Why don stutterers ever stutter when they sing?
Stutterers have a genetic predisposition to focus tension in their vocal cords, which may lock; stuttering is the attempt to unlock them. A singer’s vocal cords are in constant motion, without the chance to tense up. In addition, singing, in which syllables are more elongated than in speech, moves the vocal cords differently. The anticipatory stress that exacerbates stuttering is less likely to occur during singing, because people tend to focus on the music more than on the words. And finally, music originates in the right side of the brain, and speech in the left; there may be little neurological connection between speaking and singing. At least one well-known figure used music to avert stuttering: Winston Churchill would hum before making speeches.
