Muscles of the larynx Movement of the larynx is controlled by two groups of muscles. The muscles that move the vocal folds and other muscles within the larynx are called the intrinsic muscles. The position of the larynx in the neck is controlled by a second set call the extrinsic muscles. The intrinsic muscles are shown in the illustrations above. The vocal folds are opened primarily by a pair of muscles running from the back of the cricoid cartilage to the arytenoid cartilage.
Several muscles help to close and tense the vocal folds.
The body of the vocal folds itself is made up of a muscle called the thyroarytenoid muscle. A muscle called the interarytenoid runs from on arytenoid to the other and brings together these two pieces of cartilage. The lateral cricoarytenoid muscle, like the posterior cricoarytenoid muscle, also runs from the arytenoid to the cricoid cartilage. However, as its name implies it attaches to the lateral portion of the cricoid cartilage and is felt to primarily close the larynx. The cricothyroid muscle runs from the cricoid cartilage to the thyroid cartilage.