Mastering Vocal Vibrato: The Science of Production and Perception
Tuesday 24th June 2025, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM (London Time)
Vocal Vibrato: Production and Perception
Is vocal vibrato something that can and should be consciously controlled? What makes a ‘good vibrato’ and is there such a thing as ‘healthy’ and ‘unhealthy’ vibrato? Vibrato is a common musical feature, and yet it remains a controversial topic amongst pedagogues and singers.
In this session you will learn how vocal vibrato is produced and its acoustic properties. The history of vocal vibrato will be briefly explored, alongside current theories of vibrato production and how it is perceived. We will consider how vibrato has been studied and ways it can be analysed, revealing how vibrato is utilised in different contexts and in different musical genres to achieve different goals. In particular, different performance environments can impact vibrato, it can become an acoustic necessity, but also utilised as a stylistic tool. All these factors also change how we perceive vibrato, which can even influence our perception of tuning. The extent to which vibrato characteristics are a defining feature of an individual’s voice or a learned and controllable artistic tool will be considered in the context of how parameters of ‘good’ vibrato, including its regularity and extent have been identified and might be challenged. Ongoing research into the potential adaptation of vibrato when multiple singers ‘blend’ together will be shown with a discussion of how this might shed more light on our understanding of vibrato as a fundamental and powerful feature of the singing voice.
🏷️ Price £30 (UK VAT inclusive)
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📜 Certificate of attendance available
Professor Helena Daffern
Helena is currently a Professor in Music Technology in the School of Physics, Engineering and Technology. She completed her PhD in Music Technology in the School of Physics, Engineering and Technology at the University of York in 2008 and obtained a Masters degree in singing performance from the University of York before training as a postgraduate at Trinity College of Music.
Attend this course for as little as £22 as part of the Voice Professional Training CPD Award Scheme.
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