Using Imaging and Modeling Techniques to Understand the Relation Between Vocal Tract Shape to Acoustic Characteristics

The respiratory, laryngeal, and vocal tract systems are precisely orchestrated by humans as an instrument of speech and song. This presentation will focus primarily on the role of the vocal tract as a versatile acoustic device capable of producing a wide range of possible vowel and vowel-like sounds. In particular, recent data obtained in vocal tract imaging studies will be used to demonstrate some relations between the area function and resulting acoustic characteristics. Formant clustering and vowel modification will be specifically addressed. 1