given to the human voice in speaking indicates to a great extent the thought and significance of what is said. Inflection is
also the use of pauses of varying length for giving meanings. Therefore, different inflections are used for commands,
questions or statements of fact and express attitudes, feelings and emotions. Inflection is an important factor in
determining the intelligibility of a spoken word or phrase, therefore persons who use devices or equipment for the
transmission of speech--telephones and microphones--must be conscious of their speech habits. They must concentrate on
correctly shaping the tones so that as much meaning as possible is transmitted to the listener. Vowel sounds must be
made with the proper amount of mouth opening, and consonants must be formed by the correct placement of tongue and
lips.
11.
Frequency Range of Voice Sounds.
a. The frequency range of the voice is one of the most important factors affecting the design and construction of
telephone lines and equipment. Figure 6 illustrates the frequency range of the piano keyboard, together with the ranges of
the voices of men and women and those of a number of musical instruments. The sounds of a normal speaking voice
contain fundamental frequencies between 100 and 300 hertz. The overtones contained in these sounds extend the range of
frequencies to approximately 5,000 hertz. Voices of different individuals vary in their frequency content. Men usually
have voices with lower fundamental and harmonic frequencies than those of women and children. The range of
fundamental frequencies of the singing voice is greater than that of the speaking voice; it varies from about 80 hertz for a
deep bass to about 1,200 hertz for a high soprano. The overtones contained in the sounds of the singing voice reach as
high as 10,000 hertz. For purposes of comparison, the frequency range of the instruments of a symphony orchestra
includes fundamental of about 16 to 4,000 hertz with overtones ranging to 12,000 hertz or higher.
18
Previous Page
