• Journal of the Korean Society of Laryngology, Phoniatrics and Logopedics
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.69-75
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• 2000

Background and Objectives : The Voice Range Profile(VRP) is a two-dimensional graphic dysplay of an individual's amplitude range as a function of total fundamental frequency range. It is designed as a maximum performance test which can be used as a general indicator of voice problems in the non-professional voice and as a sensitive indicator of problems with the professional voice. The purpose of the study is to obtain a baseline VRT for the classical professional singers and compare it with the normal nonsinger's profile. We also compared the difference of VRP between the classical professional singers who have normal vocal fold and who have vocal folds lesions without dysphonia. Materials and Methods : The VRPs were elicited. from 42 trained classical singers(Soprano 26, Mesosoprano 5, Tenor 9, Bariton 2) and 20 untrained nonsingers(female 10, male 10) using Voice Range Profile Model 4326(Kay Elemetrics USA). The mean values for phonational range with highest and lowest pitch level and range of voice intensity with maximum and minimum intensity level were compared between classical singers and nonsingers. Results and Conclusions : The frequency range and dynamic range were significantly increased for the classical singers in comparison to the nonsingers. But there was no significant difference were found for the VRP between the parts in the classical singers. The classical singers who have vocal fold lesions showed slightly decreased VRP compared to those with healthy vocal folds.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.117-121
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• 2010

The This study aimed to evaluate the effects of the voice therapy we operated to the patients with age-related dysphonia. Thirty four participants who were diagnosed as age-related dysphonia in laryngoscopic finding from January, 2009 to December, 2009 completed the study. The participants were aged from 60 to 82 years old with a mean age of 70.6. All participants had received the abdominal breath technique, SKHPIP with laughter, and basic vocal training with description of their problem, the length of which ranged from four sessions to twelve sessions. We executed the videostroboscopy to compare the aspect of voicing change and the perceptual assessment, voice range profile, acoustic and aerodynamic measures to identify change of voice. Participants had glottal gap due to incomplete glottic closure during voicing on the pretest. After they took the voice therapy, the glottic gap became narrow and rough and breathy voice was reduced. There were significant difference in acoustic and aerodynamic measures. Jitter, Shimmer, MFR were reduced and MPT, Psub were increased(p<.05). Participants' pitch range and intensity range were increased on the posttest performance after taking voice therapy. Especially, most of them were showed that pitch range was increased significantly in high frequency area. The results of this investigation indicate that the voice therapy using abdominal breath, SKHPIP, and exercise together is effective for the patients who have age-related dysphonia to improve their voice quality. We recommend to apply this technique to functional voice disorders who are showed glottal gap.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.43-49
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• 2009

Vocal polyps are benign phonotraumatic lesions which are traditionally treated using phonomicrosurgical techniques. In the case of hyperfunctional voice use, voice therapy is effective and results in voice improvement. However, the utility of voice therapy about vocal polyp is in great demand. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of voice therapy in patients with vocal polyps. The authors reviewed the medical records of 193 patients with vocal nodules or vocal polyps, and 64 patients (31 nodules and 33 polyps) were enrolled. All of the subjects had received explanation of problems, vocal hygiene education, and been treated by the $SKMVTT^{(R)}$ (Seong-Tae Kim's multiple voice therapy technique) ranging from 4 to 16 sessions (mean: 8.6 sessions). All subjects were examined by perceptual assessment, acoustic and aerodynamic measures, and VRP (voice range profile). In perceptual assessment, patients with vocal nodules had more breathy and strained voices than the vocal polyp group. Both groups significantly reduced rough, breathy voice after voice therapy. Patients with vocal polyps had worse voice quality than patients with nodules in acoustic measures. Both groups showed reduced jitter and shimmer after voice therapy. In aerodynamic measures, MPT and Psub were increased, and MFR was reduced (p<.05). Participants' frequency range and intensity range were increased after voice therapy, but only frequency range resulted in a significant difference (p<.05). In conclusion, the therapeutic effect of voice therapy in patients with vocal nodules and polyps was demonstrated perceptually and acoustically. We can suggest that voice therapy, including advice, vocal hygiene, and $SKMVTT^{(R)}$ is a useful as an initial choice of treatment for patients with vocal polyps before considering a surgical approach.

• 재활복지
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.157-168
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• 2018

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of semi-closed vocal training-based Vocal Aerobic Treatment on the voice improvement of soprano. Study subject was one soprano who appealed to the suffering of her voice problem due to vocal cord nodule. A study method of conducting pre/post acoustic evaluation and subjective voice evaluation to compare the measures was used; Vocal Aerobic Treatment was carried out twice a week for a total of 32 session. In the acoustic evaluation, MDVP (multi-dimensional voice program) and VRP (voice range profile) were used to evaluate the pitch, voice quality, and voice range; in the subjective voice evaluation, SVHI (singing voice handicap index) was used to assess voice satisfaction. As a result of the pitch evaluation, the soprano maintained a proper Fo. As a result of the voice quality evaluation, the jitter, shimmer, and the noise harmonic ratio numbers decreased compared to the numbers shown before the treatment. As a result of the voice range evaluation, the scope of the range was broadened, with the number of semitone increasing from 30 to 35. As for the subjective voice evaluation, the result of the total score obtained after the survey report divided by the number of questions showed a decrease from 3.6 to 0.6. The soprano herself reported of having a minor extent of a voice problem. The summary of the above results reflects that Vocal Aerobic Treatment is useful in the voice improvement of vocalists However, as this study is case research regarding the Vocal Aerobic Treatment effect on one soprano, further research on the treatment effect covering many other vocalists is necessary. Also, there is a need for follow-up studies regarding voice management and voice treatment program on not only the vocalists but also the voice users in many other professions.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Laryngology, Phoniatrics and Logopedics
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.56-61
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• 2007

Introduction: Actually classification of classic singers' voice depends on habitual judgment by voice teachers or voice trainer referring to vocal timbre, vocal range and vocal quality. Such judgments, however, may turn out to be incorrect because they are based on subjective opinions. Therefore, more objective methodology is required. Method: Foreign dissertations searched through Pub Med, along with foreign and domestic journals, were reviewed regard ing how singers' voice has been categorized. Results: Vocal range, vocal timbre, voice quality, fundamental frequency of habitual speaking, length of vocal tract, the length from cricoid cartilage to thyroid cartilage's thyroid notch and length of vocal fold, tone of passaggio as well as traditional approaches such as perceptual judgment used by professional singers have been used for categorize the voice classification. Conclusion: To optimize categorizing singers' voice, vocal range, vocal timbre, voice quality, fundamental frequency of habitual speaking, length of vocal tract, the length from cricoid cartilage to thyroid cartilage's thyroid notch and length of vocal fold, tone of passaggio may be totally recommended.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.37-47
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• 2024

This study was conducted on 27 male students majoring in or preparing for popular music vocals to determine whether they were aware of their voice classification and vocal range. Additionally, differences in the fundamental frequency and average speaking fundamental frequency were compared among the voice classifications. Moreover, considering that they may differ in their ability to produce high frequencies depending on the vowel, differences in voice ranges among the cardinal vowels, /a/, /i/, and /u/, were examined, and differences in voice ranges between vowels were compared by voice classification. The results showed that more than half of the male students majoring in or preparing for popular music vocals were not accurately aware of their voice types. In addition, statistically significant differences were found in the maximum fundamental frequency and frequency range among vowels, indicating differences in the voice range that can be produced depending on the vowel type. In particular, the voice range decreased in the following order: /a/>/u/>/i/. This suggests that while the vowel /a/ is easier to articulate in the high register compared to other vowels, vowels /u/ and /i/ as high vowels involve narrowing of the oral cavity due to the raised position of the tongue, accompanied by raising of the larynx, resulting in a decrease in voice range and difficulty in vocalizing in the high register.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.69-74
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• 2023

This study introduces an innovative model for zero-shot voice conversion that utilizes the capabilities of HuBERT. Zero-shot voice conversion models can transform the speech of one speaker to mimic that of another, even when the model has not been exposed to the target speaker's voice during the training phase. Comprising five main components (HuBERT, feature encoder, flow, speaker encoder, and vocoder), the model offers remarkable performance across a range of scenarios. Notably, it excels in the challenging unseen-to-unseen voice-conversion tasks. The effectiveness of the model was assessed based on the mean opinion scores and similarity scores, reflecting high voice quality and similarity to the target speakers. This model demonstrates considerable promise for a range of real-world applications demanding high-quality voice conversion. This study sets a precedent in the exploration of HuBERT-based models for voice conversion, and presents new directions for future research in this domain. Despite its complexities, the robust performance of this model underscores the viability of HuBERT in advancing voice conversion technology, making it a significant contributor to the field.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.77-87
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• 2019

The study aimed to develop Speech Range Profile (SRP) and to examine and validate its clinical application. Forty-five participants without voice disorders aged 18-29 years were compared using SRP and Voice Range Profile (VRP). The authors developed the "Fire!" paragraph as a SRP task compromising 14 sentences including all Korean spoken phonemes and sentence types. To compare SRP and VRP results, the participants read the paragraph (reading) and counted from 21 to 30 (counting) as a part of SRP tasks, and produced a vowel /a/ from low to high frequencies (gliding) and a shortened form of the VRP as a part of VRP tasks. $F0_{max}$, $F0_{min}$, $F0_{range}$, $I_{max}$, $I_{min}$, and $I_{range}$ for each task were measured and compared, showing that $F0_{max}$, $F0_{min}$, $F0_{range}$, $I_{max}$, and $I_{range}$ were not different between reading and gliding. $I_{min}$, had the lowest value in counting. It is concluded that the newly developed SRP task, reading the "Fire" paragraph, can yield a maximum phonation range similar to that found by VRP. Therefore, it is expected that voice evaluation can be effectively performed in a relatively short time by applying SRP with the "Fire" paragraph, a functional utterance task, in place of VRP, which may be difficult to measure long term or in cases of severe voice disorders.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.77-83
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• 2015

Voice complication without the laryngeal nerve injury can occur after thyroidectomy. The purpose of this study is to investigate voice changes according to extent of thyroidectomy with acoustic analysis. Thirty-five female patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma took voice evaluation at before and 1 month, and 3 months after thyroidectomy. Acoustic analysis parameters were speaking fundamental frequency(SFF), min $F_0$, max $F_0$, dynamic range $F_0$, jitter, shimmer, noise-to-harmonic ratio(NHR), and Cepstral prominence peak(CPP). Repeated-measured analysis of variance was applied. Time-related voice changes showed significant differences in all parameters except NHR. At 1 month after surgery, voice quality was worse and pitch was decreasing, but voice quality and pitch were improving at 3-month follow-up. Voice changes according to the extent of surgery were in SFF, max $F_0$, and dynamic range $F_0$. Time by surgery-related voice change existed only in min $F_0$. The result showed that the severity of voice complication depended on the extend of thyroidectomy which had a negative impact on $F_0$-related parameters. The deterioration of voice quality at 1 month after thyroidectomy may be affected by the loss of thyroid hormone in the blood. The descent of $F_0$-related parameters may be impacted by laryngeal fixation of surgical site adhesion.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.69-76
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• 2019

This study aimed to investigate the effects of vocal aerobic treatment (VAT) on the improvement of voice in patients with voice disorders. Twenty patients (13 males, 7 females) were diagnosed with voice disorders on the basis of videostroboscopy and voice evaluations. Acoustic evaluation was performed with the Multidimensional voice program (MDVP) and Voice Range Profile (VRP) of Computerized Speech Lab (CSL), and aerodynamic evaluation with PAS (Phonatory Aerodynamic System). The changes in F0, Jitter, Shimmer, and NHR before and after treatment were measured by MDVP. F0 range and Energy range were measured with VRP before and after treatment, and the changes in Expiratory Volume (FVC), Phonation Time (PHOT), Mean Expiratory Airflow (MEAF), Mean Peak Air Pressure (MPAP), and Aerodynamic Efficiency (AEFF) with PAS. Videostroboscopy was performed to evaluate the regularity, symmetry, mucosal wave, and amplitude changes of both vocal cords before and after treatment. Voice therapy was performed once a week for each patient using the VAT program in a holistic voice therapy approach. The average number of treatments per patient was 6.5. In the MDVP, Jitter, Shimmer, and NHR showed statistically significant decreases (p < .001, p < .01, p < .05). VRP results showed that Hz and semitones in the frequency range improved significantly after treatment (p < .01, p < .05), as did PAS, FVC, and PHOT (p < .01, p < .001). The results for videostroboscopy, functional voice disorder, laryngopharyngeal reflux, and benign vocal fold lesions were normal. Thus, the VAT program was found to be effective in improving the acoustic and aerodynamic aspects of the voice of patients with voice disorders. In future studies, the effect of VAT on the same group of voice disorders should be studied. It is also necessary to investigate subjective voice improvement and objective voice improvement. Furthermore, it is necessary to examine the effects of VAT in professional voice users.