Acoustic analysis of voice in singers: A systematic review

Purpose: Singers are vocal athletes having specific demands from their voice and require special consideration during voice evaluation. Presently, there is a lack of standards for acoustic evaluation in them. The aim of the present study was to systematically review the available literature on the acoustic analysis of voice in singers. Method: A systematic review of studies on acoustic analysis of voice in singers (PubMed/MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus, ProQuest, Cochrane, Ovid, Science Direct, and Shodhganga) was carried out. Key words based on PIO (population– investigation–outcome) were used to develop search strings. Titles and abstracts were screened independently, and appropriate studies were read in full for data extraction. Results: Of the 895 studies, 26 studies met the inclusion criteria. Great variability was noted in the instruments and task used. Different acoustic measures were employed, such as fundamental frequency, perturbation, cepstral, spectral, dysphonia severity index, singing power ratio, and so forth. Conclusion: Overall, a great heterogeneity was noted regarding population, tasks, instruments, and parameters. There is a lack of standardized criteria for the evaluation of singing voice. In order to implement acoustic analysis as a part of comprehensive voice evaluation exclusively for singers, there is a certain need for methodical sound studies.