Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 26, 2026
Hemi-laryngeal Setup for Studying Vocal Fold Vibration in Three Dimensions
Published on: November 25, 2017
Andreas Vesalius' 500th Anniversary: Initial Integral Understanding of Voice Production
Romy J Brinkman1, J Joris Hage1
1Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Netherlands Cancer Institute-Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Hospital, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Background:
Voice production relies on the integrated functioning of a three-part system: respiration, phonation and resonance, and articulation. To commemorate the 500th anniversary of the great anatomist Andreas Vesalius (1515-1564), we report on his understanding of this integral system.
Methods:
The text of Vesalius' masterpiece De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septum and an eyewitness report of the public dissection of three corpses by Vesalius in Bologna, Italy, in 1540, were searched for references to the voice-producing anatomical structures and their function. We clustered the traced, separate parts for the first time.
Results:
We found that Vesalius recognized the importance for voice production of many details of the respiratory system, the voice box, and various structures of resonance and articulation. He stressed that voice production was a cerebral function and extensively recorded the innervation of the voice-producing organs by the cranial nerves.
Conclusions:
Vesalius was the first to publicly record the concept of voice production as an integrated and cerebrally directed function of respiration, phonation and resonance, and articulation. In doing so nearly 500 years ago, he laid a firm basis for the understanding of the physiology of voice production and speech and its management as we know it today.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:21Larynx
Anatomy of the Larynx
The larynx consists of various components, including cartilage, muscles, and vocal cords. Its structure includes three large unpaired cartilages—the thyroid, cricoid, and epiglottis—and three smaller paired cartilages—the arytenoids,...
01:16Anatomy of the Ear
01:29Anatomy of Respiratory System I: Upper Respiratory Tract
Nose and nasal cavity
The nose and nasal cavity represent the main external openings of the respiratory tract....
01:31Anatomy of Respiratory System II: Lower Respiratory Tract
The Larynx
It is located between the pharynx and the trachea, acts as a passageway for air, and hosts several critical structures, such as the epiglottis, vocal cords, and glottis. The epiglottis acts as a gateway, guiding food to the...
01:30Mechanism of Breathing I: Inspiration
The respiratory system, an essential network for breathing, comprises the conducting and respiratory zones, each playing a crucial role in the overall process of respiration. Let us explore the detailed mechanism of inspiration, or inhalation, which is the first phase of the respiratory cycle.
Pathway of Air during Inspiration
During inspiration, air enters our body through the nose or mouth and moves through the conducting zone,...
01:21Perceiving Loudness, Pitch, and Location
Place theory, or place coding, suggests that different pitches are heard because various sound waves activate specific locations along the cochlea's basilar membrane. The brain determines the pitch of a sound by...