Acoustic and Perceptual Effects of Alexander Technique Lessons
The ASO Newsletter - 38th Edition
Helping you stay connected to Alexander Technique research.
Measuring the Acoustic and Perceptual Effects of Alexander Technique Lessons on A Classical Treble Singer
Michele A. Capalbo
Interview with Gabriella Minnes Brandes
(8.5 min read)
In this blog we have a conversation about conducting research that looks at classical singing and the Alexander Technique (AT). Gabriella Minnes Brandes, a seasoned Alexander teacher and researcher speaks with Michele A. Capalbo, a professional opera singer and Alexander teacher, who conducted the research we are exploring in this blog. Gaby and Michele speak about the research question, methodology and results. They discuss multiple roles Michele took on in conducting the research as well as teaching the Alexander lessons, and they speak about the ways in which this research can be helpful to AT teachers, students, and singers. Finally, they speak about further research that may follow this study.
The video interview is followed by a written piece by Michele with additional edits by Gaby, that provides further detail to the discussion. Viewers are encouraged to reach out to Michele or Gaby (contact info below) with questions about conducting research and specifically research on singing.
Why Acoustic Research?
While a summary of previous single intervention research describes beneficial post-intervention effects for the singing voice, research protocols have differed making verification of any claim challenging. It’s important to identify the measurements and protocols employed when conducting voice research to accurately represent the data gathered and facilitate future verification. For that reason, a brief description and justification for choosing the measurements studied is included below.
I am grateful to colleagues who spearheaded early voice acoustic research, notably Frank Pearce Jones as well as Phyllis Richmond who shared her study results with me.
For those interested in voice research it should be noted that this research is significantly easier than it was previously due to the emergence of affordable and non-invasive instrumentation. New and often free software make acoustic singing research and the analysis of digital signals more accessible. I am very grateful to Dr. Joshua Glasner who contributed his digital signal analysis expertise to this study. I would encourage other budding researchers to partner with those who have experience in the related fields they wish to investigate.
Method
In brief, one participant new to the technique had 15 table turn lessons over 35 days. The first five bars of Caro mio ben (Giordani, n.d.) were recorded before and after each session. In addition, two different questionnaires were administered to assess the participant’s perception of changes in vocal function or ease.
Previous Research
As previously mentioned, there have been few studies examining vocal acoustic shifts following AT intervention (Jones, 1972; Richmond, 1996). Previous results have described reduced respiratory noise and a boost in harmonic energy represented as “increased richness of the overtones” (Jones 1972, p. 214), as well as a “smoother vibrato” (Richmond, 1996, p. 4).
Classical Singing: What was measured and why
The primary elements essential to classical singing include vocal quality (timbre), vocal clarity and a stylistically appropriate vibrato (Ekholm, Papagiannis, & Chagnon,1998). These singing elements, as currently established in voice research, are expanded below for clarity.
Vocal quality, often described as a ‘ringing’ tone, can be assessed through spectral energy boosts (mean intensity of vocal elements over time) in the 2-4 kHz range (alpha ratio), (Omori et al., 1996) as well as through overall shifts in volume or sound pressure level (SPL), (Titze, 2000, p. 131).
Clarity, considered a correlate to the harmonic-to-noise ratio (HNR), (Hakanpää, Waaramaa, & Laukkanen, 2021), identifies ‘noise’ in a vocal sound. Noise, a term used to describe interruptions to the regular and predictable patterns in soundwaves, indicates qualities like excessive raspiness or breathiness.
Vibrato, the perception of relatively regular and repeated variations around a central pitch, is commonly measured through changes in frequency and speed (extent and rate). Its parameters are well defined in classical singing (Titze, 2000, p. 325). Post hoc vibrato findings for this study are summarized below.
Summary of Acoustic Findings
Vocal Quality:
In brief, alpha ratio data show enhanced energy (2-4 kHz), often identified in voice research as increased ‘ring’, which could be related to Jones’ claims of “richer overtones”. This enhancement was immediate, and by far the most significant finding as it continued to increase quite dramatically over the entire research period. Practically speaking, this is a clear acoustic benefit to classical singers. This acoustic region is where the ear is most sensitive and where an orchestra’s sound is naturally attenuated. In other words, this is how classical singers can be heard over an orchestra without amplification.
Over the research period the participant’s intensity or volume (SPL) increased enough to become perceptually louder. This shift was not immediate as post-intervention results showed initial decreases.
Vocal Clarity:
Although harmonic-to-noise ratio (HNR) research requires additional normative singing data, as it is often used to assess clarity in speech, some patterns emerged. Greater stabilization, seen as an ability to rebound to established mean values following the AT lesson, was found both in the HNR as well as intensity (SPL) data. This stabilization was most evident from the ninth session onward. I hypothesize that this suggests underlying physiological changes after the participant gained some experience in the Technique. This stabilization trend was consistent regardless of a variety of dissimilar external pre-session influences from exhaustion due to high vocal load to the languid effects following a massage.
Cumulatively, the data indicate a new learning phase may have emerged around the ninth lesson. Practically speaking this suggests that the introduction of more active procedures may benefit a student after approximately eight lessons. However, this requires further research, since this study was limited to one participant.
Post Hoc Findings
Vibrato:
Richmond’s previous observation of improved (smoother) vibrato is tentatively verified in the post hoc findings as vibrato data shows a marked improvement between the initial and final measurements. However, overall, the vibrato results were variable and somewhat unreliable.
Respiratory Noise:
Early respiratory noise inter phrase data supported previous reduction claims. However, these results were not stable, trended up over time, and actually increased by the last session. I hypothesize that this increase in respiratory noise may be due to the lack of explicit instruction and the reliance on spontaneous reductions alone. It is worth noting that F.M. Alexander identified noise reduction early in his experiential process and an explicit means by which he attained that goal (Alexander, 2001).
Intonation:
Finally, the data emerging from this study indicated that initial intonation showed spontaneous post-intervention improvement. I hypothesize that this may be due to the participant’s increased inclination to pause after the table turn before the second test was recorded.
Researching Other Singing Styles
I believe that voice research ought to be tailored to specific musical genres and the data measured should reflect the singing style being examined. Realistically, it’s important to note that contemporary singing research lags behind its classical counterpart. However, there are existing and emerging studies that may inform how data could be assessed in future AT/voice acoustic research focusing on contemporary singing styles.
Bonus Research - Perceptual Questionnaires
In conjunction with the acoustic research undertaken, questionnaire data was collected to assess the participant’s perception of singing ease throughout the re-education process. This was done to probe the question of how reliable a student’s perception is, and to assess any correlation(s) between acoustic and perceptual results. Since questionnaires are ubiquitous, due to their ease of administration, a teacher might more easily take on such a study.
The questionnaires chosen for this study were developed specifically for singers and they include:
Evaluation of the Ability to Sing Easily (EASE), (Phyland et al. 2013) administered once following each session’s intervention, 15 times total.
Singing Voice Handicap Index (SVHI), (Cohen et al. 2007) administered twice, the first before the research began, and the second following the final intervention.
Actual EASE values were consistently higher than equivalent normative singer data indicating little to no perceptual improvement of vocal ease, regardless of improved acoustic function. In addition, there was a low correlation between the 15 data points of the EASE questionnaire and the acoustic data.
Conversely, the pre/post SVHI questionnaire administered only twice showed significant perceptual shifts indicating the participant felt better about her singing using this metric. Although more easily administered, clearly perceptual questionnaires in AT/singing research requires further study.
Basic Voice Based Research
A knowledge of basic voice research including respiration and vibrato may give confidence to AT teachers who wish to work with singers. Specifically, it is worth considering certain athletic singing tasks as well as periods within the respiration cycle when more tension may be required to sustain sounds for which a singer is hired. Vibrato, as noted above, is generally measured through its speed and degree of variation from a central pitch. However, certain singing styles value a variable vibrato with the ability to move from a perceptually straighter tone to one with a greater extent. This effect may be used to increase stylistic or emotional impact as well as volume. It is my hope to frame these two areas of voice research within an AT perspective in a future post.
Publication
These acoustic findings were presented at The Voice Foundation Symposium in 2023 and will be published in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Voice. Questions regarding this research are welcomed at mail@MicheleCapalbo.com.
References
Alexander, F.M. (2001). The Use of the Self, Orion Books Ltd.
Cohen, S.M. et al. (2007) ‘Creation and Validation of the Singing Voice Handicap Index’ Annals of Otology, Rhinology & Laryngology, 116( 6), pp. 402–406. doi: 10.1177/000348940711600602.
Ekholm, E., Papagiannis, G.C. & Chagnon, F.P. (1998) ‘Relating Objective Measurements to Expert Evaluation of Voice Quality in Western Classical Singing: Critical Perceptual Parameters’ Journal of Voice, 12(2), pp. 182-196.
Giordani, G. (n.d.) ‘Caro mio ben’, in Parisotti, A. (ed.) Arie Antiche. Milano: Ricordi. Available at: https://ks4.imslp.net/files/imglnks/usimg/e/e3/IMSLP488992-PMLP72326-CaromiobenMsicanotadaarietta.pdf
Jones, F.P. (1972) Voice Production as a Function of Head Balance in Singers, The Journal of Psychology, 82:2, pp. 209-215.
Hakanpää, T., Waaramaa, T. & Laukkanen, A.-M. (2021) ‘Comparing Contemporary Commercial and Classical Styles: Emotion Expression in Singing’ Journal of
Voice, 35(4), pp. 570–580. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvoice.2019.10.002.
Omori, K. et al. (1996) ‘Singing Power Ratio: Quantitative Evaluation of Singing Voice Quality’ Journal of Voice, 10(3), Pages 228-235. doi.org/10.1016/S0892- 1997(96)80003-8.
Phyland, D.J. et al. (2013) ‘Development and Preliminary Validation of the EASE: A Tool to Measure Perceived Singing Voice Function’ Journal of Voice, 27(4), pp. 454– 462. doi: 10.1016/j.jvoice.2013.01.019.
Richmond, P.G. (1996) ‘A Spectral Analysis of Breathing Efficiency and Vocal Production in Singers before and after Alexander Technique Lessons’ Unpublished author manuscript.
Titze, I.R. (2000) Principles of Voice Production. Iowa City, IA: National Center for Voice and Speech.
About
Michele A. Capalbo, BM (Performance), MA (Voice Pedagogy), M.AmSAT: A Canadian singer with over two decades of international performance experience in opera and concert, Michele specializes in the music of Verdi and Puccini. She is the recipient of multiple singing awards including the top prize from the Liederkranz Foundation award in New York City, and the George London Foundation Canadian singer award, as well as several career grants from the Canada Council and Vancouver Opera Guild. She is an active adjudicator, lecturer and teacher. In 2018, she was certified in the Alexander Technique by the Dimon Institute in New York City. Michele has received two Mouritz Awards for articles related to voice and the Alexander Technique. Both articles were subsequently published in the AmSAT Journal and are expected to be included in the inaugural issue of the peer-reviewed Alexander Journal. She has presented workshops hosted by both the voice and Alexander Technique communities through The Voice Foundation Symposium and AmSAT’s Annual Conference and General Meeting. As an active voice researcher, Michele has presented her and voice centered research into the Alexander Technique at the Pan American Vocology Association Symposium, 2021 and at the Voice Foundation Symposium, 2023. Her most recent research related to post-intervention acoustic shifts in the singing voice will be published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Voice at a future date. Michele’s private voice studio, located in the New York City area, focuses on the integration of the Alexander Technique and singing. For more information: https://www.michelecapalbo.com/
Gabriella Minnes Brandes, Ph.D., has been teaching the Alexander Technique for over 30 years. She has maintained an active practice at the Alexander Technique Centre in Vancouver. She has been invited to run Alexander workshops for musicians, singers, and horseback riders, engineers (among others) as well as workshops for Alexander teachers. For over a decade she taught the Alexander Technique in the Theatre department at Capilano University. She was the founder and co-director of the Vancouver School of the Alexander Technique, a three-year CANSTAT recognized school that ran for close to twenty years. Her research interests focus on connections between creativity, music making, performance and the application of concepts of the Alexander Technique. She is currently collaborating with Alexander teachers from the US, UK and the Netherlands to study the Alexander Technique and Mindfulness-Based Approaches in Stress Management. Informed by her Ph.D. in education, Gaby is also interested in articulating how current theories of learning relate to concepts of Alexander Technique. Gaby works extensively in collaboration with musicians, voice, movement and acting instructors. She is continuing to hone her skills as a teacher and communicator. She is an active member of the Canadian Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique and served on the Board of Directors, also a member of the Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique (UK), the American Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique, and Alexander Technique International, where she currently serves as a Board Director. For more information: https://sites.google.com/view/alexandertechniquecentre
Thank You
Thank you for engaging with research on the Alexander Technique and its teaching. Special thanks to Michele A. Capalbo and Gabriella Minnes Brandes for their generous contributions to this post. To our community members, your valuable work is making a difference. Subscribe here for free, share, or leave a comment or email; we appreciate your engagement!