即使懷孕也不停止歌唱，碧昂斯是怎么做到的

Beyoncé’s seemingly effortless performance at the 59th annual Grammy Awards earlier this month was all the more remarkable given that she is pregnant with twins. (She had been scheduled to headline Coachella in April but, on doctors’ orders, pulled out on Thursday.)

本月初，碧昂斯(Beyoncé)在第59屆格萊美頒獎典禮上看似輕松的表演其實非同凡響，因為她懷著一對雙胞胎(她原計劃在4月份的科切拉音樂節(jié)[Coachella]上亮相，但周四按照醫(yī)囑取消了)。

Because pregnancy can make it harder to talk, let alone belt out a tune. “It’s unfair, but it is temporary,” said Dr. Anthony Jahn, the medical director at the Metropolitan Opera.

懷孕會讓說話更困難，更別提唱歌了。“的確不公平，但那是暫時的，”紐約大都會歌劇院(Metropolitan Opera)的醫(yī)務(wù)總監(jiān)安東尼·雅恩(Anthony Jahn)說。

Growing babies crowd the lungs and diaphragm, and the flood of estrogen and other hormones that comes with pregnancy can make vocal cords swell and vibrate differently. More effort is necessary, too. Expectant women have to exhale with added force to get vocal cords to vibrate and get the sound out.

逐漸變大的胎兒會擠壓肺部和橫膈膜，雌激素等因懷孕而產(chǎn)生的激素會令聲帶的膨脹和震動發(fā)生變化。另外還需要更多努力。孕婦必須格外用力呼氣，才能讓聲帶震動，發(fā)出聲音。

So singers with a baby or two on the way often have to rethink how they breathe. Breathing deep into the abdomen is typically considered to be the most efficient way to perform, said Dr. Jahn, a Manhattan otolaryngologist at Mount Sinai West, but singers who are pregnant may have to switch to chest breathing, which is “less effective, more labor intensive and more fatiguing.”

所以，懷著一兩個孩子的歌手通常需要重新考慮如何呼吸。作為曼哈頓西奈山西醫(yī)療中心(Mount Sinai West)耳鼻喉科專家的雅恩表示，腹式呼吸通常被認(rèn)為是最有效的演唱方式，但懷孕的歌手可能必須切換成胸式呼吸，后者“效果更差，更費力，更累人”。

Still, he said, “singers with Beyoncé’s talent and ability have great vocal reserves and the musical intelligence to compensate for these temporary limitations and still deliver a great performance.”

不過他說，“像碧昂斯這樣有天分和能力的歌手擁有很強的聲樂儲備和音樂才能，能彌補這些暫時的局限，依然唱得很好。”

On stage at the Grammys, Beyoncé appeared to be breathing strategically. “Since her babies are under her lungs she can’t expand down, so she expands her lungs out,” on the sides, said Adrienne B. Hancock, an associate professor in the department of speech and hearing sciences at the George Washington University. “Her power and control is off the charts.”

在格萊美的舞臺上，碧昂斯呼吸得很巧妙。喬治·華盛頓大學(xué)(George Washington University)的言語和聽力科學(xué)系副教授阿德里安·B·漢考克(Adrienne B. Hancock)說，“因為兩個孩子在肺下面，所以她不能向下用力，只能把肺向兩邊擴展。她的力量和控制力非同凡響。”

Asked at the Grammys what it’s like to sing with twins on board, Celine Dion, who had twin boys in 2010, exclaimed, “Whoa.” Then she told reporters that when she performed while pregnant she was 65 pounds larger and scared to move. But she said of Beyoncé, “She’s a trouper. If somebody can do it, she can.”

在格萊美頒獎典禮上，當(dāng)席琳·迪翁(Celine Dion)被問及懷著雙胞胎唱歌是什么感覺時——她曾于2010年懷過一對雙胞胎男孩——她感嘆道：“哇唔。”然后，她對記者們說，她懷孕期間表演時，比平常重了65磅，不敢走動。但她說碧昂斯“是老手了。只要有人能做到，她就能做到。”

Usually a jellylike layer enables the surface of the vocal cords, the folds of mucous membrane and muscle that stretch within the voice box, or larynx, to vibrate, said Dr. Paul E. Kwak, a laryngologist at New York University’s Langone Voice Center.

紐約大學(xué)(New York University)蘭貢人聲中心(Langone Voice Center)的喉科醫(yī)生保羅·E·郭(Paul E. Kwak)表示，通常，一個果凍樣表層讓聲帶表面、黏膜的褶皺以及喉部拉伸的肌肉震動。

That layer, called the superficial lamina propria, is full of blood vessels that can become engorged during pregnancy, causing the surface to thicken and grow sluggish. Making sounds requires extra energy and breath.

這個表層名叫表皮固有層，它布滿血管，懷孕期間會膨脹，導(dǎo)致聲帶表面增厚、變遲鈍。發(fā)聲需要更多的能量和呼吸。

It’s a double whammy. “The breath is shallower and the tissue is thicker, so it vibrates less easily,” Dr. Kwak said.

這是一個雙重打擊。“呼吸更淺，軟組織更厚，所以振動起來更不容易，”郭說。

That reduced flexibility can make it trickier to hit high notes, so some pregnant singers avoid them altogether. But Beyoncé persisted.

那會降低靈活性，飆高音更難，所以有些懷孕歌手避免唱高音。但是碧昂斯還是堅持唱了。

A common worry is that the voice will crack, which can be embarrassing, Dr. Hancock said. Another concern is that “blood vessels are so fragile during pregnancy, you could burst one, and have a little hemorrhage.” If that occurs, complete vocal rest, including no talking, is required.

漢考克說，一個常見的擔(dān)憂是聲音會破，那就尷尬了。另一個擔(dān)憂是“懷孕期間血管很脆，可能會破，導(dǎo)致輕微出血”。如果出現(xiàn)那種情況，嗓子就需要徹底休息，包括不要說話。

Not every singer experiences vocal changes during pregnancy. “It’s highly individual,” said Aaron Johnson, a speech-language pathologist also at N.Y.U.’s voice center.

不是每位歌手都會在懷孕期間出現(xiàn)嗓音改變。“它的個體差異很大，”紐約大學(xué)蘭貢人聲中心的言語病理學(xué)家阿倫·約翰遜(Aaron Johnson)說。

Actually, one of Dr. Kwak’s patients, an opera singer, has not noticed any difference in vocal quality while pregnant. “She’s been able to keep her range,” he said, though she “has noticed limitations in the length of the breaths she is able to take.”

實際上，郭的一位歌劇演員病人在懷孕期間沒有發(fā)現(xiàn)音質(zhì)出現(xiàn)任何變化。他說，“她仍能演唱所有的音域，”雖然她“注意到自己的呼吸長度出現(xiàn)局限”。

Acid reflux, a common plague in pregnancy, can also make singing painful, because stomach acid can well up and irritate the throat and drip down onto the voice box. “It’s like having heartburn in your throat,” Dr. Johnson said. “The tissue is raw, possibly swollen, making it more difficult to get the voice out.”

胃酸反流在懷孕期間經(jīng)常出現(xiàn)，它也會導(dǎo)致演唱時的痛苦，因為胃酸可能會反流上來，刺激嗓子，滴入喉部。“嗓子就會灼熱，”約翰遜說，“軟組織變得粗糙腫大，更難發(fā)聲。”

Hormonal changes, not just during pregnancy but during the monthly cycle and throughout the life span, further complicate the picture. The days leading up to a singer’s period can impact her voice. “The most difficult time is the week before your period, when you retain excess fluid,” said Dr. Jahn, who has worked with a variety of professional singers. “The voice may lose color and clarity, and singers often have difficulty singing softly in their higher range.”

激素變化讓情況更加復(fù)雜——不只是在懷孕期間，也包括月經(jīng)和整個一生之中。月經(jīng)之前的幾天，歌手的嗓音可能會受到影響。“最艱難的時刻是在月經(jīng)前一周，體內(nèi)保持大量水分，”雅恩說。他曾為各種職業(yè)歌手提供咨詢。“音色和聲音的清晰度會受到影響，歌手們往往很難柔和地演唱高音域。”

Dr. Johnson’s lab is researching how menopause affects the voice. In menopause, estrogen levels plummet as levels of androgens, male sex hormones, rise, which can lead to swollen vocal cords. A result may be a deeper voice for some women.

約翰遜的實驗室正在研究更年期對嗓音的影響。在更年期，雌性激素驟降，雄性激素上升，聲帶會腫大。有些女性的聲音會變得更低沉。

Those kinds of changes can also affect a pregnant woman if she breast-feeds after giving birth. “Until you stop lactating, you usually don’t resume your periods,” Dr. Jahn said, so you “are in a sort of temporary mini-menopause from the vocal point of view.”

那種變化也可能影響孕婦——如果她在產(chǎn)后母乳喂養(yǎng)的話。雅恩說，“哺乳期間通常不會來月經(jīng)，”所以，“從嗓音角度講，你處于一種暫時性的迷你更年期。”

Thanks a lot, Mother Nature.

謝謝你了，大自然母親。