Vocal Training And Expression

[Guest AniStacy]

Hey there

I have seen a lot of online voice therapy sites and many books and cassettes on the subject.

I find that in many cases, the information is vauge or sometimes it the technique taught has very minimal value.

I also think that they dismiss the point of finding your own voice it becomes about the technique!

Anything can be done with the voice; you just have to become adept at using it.

I will be dealing with two voice transitions MtF and FtM.

I really believe that FtMs should train their voices; in combination with the hormones. It will give you a better idea of what voice you can have as a male and will also help you to be a guy better in public pre-hormones. It is more difficult in a sense to expand the voice, but its really not too much worse.

MtF Vocal Training:

Before we even begin with any physical training; you have to decide on the type of voice you want and make a clear thought of it through your mind. Almost like prepairing yourself to play a character on stage this gives you mind a clear perception of your aim. It will slowly over time integrate itself as the "normal" sound of your voice.

Once you have this sound you want, try to achieve it in anyway you can.

Hear the differances in your head! It will give you a clear idea of where you are and where you want to go!!

Don't be over critical about your sound and never get too technical or try to be exact! Remember: a voice is not perfect, no ones is.

Relax about the vocals and project as best you can.

If your larynx is hurting, stop. Your body is telling you it can't anymore; let it rest. Chances are it has worked well.

I've had advanced vocal coatching (lucky for me because I got a female voice quickly ) so I know about that! SERIOUSLY do not push or strain your voice!

Some technical stuff:

Females have three split ranges (these are casual, not singing ranges):

1: Normal Speaking range:

This would be the range of casual conversation. Each voice settles at a certain pitch, where the larynx is at its most relaxed point (you have the advantage of being able to choose your most relaxed point, the voice will settle there).

2. The UHF range (female super pitch):

This range is often confused with a female falsetto but is infact a very normal pitch for a girl to use. This is the shrill high pitched screaming range often used when a woman is freaked out or she is emphasising something (i.e. yelling at a friend). This is a very difficult range to master but we'll get there!

3. The true falsetto:

A male falsetto is when the male raises the pitch of his voice. The female falsetto is the reverse. Whenever a girl imitates a guy, she tends to use this lower then normal voice.

Females do have features in thier voices that males tend to use less( or visa versa ):

Pitch changes: women tend to use their range better. Sometimes it creates a more bouncy sound or it will make a more articulate expressive sound. Pitch emphasises thier moods more then volume.

Understanding: the baisic idea is to go back and fourth in your comforable range like a seiren. It will sound odd to just do it in a pattern so I really suggest that you vary your pitches based on how want to emphasise your words. Think about when you would raise or lower the volume of your voice for emphasis; now do the same with pitch, you'll start to achieve a more femminine expression in this way.

Resonation: Women use the head voice for internal vibration in combination with tighter vocal chords. Using the chest voice will give them a very full resonating sound. There are women who do that sometimes have very manly gruff voices.

Understanding: The baisic idea is to have a lot less resonance in your voice. So instead of pushing the voice from the chest, think of it coming from your head.

You may want to think of it as a "nasal voice" buuut that's not entirely accurate. Add a slight nasal sound; think about your forehead aswell, the tone of your voice will brighten then (trust me, it works with instrumentals too!).

Resonance can be tricky; this is where most people get stuck, it is a fundamental. You have to tighten your vocal chords (go to falsetto if you need to) and then you have to soften the voice (by soften I mean add more breathiness to the voice almost like a very loud whisper).

After some practise, these techniques will combine to form the normal speaking resonance. Its frustrating but you'll get there.

Growl and Croack: Some women do this a lot. Often they growl to point out anger or frustration or they croack to start and finish off a sentence. Its a habit you may or may not want to learn.

Understanding: Imagine the sound a frog makes? Thats croak; if you want it, just get used to throwing it in your speech. Growl is like a "grumpy old man" making a "mmmmmm" sound; or even like a dog growl. To do this is a lot more tricky, you have to get your head voice and casual resonance in alignment and then GROwwwwwl quite fun when you get it.

Flowing diction and articulation: The average woman will be more articulate then a man and the words will be pronounced better. But its really up to you.

Understanding: P-un-CHE Y-ou-RE W-or-DZE! Slow down you speech and read aloud so that every word is heard clearly. You your favourite reading material. Or the standard Harvord Sentences... But those are dumb

The features above are not restricted to females but they do tend to be more prominent the next step is understanding (as has been placed below) them. You can then use a few extra (fundamental) training steps to define the voice you want.

Warming up aaaand fundamentals

Many sites and books give a enormous warm-up section.

I'm here to tell you! Standing on your, head chanting a mantra while binging down on water is not nessecary.

Infact warming up is impractical if you're going to become full time; if someone phones you at 12h00 am, they expect to hear you! You can't say "uuuh soz brb warming up"

Buuuuut...

For the first while, warming up is a good training mechanism but please 1001 exercises is not nessecary! After a while you must just speak, no matter what you eat, drink, or how dry your throat is. The wonder of it all is; other peoples voices are also affected by what they eat and stuff so don't worry about it! Do they?

Warmups:

If you're a continuous practicer, I suggest you only do these for a month and then stop warming up. If you're having to time manage, try to warm-up for about 3 minutes and stop in about 6-7 months. This is all about comfort though, don't feel pressured to meet my deadlines

Drink a glass of water: It does help the vocal chords, you may gargle but that is optional.

If you have phlem build (eww up don't be scared to clear your throat! Its a natural human function, it does not damage the vocal chords.

Deep breathing: This builds the diafragm muscles, it will be good when you can project later on

"Sigh" in a high pitched tone (optional): This does help tighten the vocal chords it is not nessecary however. This will probably be your most femminine sound at the moment. Using the same technique one can groan in a femminine sexual manner (it is useful to grade those first sounds you make but not at all integral).

If you are strugging! Pinched and breathy warmup: Tighen your voice to get the falsetto (squeaky) sound and say "Hoe" followed by a quick breath and then say "Toe". After that repeat the above but do it in a whisper like voice. Then alternate between pinched and breathy; then try to combine them. After the first few days you should notice a slight feminninity in the sound just relax it will come!

Fundamentals:

Follow the resonance steps above in understanding. It is the only quality that really defines a voice gender wise. If you are struggling with resonance do the "if you are stugging warm-up"

Decide on the type of voice you want, and aim for it!

I have seen many sites that suggest that you can never achieve some female voices. This is complete garbage! The voice is a muscle and by that definition it can be toned to any level. Invisioning it in your mind helps your brain tone it to what you desire, just like if you concentrated on trying to move your ears the brain would process that into an availabe action (trust me! I really taught myself to move my ears ). The brain will analyse and process what you've told it if you give it what it needs and help it by continually striving for it. Keeping it in mind pays off

Pitch and other techniques tend to come naturally with focus and practise. To physically and mentally exercise the vocals will get where you want it to go.

Get the talking range first.

The other two ranges:

UHF: This is a very high range, it will require you to go beyond your falsetto, you have to tighten your vocal chords and try to produce a very high sound. It is possible with just straining up-there for 5 - 10 minutes. But another technique is much more effective.

Start in your most relaxed falsetto range and like a car reving its engine up glissando (slide the pitch) up to the highest you can go. Then come back down; when you go back up, try to go a note higher. After 2 months of this, I had a 10 note higher range and was able to shrill scream!

Falsetto: Quite easy, use a low voice with the resonance and head voice intact! you will sound like a girl trying to impersonate a guy badly

If you want to sing bass female songs, this is good practise

OK well I have more to add but I'll do it later because i need to do some work!

<3 Stacey

[Sally]

Very good, I have had the advantage of vocal training in college so if you were a bass and the teacher had you sing a tenor aria in Italian, speaking as a woman is pretty easy.

My therapist pointed out to me that most women tend to have a sibilance on their S's, not quiet a lisp but almost.

Good work, Stacy!

Love ya,

Sally

[Guest AniStacy]

Hehe Thanks. I'll put more up later

I wasn't sure about that one Sally; you just saved me a lot of reasearch!!

MWa

<3 Please tell me if this was helpful ppl

soz i ddnt put the polls up

Stacey

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Wow - right on the button there, Stacey

I am concerned about my developing my girl voice because so many people say it is so hard. But I do seem to find it is do-able, and the impossible only takes a little longer to achieve. I am fortunate as I commute one hour each way and this gives me an opportunity to practice two hours a day. I have done well enough in two months so that if I stopped now I think I could manage.

But I want to do better.

It is impossible to describe a voice in writing - well for me - I have no real musical training. I was tenor range in college, but am just in a sloppy range now. I had even lost my Mickey Mouse falsetto - which is coming back. And my tenor range is coming back again - yea - as a side benefit. If I had to classify my old male voice it was mid range and monotonous. One of the troubles I had, play acting as a male, was my lack of a deep command voice - which I am now glad I never developed. My girl voice now is almost exactly like Marcy Bowers on the cable network show - but not quite as whiney (sorry Dr. Bowers) so I guess if I trained to be spontanious with that voice I would pass.

But I found a much more melodious tone about three notes higher in pitch, which seems to be in the same resonance - and I am working that. You mentioned finding a goal? I couldn't have found this voice without some long practice - which allowed me to get my reasonance. So, 'this is the voice I want to use' as per the Stealth CD.

The Melanie CD is helping me with the 'cartoon voice approach' which I find is really a stretching exercise. It is for shaping the muscles for the same resonance I want for my girl voice through the Stealth CD. What I like about the Melanie CD, other than learning to talk one-hundred miles an hour like she does, is the better info on the enunciation and the vocabulary. I also like the idea of the hand motion and body language approach. But I like listening to the Stealth CD for the way to enuciate each vowel and each word.

Neither tape explains, although they seem to demonstrate, the fact that a woman rarely 'hard vowel' pronounces the front of a word. Actually the tendancy seems almost to clip it off, and just hint. This is more than made up by the CLEAR and precise enunciation of the last sylable. This is especially true with the 't" and 's' endings.

I spend days just practicing the female 'essss' which are different front, or middle, or ending. And it isn't exactly a lisp like you say. A woman loves her esses and makes them sparkle in the conversation. Tees are also a joy.

I won't even attempt to discuss the sing-song and piping used by women, as that subject is so involved. And ending most sentences with a question mark? And be conspiratory rather than making delarations? And talking in higher pitch to a man, and lower pitch to a woman?

But there seems to be an exactness in female speech. I have used it all my life as I grew up in a house full of women, learning how to speak from them. This speech peculiarity of mine is now an asset, but OMG it caused me grief in trying to fit in with male society. I never realized I used the female patterns so much until I started this voice training.

Another point in your posting I never realized is the growl and croak - THAT IS SO TRUE! I love it!

And you are right - in most cases, after a month, the warm ups are unnecessary.

Finally - this can go on forever - finally, the biggest hurdles I thought I would find are the female cough, sneeze and laugh. It seems the cough is fairly easy to master as women really reach down into the upper male range when coughing. The sneeze requires practice - 'choo' seems to be the key - and when a sneeze approaches naturally, there is usually time to anticipate and use the 'choo.' But the laugh? wow complicated. There are at least a hundred feminine laughs. I just need to find the easiest for me to use.

Giggles? My goodness - you say anything is possible - maybe some day.

Yours in voice (I hope) - THANKS! A great help....

Lizzy

[Guest AniStacy]

I'll happily put some reccordings up when my recoding studio (my room with a lotta sound eqiptment ) is repaired, it blew up a few days ago.

I also Promised an FtM section DON'T WORRY! Its comming!!

Lizzy, with time and patience all is possible. I'll give some sneeze and cough techniques... People get so stuck up in that.

<3 stacey

[Guest Kelly Ann]

well done Stacy! Cough technique...erm is this some sort of EXAM!?!?!?!?? EEEeEEeeEEWWWWWWW...I'm outta here sweetie Kelly Ann<<the sound of barefeet disappearing into the distance>>

[Guest slntcandy]

I think that was very helpful.

[Guest Hanayuki]

Hehe Thanks. I'll put more up later

I wasn't sure about that one Sally; you just saved me a lot of reasearch!!

MWa

<3 Please tell me if this was helpful ppl

soz i ddnt put the polls up

Stacey

Hey... I don't mean to be annoying or anything and I realize that you wrote this a really long time ago lol... But did you ever put up more? Or do you have more? Your post was a huge help... Even though I'm far from being done... I can't get it right, I feel like I'm missing something out you might know...

Thanks for your awesome post though

[Guest Sano]

this is really useful. Bookmarking it

Thank you! but did you ever post anymore?

[Guest ReginaRenea]

Hehe Thanks. I'll put more up later

I wasn't sure about that one Sally; you just saved me a lot of reasearch!!

MWa

<3 Please tell me if this was helpful ppl

soz i ddnt put the polls up

Stacey

Hi Stacey;

Your advice was very helpfull for me. I've been practicing in my car when I'm driving and singing with my CDs.

I also do it at home. I've been doing really well out in public with my voice and my dressing, I've been getting alot of lady or mam

in the last 3 months. The singing gives me the range I want and then I pic the octive that I'm comfortable with.

This worked well for me. I like to use female singers for this practice- Shania Twain or Gretchen Wilson work good for me.

Regina Renea

[Guest Elizabeth K]

I am glad to see this old TOPIC come to the front again! Its really full of good information.

Lizzy

[Guest NatashaJade]

It is really helpful. I keep toying with buying the Finding Your Female Voice program, but I run into the problem of finding the time to find my female voice. I'm hoping this summer I can find a half an hour a day to practice. I've been carpooling, so I can't use my drive time right now. When I read to my kids at night, I use that time to practice as well, but I really want to get more on my way. As a theatre teacher, I understand how the voice works and can get my voice to do a lot of things. It's more the nuances that I need to get right and be comfortable with. The work of being a woman is never done

luv

Gin

[Guest Mikku]

hey ive been giving this alot of work and i dont know if this is accurate but i really think it is

what i do is i take a deep breath, start humming in what i call 3 tiers, the first tier is from my lowest male voice to the point where it slightly breaks (where my voice chances from an under tone to over tone, like the resonance/headvoice w/e) then i breathe in again and go through the second tier of headvoice up to the point JUST before my voice cracks, not when it does but just enough so that in the 3rd tier i have that starting... once i get to the third tier i bring it to the highest i can get it before it cracks, and some a bit over that.. and at that point i am putting a lot of pressure trying to do it loudly enough. i acutally DO find my pallete being pressured by my tongue, and i also find that after i do this its almost locked and i have a higher range... and every time i repeat this excersie each day my natural range gets just a LITTLE higher.. its very stranious but i think it might work...

disclamer: please dont put TOO much pressure because this kinda gives me a headache if ispend more than 15 minutes doing this and it may not be good for me, but ive already lost that micky mouse quality... which is so fantatsic, but i still sound like a guy once i get conftorable with my voice ill upload my diary that ive been keeping, every day i record some of my voice and watch it progress... its been noticeably increasing and ive only been at this for 3 days . either way good luck to you all!!

[Guest Mikku]

hey ive been giving this alot of work and i dont know if this is accurate but i really think it is

what i do is i take a deep breath, start humming in what i call 3 tiers, the first tier is from my lowest male voice to the point where it slightly breaks (where my voice chances from an under tone to over tone, like the resonance/headvoice w/e) then i breathe in again and go through the second tier of headvoice up to the point JUST before my voice cracks, not when it does but just enough so that in the 3rd tier i have that starting... once i get to the third tier i bring it to the highest i can get it before it cracks, and some a bit over that.. and at that point i am putting a lot of pressure trying to do it loudly enough. i acutally DO find my pallete being pressured by my tongue, and i also find that after i do this its almost locked and i have a higher range... and every time i repeat this excersie each day my natural range gets just a LITTLE higher.. its very stranious but i think it might work...

disclamer: please dont put TOO much pressure because this kinda gives me a headache if ispend more than 15 minutes doing this and it may not be good for me, but ive already lost that micky mouse quality... which is so fantatsic, but i still sound like a guy once i get conftorable with my voice ill upload my diary that ive been keeping, every day i record some of my voice and watch it progress... its been noticeably increasing and ive only been at this for 3 days . either way good luck to you all!!

hey guys to try to better explain for those who cant really get falsetto or a nasaly voice listen to this

http://www.mediafire.com/?zyzimbzm1dj

(ive only been at it for 2-3 days, and acutally ive been working on it non stop for the past 2 hours so my voice sucks in here but i thought i would make this just to help you guys)

this is what i do to get it, after i reach my highest point i exhale while holding it, which i feel much pressure on my upper teeth (pallate) and then i just speak normally with it... also holding your hand on your upper chest is good so you can feel what your resonance is at and WHEN you say a word (like the word WHEN, the WH- begining has alot of resonance for me so i am working on changing that... but that kind of stuff) you can hear what tone changes you can make that are just as important as the voice itself, or so i've been taught.. i hope this helps and this also is doubleing as a *Rate my voice please!* i know its bad but i JUST started, 3 days ago i couldent even get a darn falsetto lol

[Guest Mikku]

oh lord... i forgot the link =.=

http://www.mediafire.com/?zyzimbzm1dj

here lol