Pavarotti's Leading Ear

And there he was on Instagram—Luciano Pavarotti, his mouth silently moving and pointing to the right, showing those with eyes to see his leading ear.

So I went in search of the original video clip on Youtube in order to show you what I saw.

Here is Pavarotti facing the camera straight on, singing gloriously with his mouth pointing to the right—your left.

Turn the sound off and you will see clearly that Pavarotti’s mouth points to the right ear consistently.

Why is this important?

Alfred Tomatis observed that the right ear processes higher frequencies faster than the left ear, great singers leading their voices via the right ear. Those that don’t usually have a veiled and dull quality. Know what’s interesting about them? The facial contortions that often accompany their singing. It’s as if the body of the left-leading singer is straining to do what the right-leading singer does—which is to extend.

Can the singer point the mouth consciously to engage the right ear?

Sorry. No. That’s not how it works. What is seen on the face originates in the ear and not the other way around. You can’t fool mother nature.

If the right ear isn’t leading?

There are techniques to engage it, the most thorough being a course of listening training—which is what I underwent in 1999 at the Listening Centre in Toronto, Canada.

Life-changing.

I have a mixed-dominant student who is undergoing his own course of listening training with excellent results. My point? He’s a smart kid. Knows all about anatomy, physiology, and acoustics. But that knowledge doesn’t do anything for this voice.

Singing is still an ear-based endeavor.