Dumplings

Knödeln is a colloquial, mostly derogatory term in the field of vocal technique . It describes the sound of the human voice when it is artificially narrowed and not the entire air column is made to sound. The main cause of this is usually too much tension in the larynx and vocal cords , which leads to a very forced and direct sound, but also to a flat sound with little overtone.

The term is apparently derived from the word dumpling , which is originally a diminutive of the Middle High German knode (= knot). This can be taken literally ("singing with a knot in the throat"); From a medical perspective, however, it is also foreseeable that if the vocal cords are subjected to excessive stress, nodules will form there. However, since it is not a medical term, but a slang term, it can be assumed that the term alludes to the idea of ​​a “dumpling in the throat”, medically called globe syndrome .

Especially in the 1950s and 1960s, "dumpling" corresponded to the ideal of the singing voice, which was also taught in the professional field regardless of physical conditions. Today this phenomenon is particularly noticeable in untrained laypeople when they try to sing classically ("operatic").

literature

• Horst Coblenzer: breath and voice. Franz Muhar, Vienna 1997.