Precis

The voice and its signification have been in question since Roland Barthes first published his seminal work “The Grain of the Voice” in 1972 (published again in English in 1977). For Barthes, the “grain” appears at the precise moment in which sound and language converge; the exact moment when the actual physiological production of both become audible. To illustrate his point, Barthes discusses the differences between two singers, Charles Panzéra and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. Barthes comes to the conclusion that he prefers Panzéra, but not because of any technical superiority over Fischer-Dieskau. Instead, Barthes prefers Panzéra’s voice and singing because Panzéra’s voice provides the “grain.”

While we might accept Barthes’ conclusion, Jonathan Dunsby’s article, “Roland Barthes and the Grain of Panzéra’s Voice,” challenges the very notion that Barthes definitively explained what creates the “grain.” Dunsby does not set out to disprove Barthes’ theory about the “grain of the voice,” but he presents a unique perspective that complicates the finality of Barthes’ conclusion. From Dunsby’s perspective, he draws out a particular divide in vocal training between Fischer-Dieskau and Panzéra, citing the inherent differences in singing approaches between the German (Fischer-Dieskau) and the French (Panzéra) styles. Furthermore, Dunsby comments on Panzéra’s own writings about vocal pedagogy and highlights Panzéra’s partiality towards the physicality of vocal pedagogy, a characteristic of French pedagogical tradition. Thus, Dunsby contributes Barthes’ penchant for the physicality of the voice to his French nationality.

Linking Barthes’ affinity for Panzéra’s voice to his nationality teases out a perspective on voice and identification; in...

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...might be conducted by examining the various institutions and their pedagogical approaches to singing. A survey of these institutions around the world might reveal a Westernized institutional culture that neglects the specific cultural subtleties of vocal production throughout a particular nation or region (albeit this is purely speculation on my part).

To return to Barthes’ “grain of the voice,” what in his theory can be attributed to all other national cultures? Dunsby presents Barthes’ affinity for Panzéra over Fischer-Dieskau as a preference of national vocal identity. Thus, might I find the “grain of the voice” in the vocal qualities of my national identity? How would this differ from Barthes’ identification of the “grain” within the French singer? Furthermore, how much of Barthes’ theory of the “grain” applies to all other cultures and their vocal production?