Pitch-dependent variation in vowel production and perception revisiting the source-filter theory May Pik Yu Chan

Format:

Book

Thesis/Dissertation

Author/Creator:

Chan, May Pik Yu, author.

Contributor:

University of Pennsylvania. Linguistics., degree granting institution.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Linguistics.

Language.

0290.

0679.

Local Subjects:

Linguistics.

Language.

0290.

0679.

Genre:

Academic theses

Physical Description:

1 online resource (194 pages)

Contained In:

Dissertations Abstracts International 87-12A

Place of Publication:

Ann Arbor : ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, 2026

Language Note:

English

Summary:

One common simplification in the linguistic study of speech is to treat vowels and pitch as independent and separable properties. This view reflects the classical linear source-filter theory, which assumes the source and filter to be independent, predicting that source-related attributes (e.g., pitch) cannot be influenced by the filter-related attributes (e.g., vowels). While this assumption led to successes in speech sciences, this simplification is less appropriate for higher-pitched speech, when the fundamental frequency approaches or exceeds vowel-determining formants. High-pitched voice production is common in women's and children's speech, and in natural speech contexts, such as singing and shouting, yet these cases pose challenges for understanding how vowel contrasts are maintained within this traditional framework. This dissertation explores vowel-pitch interactions in voice production and perception in natural speech contexts. I present acoustic and articulatory analysis of the singing voice, and challenge the view that pitch-dependent vowel adjustments are exclusively a trained technique used by singers. I reveal using ultrasonic tongue imaging data that lay singers also show vowel adjustments in high-pitched voice production, suggesting that vocal tract adjustments are at least partially inherently tied to the articulatory coordination between vowel and pitch production. I further demonstrate with acoustic data that filter-related adjustments can support the voice source in high-vocal-effort speech. To assess the perceptual consequences of vowel-pitch interactions, I demonstrate that the decline in vowel intelligibility at higher pitches reflects constraints posed by both the acoustic signal and by talker production. In particular, formant-harmonic crossovers can shift listeners' vowel perception: the relationship between pitch and vowel height is predicted from theories of intrinsic pitch before an F1-H2 crossover, but its relationship reverses after the crossover. These results reveal that the interplay between vowel- and pitch-related features, such as harmonics and formants, has direct psychoacoustic consequences for vowel perception. Overall, this dissertation represents one step towards a more integrated account of vowel and pitch properties in speech production and perception, contextualizing the circumstances under which traditional theories best capture the complexity of speech across diverse vocal contexts

Notes:

Source: Dissertations Abstracts International, Volume: 87-12, Section: A.

Advisors: Kuang, Jianjing Committee members: Liberman, Mark; Tamminga, Meredith

Ph.D. University of Pennsylvania 2026

Vendor supplied data

Local Notes:

School code: 0175

ISBN:

9798247981428

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license