A New York Times bestselling writer explores what our unique sonic
signature reveals about our species, our culture, and each one of
us. Finally, a vital topic that has never had its own book gets its
due. There's no shortage of books about public speaking or language
or song. But until now, there has been no book about the miracle
that underlies them all--the human voice itself. And there are few
writers who could take on this surprisingly vast topic with more
artistry and expertise than John Colapinto. Beginning with the
novel--and compelling--argument that our ability to speak is what
made us the planet's dominant species, he guides us from the
voice's beginnings in lungfish millions of years ago to its
culmination in the talent of Pavoratti, Martin Luther King Jr., and
Beyonce--and each of us, every day. Along the way, he shows us why
the voice is the most efficient, effective means of communication
ever devised: it works in all directions, in all weathers, even in
the dark, and it can be calibrated to reach one other person or
thousands. He reveals why speech is the single most complex and
intricate activity humans can perform. He travels up the Amazon to
meet the Piraha, a reclusive tribe whose singular language, more
musical than any other, can help us hear how melodic principles
underpin every word we utter. He heads up to Harvard to see how
professional voices are helped and healed, and he ventures out on
the campaign trail to see how demagogues wield their voices as
weapons. As far-reaching as this book is, much of the delight of
reading it lies in how intimate it feels. Everything Colapinto
tells us can be tested by our own lungs and mouths and ears and
brains. He shows us that, for those who pay attention, the voice is
an eloquent means of communicating not only what the speaker means,
but also their mood, sexual preference, age, income, even
psychological and physical illness. It overstates the case only
slightly to say that anyone who talks, or sings, or listens will
find a rich trove of thrills in This Is the Voice.
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