"Vocal Pedagogy": An Investigation of the Foundational Aspects of Singing and Methods to Identify and Remediate Vocal Dysfunction caused by Chronic Respiratory Illness

Abstract

Extensive research has been done on the structure and function of the vocal mechanism. This research project adds to the investigation of voice disorders and vocal dysfunction caused by upper respiratory illness. It will include a study of vocal pedagogy utilizing literature review, primary research interviews, and possible throat scoping observations. It will also include an examination of observations made by vocal performers and pedagogues. This study is a part of a growing research topic but this research was not focused on a specific respiratory illness, or a specific voice disorder/dysfunction. The investigator learned that being able to sing correctly doesn’t prevent someone from contracting an upper-respiratory illness. However, for a singer, knowing how to sing correctly by learning the fundamentals and anatomy of the voice helps the singer approach voice dysfunction caused by a respiratory illness. Many of the remedies for voice dysfunction that were reviewed by the investigator were short-term programs. It is possible that there are many different ways to address this issue, but because of the lack of research done on therapy for this topic, there was no evidence of any long-term effects of voice therapy. And due to time limitations of this research, the investigator was not able to further investigate more treatments. This research project will contribute to future research on the study of voice performance and voice science.