Problems With Articulation

Articulation refers to the ability of a person to speak or sing words, phrases, and sentences clearly. Articulation is a challenging process because the muscles of the larynx, pharynx, oral cavity, jaw, lips, cheeks, and soft palate must all work together harmoniously with split-second accuracy and speed. To make articulation even more challenging, expressive speaking and singing generally requires precise pitch, volume, and range control, as well as the need for tremendous muscle flexibility. The intricate muscular movements involved in articulation would seem to present quite a challenge to the vocal muscles; yet, one of the marvels of this machinery is its ability to execute, almost instantaneously, and with incredible muscular dexterity, the many complex actions involved in articulation.

Nonetheless, articulation is a great obstacle for excellent singing. Even the best singers could be unsuccessful when it comes to singing with clarity—that is, with good articulation. This is especially the case when a singer is performing high notes or, even more frequently, when a performer sings in unnaturally high keys. Once again, muscular weakness—which results in poor vocal muscular coordination—is frequently the main culprit with articulation problems. A tight, immobile jaw, for instance, causes many articulation problems, and so does a lazy, sluggish tongue. As we know, the tongue is one of the most important muscle groups involved in singing. In articulation, the tongue musculature is required to make many subtle adjustments for vowel and consonant formation.

Articulation problems often reflect pharyngeal constriction. If the pharynx is unable to support efficiently the stress of singing and create the correct vowel sound configurations, the tongue will lose its organized movement and block the back of the oral cavity by rising to the roof of the mouth. In this unbalanced condition, the soft palate also loses its capacity to function efficiently. All this spells disaster for good singing, which is best produced with a free and open passageway from the larynx to the pharynx and through the oral cavity. The effect of a spasmodic tongue on resonance filtering is a formidable obstacle to singing because it aggressively inhibits the subtle muscular adjustments in the larynx, pharynx, oral cavity, and soft palate during vowel formation.