V O I
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V O I
and fays, * We ihall never have any good Vocal Mufic till
- our Poets learn to make Verfes on the Model of the An-
- tients,' i] e. till the antient metrical Feet and Quantities
are reftored. See Verse, and Quantity.
But it is tobeobferv'd, that the Rythmus of their Vocal Mufic, was only that of their Poetry j and had no other Forms and Mutations than what the metrical Art afforded. See Mutation.
Their Changes were no other than from one kind of Me- tfWm or Verfe, to another ; as from Iambic, to Choraic. See Measure, and Rythmus.
Their Vocal Mufick, then, confifted of Verfes fet to mu- fical Tunes, and fung by one or more Voices, in Chorus, or alternately $ fometimes with, and fometimcs without the Accompanyments of Instruments. See Symphony.
For lnftrumental Mufick, in the manner we have defin'd it, 'tis not very clear they ever had any. See Synaulia,£<?c.
VOCATION, or Calling, among Divines, the Grace or Favour which God does any one in calling him out of the way of Death, and putting him into the way of Salvation.
In this Senfe, we fay, the Vocation of the fifeoos ; Voca- tion of the Gentiles, &c.
There are two Kinds of Vocation ; the one external, the other internal.
The firft confifts in a fimple and naked propofing of Ob- jects to the Will. The fecond is that which renders the
firft effectual, by difpofing our Faculties to receive thofe Objeas.
Vocation is alfo ufed for a Deftinatton to any State or Profeffion. — 'Tis a Rule, that none are to enter the Eccle- fialtick or Monaftick State, without a particular Vocation, or Call. See Orders, Ordination, &c.
The Romanijls hold the Vocation of the Reformed Di- vines null and invalid. — Among our ielves, fome hold an uninterrupted Succemon neceffary for the Validity of the Vo- cation of a Prieft.
VOCATIVE, in Grammar, the fifth Cafe, or State of Nouns. See Case.
When we name the Perfon we are fpeaking to, or addrefs our felves to the Thing we are fpeaking of, as if it were a Perfon 5 the Noun or Name acquires a new Relation, which the Latins and Greeks exprefs by a new Termination, call'd the Vocative.
Thus, ofDominus, Lord, in the Nominative, the Latins have made liomine, O Lord, in the Vocative 5 of Antonius, Antoni, &c. — But as this was a thing not abfolutely necef- fary, and as the Nominative Cafe might ferve.on fuch Oc- cafions ; this new Cafe, or Termination, was not univerfal : in the Plural, for Inftance, it was the fame with the -Nomi- native ; and even in the Singular, it was only practis'd in the fecond Declenfion among the Latins j and in Greek, where it is the molt common, it is frequently neglected, and the Nominative ufed inftead of it : as in that Paffage in the Greek Pfalms, quoted by St. 'Paul to prove the Divinity of Jefus Chrift, 0£?w d& 5 3s§?, thy Throne, God.
In Englifh, and moft of the modern Tongues, this Cafe is ordinarily exprefs'd in Nouns that have an Article in the Nominative, by fupprefling that Article : as, The Lord is my hope — Lord, thou art my hope : Tho on many Occafions we ufe an Interjection.
VOCIFERATIO, in our old Law- Books, the fame with Hue and Cry.
■ S$W* fnrcm flegiatutn dimiferit, qui ei obviaverit &
gratis fine Vocifcratione dimiferit, &c. Leg. Hen. I.
VOICE, Vox, a Sound produced in the Throat and Mouth of an Animal, by an Apparatus of Inftruments for that purpofe. See Sound.
Voices are either Articulate, or Inarticulate.
Articulate Voices, are thofe whereof feveral confpire to- ■gether to form fome Affemblage, or little Syftem of Sounds: fuch are the Voices expreffing the Letters of an Alphabet, numbers of which join'd together form Words. See Let- ter, and Word.
Inarticulate Voices, are fuch as are not organiz'd, or af- fembled into Words : Such is the barking of Dogs, the bray- ing of Affes,the hi fling of Serpents, the finging of Birds, &c.
The Formation of the human Voice, with all the Varie- ties thereof obferv'd in Speech, Mufick, £S?c. make a very curious Article of Inquiry ; and the Apparatus and Orga- nifm of the Parts miniftring thereto, is fomething exceed- ingly furprizing.
Thofe Parts are, the 'Trachea, or Wind-pipe, thro' which the Air paffes and repaffes into the Lungs ; the Larynx, which is a fhort cylindric Canal, at the Head of the Tra- chea ; and the Glottis, which is a little oval Cleft or Chink, left between two femicircular Membranes, ftretch'd horizon- tally withinfide the Larynx ; which Membranes, tho capa- ble of joining clofe together, do generally leave an Interval,
either greater or lefs, between 'em, call'd the Glottis.
See particular Ziefcripions of each of thefe 'Parts, under the Articles Trachea, Larynx, and Glottis.
The long Canal of the Trachea, terminated a-top with the Glottis, appears fo like a Flute, that the Antients made no doubt but the Trachea contributed the fame to the Voice, as the Body of the Flute does to the Sound of that Instrument — Galen himfelf fell, in fome meafure, into the Miftake : He perceived, indeed, that the priHcipal Organ of Voice was the Glottis ; but he (till allow'd the Trachea a considerable fhare in the Production of Sound.
Galens Opinion was follow'd by all the Antients after
him ; and even by all the Moderns, before M. 'Dodart.
But that Author, obferving that we don't either fpeak or fing, when we infpire, or take in the Air, but only when we expire, or expel it 5 and this the Air coming out of the Lungs, paffes always out of the minuter Veficles of that Part into larger ; and at laft into the Trachea it felf, which is the largell of all : that thus its Paflage becoming ftill more free and eafy, and this more than ever in the Trachea, it can never undergo fuch a Violence, and acquire fuch a Ve- locity in that Canal, as is requir'd to the Production of Sound. ■ — But that, as the Aperture of the Glottis is very fmall, in comparifon with the Width of the Trachea, the Air can never get out of the Trachea by the Glottis, with- out a vaft Compremon and Augmentation of its Velocity ; and that by this means, in paffing, it communicates a briflc Agitation to the minute Parrs of the two Lips of the Glot- tis, gives 'em a kind of Spring, and occafions 'em to make Vibrations $ which communicated to thepafling Air, occafions the Sound. See Vibration.
This Sound, thus form'd, proceeds into the Cavity of the Mouth and Noftrils ; where 'tis reflected, and refounds : And on this Refonance, M. 'Dodart fhews, it is, that the Agreeablenefs of the Voice entirely depends.— The different Confiftences, Forms, &c. of the divers Parts of the Mouth, contribute to the Refonance, each in their way 5 and from this Mixture of fo many different Refonances in their due Proportion, refults a Harmony in the human Voice, inimita- ble by any Mufician.
Hence it is, that when any of thefe Parts is diforder'd, e. g. the Nofe ftop'd, the Voice becomes difpleafing.
This Refonance of the Cavity of the Mouth, does not feem to confift in a fimple Reflexion, fuch as that of a Vault, l$c. but in a Refonance proportionate to the Tones of the Sound fent into the Mouth from the Glottis ; and ac- cordingly, we find this Cavity to lengthen and fhorten it felf, according to the Depth or Acutenefs of the Tone.
Now, for the Trachea to effect this Refonance, as it was the common Opinion it did 5 it would be requir'd, that the Air, after its being modify'd and turn'd into Sound by the Glottis, inftead of continuing its Courfe from within out- wards, fh'juld return from without inwards, and thus ftrike on the Sides of the Trachea : Which can never happen, ex- cept in thofe who have a violent Cough, and in ventrilo- quous Perfons. Indeed, in moft River-Fowl, which have a very ftrong Voice, the Trachea does refound; but the rea- fon is, that the Glottis is placed at the bottom of the Tra- chea, and not at the top, as in Men.
That Canal, then, which at firft pafs'd for the principal Organ of Voice, is found not to be fo much as the fecondary one, i. e. not that which occafions the Refonance. — It does not ferve the Glottis, as the Body of a Flute does its Plug 5 but inftead of that, the Mouth ferves the Glottis as the Bo- dy of fome other Wind-Inftrument not yet known in Mu- fick. In effect, the Office of the Trachea, is no other
than that of the Port- Vent in an Organ, viz. to furniili Wind.
For the Caufe of the different Tones of Voice — As the Organs that form the Voice mzk& a kind of Wind-Inftrument, one might expect to find fome Provifion therein, anfwerable to that which produces the difference of Tones in fome other Wind-Inftruments. But in the divers Kinds of Wind-In- ftruments, the Hautboy, Organ, Clarion, &c. there is none. —The Tone, therefore, muft be attributed either to the Mouth and Noftrils, which occafion the Refonance, or to the Glottis, which produces the Sound : And as all the diffe- rent Tones are produced in Man by the fame Inftrument ; it follows, that the Part which produces 'em muft be capable of Changes anfwerable thereto.
. ,Now, for a grave Tone, we know, there is more Air re- quir'd than for an acute one. — The Trachea, therefore, to let this greater quantity pafs, muft dilate and fhorten it felt ; by which fhortening, the External Canal, that is, the Canal of the Mouth and Nofe, reckon'd from the Glottis to the Lips, or Noftrils, is lengthen'd. — For, the fliortening of the internal Canal, i, e. of the Trachea, brings the Larynx and Glottis lower down ; and of confequence makes its dif- tance from the Mouth, &c. greater : And there is a Change in the length of each Canal, for every change of Tone, and Semitone. — Accordingly, 'tis eafy to obferve, that the Knot of the Larynx alternately riles and falls in all Quaverings, or Shakings of Voice t how fmall foever the difference of Tone may be.
Hence,
