Voices

Stay with me for two hours of easy listening music while I play your favorite love songs . . . this is DJ X!"

It happens all the time. Listeners fall in love with a disc jockey because he sounds "tall, dark and handsome." The DJ could be short and unsightly, but because he has honed his skills in the art of communication, he has a loyal following.

All eyes are on this tall and pretty girl who glides across the room. She opens her mouth: "Haay...Bernie...how is you? I hab nat sin you por a long time." Gasp! And the girl-watchers shake their heads in disbelief.

What has just happened here?

Voice, diction and grammar – or what is collectively known as the art of verbal communication – can make or break a person’s articulation and interaction, not to mention his/her image. I’ve always stressed that a beautiful face becomes unattractive if her diction is coarse and or sounds like a "put on."

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Grammar deals with the structure of words and requires a good command of any language. It could be as simple as using the past tense of a word or as complicated as using the correct modifier. Basic grammar used in speaking and writing are learned in the early years of school when the fundamental rules are first taught.

Diction, on the other hand, is the enunciation of words. It’s being able to differentiate the Ps from the Fs, as well as stressing the Ts using the combined movements of the lips, teeth, tongue, palate and jaws. Shaping the flow of air stream in these parts makes for proper speech articulation.

Voice projection deals with pitch, intensity, quality and loudness. The voice is used to transmit simple and not so simple messages across so our voice adjusts to our temperament. Its intensity implies certain behavioral characteristics.

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The voice is a magnet. We are lured to listen to a voice commanding respect or attention. We are more likely to engage in a conversation with someone with a pleasant voice than one who screeches. TV hosts are known to hire coaches to improve their voice tone and projection.

I never realized the importance of having a voice until one day, I woke up with a marked harshness in my voice. This affected my interpersonal communication at home and at work. It was then that I realized that a voice disorder may have far-reaching implications.

Two years ago, a month of medication cleared my voice. Lately, I was again diagnosed to have a voice disorder. To be specific, I had "nodules and reflux." The good news is there are voice professionals who can help people with these problems.

Dr. Filipina T. Cevallos is an otolaryngologist (ear, nose and throat specialist) or simply put, a voice doctor. Upon her advice, Dr. Clarissa Fortuna examined my throat in a voice laboratory at the Medical City Hospital.

Their patients are mostly voice professionals or people who use their voice in their work. Dr. Cevallos earned her subspecialty training in Voice and Swallowing Disorders and Care of the Professional Voice at the Grabscheid Voice Center in Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City.

Everybody knows the Big Apple is home to world-class classical and Broadway singers. Dr. Cevallos says a rock singer is managed differently from an opera singer: "Depending on his voice demands, each has his own talent, own art, own style and unique needs."

There are a number of multidisciplinary voice laboratories in the country. The pioneer is The Medical City Voice Laboratory, established in 1997. Then there’s Capitol Medical Center Voice Laboratory, and Voice, Swallowing and Sinus

Center of the St. Luke’s Medical Center. Using new technology, these centers collaborate with voice specialists on the diagnosis, treatment, prevention of voice disorders.

At these voice centers, the core clinical staff consists of a laryngologist (the voice doctor) and a speech pathologist. Virtually every voice patient should be seen by both. The voice doctor is responsible for the patients’ overall care while the speech pathologist teaches proper breath support and voice projection without straining the voice. Sometimes, a voice teacher is included in the team, especially if the patient is a singer.

The voice teacher assists the singer develop his own technique and artistry without hurting his/her voice. With this team approach, the voice professional is, most of the time, successfully treated.

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A voice disorder may prevent a professional singer from performing, or a business person from effectively managing his affairs, or prohibit simple daily communication even between spouses.

Dr. Cevallos says voice disorders have many causes. The most common are: upper respiratory tract infections (cough and colds); gastroesphageal reflux disease (acids from the stomach go to the throat causing inflammation of the larynx); and muscle tension dysphonias and vocal abuse/misuse/overuse syndromes.

In gastroesphageal reflux disease, the larynx gets "burned" from the acids and becomes inflamed. The voice becomes harsh, lacks volume, and is unable to reach certain notes and breaks. To be able to sing or speak, the person will compensate by contracting other muscles in the throat and the neck not normally used for speaking or singing. This results in pain, voice fatigue, and later, a permanently harsh voice, because nodules (callous), polyps (blisters), cysts, or hemorrhage could develop.

Muscle tension dysphonias and vocal abuse/misuse/overuse syndromes are medical problems associated with altered vocal behavior caused by "bad habits" like drinking too much coffee, eating spicy food, smoking, yelling, improper breathing, or lack of warm up and warm down exercises.

Dr. Cevallos points out that the voice is not just the larynx, but a manifestation of a person’s overall state of well being. "Anything and everything in the psyche can affect a person’s voice," she says.

The voice is our most effective tool to communicate thoughts and feelings. The tone of voice, the choice of words, the intensity of articulation -all these are important in interpreting the message. It is not only what is said but how it is said that matters. And most certainly, who said it!