PRODUCTION OF THE VOICE. 499 



the voice can be made to assume. Although it is suffi- 

 ciently evident that a sound may be produced, and even 

 that words may be articulated with the act of inspiration, 

 true and normal phonation is effected during expiration 

 only. It is evident, also, that the inferior vocal chords are 

 the only ones concerned in the act. The changes in the 

 position and tension of the chords we shall study, first 

 with reference to the general act of phonation, and after- 

 ward as the chords act in the varied modifications of the 

 voice, as regards intensity, pitch, and quality. 



Movements of the Glottis during Phonation. 



It is somewhat difficult to observe with the laryngoscope 

 all of the vocal phenomena, on account of the epiglottis, 

 which hides a considerable portion of the vocal chords ante- 

 riorly, especially during the production of certain tones; 

 but the patience and skill of Garcia enabled him to over- 

 come most of these difficulties, and to settle, by autolaryngo- 

 scopy, the most important questions with regard to the move- 

 ments of the larynx in singing. It is fortunate that these ob- 

 servations, which are models of scientific accuracy and the re- 

 sult of most persevering study, were made by one profoundly 

 versed, theoretically and practically, in the knowledge of 

 music, and possessed of great control over the vocal organs. 1 



Garcia, after having observed the respiratory movements 

 of the larynx, as we have briefly described them, noted that 

 as soon as any vocal effort was made, the arytenoid carti- 

 lages were approximated, so that the glottis appeared as a 

 narrow slit, formed by two chords of equal length, firmly 

 attached posteriorly as well as anteriorly. The glottis thus 



1 Manuel Garcia, the author of these observations, is the son of Garcia, the 

 great composer and singer, and the brother of Mme. Malibran. He now enjoys 

 a great reputation in London, as a singing-master ; and his experiments were 

 made with a view, if possible, of reducing the art of singing, which had always 

 been taught according to purely empirical methods, to scientific accuracy. It 

 is evident that this could be accomplished only through an exact knowledge of 

 the mechanism of the production of vocal sounds. 



