I am a tenor/countertenor singer with a normal range from G (first line, bass clef) to two Ds above middle C. When I had a sore throat for a few days I lost my upper notes but could easily sing great C, which is two octaves below middle C. Why does this happen? And why do I not retain these bass notes when my throat heals? I always wanted to be a basso profundo.
• When you have a sore throat or laryngitis, your vocal cords become inflamed and swollen. The thickened cords will have a lower resonant frequency and so will vibrate at a lower pitch. This will drop your vocal range, allowing you to reach deeper notes at the expense of both the higher vocal registers and purity of tone.
Many of us can compensate for this change and continue to sing at the right pitch. After we have recovered, the swelling will subside and our vocal cords regain their normal acoustic properties and range.
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Similar conditions can be induced by a moderate hangover. In my youth-choir days, the bass section I was a member of used to exploit this phenomenon to reach earth-shuddering bottom As, although obviously I can no longer condone such behaviour on professional grounds.
Alex Wycherley, Anaesthetist and bass/baritone, Leeds, UK