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Published on: May 31, 2024
Vocal and Nonvocal Habits among Vedic Chanters
Sai Aishwarya Ramani1, Radish Kumar Balasubramanium1, Dhanshree R Gunjawate2
1Department of Audiology and Speech Language Pathology, Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Mangalore, India.
Objectives:
The objective of the present study was to explore the voice concerns and vocal and nonvocal habits of Vedic chanters.
Participants And Method:
A cross-sectional design was used to study 200 Vedic chanters using a 36-item questionnaire. This questionnaire was developed and administered to explore their voice concerns and vocal and nonvocal habits. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the findings and K-means cluster analysis was carried out to identify clusters concerning voice quality and influence of habits.
Results:
The majority of Vedic chanters were involved in certain vocal habits such as use of loud voice while chanting and frequent throat clearing. Further, approximately half of the chanters expressed a concern towards their voice, while a vast majority experienced vocal fatigue. Cluster analysis helped in identification of 4 clusters: Vedic chanters with (1) good lifestyle and good voice characteristics (n = 107), (2) good lifestyle but bad voice characteristics (n = 15), (2) poor lifestyle and good voice characteristics (n = 51), and (4) poor lifestyle leading to bad voice characteristics (n = 27).
Conclusion:
The findings of the present study provide useful information on voice concern and vocal and nonvocal habits among a unique population of individuals. The current study of Vedic chanters highlights the need to have a detailed understanding of their specific voice usage, demands, and voice characteristics.
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