opening I just mentioned, and into which you can easily put part of the tip of your finger. Now sing up the scale, and take care to keep the tip of your finger in the hollow. Remember that in singing up the scale your voicebox will rise, which movement you must follow, or you will lose the place. If you do this carefully, you will find that the hollow gets smaller and smaller by degrees until at last it closes entirely, and you can no longer find a trace of it. Now sing down again, keeping your finger on the same spot. You will soon notice the hollow again, and it will continue to get larger and larger until you arrive at the bottom of your scale.

This, of course, is but another way of showing the mechanism by which the pitch of your tones is raised or lowered, and we have proved the same thing by our preceding experiment. But I asked you to try this chiefly because it will enable you to put a check upon my statements with regard to the registers of the voice, a subject which I propose to discuss in another chapter.

THE LARYNGOSCOPE, AND HOW TO USE IT.

The Laryngoscope in its simplest form is a thin circular mirror, about three-quarters of an inch in diameter, set in a metal frame, and fastened at an angle of 120° to a piece of wire from three to four inches long, which is put into a small wooden handle not much thicker than a pencil, and about the same length as the wire. By help of the laryngoscope we can either see our own larynx or that of another person. The easiest experiment is upon the larynx of some one else. In this case, the person to be operated upon sits facing the sun, the head slightly bent backwards, and the mouth wide open. If he has not sufficient control over his tongue to prevent it from arching up, he must gently hold its protruding tip with a pocket handkerchief between his thumb and forefinger. The mirror is now slightly warmed to prevent its becoming dimmed by the moisture of the breath, and then, holding it like a pen, the operator introduces it into the throat so that it touches the uvula. This must be done lightly yet firmly, care being taken not to bring the mirror into contact with the base of the tongue. The rays of the sun falling upon the mirror are reflected downwards into the voicebox, the image of which is clearly visible in the mirror. In making observations upon oneself, a second mirror in the shape of an ordinary hand looking-glass is necessary to reproduce the image in the small mirror. This is the way in which the renowned professor of singing, Senor Manuel Garcia, made those famous "Observations on the Human Voice," communicated to the Royal Society by Dr. Sharpey, on May the 24th, 1855. Similar attempts had been made before; for instance, in 1827 by Babington, in 1838 by Baumès, in 1840 by Liston, and in 1844 by Warden and Avery. But they had all ended in failure, an occasional glimpse of some parts of the voicebox being the only result obtained. Garcia, however, brilliantly succeeded where all his predecessors had failed, and was the first not only to see the vocal ligaments, but to see them in the act of singing, and to see them so clearly as to be able to give an account of their minutest movements. The instrument has since been greatly improved, and the process of investigation has become a science. Medical men all over the world have laid hold of it, and suffering humanity is daily benefited by it. But Garcia is the man who produced the first results, and to him, therefore, is due the credit of being practically the inventor of the laryngoscope.

It is almost incredible, but it is true, that this splendid invention was received coldly and with distrust in this country, and had it not been for Dr. Johann N. Czermak, Professor of Physiology at the University of Pesth, the matter would, in all probability, have been forgotten. But this gentleman recognized the value of Garcia's invention, and he at once went enthusiastically to work, and pushed on vigorously in the way which Garcia had opened for him. He constructed an apparatus which enabled him, by making use of artificial light, to work without interruption and without waiting for the sun to shine. He then made his first attempts on himself in order to become acquainted with the conditions which have to be fulfilled by the observer as well as by the person to be operated upon. In this way he soon became a master of the new process, which he immediately brought under the notice of the profession by giving lectures and demonstrations in the chief towns of Europe.

More than twenty years have passed since then, and the laryngoscope has, during that time, been made excellent use of, not only for the alleviation of suffering, and the cure of disease, but also for its original purpose—i.e., the exploration of the mechanism of the human voice.

My own connection with the matter has arisen through my desire to sift contradictory statements made by various observers. Having read many English, German, and French books on the subject, I was in position to pick up a hint here, and to get some good advice there, and the consequence was that I was able to pursue a course which made me familiar with the use of the laryngoscope in a very short time. As my experience may be useful to others, I will briefly relate how I proceeded.

I made my first attempts upon a skull, to which I attached a plaster-of-Paris model of the voicebox, the whole being fastened to an iron stand. The instrument I used was a concave reflector on a spectacle frame. The reflector had a hole in the centre, and was capable of being moved in various directions. The next thing was the little mirror described on page 73, and lastly, a gas lamp on the principle of the well-known "Queen's" reading lamps, which can be raised or lowered at pleasure. I placed the skull to the left of the lamp, and looking with my right eye through the hole in the centre of the reflector, practised throwing the light swiftly and with certainty into the upper part of the throat. I then introduced the little spy mirror, and tried to see and to recognize the various parts of the voicebox, which, let it be remembered, present a somewhat different appearance in the looking-glass from what they do if seen without it. Then I got a friend to mark my artificial voicebox, unknown to me, in various ways, and endeavoured quickly to discover what he had done. In this way I soon acquired a considerable amount of skill in handling the instrument, and also became thoroughly familiar with the image of the voicebox in the mirror.[M] Having thus to a large extent mastered the mechanical part of my work, I proceeded to make observations upon myself. I placed to the left of the lamp an ordinary bedroom looking-glass, in which now appeared my own face instead of the skull which hitherto occupied this place. I opened my mouth, and by the help of the reflector directed the light into the image of it in the looking-glass. I then continued in every way as I had done with the skull, with this difference, however, that I had first, as pointed out before, to warm the little spy mirror in order to prevent its becoming dimmed in the throat.

An instrument has since been designed by the late Dr. G. D. Foulis, of Glasgow, which for simplicity, general excellence, and cheapness, far surpasses the above contrivance, and which I strongly recommend to intending students of laryngoscopy. It consists of a plain stand on which is placed a glass globe filled with water, the whole being surmounted by a small square mirror. The rays from a lamp or candle, placed behind the globe, are concentrated into the open mouth of the observer, who is seated in front of it, enabling him, by the use of an ordinary throat mirror, to inspect the movements of his own vocal ligaments.

This apparatus, as shown in the annexed drawing, including a throat mirror, and safely packed for transmission, may be had from Messrs. W. B. Hilliard & Sons, 65, Renfield Street, Glasgow, for the very small sum of 7s. 6d.

Let not the reader who tries laryngoscopic investigations be discouraged if, at first, violent retching is the result. It does not so much arise from sensitiveness of the parts touched, as from awkwardness in introducing the mirror. If he perseveres he will soon be rewarded by a view of the pearly white vocal ligaments, and a little repeated practice upon himself will enable him also to operate upon others without causing them discomfort.

I close this chapter by again reminding amateur laryngoscopists that in the vast majority of cases where the touch of the mirror causes retching and gagging, it is due less to the sensitiveness of the person operated upon than to the want of skill on the part of the operator. He should in that case renew his experiments upon himself, and continue them until he has fully mastered the use of the instrument, as it is not fair to make others suffer for his own clumsiness.

THE TEACHINGS OF THE LARYNGOSCOPE.

On introducing the mirror into the throat we first see the back part of the tongue, which has a very uneven surface, and which is, as a rule, covered with greyish phlegm. We next notice a hollow space between the tongue and the lid, which is divided by an elastic band forming a little bridge between the two. Next comes the upper free part of the lid, the shape of which greatly varies in different individuals. It hangs over the voicebox, which it almost completely hides from view; but during the production of a high tone on the vowel A, as in "sad," it takes an almost perpendicular position. When the lid is so raised (pl. XIV, L) we can see right down to the bottom of it, where we observe that it bulges out a little. Extending from either side of the lid to the pyramids are two folds of mucous membrane, in the hinder part of either of which are to be observed two little elevations representing the cartilages of Santorini (pl. XIV, S S), and the upper points of the wedges, called the cartilages of Wrisberg (pl. XIV, W W). Looking down the kind of tube which is formed by the parts just enumerated, we next notice two horizontal projections running from front to back, which are the pocket ligaments (pl. XIV, P P). Everything we have seen so far is of a pinkish colour. Below the pocket ligaments, right at the bottom of the tube described above, we see the main object of our investigation, namely, the vocal ligaments (pl. XIV, V V). These, being almost of a pearly white, form a strong contrast to all their surroundings, and it is quite impossible to mistake them.

In quiet breathing the vocal chink is of a triangular shape, of which, however, we can only see the hinder part, the front part being hidden by the lid (pl. XIII). In exaggerated efforts at breathing this space gets considerably larger, so that, with a well-directed light, we can see into the windpipe, of which the rings are plainly noticeable. It is even possible to see the lowest part of the windpipe, where it is divided into the two branches entering the lungs.

For the purpose of studying the movements of the vocal ligaments in the act of singing, the vowel A, as in "sad" will be found the most favourable, because the formation of the mouth, and the position of the tongue which it necessitates, enable us to get a complete view of the interior of the voicebox, which during the emission of other vowel sounds is more or less hidden.

As soon as we produce a tone, the pyramids, and with them the vocal ligaments, meet, so as to touch each other more or less closely, while there still remains a large space between the pocket ligaments above. Every time we take breath, the pyramids with the vocal ligaments recede, to meet again as before, every time we strike a new tone. The vocal ligaments, thrown into vibrations by the stream of air passing between them, cut, as it were, this stream of air into regular waves, and thus (as more fully explained on p. 38) tone is produced.

We notice here that this tone-production may be originated in three different ways:—(1) The vocal ligaments may meet after the air has commenced to pass between them. Of this an aspirate is the result. (2) The vocal ligaments may meet before the air has commenced to pass between them. This causes a check or a click at the beginning of the tone. (3) The vocal ligaments may meet just at the very moment when the air passes between them. In this case the tone is properly struck. There is nothing to make it indefinite as in case No. 1, and nothing to impede it as in case No. 2. Production as in case No. 3 causes the tone to travel much farther than production as in cases Nos. I and 2, and it is this way of striking a tone which is known under the name of "Coup de Glotte" or "Shock of the Glottis."

Plate XIII.

LARYNGOSCOPIC IMAGE.
BREATHING.

Plate XIV.

LARYNGOSCOPIC IMAGE.
UPPER THICK.

Plate XV.

LARYNGOSCOPIC IMAGE.
UPPER THIN.

Plate XVI.

LARYNGOSCOPIC IMAGE.
SMALL.

We now proceed to study the Registers of the human voice. A very Babel of confusion exists on this important subject, and we are not only perplexed by a multiplicity of terms, but also by the various and often contradictory meanings attached to them. Thus people talk of chest, medium, mixed, throat, falsetto, and head registers, and these terms being utterly unscientific—i.e., being based upon sensations and fancies instead of physiological facts—no one can give a clear and satisfactory definition of any one of them. To bring order into such chaos is an almost hopeless undertaking, and the first step in this direction is obviously to ask ourselves, What is the meaning of the word "Register?" My reply is this: A register consists of a series of tones which are produced by the same mechanism. Then comes the question, Can any such registers be demonstrated in the vocal apparatus; and if so, what are the mechanisms by which they are produced? The answer supplied by the laryngoscope is, Yes. There are, broadly speaking, three registers in the human voice, and the mechanisms are plainly visible, as follows:—(1) During the lowest series of tones the vocal ligaments vibrate in their entire thickness (pl. XIV). (2) During the next series of tones the vocal ligaments vibrate only with their thin inner edges (pl. XV). (3) During the highest series of tones a portion of the vocal chink is firmly closed, and only a small part of the vocal ligaments vibrates (pl. XVI).

In accordance with these physiological facts, Mr. Curwen, in his admirable book "The Teacher's Manual," calls the registers the Thick, the Thin, and the Small. These names have a scientific basis, and their meaning cannot be misunderstood. They are already familiar to thousands who study music by Mr. Curwen's method, and I have myself made use of them in my lectures at University College and at other places. I shall, therefore, also adopt them in this little work, and hope they will soon find general acceptance among teachers and learners, as thereby a great many misunderstandings will be avoided.

Our next business will be to ascertain how these registers are divided among various voices, and the result as revealed by the laryngoscope is rather startling. It consists in this, that the break between the Thick and Thin occurs in both sexes at about musical notation [LISTEN]. In order to realize the full meaning of this, the reader must bear in mind that music for tenors is generally written an octave higher than it is sung, so that the tones we are now speaking about would, as a rule, in a tenor part be expressed by musical notation [LISTEN]. My assertion, therefore, amounts to this, that everything below musical notation [LISTEN] whether sung by soprano, contralto, tenor, or bass, is produced by one mechanism—that is to say, by the vocal ligaments vibrating in their entire thickness; and that the series of tones above musical notation [LISTEN] whether sung by bass, tenor, contralto, or soprano, is again produced by one mechanism (although a different one from the last), that is to say, by the vocal ligaments vibrating only with their thin inner edges. Then there remains the small register, which belongs almost exclusively to sopranos, and which represents the series of tones above musical notation [LISTEN].

I thus maintain, not only that the great break between the thick and the thin occurs (individual differences apart) at the same place in both sexes, but that (leaving for the moment sub-divisions out of consideration) the male voice has but two registers—i.e., the Thick and the Thin, while the female voice has three registers—i.e., the Thick, the Thin, and the Small. From this it follows that the female voice is not, as supposed by some, simply a reproduction of the male an octave higher.

I have spoken of the above results of the investigations with the laryngoscope as startling, because the female voicebox is generally imagined to be exactly like the male, save in size, and the inference that the female voice must be exactly like the male, save in pitch, is, therefore, a very natural one. Neither am I surprised that those who hold an opposite view to mine are never tired of advancing this argument.

I have, however, shown by the measurements of Luschka, on p. 64, that the proportions of the female voicebox are materially different from those of the male, and I have also pointed out differences in shape noticeable to any observer. Now, although I do not pretend that I have by these facts and figures sufficiently accounted for the difference in the registers of the male and the female voice; yet these facts and figures are nevertheless greatly in my favour, and they are certainly a sufficient answer to the above argument of those who differ from me.

My case is further strengthened by the testimony of that eminent physiologist, Dr. Merkel, who says,[N] "In the male organ there are only two materially different registers to be noticed, the chest and the falsetto, ... on the other hand, in the female organ there are clearly to be distinguished three registers—a low, a medium, and a high." (From Dr. Merkel's definitions on pp. 148, 149, and 152, it will be seen that low, medium, and high, are but other names here employed for Thick, Thin, and Small.) Dr. Merkel, speaking of the chest (thick) register, goes on to observe, on p. 148, "It ceases, very curiously, in both sexes on one of the first four tones of the one-lined octave (der ein-gestrichenen Octave) musical notation [LISTEN] so that it is about one octave longer [deeper] in man than in woman."

Let it be observed above all things that I am not propounding a theory, but explaining a fact; a fact, moreover, which I have before now demonstrated to men holding opposite opinions, thereby convincing them, and which I am willing at any moment to demonstrate again. A very striking proof that the distribution of the registers is in accordance with my explanations may be further found in the circumstance that it is often impossible to distinguish a male voice from a female when (other things such as power and quality being equal) both sing in the same registers. The similarity is, of course, greatest between tenor and contralto, and in case of a trial they must confine themselves to the compass easily belonging to both; neither should the singers be seen by the listeners. I have frequently by these experiments convinced sceptics; and it has happened more than once when the female voice was slightly more robust than the male, that, to the great amusement of those present, the judges emphatically and without the slightest hesitation pronounced the lady to be the tenor and the gentleman the contralto.

We have so far only spoken of three registers, the Thick, below musical notation [LISTEN]; the Thin, between musical notation [LISTEN]; and the Small, above musical notation [LISTEN]. The distinguishing features of these are so very clear as to make any mistake impossible. But now we come to sub-divisions, and with regard to these the matter is not so simple. Singers know very well that other breaks occur in the human voice besides those hitherto mentioned, and the question arises how they are to be accounted for by corresponding changes in the vocal organ. The evidence furnished on this point by the laryngoscope is, in my opinion, not sufficient, because the alterations in the vocal ligaments are so exceedingly minute as to be capable of being differently interpreted by different observers. I have consequently come to the conclusion that they cannot be accepted as indicating changes of mechanism unless corroborated and amplified by other signs.

In order to place the whole subject before the reader in a comprehensive form, I cannot do better than quote the elaborate description which Madame Emma Seiler gives of the registers in "The Human Voice in Singing" (Philadelphia, 1875). Madame Seiler, to whom Mr. Lunn is pleased to refer, on p. 65 of his treatise, as an "ignorant person," assisted Professor Helmholtz, of Heidelberg, in his essay upon the Formation of the Vowel-tones and the Registers of the Female Voice. He says he thus had "an opportunity of knowing the delicacy of her musical ear, and her ability to master the more difficult and abstract parts of the theory of music." The Professor further speaks of her as "a very careful, skilled, and learned teacher." Professor Du Bois-Reymond, of Berlin, also describes her as "a lady of truly remarkable attainments." With such recommendations I make no apology for quoting at length from Madame Seiler's writings; and it will be readily understood that whenever I differ from her, I do so with some diffidence, and only after careful conviction of the accuracy of my own independent observations.