Emotional expressivity in singing is examined by comparing neutral and expressive performances of a set of music excerpts as performed by a professional baritone singer. Both the neutral and the expressive versions showed considerable deviations from the nominal description represented by the score. Much of these differences can be accounted for in terms of the application of two basic principles, grouping, i.e. marking of the hierarchical structure, and differentiation, i.e. enhancing the differences between tone categories. The expressive versions differed from the neutral versions with respect to a number of acoustic characteristics. In the expressive versions, the structure and the tone category differences were marked more clearly. Furthermore, the singer emphasized semantically important words in the lyrics in the expressive versions. Comparing the means used by the singer for the purpose of emphasis with those used by a professional actor and voice coach revealed striking similarities.

Affect↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Perceptual and acoustic correlates of abnormal voice qualities.

A set of 17 voices representing various voice disorders were presented to a jury of voice experts who rated them on a 5-point scale for each of 28 terms frequently used for describing voices. A statistical treatment of these ratings yielded 5 bipolar factors accounting for 85% of the total variance. Significant correlations were found between four of these factors and certain acoustic data extracted fron long-time-average spectra and fundamental frequency distribution analysis of the same voice sample.

Humans↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Effectiveness of teaching communication skills on acting out behaviors among four year olds in an inner-city day care center.

The purpose of this project was to determine the effectiveness of teaching communication skills to preschool children in an inner city day care center. The sample consisted of Black four year olds who had attended the center for at least one year prior to the beginning of the project. An observation guide, consisting of a hierarchical arrangement of ineffective responses, was used to obtain the frequency of inappropriate behaviors before and after formal teaching sessions on communication skills. The Minnesota Model of Communication provided the framework for structured teaching sessions. There was a difference between the total number of acting out behaviors observed before and after implementation of the teaching programs. Also there was a difference between pre and post observations for each day of the week. Findings suggest that formal instruction in communication skills may be one viable approach to decreasing acting out behaviors among young children in day care centers.

Black or African American↗