In this contribution I am trying to account for experimental data from various sources, having to do with the production of stress in relation with the shapes of pitch contours. It will be argued that the strongest perceptual correlate of stress, pitch, is directly controlled by maneuvers of the larynx, and that the contribution of the subglottal effort is restricted to providing the appropriate driving air pressure suited to articulatory demands. Consequently, it will be argued that descriptions of pitch contours should supply a specification of the pitch contour elements that playa part in stress. Accordingly, a model of Dutch pitch contours will be proposed, characterised by two modes, two pitch levels, and pitch changes between the levels whose temporal locations determine the stress information.