Today we acknowledge World Speech Day, celebrating the transformative power of speech-making to shape change, unite communities and build world citizenship.
From birthday toasts to graduation days; weddings to funerals; leaving parties to welcoming addresses, speeches are a ritual to mark momentous occasions. They bring audience and speaker together in thought and laughter, commemoration and motivation.
Voice is our primary means of communication (Zhang, 2016) and language is ‘the medium in and through which social life is talked into existence (Humă, Stokoe, and Sikveland, 2020).
We feel voice in the womb (Jauniaux, et al., 2022) and sound carries beyond the breath that made it, passing from particle to particle (Villaneuva-Rivera et al., 2011) and through memory across time as we recognise voices even without other cues (Kreiman and Sidtis, 2011).
Listening to the human voice creates stronger bonds than any artificially created acoustic (Kumar and Epley, 2021).
Here at the Voice Study Centre, we encourage our community to craft and present their thoughts, find their voice and help to shape the world. From kitchen table to theatre stage, research presentation to political rally, your voice matters.
What speech might you make today?
Henriques, J., Jauniaux, E., de Maisieres, A. T., Gelat, P. (2022). ‘Sound Before Birth: Foetal Hearing and the Auditory Environment of the Womb’, in Aural Diversity, Routledge. 1:27-41.
Humăa, B., Stokoe, E., and Sikveland, R. O. (2020). Putting persuasion (back) in its interactional context. Research in Psychology 2020, Vol. 17, No. 3, 357–371 https://doi.org/10.1080/14780887.2020.1725947© 2020 Taylor & Francis.
Kreiman, J., & Sidtis, D. (2011). Foundations of voice studies: An interdisciplinary approach to voice production and perception. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.
Kumar, E and Epley, N. (2021). It’s surprisingly nice to hear you: Misunderstanding the impact of communication media can lead to suboptimal choices of how to connect with others. Journal of Experimental Psychology. General, 150(3), 595–607.
Viallanueva-Rivera, Luis J., Pijanowski, Bryan C., Doucette, Jarrod, Pekin, Burak. (2011). A Primer of acoustic analysis for landscape ecologistsLandscape Ecol 26:1233–1246.
Zhang, Z. (2016) ‘Mechanics of human voice production and control’. Journal of Acoustical Society of America. 140(4), 2614.
Recent Posts
Student Interviews
How the MA Voice Pedagogy helped Blue Cain build a career as a singing teacher
Voice Study Centre
Wednesday 5th August 2026When Blue Cain joined the MA Voice Pedagogy, they weren't an established singing teacher. In this interview, they share how the programme helped them launch a career in singing teaching, discuss their experience of studying online with ADHD, and reflect on their research into gender-diverse voices.
Read More...
Course Reviews
Masterclass Insights: Applying the Meisner Technique to Singing with Jillian Paige
Voice Study Centre
Tuesday 4th August 2026Yesterday, the Voice Study Centre recently welcomed back Jillian Paige, founder of Meisner in Music, for an interactive workshop exploring how Sanford Meisner’s renowned acting methodology can be transformed into a practical framework for vocalists. While traditional acting approaches often prioritize internal character analysis or objective-driven choices, the Meisner Technique operates on a foundational principle: to sing freely and express fully, your focus must be directed outward. So what did we learn?
Read More...
Blog
How MA Voice Pedagogy Student Aramat Arnheim-Sharon Contributed to Published Voice Research
Voice Study Centre
Wednesday 29th July 2026Watch our interview with MA Voice Pedagogy student Aramat Arnheim-Sharon as she discusses her contribution to a published research chapter exploring voice, vibration, wellbeing and emerging health research. Discover how postgraduate study supported her journey into academic research, and hear about her current MA research and the development of new tools for voice pedagogy.
Read More...