INVESTIGATION ABOUT EXPIRATORY FLOW IN SUNG AND SPOKEN EMISSION OF VOWELS OF THE PORTUGUESE IN BRAZILIAN LYRIC SINGERS

Abstract

This investigation consists of an aerodynamic analysis of expiratory flow during the emission of the vowels /a/, /i/ and /u/ in sung and spoken voice of the Brazilian Portuguese language, accomplished by 23 (twenty three) professional lyric singers. The conclusion is that the airflow is larger in sung vowels than in spoken vowels; moreover, both sung and spoken airflow in male voices is larger than in female voices. The research also points out that the vocal training of professional singers influenced decisively their sound emission, which was louder than that of non-professional singers.
Key-words: Lyric singing; Vowel emission; Expiratory flow.