Vocology Lab

Two members of the UW Vocal Arts Area, Dr. Katrina Zook and Dr. Holly Dalrymple, along with Interim Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Dr. David L. Jones, were awarded an Interdisciplinary Seed Grant through the College of Arts and Sciences. Grant monies have gone toward the foundation of a Vocology Lab, which will house equipment, voice analysis software,  and resources used in service of studying vocal and pulmonary function, assessing and fostering healthy vocal habits, and will promote a climate of scientific inquiry among voice students and instrumentalists alike. Vocology is a field of study that unites medical and scientific knowledge about the vocal instrument, speech and language pathology, and vocal pedagogy. It is further defined as “the science and practice of voice habilitation - the process of strengthening and equipping the voice to meet very specific and special demands.” (Ingo Titze)

Among other planned studies and article submissions, Drs. Zook, Dalrymple, and Jones will conduct on-going voice assessments for consenting music education majors. Collected data will help participating students learn how to efficiently and most effectively use their singing and speaking voices as they prepare for careers in the classroom. Apart from above-normal use of the voice in the teaching discipline, studies conclude that music educators experience a proportionally higher risk of vocal injury in the workplace as a result of intensified speech during crowd control and hours of daily vocal modeling, particularly in classrooms fitted with sound-absorption materials. It is the aim of the DOM Vocology Lab team, that our students will create and understand the importance of healthy vocal habits. What students learn and apply will help support their teaching and modeling voices in the choral and instrumental classroom and contribute to productive and prolonged careers as music educators.