The Tongue: What Does It Mean? (Part 1)

We worked our way from the diaphragm and jumped right to the hard and soft palates to tackle nasality. Journeying through the vocal tract, I determined the next steps after nasality. So, for the next two articles of the series, I am going to split one topic into two parts: the first discussing the anatomy and some functional and acoustic considerations of the tongue and the second diving into all the ways we are told to use our tongue while singing. The tongue presents a multitude of opportunities in our singing and obstacles to singing efficiently and effectively. Disclaimer: this series is meant to demystify some of the commonly used lingo in the voice studio and beyond. I will give evidenced information and cite sources so you can dive deeper. 

So, What Is the Tongue?

I am aiming to tackle this section with more detail than normal. We’ll begin with the anatomy, then move to the composition of the tongue, and then finish with the functions. According to the Cleveland Clinic, the tongue is a muscle connected from the hyoid bone (the floating bone in the neck that connects the tongue and the larynx) to the bottom of the mouth. 

From the National Library of Medicine, “It is attached via the extrinsic muscles to the hyoid bone, mandible, styloid process, soft palate, and pharynx and divided into two parts by the V-shaped sulcus terminalis. These two parts, an anterior two-thirds and a posterior one-third, are structurally and developmentally distinct.” The extrinsic muscles connect to the body of the tongue muscle and move it around in the mouth, while the intrinsic muscles shape the tongue. There is a total of eight of these muscles: four intrinsic and four extrinsic. 

While the tongue is mostly muscular, it is held in place with tissue and covered with different types of papillae (bumps) and taste buds. This makeup leads right into the functional purposes of the tongue. The primary functions of the tongue deal with eating, speaking, and tasting. The eating portion covers moving food and beverage in the mouth and swallowing. The tongue is directly connected to the epiglottis (the leaf-shaped cartilaginous flap) which is used to cover the windpipe as we swallow. The flexibility of the tongue to move in the oral cavity make it vital for speech regarding both vowels (generally open oral cavity) and consonants (generally obstructed oral cavity). Due to its quickness of movement, it is often said to be able to produce over ninety words minute and have over twenty different movements. 

From a different National Library of Medicine article, “The tongue is essential for pronouncing the consonants ‘t,’ ‘d,’ ‘l’ or the rolling ‘r.’” The tongue is also vital for understanding what vowel is being produced due to its influence on the first and second formant of the vocal tract. These two resonances create our vowel language and present several considerations in both speech and singing as well as our perception of what we are producing (more on this in Part 2). Due to all these factors, the tongue is one of the most important aspects of singing and producing sound. We also use the tongue for taste, but that’s not as relevant to our needs. Always remember that while singing is our focus, the tongue’s focus is first to help with eating and digestion and then protecting the windpipe.

What’s Next?

I imagine most readers have dealt with tongue tension in their singing and in their speech. Having a pliable and trainable tongue is one of the most useful things that a singer can work toward as they are learning the ins and outs of their own vocalism. Check out Part 2 of “The Tongue” next month to find some exercises, benefits, and pitfalls of its existence in singing.