The spectrogram of the human voice reveals its rich harmonic content.

The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds (vocal cords) are the primary sound source. Generally speaking, the mechanism for generating the human voice can be subdivided into three parts; the lungs, the vocal folds within the larynx, and the articulators. The lung (the pump) must produce adequate airflow and air pressure to vibrate vocal folds (this air pressure is the fuel of the voice). The vocal folds (vocal cords) are a vibrating valve that chops up the airflow from the lungs into audible pulses that form the laryngeal sound source. The muscles of the larynx adjust the length and tension of the vocal folds to ‘fine tune’ pitch and tone. The articulators (the parts of the vocal tract above the larynx consisting of tongue, palate, cheek, lips, etc.) articulate and filter the sound emanating from the larynx and to some degree can interact with the laryngeal airflow to strengthen it or weaken it as a sound source.

The vocal folds, in combination with the articulators, are capable of producing highly intricate arrays of sound.^[1][2][3] The tone of voice may be modulated to suggest emotions such as anger, surprise, or happiness.^[4][5] Singers use the human voice as an instrument for creating music.^[6]

Voice types and the folds (cords) themselves[link]

A labeled anatomical diagram of the vocal folds or cords.

Adult men and women have different sizes of vocal fold; reflecting the male-female differences in larynx size. Adult male voices are usually lower-pitched and have larger folds. The male vocal folds (which would be measured vertically in the opposite diagram), are between 17 mm and 25 mm in length.^[7] The female vocal folds are between 12.5 mm and 17.5 mm in length.

As seen in the illustration, the folds are located just above the vertebrate trachea (the windpipe, which travels from the lungs). Food and drink do not pass through the cords but instead pass through the esophagus, an unlinked tube. Both tubes are separated by the epiglottis, a "flap" that covers the opening of the trachea while swallowing.

The folds in both sexes are within the larynx. They are attached at the back (side nearest the spinal cord) to the arytenoids cartilages, and at the front (side under the chin) to the thyroid cartilage. They have no outer edge as they blend into the side of the breathing tube (the illustration is out of date and does not show this well) while their inner edges or "margins" are free to vibrate (the hole). They have a three layer construction of an epithelium, vocal ligament, then muscle (vocalis muscle), which can shorten and bulge the folds. They are flat triangular bands and are pearly white in color. Above both sides of the vocal cord is the vestibular fold or false vocal cord, which has a small sac between its two folds (not illustrated).

The difference in vocal folds size between men and women means that they have differently pitched voices. Additionally, genetics also causes variances amongst the same sex, with men and women's singing voices being categorized into types. For example, among men, there are bass, baritone, tenor and countertenor (ranging from E2 to even F6), and among women, contralto, mezzo-soprano and soprano (ranging from F3 to C6). There are additional categories for operatic voices, see voice type. This is not the only source of difference between male and female voice. Men, generally speaking, have a larger vocal tract, which essentially gives the resultant voice a lower-sounding timbre. This is mostly independent of the vocal folds themselves.

Voice modulation in spoken language[link]

Human spoken language makes use of the ability of almost all persons in a given society to dynamically modulate certain parameters of the laryngeal voice source in a consistent manner. The most important communicative, or phonetic, parameters are the voice pitch (determined by the vibratory frequency of the vocal folds) and the degree of separation of the vocal folds, referred to as vocal fold adduction (coming together) or abduction (separating).^[8]

The ability to vary the ab/adduction of the vocal folds quickly has a strong genetic component, since vocal fold adduction has a life-preserving function in keeping food from passing into the lungs, in addition to the covering action of the epiglottis. Consequently, the muscles that control this action are among the fastest in the body.^[8] Children can learn to use this action consistently during speech at an early age, as they learn to speak the difference between utterances such as "apa" (having an abductory-adductory gesture for the p) as "aba" (having no abductory-adductory gesture).^[8] Surprisingly enough, they can learn to do this well before the age of two by listening only to the voices of adults around them who have voices much different from their own, and even though the laryngeal movements causing these phonetic differentiations are deep in the throat and not visible to them.

If an abductory movement or adductory movement is strong enough, the vibrations of the vocal folds will stop (or not start). If the gesture is abductory and is part of a speech sound, the sound will be called Voiceless. However, voiceless speech sounds are sometimes better identified as containing an abductory gesture, even if the gesture was not strong enough to stop the vocal folds from vibrating. This anomalous feature of voiceless speech sounds is better understood if it is realized that it is the change in the spectral qualities of the voice as abduction proceeds that is the primary acoustic attribute that the listener attends to when identifying a voiceless speech sound, and not simply the presence or absence of voice (periodic energy).^[9]

An adductory gesture is also identified by the change in voice spectral energy it produces. Thus, a speech sound having an adductory gesture may be referred to as a "glottal stop" even if the vocal fold vibrations do not entirely stop.^[9] for an example illustrating this, obtained by using the inverse filtering of oral airflow.]

Other aspects of the voice, such as variations in the regularity of vibration, are also used for communication, and are important for the trained voice user to master, but are more rarely used in the formal phonetic code of a spoken language.

Physiology and vocal timbre[link]

The sound of each individual's voice is entirely unique not only because of the actual shape and size of an individual's vocal cords but also due to the size and shape of the rest of that person's body, especially the vocal tract, and the manner in which the speech sounds are habitually formed and articulated. (It is this latter aspect of the sound of the voice that can be mimicked by skilled performers.) Humans have vocal folds that can loosen, tighten, or change their thickness, and over which breath can be transferred at varying pressures. The shape of chest and neck, the position of the tongue, and the tightness of otherwise unrelated muscles can be altered. Any one of these actions results in a change in pitch, volume, timbre, or tone of the sound produced. Sound also resonates within different parts of the body, and an individual's size and bone structure can affect somewhat the sound produced by an individual.

Singers can also learn to project sound in certain ways so that it resonates better within their vocal tract. This is known as vocal resonation. Another major influence on vocal sound and production is the function of the larynx, which people can manipulate in different ways to produce different sounds. These different kinds of laryngeal function are described as different kinds of vocal registers.^[10] The primary method for singers to accomplish this is through the use of the Singer's Formant, which has been shown to be a resonance added to the normal resonances of the vocal tract above the frequency range of most instruments and so enables the singer's voice to carry better over musical accompaniment.^[11][12]

Vocal registration[link]

Vocal registration refers to the system of vocal registers within the human voice. A register in the human voice is a particular series of tones, produced in the same vibratory pattern of the vocal folds, and possessing the same quality. Registers originate in laryngeal functioning. They occur because the vocal folds are capable of producing several different vibratory patterns. Each of these vibratory patterns appears within a particular Vocal range range of pitches and produces certain characteristic sounds.^[13] the term register can be somewhat confusing as it encompasses several aspects of the human voice. The term register can be used to refer to any of the following:^[14]

• A particular part of the vocal range such as the upper, middle, or lower registers.
• A resonance area such as chest voice or head voice.
• A phonatory process.
• A certain vocal timbre.
• A region of the voice that is defined or delimited by vocal breaks.
• A subset of a language used for a particular purpose or in a particular social setting.

In linguistics, a register language is a language that combines tone and vowel phonation into a single phonological system.

Within speech pathology the term vocal register has three constituent elements: a certain vibratory pattern of the vocal folds, a certain series of pitches, and a certain type of sound. Speech pathologists identify four vocal registers based on the physiology of laryngeal function: the vocal fry register, the modal register, and the falsetto register, and the whistle register. This view is also adopted by many vocal pedagogists.^[14]

Vocal resonation[link]

Vocal resonation is the process by which the basic product of phonation is enhanced in timbre and/or intensity by the air-filled cavities through which it passes on its way to the outside air. Various terms related to the resonation process include amplification, enrichment, enlargement, improvement, intensification, and prolongation; although in strictly scientific usage acoustic authorities would question most of them. The main point to be drawn from these terms by a singer or speaker is that the end result of resonation is, or should be, to make a better sound.^[14] There are seven areas that may be listed as possible vocal resonators. In sequence from the lowest within the body to the highest, these areas are the chest, the tracheal tree, the larynx itself, the pharynx, the oral cavity, the nasal cavity, and the sinuses.^[15]

Influences of the human voice[link]

The twelve-tone musical scale, upon which some of the music in the world is based, may have its roots in the sound of the human voice during the course of evolution, according to a study published by the New Scientist. Analysis of recorded speech samples found peaks in acoustic energy that mirrored the distances between notes in the twelve-tone scale.^[16]

Voice disorders[link]

There are many disorders that affect the human voice; these include speech impediments, and growths and lesions on the vocal folds. Talking improperly for long periods of time causes vocal loading, which is stress inflicted on the speech organs. When vocal injury is done, often an ENT specialist may be able to help, but the best treatment is the prevention of injuries through good vocal production.^[17] Voice therapy is generally delivered by a speech-language pathologist.

Vocal Cord Nodules and Polyps[link]

Vocal nodules are caused over time by repeated abuse of the vocal cords which results in soft, swollen spots on each vocal cord. These spots develop into harder, callous-like growths called nodules. The longer the abuse occurs the larger and stiffer the nodules will become. Most polyps are larger than nodules and may be called by other names, such as polypoid degeneration or Reinke's edema. Polyps are caused by a single occurrence and may require surgical removal. Irritation after the removal may then lead to nodules if additional irritation persists. Speech-language therapy teaches the patient how to eliminate the irritations permanently through habit changes and vocal hygiene. Hoarseness or breathiness that lasts for more than two weeks is a common symptom of an underlying voice disorder such as nodes or polyps and should be investigated medically.^[18]

See also[link]

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Howard, D.M., and Murphy, D.T.M. (2009). [1] Voice science acoustics and recording, San Diego: Plural Press.
• Titze, I. R. (2008). The human instrument. Sci.Am. 298 (1):94–101. [2]
• Thurman, Leon & Welch, ed., Graham (2000), Bodymind & voice: Foundations of voice education (revised ed.), Collegeville, Minnesota: The VoiceCare Network et al., ISBN 0-87414-123-0

External links[link]

Look up voice or vocal in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Voice

Wikibooks has a book on the topic of singing

• Free Voice analyzer and Biometrics displaying software from University College London
• The Head Voice and Other Problems, 1917, by D. A. Clippinger, from Project Gutenberg
• The Voice Foundation's official website
• The Anatomy of Singing
• David Harper, vocal coach: A passion for the voice that never wanes – Opera~Opera article
• Irish Voice festival official website
• How the voice works-- The Voice Works Like a Car
• Voice acoustics: an introduction from the University of New South Wales

Ingrid Bergman
Ingrid Bergman, 1940
Born	(1915-08-29)29 August 1915 Stockholm, Sweden
Died	29 August 1982(1982-08-29) (aged 67) London, England
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1934–82
Spouse	Petter Aron Lindström (m. 1937–1950) «start: (1937)–end+1: (1951)»"Marriage: Petter Aron Lindström to Ingrid Bergman" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Ingrid_Bergman) Roberto Rossellini (m. 1950–1957) «start: (1950)–end+1: (1958)»"Marriage: Roberto Rossellini to Ingrid Bergman" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Ingrid_Bergman) Lars Schmidt (m. 1958–1975) «start: (1958)–end+1: (1976)»"Marriage: Lars Schmidt to Ingrid Bergman" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Ingrid_Bergman)
Children	Pia Lindström, born on (1938-09-20) 20 September 1938 (age 73) Robertino "Robin" Rossellini, born on (1950-02-02) 2 February 1950 (age 62) Isabella Rossellini, born on (1952-06-18) 18 June 1952 (age 60) Isotta Ingrid Rossellini, born on (1952-06-18) 18 June 1952 (age 60)

Ingrid Bergman (29 August 1915 – 29 August 1982) was a Swedish actress who starred in a variety of European and American films.^[1] She won three Academy Awards, two Emmy Awards, and the Tony Award for Best Actress. She is ranked as the fourth greatest female star of American cinema of all time by the American Film Institute. She is best remembered for her roles as Ilsa Lund in Casablanca (1942), a World War II drama co-starring Humphrey Bogart and as Alicia Huberman in Notorious (1946), an Alfred Hitchcock thriller co-starring Cary Grant.^[2]

Before becoming a star in American films, she had already been a leading actress in Swedish films. Her first introduction to American audiences came with her starring role in the English remake of Intermezzo in 1939. In America, she brought to the screen a "Nordic freshness and vitality", along with exceptional beauty and intelligence, and according to the St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture, she quickly became "the ideal of American womanhood" and one of Hollywood's greatest leading actresses.^[3]

After her excellent performance in Victor Fleming's remake of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in 1941, she was noticed by her future producer David O. Selznick, who called her "the most completely conscientious actress" he had ever worked with. He gave her a seven-year acting contract, thereby supporting her continued success. A few of her other starring roles, besides Casablanca, included For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943), Gaslight (1944), The Bells of St. Mary's (1945), Alfred Hitchcock's Spellbound (1945), Notorious (1946), and Under Capricorn (1949), and the independent production, Joan of Arc (1948).

In 1950, after a decade of stardom in American films, she starred in the Italian film Stromboli, which led to a love affair with director Roberto Rossellini while they were both already married. The affair and then marriage with Rossellini created a scandal that forced her to remain in Europe until 1956, when she made a successful Hollywood return in Anastasia, for which she won her second Academy Award, as well as the forgiveness of her fans. Many of her personal and film documents can be seen in the Wesleyan University Cinema Archives.^[4]

Early years: 1915–1938[link]

Ingrid Bergman at 14

Bergman, named after Princess Ingrid of Sweden, was born in Stockholm, Sweden on 29 August 1915 to a Swedish father, Justus Samuel Bergman, and a German mother, Friedel (Adler) Bergman.^[5] When she was three years of age, her mother died. Her father, who was an artist and photographer, died when she was thirteen. In the years before he died, he wanted her to become an opera star, and had her take voice lessons for three years. But she always "knew from the beginning that she wanted to be an actress", sometimes wearing her mother's clothes and staging plays in her father's empty studio. Her father documented all her birthdays with a borrowed camera.^[6]

Her first film, Munkbrogreven (1934) at age 19.

After his death, she was then sent to live with an aunt, who died of heart complications only six months later. She then moved in with her Aunt Hulda and Uncle Otto, who had five children. Another aunt she visited, Elsa Adler, first told Ingrid, when she was 11, that her mother may have "some Jewish blood", and that her father was aware of that fact long before they married. But her aunt also cautioned her about telling others about her possible ancestry as "there might be some difficult times coming."^[5]:294

At the age of 17, Bergman was allowed only one chance to become an actress by entering an acting competition with the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm.^[5]:30–31 Bergman recalls her feelings during that competition:

"As I walked off the stage, I was in mourning, I was at a funeral. My own. It was the death of my creative self. My heart had truly broken... they didn't think I was even worth listening to, or watching."

However, her impression was wrong, as she later met one of the judges who described how the others viewed her performance:

"We loved your security and your impertinence. We loved you and told each other that there was no reason to waste time as there were dozens of other entrants still to come. We didn't need to waste any time with you. We knew you were a natural and great. Your future as an actress was settled."^[5]:31–33

As a result she received a scholarship to the state-sponsored Royal Dramatic Theatre School, where Greta Garbo had years earlier also earned a similar scholarship. After a few months she was given a part in a new play, Ett Brott (A Crime), by Sigfrid Siwertz. Yet, this was "totally against procedure" at the school, notes Chandler, where girls were expected to complete three years of study before getting such acting roles.^[5]:33 During her first summer break, she was also hired by a Swedish film studio, which consequently led to her leaving the Royal Dramatic Theatre to work in films full time, after just one year. Her first film role after leaving the Royal Dramatic Theatre was a small part in 1935's Munkbrogreven (She had previously been an extra in the 1932 film Landskamp). She later acted in a dozen films in Sweden, including En kvinnas ansikte, which was later remade as A Woman's Face with Joan Crawford, and one film in Germany, Die vier Gesellen ("The Four Companions") (1938).

Hollywood period: 1939–1949[link]

[edit] Intermezzo: A Love Story (1939)

Bergman's first acting role in America came when Hollywood producer David O. Selznick brought her to America to star in Intermezzo: A Love Story, an English language remake of her 1936 Swedish film, Intermezzo. Unable to speak English and uncertain about her acceptance by the American audience, she expected to complete this one film and return home to Sweden. Her husband, Petter, remained in Sweden with their daughter Pia.^[5]:63 In the film she played the role of a young piano accompanist opposite Leslie Howard as a famous violin virtuoso.

She arrived in Los Angeles on 6 May 1939, and stayed at the Selznick home until she could find another residence. According to David Selznick's son Danny, who was a child at the time, his father had a few concerns about Ingrid: "She didn't speak English, she was too tall, her name sounded too German, and her eyebrows were too thick." However, Bergman was soon accepted without having to modify her looks or name, despite some early suggestions by Selznick.^[5]:6 "He let her have her way", notes a story in Life Magazine. Selznick understood her fear of Hollywood make-up artists, who might turn her into someone she wouldn't recognize, and "instructed them to lay off." He was also aware that her natural good looks would compete successfully with Hollywood's "synthetic razzle-dazzle."^[6]

During the weeks following, while Intermezzo was being filmed, Selznick was also filming Gone with the Wind. In a letter to William Herbert, his publicity director, Selznick described a few of his early impressions of Bergman:

"Miss Bergman is the most completely conscientious actress with whom I have ever worked, in that she thinks of absolutely nothing but her work before and during the time she is doing a picture ... She practically never leaves the studio, and even suggested that her dressing room be equipped so that she could live here during the picture. She never for a minute suggests quitting at six o'clock or anything of the kind... Because of having four stars acting in Gone with the Wind, our star dressing-room suites were all occupied and we had to assign her a smaller suite. She went into ecstasies over it and said she had never had such a suite in her life... All of this is completely unaffected and completely unique and I should think would make a grand angle of approach to her publicity... so that her natural sweetness and consideration and conscientiousness become something of a legend... and is completely in keeping with the fresh and pure personality and appearance which caused me to sign her..." ^{[7]:135–136}

With Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca

Intermezzo became an enormous success and as a result Bergman became a star. The film's director, Gregory Ratoff, said "She is sensational", as an actress. This was the "sentiment of the entire set", writes Life, adding that workmen would go out of their way to do things for her, and the cast and crew "admired the quick, alert concentration she gave to direction and to her lines."^[6] Film historian David Thomson notes that this would become "the start of an astonishing impact on Hollywood and America" where her lack of makeup contributed to an "air of nobility." According to Life, the impression that she left on Hollywood, after she returned to Sweden, was of a tall (5 ft. 9 in.)^[8] girl "with light brown hair and blue eyes who was painfully shy but friendly, with a warm, straight, quick smile."^[6] Selznick appreciated her uniqueness, and with his wife Irene, they remained important friends throughout her career.^[9]:76

[edit] Casablanca (1942)

After Germany initiated World War II, Bergman "felt guilty because she had so misjudged the situation in Germany" while she was there filming Die vier Gesellen (The Four Companions). According to one of her biographers, Charlotte Chandler (2007), she had at first considered the Nazis only a "temporary aberration, 'too foolish to be taken seriously.' She believed Germany would not start a war." Bergman felt that "The good people there would not permit it." Chandler adds, "Ingrid felt guilty all the rest of her life because when she was in Germany at the end of the war, she had been afraid to go with the others to witness the atrocities of the Nazi extermination camps."^{[5]:293–295}

After completing one last film in Sweden and appearing in three moderately successful films (Adam Had Four Sons, Rage in Heaven and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, all in 1941) in the United States, Bergman co-starred with Humphrey Bogart in the 1942 classic film Casablanca, which remains her best-known role. In this film, she played the role of Ilsa, the beautiful Norwegian wife of Victor Laszlo, played by Paul Henreid, an "anti-Nazi underground hero" who is in Casablanca, a safe-haven from the Nazis.^[5] Bergman did not consider Casablanca to be one of her favorite performances. "I made so many films which were more important, but the only one people ever want to talk about is that one with Bogart."^[10] In later years however, she stated, "I feel about Casablanca that it has a life of its own. There is something mystical about it. It seems to have filled a need, a need that was there before the film, a need that the film filled."^[5]:88

[edit] For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943)

After Casablanca, with "Selznick's steady boosting", she played the part of Maria in For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943), which was also her first color film. For the role she received her first Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. The film was taken from Ernest Hemingway's novel of the same title. When the book was sold to Paramount Pictures, Hemingway stated that "Miss Bergman, and no one else should play the part." His opinion came from seeing her in her first American role, Intermezzo, although he hadn't yet met her. A few weeks later, they did meet, and after studying her he said "You are Maria!"^[6]

[edit] Gaslight (1944)

With Cary Grant in Notorious

The following year, she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for Gaslight (1944), a film in which George Cukor directed her as a "wife driven close to madness" by co-star Charles Boyer. The film, according to Thomson, "was the peak of her Hollywood glory."^[9]:77 Bergman next played a nun in The Bells of St. Mary's (1945) opposite Bing Crosby, for which she received her third consecutive nomination for Best Actress.

Hitchcock films[link]

Bergman starred in the Alfred Hitchcock films Spellbound (1945), Notorious (1946), and Under Capricorn (1949). Unlike her earlier Hitchcock films, Under Capricorn, the only one of the three made in colour, was a slow-paced costume drama, and has never received the acclaim that the other films that Bergman made with Hitchcock have. Bergman was a student of the acting coach Michael Chekhov during the 1940s. Coincidentally, it was for his role in Spellbound that Chekhov received his only Academy Award nomination.^[11]

[edit] Joan of Arc (1948)

Later, Bergman received another Best Actress nomination for Joan of Arc (1948), an independent film based on the Maxwell Anderson play Joan of Lorraine, produced by Walter Wanger, and initially released through RKO. Bergman had championed the role since her arrival in Hollywood, which was one of the reasons she had played it on the Broadway stage in Anderson's play. The film was not a big hit with the public, partly because of the scandal of Bergman's affair with Italian film director Roberto Rossellini, which broke while the film was still in theatres. Even worse, it received disastrous reviews, and although nominated for several Academy Awards, did not receive a Best Picture nomination. It was subsequently shorn of 45 minutes, and it was not until its restoration to full length in 1998 and its 2004 appearance on DVD that later audiences could see it as it was intended to be shown.

Between motion pictures, Bergman appeared in the stage plays Liliom, Anna Christie, and Joan of Lorraine. Furthermore, during a press conference in Washington, D.C. for the promotion of Joan of Lorraine, she protested against segregation after seeing it first hand at the theater she was acting in. This led to a lot of publicity and some hate mail.

Bergman went to Alaska during World War II to entertain American troops. Soon after the war ended, she also went to Europe for the same purpose, where she was able to see the devastation caused by the war. It was during this time that she began a relationship with the famous photographer Robert Capa. She became a smoker after needing to smoke for her role in Arch of Triumph.

Personal life[link]

In 1937, at the age of 21, Bergman married dentist Petter Lindström, and a year and a half later had a daughter, Pia Lindström.

After returning to America in 1940, she acted on Broadway before continuing to do films in Hollywood. The following year, her husband arrived from Sweden with daughter Pia. Lindström stayed in Rochester, New York, where he studied medicine and surgery at the University of Rochester. Bergman would travel to New York and stay at their small rented stucco house between films, her visits lasting from a few days to four months.^[6]

According to a Life magazine article, the "doctor regards himself as the undisputed head of the family, an idea that Ingrid accepts cheerfully." He insisted she draw the line between her film and personal life, as he has a "professional dislike for being associated with the tinseled glamor of Hollywood." Lindström later moved to San Francisco, California, where he completed his internship at a private hospital, and they continued to spend time together when she could travel between filmings.^[6]

Italian period with Rossellini: 1949–1957[link]

in Fear (1954)

Bergman strongly admired two films by Italian director Roberto Rossellini that she had seen in the United States. In 1949, Bergman wrote to Rossellini, expressing this admiration and suggesting that she make a film with him. This led to her being cast in his film Stromboli (1950). During production, Bergman fell in love with Rossellini, and they began an affair. Bergman became pregnant with their son, Renato Roberto Ranaldo Giusto Giuseppe ("Robin") Rossellini (born 2 February 1950).^[12]:18

This affair caused a huge scandal in the United States, where it led to Bergman being denounced on the floor of the United States Senate. Ed Sullivan chose not to have her on his show, despite a poll indicating that the public wanted her to appear.^[13] However, Steve Allen, whose show was equally popular, did have her on, later explaining "the danger of trying to judge artistic activity through the prism of one's personal life."^[13] Spoto notes that Bergman had, by virtue of her roles and screen persona, placed herself "above all that". She had played a nun in The Bells of St. Mary's (1945) and a virgin saint in Joan of Arc (1948), and Bergman herself later acknowledged, "People saw me in Joan of Arc and declared me a saint. I'm not. I'm just a woman, another human being."^[14]:300

As a result of the scandal, Bergman returned to Italy, leaving her husband and daughter (Pia), which led to a publicized divorce and custody battle for their daughter. Bergman and Rossellini were married on 24 May 1950. In addition to Renato, they had twin daughters (born 18 June 1952): Isabella Rossellini, who became an actress and model, and Isotta Ingrid Rossellini, who became a professor of Italian literature.

[edit] Stromboli and "neorealism"

With husband Roberto Rossellini in 1951

Rossellini completed five films starring Bergman between 1949 and 1955: Stromboli, Europa '51, Viaggio in Italia, Giovanna d'Arco al rogo, and La paura.

He also directed her in a brief segment of his 1953 documentary film, Siamo donne (We, the Women), which was devoted to film actresses.^[12]:18 Rossellini biographer Peter Bondanella notes that problems with communication during their marriage may have inspired his films' central themes of "solitude, grace and spirituality in a world without moral values."^[12]:19

Memorial plaque on the house in Stromboli where Ingrid Bergman and Roberto Rossellini lived during filming of "Stromboli" in 1949

In addition, Rossellini's use of a Hollywood star in his typically "neorealist" films, in which he normally used non-professional actors, did provoke negative reactions in some circles. Bondanella speculates that this change may have been intentional: he may have "intended to provoke a significant change in direction within Italian cinema." In Stromboli, Bergman's first film with Rossellini, her character was "defying audience expectations" in that Rossellini preferred to work without a script. This forced Bergman to act most of her scenes "inspired by reality while she worked", a style which Bondanella calls "a new cinema of psychological introspection."^[12]:98 She was aware of his directing style before filming however, as Rossellini had earlier written her explaining that he worked from "a few basic ideas, developing them little by little" as a film progressed.^[12]:19

After separating from Rossellini, Bergman starred in Jean Renoir's Elena and Her Men (Elena et les Hommes, 1956), a romantic comedy where she played a Polish princess caught in political intrigue. Although the film wasn't a success, it has since come to be regarded as one of her best performances.

Later years: 1957–1982[link]

[edit] Anastasia (1956)

With her starring role in 1956's Anastasia, Bergman made a triumphant return to the American screen and won the Academy Award for Best Actress for a second time. The award was accepted for her by her friend Cary Grant.^[15] Bergman would not make her first post-scandal public appearance in Hollywood until the 1958 Academy Awards, when she was the presenter of the Academy Award for Best Picture.^[16] Furthermore, she was given a standing ovation, after being introduced by Cary Grant and walking out onto the stage to present the award.

Bergman would continue to alternate between performances in American and European films for the rest of her career and also made occasional appearances in television dramas such as a 1959 production of The Turn of the Screw for Ford Startime TV series for which she won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress.

During this time, Bergman also performed in several stage plays. In addition, she married the producer Lars Schmidt, a fellow Swede, on 21 December 1958. This marriage ultimately ended in divorce in 1975. He died on 18 October 2009.

After a long hiatus, Bergman did the movie Cactus Flower in 1969, with Walter Matthau and Goldie Hawn.

In 1972, U.S. Senator Charles H. Percy entered an apology into the Congressional Record for the attack made on Bergman 22 years earlier by Edwin C. Johnson. She was the President of the Jury at the 1973 Cannes Film Festival.^[17]

[edit] Murder on the Orient Express (1974)

Bergman became one of the elite actresses to receive three Oscars when she won her third (and first for Best Supporting Actress) for her performance in Murder on the Orient Express (1974). Director Sidney Lumet offered Bergman the important part of Princess Dragomiroff, with which he felt she could win an Oscar. However, she insisted on playing the much smaller role of Greta Ohlsson, the old Swedish missionary. Lumet discussed Bergman's role:

"She had chosen a very small part, and I couldn't persuade her to change her mind. She was sweetly stubborn. But stubborn she was... Since her part was so small, I decided to film her one big scene, where she talks for almost five minutes, straight, all in one long take. A lot of actresses would have hesitated over that. She loved the idea and made the most of it. She ran the gamut of emotions. I've never seen anything like it."^{[5]:246–247}

Bergman could speak Swedish (her native language), German (her second language, learned from her German mother and in school), English (learned when brought over to the United States), Italian (learned while living in Italy)^[18] and French (her third language, learned in school). In addition, she acted in each of these languages at various times. Fellow actor John Gielgud, who had acted with her in Murder on the Orient Express and who had directed her in the play The Constant Wife, playfully mocked this ability when he remarked, "She speaks five languages and can't act in any of them."^[19]

Although known chiefly as a film star, Bergman strongly admired the great English stage actors and their craft. She had the opportunity to appear in London's West End, working with such stage stars as Sir Michael Redgrave in A Month in the Country (1965), Sir John Gielgud in The Constant Wife (1973) and Dame Wendy Hiller in Waters of the Moon (1977–78).

[edit] Autumn Sonata (1978)

In 1978, Bergman played in Ingmar Bergman's Autumn Sonata (Höstsonaten) for which she received her 7th Academy Award nomination and made her final performance on the big screen. In the film, Bergman plays a celebrity pianist who travels to Norway to visit her neglected daughter, played by Liv Ullmann. The film was shot in Norway. It is considered by many to be among her best performances.^{[citation needed]}

In 1979, Bergman hosted the AFI's Life Achievement Award Ceremony for Alfred Hitchcock.^[20]

[edit] A Woman Called Golda (1982) – her final role

In 1982 she was offered the starring role in a television mini-series, A Woman Called Golda, about the late Israeli prime minister Golda Meir. It was to be her final acting role and she was honored posthumously with a second Emmy Award for Best Actress.

At first, she couldn't imagine herself acting the part of a well-known world figure whose physical appearance, especially her height, was so different from her own. Her daughter, Isabella, described Ingrid's surprise at being offered the part and the producer trying to explain to her, "People believe you and trust you, and this is what I want, because Golda Meir had the trust of the people." Isabella adds, "Now that was interesting to mother." She was also persuaded that Golda was a "grand-scale person", one that people would assume was much taller than she actually was. Chandler notes that the role "also had a special significance for her, as during World War II, Ingrid felt guilty because she had so misjudged the situation in Germany."^[5]:293

According to Chandler, "Ingrid's rapidly deteriorating health was a more serious problem. Insurance for Ingrid was impossible. Not only did she have cancer, but it was spreading, and if anyone had known how bad it was, no one would have gone on with the project." After viewing the series on TV, Isabella commented,

"She never showed herself like that in life. In life, Mum showed courage. She was always a little vulnerable, courageous, but vulnerable. Mother had a sort of presence, like Golda, I was surprised to see it... When I saw her performance, I saw a mother that I'd never seen before—this woman with balls."^[5]:290

Ingrid was frequently ill during the filming although she rarely complained or showed it. Four months after the filming was completed, she died. After Ingrid's death it was her daughter Pia who accepted her Emmy.^[5]:296

Death and legacy[link]

Ingrid Bergman's grave at Norra begravningsplatsen.

Bergman died in 1982 on her 67th birthday in London, England, following a long battle with breast cancer. Her body was cremated at Kensal Green Cemetery, London and her ashes taken to Sweden, where most of her ashes were scattered in the sea around the islet of Dannholmen off the fishing village of Fjällbacka in Bohuslän, on the west coast of Sweden, where she spent most summers from 1958 to her death in 1982, and the rest placed next to her parents in Norra begravningsplatsen (Northern Cemetery), Stockholm, Sweden.

According to biographer Donald Spoto, she was "arguably the most international star in the history of entertainment." Acting in five languages, she was seen on stage, screen and television, and won three Academy Awards plus many others.^[14] After her American film debut in the 1939 film Intermezzo: A Love Story, co-starring Leslie Howard, Hollywood saw her as a unique actress who was completely natural in style and without need of makeup. Film critic James Agee wrote that she "not only bears a startling resemblance to an imaginable human being; she really knows how to act, in a blend of poetic grace with quiet realism."^[3]

Bergman was a tall, natural-looking, and intelligent Swedish actress, fluent in English. According to film historian David Thomson, she "always strove to be a 'true' woman", and many filmgoers identified with her:

"There was a time in the early and mid-1940s when Bergman commanded a kind of love in America that has been hardly ever matched. In turn, it was the strength of that affection that animated the 'scandal' when she behaved like an impetuous and ambitious actress instead of a saint."^[9]:76

Nonetheless, writing about her first years in Hollywood, Life magazine stated that "All Bergman vehicles are blessed", and "they all go speedily and happily, with no temperament from the leading lady."^[6] She was "completely pleased" with her early career's management by David O. Selznick, who always found excellent dramatic roles for her to play, and equally satisfied with her salary, once saying, "I am an actress and I am interested in acting, not in making money." Life adds that "she has greater versatility than any actress on the American screen ... her roles have demanded an adaptability and sensitiveness of characterization to which few actresses could rise."^[6]

She continued her acting career while fighting an eight-year battle with cancer, and won international honors for her final roles. "Her spirit triumphed with remarkable grace and courage", adds Spoto.^[14] Director George Cukor once summed up her contributions to the film media when he said to her, "Do you know what I especially love about you, Ingrid, my dear? I can sum it up as your naturalness. The camera loves your beauty, your acting, and your individuality. A star must have individuality. It makes you a great star. A great star."^[5]:11

For her contributions to the motion picture industry, Bergman has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6759 Hollywood Blvd.

Woody Guthrie wrote the erotic song "Ingrid Bergman" which references Bergman's relationship with Roberto Rosselini on the film "Stromboli". It was never recorded by Guthrie but, later found in the Woody Guthrie archives, it was put to music, and recorded, by Billy Bragg on the album Mermaid Avenue ^[21]

Autobiography[link]

In 1980, Bergman's autobiography was published under the title Ingrid Bergman: My Story. It was written with the help of Alan Burgess, and in it she discusses her childhood, her early career, her life during her time in Hollywood, the Rossellini scandal and subsequent events. The book was written after her children warned her that she would only be known through rumors and interviews if she did not tell her own story. It was through this autobiography that her affair with Robert Capa became known.

Awards[link]

Filmography[link]

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Bergman, Ingrid and Burgess, Alan (1980). Ingrid Bergman: My Story. New York: Delacorte Press. ISBN 0-440-03299-7. 
• Chandler, Charlotte (2007). Ingrid: Ingrid Bergman, A Personal Biography. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-7432-9421-1. 
• Leamer, Laurence (1986). As Time Goes By: The Life of Ingrid Bergman. New York: Harper & Row. ISBN 0-06-015485-3. 
• Dagrada, Elena (2008). Le Varianti Trasparenti. I Film con Ingrid Bergman di Roberto Rossellini. Milano: LED Edizioni Universitarie. ISBN 978-88-7916-410-8. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ingrid Bergman

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Ingrid Bergman

Biographical profiles[link]

• Ingrid Bergman at the Internet Movie Database
• Ingrid Bergman at the TCM Movie Database
• Ingrid Bergman at the Internet Broadway Database
• TCM Confidential: Ingrid Bergman

Official sites[link]

• Ingrid Bergman site run by CMG
• Ingrid Bergman Collection at Wesleyan University

Interviews[link]

• 1943 New York Times Interview
• Larry King transcript with Ingrid Bergman's daughters on the 60th anniversary of Casablanca
• Excerpt from Isabella Rossellini's Some of Me that describes Ingrid Bergman's passion for cleaning

Videos[link]

• clip from Intermezzo, 1936 Swedish version
• clip from Intermezzo, 1939 U.S. version
• clip from Casablanca
• clip from Gaslight
• clip from Notorious
• clip from Joan of Arc
• (French) Television interview by Radio-Canada reporter Judith Jasmin on 15 July 1957
• (French) Television interview on JT 20H on 22 February 1959
• (French) Television interview by France Roche on Cinépanorama on 19 November 1960

Audios[link]

• Radio rich media may be found in the radio credits table.
• Ingrid Bergman's Spoken Word Version of The Pied Piper of Hamelin
• Audio Recording of Ingrid Bergman in the NY Production of More Stately Mansions (1967) (Adobe Flash)

Other[link]

• Photographs and bibliography