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Doublereed Archive - Posting 000096.txt from 2004/06
From: Gerhard Veith <Gerhard.Veith@-----.de>
Subj: [DR-L] Vibrato
Date: Mon, 14 Jun 2004 13:32:12 -0400
Thank you Mr. Lurie for your thorough post on vibrato. May I bring to
your interest a study on this subject by a German M.D. and concert
flutist first published in 1974 at the Gustav Bosse Verlag, Regensburg?
The author is Dr. Jochen Gärtner, and the German title is "Das Vibrato
unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Verhältnisse bei Flötisten". I'm
quite sure that there must be an English edition as well, but
unfortunately I don't know any details.
This study was carried out by using x-ray film synchronized with sound
recording, and it was the first study to scientifically demonstrate what
is actually happening in the body while playing with vibrato. Since the
study was carried out entirely on flute players, one has to use one's
judgement about what could sensibly be supposed as far as the oboe is
concerned. However, the findings were rather amazing:
* The diaphragm is only indirectly involved in the production of
vibrato, the individual body perception of some probands nonwithstanding
* In each case the active role of the larynx in the production of
vibrato could be demonstrated
* There were players who used a pure laryngeal vibrato, and were none
the less able to produce quite low vibrato frequencies, too
* It could be demonstrated that a pure thoraco - abdominal vibrato
("diaphragm" vibrato) is limited to vibrato speeds below 6 hz, and can
be maintained only with great difficulty over any longer period of time
* The laryngeal vibrato type was found to possess the widest range of
vibrato speeds
* All probands showed a preference to use laryngeal vibrato in pp in all
registers, even those who used other vibrato techniques in stronger
dynamics
Perhaps we don't do always exactly what we believe we do?
Best wishes,
Gerhard Veith
Augsburg, Germany
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