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Introduction to Reading a Spectrogram
Jeremy Fisher
When reading a
spectrogram, you are usually presented with two screens. The upper
screen displays the sound signal and the lower screen displays the
particular type of analysis you are using.
To see/download a larger version of the illustrations in this
article click on the images below. Enlargements open in a new
window.
When you input a
sound, either by loading a pre-existing sound, or using a
microphone, the inputted sound appears on the upper screen.
This example shows
the sound EE (/i/) repeated three times. On real-time input, you can
check the volume of your vocalising, and change the settings, move
the microphone, or speak/sing softer our louder as appropriate. Time
(in seconds) is show across the page and volume (amplitude) is shown
going up the page. On this programme (MultiSpeech from Kay
Elemetrics), the signal colour on input changes from green to yellow
to red, depending on whether your vocalising is overloading your
soundcard.
On the lower screen,
the information going up the page changes depending on what you want
to study. On a Spectrographic screen, the harmonics in each sound
are shown.
The pitch (Frequency
in Hz) is shown going up the page, and strength of signal is shown
by how black each area is the stronger the signal, the blacker the
harmonic. A white area within a signal means those harmonics are
missing or too weak to be read. The spectrographic screen can be
used to discover a great deal of information including fold mass
activity, the relationship between phonation and airflow, and
activity of the false vocal folds.
On a Formant screen,
the position of the formants in each sound is shown.
Formants are
clusters of harmonics that are stronger than the surrounding areas.
In spoken or sung examples, formant readings are used to identify
vowels and also the relationship between laryngeal height and the
tongue.
A Formant screen may
be overlaid onto a spectrographic screen.
Most of the examples
on this site show spectrographic information (in black and white)
and formant analysis (in red).
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Giving the student broader knowledge about the structures of the
larynx can be effective on many levels of their training and
understanding. The 'moveable larynx' has long been the starting
point of Vocal Process courses including Singing and the Actor Training.
Download:
build_your_own_
tilting_larynx.pdf
[2-page PDF, 294kb]
NOTE: Please allow PDF documents time open over slower
connections.
As an alternative to opening a PDF in your browser you may also
download and save the file direct to your computer.
WINDOWS USERS: Right click on the download link > save target as.
MAC USERS: Option > click or click and hold > Save target as.
Link opens in a new window |
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