All Tied Up: The Effect of Wearing a Necktie on Acoustic and Perceptual Measures of Male Choral and Solo Singing

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess acoustically (long-term average spectra and multi-dimensional voice profile) and perceptually (participant perceived phonatory ease and expert listening panel) the effect of wearing a necktie on male singing in choral (Experiment 1) and solo (Experiment 2) settings. No study to date has assessed the potential effects of wearing neckties in both choral and solo vocal settings. Among primary results: (a) statistically significant differences in spectral energy between performances with and without a necktie in both the choral (2-4 kHz) and solo (0-10 kHz) settings, (b) increases in mean jitter and shimmer percentage measurements of solo singers with necktie, (c) significant reduction in perceived phonatory ease when singing while wearing a necktie in choral and solo settings, and (d) listener preferences for singing without a necktie in solo and homophonic choral settings. Results were discussed in terms of limitations of the study, suggestions for future research, and implications for voice pedagogy. Keywords: necktie, choral singing, solo singing, long-term average spectra, multi-dimensional voice profile, perceived phonatory ease, expert listening panel