Editing Place of articulation (section)

==The larynx==
The ''[[larynx]]'' or ''voice box'' is a cylindrical framework of [[cartilage]] that serves to anchor the [[vocal folds]]. When the [[muscle]]s of the vocal folds contract, the airflow from the lungs is impeded until the vocal folds are forced apart again by the increasing air pressure from the lungs. The process continues in a periodic cycle that is felt as a vibration (buzzing). In singing, the vibration [[frequency]] of the vocal folds determines the [[pitch (music)|pitch]] of the sound produced. Voiced [[phoneme]]s such as the pure vowels are, by definition, distinguished by the buzzing sound of this periodic [[oscillation]] of the vocal cords.

The lips of the mouth can be used in a similar way to create a similar sound, as any [[toddler]] or [[trumpeter]] can demonstrate. A rubber [[Balloon#Balloons as decoration or entertainment|balloon]], inflated but not tied off and stretched tightly across the neck produces a squeak or buzz, depending on the [[tension (physics)|tension]] across the neck and the level of [[pressure]] inside the balloon. Similar actions with similar results occur when the vocal cords are contracted or relaxed across the larynx.