Note Return to text — III PHYSICAL VIEW FORMATION OF SOUNDS BY THE VOCAL ORGAN

Even when, in the culture of a voice, we have advanced so far that none of the inharmonic but only the harmonic over-tones sound with the fundamental tone, we shall always find that every voice has its own peculiar Klangfarbe—i. e., its own characteristic timbre; and it is not possible so to form the tones of a voice that the over-tones sounding with them shall diminish proportionally according to their height. Every voice has one, mostly two, over-tones, which always predominate in every tone, every register, and give the voice its peculiar quality. When, with the first octave, the fifth above it sounds, the voice is full and mellow. A clear, sympathetic, silvery ring is produced by the sounding of the seventh with the octave immediately above it. One of the most beautiful timbres is a result of the prominence of the third with the seventh, etc. This peculiarity appears to be connected with the particular form and structure of the cavity of the mouth. That parts of the cavity of the mouth serve as a sounding-board in the formation of sound, has already been mentioned. 11