Acoustic characteristics of the metallic voice quality

Congeta Bruniere Xavier Fadel, Ana Paula Dassie-Leite, Rosane Sampaio Santos, Marcelo de Oliveira Rosa, Jair Mendes Marques

To characterize the fundamental frequency and the frequency of the formants F1, F2, F3, and F4 from vocal emissions of amateur singers with metallic voice quality. There were 60 amateur female singers aged between 18 and 60 years old; 30 women with metallic voice quality forming the study group (SG) and 30 women without such a vocal quality forming control group (CG). The sample was selected through voice screening confirmed by reviewers after reaching a consensus. Regarding data collection, sustained vowel emissions in usual tone and at two predetermined frequencies, by which the values of F0 and frequency of the formants F1, F2, F3, and F4 were obtained, were recorded and analyzed. Comparing the emissions in usual tone, no difference for F0 was found, but the values of the formants F2, F3, and F4 were higher in the SG. In the preestablished tones, there was a difference between the two groups in the formants F3 and F4 for both tones. It is possible to characterize metallic voice quality as a normal fundamental frequency, with increasing frequency of the F2 formant, and values of frequencies of formants F2, F3, and F4 higher when compared to the CG.