TY - JOUR
T1 - Soprano singing in gibbons
AU - Koda, Hiroki
AU - Nishimura, Takeshi
AU - Tokuda, Isao T.
AU - Oyakawa, Chisako
AU - Nihonmatsu, Toshikuni
AU - Masataka, Nobuo
PY - 2012/11
Y1 - 2012/11
N2 - Diversifications in primate vocalization, including human speech, are believed to reflect evolutionary modifications in vocal anatomy and physiology. Gibbon song is acoustically unique, comprising loud, melodious, penetrating pure tone-like calls. In a white-handed gibbon, Hylobates lar, the fundamental frequency (f0) of song sounds is amplified distinctively from the higher harmonics in normal air. In a helium-enriched atmosphere, f0 does not shift, but it is significantly suppressed and 2f0 is emphasized. This implies that the source is independent of the resonance filter of the supralaryngeal vocal tract (SVT) in gibbons, in contrast to musical wind instruments, in which the filter primarily determines f0. Acoustic simulation further supported that gibbons' singing is produced analogously to professional human soprano singing, in which a precise tuning of the first formant (F1) of the SVT to f0 amplifies exclusively the f0 component of the source. Thus, in gibbons, as in humans, dynamic control over the vocal tract configuration, rather than anatomical modifications, has been a dominant factor in determining call structure. The varied dynamic movements were adopted in response to unique social and ecological pressures in gibbons, allowing monogamous gibbons to produce pure-tonal melodious songs in the dense tropical forests with poor visibility.
AB - Diversifications in primate vocalization, including human speech, are believed to reflect evolutionary modifications in vocal anatomy and physiology. Gibbon song is acoustically unique, comprising loud, melodious, penetrating pure tone-like calls. In a white-handed gibbon, Hylobates lar, the fundamental frequency (f0) of song sounds is amplified distinctively from the higher harmonics in normal air. In a helium-enriched atmosphere, f0 does not shift, but it is significantly suppressed and 2f0 is emphasized. This implies that the source is independent of the resonance filter of the supralaryngeal vocal tract (SVT) in gibbons, in contrast to musical wind instruments, in which the filter primarily determines f0. Acoustic simulation further supported that gibbons' singing is produced analogously to professional human soprano singing, in which a precise tuning of the first formant (F1) of the SVT to f0 amplifies exclusively the f0 component of the source. Thus, in gibbons, as in humans, dynamic control over the vocal tract configuration, rather than anatomical modifications, has been a dominant factor in determining call structure. The varied dynamic movements were adopted in response to unique social and ecological pressures in gibbons, allowing monogamous gibbons to produce pure-tonal melodious songs in the dense tropical forests with poor visibility.
KW - acoustic simulation
KW - gibbon song
KW - heliox vocalization
KW - human speech
KW - source-filter theory
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U2 - 10.1002/ajpa.22124
DO - 10.1002/ajpa.22124
M3 - Article
C2 - 22926979
AN - SCOPUS:84867575797
VL - 149
SP - 347
EP - 355
JO - American Journal of Physical Anthropology
JF - American Journal of Physical Anthropology
SN - 0002-9483
IS - 3
ER -