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The multiple social and performance demands placed on college/university singers could put their still developing voices at risk. Previous ambulatory monitoring studies have analyzed the duration, intensity, and frequency (in Hz) of voice use among such students. Nevertheless, no studies to date have incorporated the simultaneous acoustic voice quality measures into the acquisition of these measures to allow for direct comparison during the same voicing period. Such data could provide greater insight into how young singers use their voices, as well as identify potential correlations between vocal dose and acoustic changes in voice quality. The purpose of this study was to assess the voice use and estimated voice quality of college/university singing students (18–24 y/o, N = 19). Ambulatory monitoring was conducted over three full, consecutive weekdays measuring voice from an unprocessed accelerometer signal measured at the neck. From this signal were analyzed traditional vocal dose metrics such as phonation percentage, dose time, cycle dose, and distance dose. Additional acoustic measures included perceived pitch, pitch strength, LTAS slope, alpha ratio, dB SPL 1–3 kHz, and harmonic-to-noise ratio. Major findings from more than 800 hours of recording indicated that among these students (a) higher vocal doses correlated significantly with greater voice intensity, more vocal clarity and less perturbation; and (b) there were significant differences in some acoustic voice quality metrics between non-singing, solo singing and choral singing.

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Many choral teacher-conductors and voice professionals utilize semioccluded vocal tract (SOVT) exercises (e.g., lip trills, straw phonation) in their classrooms or studios. Research with individual singers has indicated that these techniques may increase “vocal economy,” boosting acoustic output while reducing singer effort. Recently, researchers have investigated these phenomena in choral settings, finding that choirs have maintained or increased spectral energy after straw phonation. Most chorister participants have perceived improved choral sound and vocal efficiency after the protocols. These investigations, however, have used one-group pretest-posttest designs. Therefore, results could reflect a “masterclass effect.” The purpose of this study was to compare acoustic output and listener perceptions of pre- and posttest measurements of two matched women’s choirs who engaged in (a) a straw phonation protocol or (b) an identical protocol performed on a neutral, unoccluded vowel (“ah”). Results indicated that both groups sang with more spectral energy after the protocols, and a majority of expert listeners noted these increases. However, the straw group’s increase was more than 1 dB SPL greater across the entire spectrum (0–10 kHz). Choral teacher-conductors and music teacher educators may wish to use straw phonation exercises to increase choral output and reduce vocal effort.

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