Sensing Your Vocals: Exploring the Activity of Vocal Cord Muscles for Pitch Assessment Using Electromyography and Ultrasonography

Vocal training is difficult because the muscles that control pitch, resonance, and phonation are internal and invisible to learners. This paper investigates how Electromyography (EMG) and ultrasonic imaging (UI) can make these muscles observable for training purposes. We report three studies. First, we analyze the EMG and UI data from 16 singers (beginners, experienced & professionals), revealing differences among three vocal groups of the muscle control proficiency. Second, we use the collected data to create a system that visualizes an expert’s muscle activity as reference. This system is tested in a user study with 12 novices, showing that EMG highlighted muscle activation nuances, while UI provided insights into vocal cord length and dynamics. Third, to compare our approach to traditional methods (audio analysis and coach instructions), we conducted a focus group study with 15 experienced singers. Our results suggest that EMG is promising for improving vocal skill development and enhancing feedback systems. We conclude the paper with a detailed comparison of the analyzed modalities (EMG, UI and traditional methods), resulting in recommendations to improve vocal muscle training systems.