A Comparison of the Singing Formant in the Voices of Professional and Student Singers

Quality singing has a characteristic “ring” identified as a harmonic strength centering around 2.8 kHz. This timbral quality is relatively independant of other factors, and has been labeled the singing formant (SF). This investigation dealt with whether the SF is a significant aspect of all singing voices, and the comparisons of SF strength in the performances of trained professionals and relatively untrained students. Nine vowel-tasks were recorded and analyzed using a fast Fourier spectral analyzer. Resulting plots were analyzed and SF values assigned to 198 tasks performed by nine students and thirteen professionals from all major voice categories.

The results indicated that the SF in males and females is a significant factor in all vocal categories, and 222 percent greater SF strength occurred in professional groups compared to student groups. Implications for further study and future use of SF information for singing teachers and students were discussed.