Jump to content
  • Welcome to the TransPulse Forums!

    We offer a safe, inclusive community for transgender and gender non-conforming folks, as well as their loved ones, to find support and information.  Join today!

Voice Training and Voice Feminization Surgery


Amanita M. Nomi

Recommended Posts

As a transgender counselor, I support trans women during coming out and transition. Recently, many of my clients have told me that they face limits with regards to online voice femiziation training and that they want to look into a combination of voice femization surgery and voice training. I have done a lot of research on the topic now and can answer many questions. Nevertheless, I was wondering whether anyone on the forum has experience with the combination of training and surgery. I'd love to start a conversation. I'm happy to share what I've read and seen in videos and to learn what you might have experienced in one of the few places that offer the combination of the two.

Link to comment
  • Admin

Welcome to the Forums. I have not had the surgery, but have friends that have.  The thing that too many people do not realize is that feminine voice and speech is not a matter of voice pitch and timbre all by itself.  My voice is a second tenor singing voice, which is a little deep for women, but my vocabulary and speaking style bring me into an acceptable Alto range in public. I am a spoken word artist and lay reader in my church as well.  Choice of vocabulary and sentence structure can turn even a high baritone into a highly passable female voice.  (I am part of a 48 voice Trans choral group who does their audio work and listens to voice pitch carefully but have never had to electronically alter the voices.).  Engaging with other women in general conversation does wonders for all the people I come across.  

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

Hello and welcome!  I'm glad you've joined us.  

 

I considered surgery but learned it wasn't a 100% given that I would get a consistent alto voice.  Everything I have read (and seen in video) tells me that surgery alone will not completely solve the issue.  There will be months of vocal training afterwards to train the voice, and the possibility you may lose range if the vocal chords don't heal correctly.  

 

As you well know, males and females speak quite differently.  So a large portion of the feminization of the voice is down to intonation and cadence, along with pitch and timbre.  While my voice is not what I would consider perfect, I make do fairly well by focusing on how I speak.  Not all women speak in the soprano range, think Bea Arthur or Cher.  When I slip up I just maintain my rhythm and intonation.  As Vicky notes, practice among other women does wonders.

 

Jani

Link to comment
  • 6 months later...

Count me in on the conversation!  I’m a rookie, having just admitted my truth and come out to friends and family on Saturday morning. 
 

I wasted no time trying to train my voice in my own, amateur way — singing along with Taylor Swift, Jewell, Heart, snd most recently Idina Menzel (“Let it goooooooo, let it goooooooo...”).  If it’s possible, I think I temporarily blew out my top-end pitch on that one.  Others I had down I now struggle to reach.  Score one for overzealousness....”oops.”
 

Lesson learned... but I’m sure I’ll need to learn it a few dozen more times. 
 

I’m fairly certain I’ll need surgery...but I want to exhaust the training angle first.  Kinda like letting the hormones do their thing before trying augmentation or facial surgery.

Link to comment
  • 5 months later...
On 10/7/2019 at 6:19 PM, VickySGV said:

Choice of vocabulary and sentence structure can turn even a high baritone into a highly passable female voice.

 

I would love to learn more about this, this is news to me. Any examples or helpful links?

Link to comment
  • Admin
9 hours ago, Heather Nicole said:

I would love to learn more about this, this is news to me. Any examples or helpful links?

 

I would look up the web site for Kathe Perez who is a well known voice coach for the Trans community.  Kathe is the only one who comes to mind at the minute but there are many.  Next, I would simply recommend that you find some place to LISTEN to women as a group and you can hear it.  A simple example or two:

 

Men will describe colors as Green for all shades, while a woman will use Lime or Kelly Green to describe colors.  One of my instructors gave us all cards with a color sample, and told us to come up with 7 names for it and then use one of those in a spoken sentence. 

A male voice will say the word Hello as a monotone.  A female voice is going over several notes "he L ow" and may even use a pronoun for the person they greet.  

Women tend to use more adjectives in their speech as well and they are lighter:

Male: "I had a good time" (again in monotone)   Woman: "I had an absolutely wonderful time." (ab so lute ly won der ful  ti me" all on different notes.)  

 

It does take careful listening to the women around you to hear it on your own.  There are as I said above Speech Therapists who can help you with this, and when we can have TG conventions again they often give short classes at the conventions. 

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

I have found The Voice Stylist 9 part Transgender voice feminization series my favorite and most productive for me - I also use the Voice Pitch analyzer app, PITCH app and Voice Tools app and they are all free. For me the Voice Stylist comes at it from a vocal coach standpoint and reminds me of voice lessons many years ago and she uses easy to follow techniques that have extended my range another 1/2 octave and growing. 

 

 

 

Link to comment
  • Admin
2 hours ago, gina-nicole-t said:

No offense to the lady in the video, but I am not paying $100 for Pitch App. It isn't free anymore. Maybe it used to be, but it isn't anymore, and I just can't see forking over that kind of money for an app. I have other things I can use $100 on. 

 

The Forums do not endorse any App of that nature although they can be discussed here.

 

With the $100 dollars mentioned above you can probably get a couple hours with a speech therapist, or even a singing coach.  I actually have a small pitch analyzer for around $25 from my local music store. 

 

A suggestion I will make is if you live in an area where there is an LGBT Chorus, go and join it and get coaching from your fellow chorus folks. 

 

@gina-nicole-t there are three that I know of in your state, and they are doing on-line rehearsals just now, but taking new members just the same.  My chorus here in Los Angeles is working with them on a special Transgender Day Of Remembrance program on-line!!

 

Getting out IRL and meeting directly with people is the best way to both find your voice and use it.

 

===================

 

While I have this open, another thing you can do that is free and easy, is go to the Public Library and check out some theatrical production scripts that have prominent female characters in them.  Read the parts aloud to your recorder and you can find one way to read it that will make you sound good.  After several readings you will hear the rhythmn and pattern.  One play I read years ago was I Remember Mama which has good female dialogue in it.  Watch out for the dialect lines at first though since they are not universal and if you are not from the dialect region sound phony.

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

That is weird I have pitch app for a few months and it cost nothing. I would never pay for an app and I wonder if you looked at wrong one . if it indeed costs anything that would reason enough not to get it. I agree. Do not pay for any apps. 

Link to comment

I wonder how much confidence has to do with pitch and tone. I got an app called voice tools and when I sing I can maintain female pitch for a whole song if I know it well. If I try to read the paragraph it gives to analyze voice, I cant get in range even 20%of the time. Is that happening for anyone else?

 

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

@gina-nicole-t the VOICE TOOLS app has a pitch section in it so you don't need the PITCH app. And it also gives you tones you can use.

Link to comment

@gina-nicole-t There are two free apps that I have used to practice my voice that do the same thing of recording you and analysing your pitcht tone etc. Both available on Apple or android (other apps are available the screen shot is to help you out) and they are definitely free. You still have to do the work, I started with the top one, and only drop down into androgynous sometimes, but the bottom one is newer and seems to have a few more features, like a playback option so you can hear what you sound like. I have not explored it fully, but it is honsetly all about practice and confidence. Hope it helps! 

20201014_084757.thumb.jpg.eb61f5613c0e6ae3419ead0954f663ed.jpg

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

Yes yes yes those are the 2 apps that are excellent. Sometimes my voice tools doesn't work but that is only temporary.

I like that voice analyzer records and charts your progress. Best of luck in your voice workouts.

Link to comment
18 hours ago, Abi said:

when I sing I can maintain female pitch for a whole song if I know it well. If I try to read the paragraph it gives to analyze voice, I cant get in range even 20%of the time. Is that happening for anyone else?

 

I haven't really tried much yet myself, but that doesn't sound too surprising. It's pretty well established, as I understand it, that speaking and singing use entirely different parts of the brain. There's people who can sing in a particular accent but not speak in the same accent.

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

I actual have maintained 90+ % female and 3-5% male when reading the Voice Tools long paragraph about rainbows. 

I do it every day and work with Voice Analyzer and consistantly can get in the 210-260 range based on my chart over time - I haven't practice in usual conversation but am slowly easing it into conversation with my wife to see if she notices and more so at band practice to start getting them used to it.

 

My bonus is that I am now singing more and more high harmonies in full voice instead of falsetto and that IS being noticed - all for the good - yay!

Link to comment
  • Forum Moderator

@gina-nicole-t another wonderful voice coach your is probably closer to your age and who is very good is transvoice lessons - 

 

https://youtu.be/1PNnBRBfOVY

 

 

 

 

 

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Who's Online   4 Members, 0 Anonymous, 126 Guests (See full list)

    • Davie
    • VickySGV
    • Abigail Genevieve
    • Susie
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      80.7k
    • Total Posts
      768.4k
  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      12,029
    • Most Online
      8,356

    Selkimur
    Newest Member
    Selkimur
    Joined
  • Today's Birthdays

    1. Anyatimenow
      Anyatimenow
      (23 years old)
    2. Aria00
      Aria00
    3. Ava B.
      Ava B.
      (24 years old)
    4. Claire Heshi
      Claire Heshi
    5. CrystalMatthews0426
      CrystalMatthews0426
      (41 years old)
  • Posts

    • Abigail Genevieve
      I have read numerous accounts of trans folk no longer being welcome among evangelicals.   I am here for help and fellowship not to rebuke anyone.  I can take a pretty high degree of insult, etc., and you haven't insulted me, to my recollection anyway :) and I usually let it go.  But I thought I would let it all out there.   I am sure I disagree with you on numerous issues.  I appreciate other people's viewpoints, including those who radically disagree with me.  Intellectual challenge is good. One thing I appreciate about @MaeBe.
    • Abigail Genevieve
      Congrats!
    • Sally Stone
      Post 8 “The Ohio Years” We moved to Pittsburgh because of the job with US Airways.  The job involved classroom instruction and simulator training, but no actual flying, so I kept looking for an actual pilot position.  A year after signing on with US Airways I got hired to fly business jets.  The company was located in Cleveland, Ohio, but I was flown commercially from my home in Pittsburgh to where my aircraft was located, making it unnecessary to live near company headquarters.    My flight scheduled consisted of eight days on duty with seven days off.  Having seven days off in a row was great but being gone from home eight days in a row was difficult.  For the first few years the flying was fun, but after a while the eight flying days in a row, were taking their toll on me.  Those days were brutal, consisting of very long hours and a lot of flying time.  Usually, I came home exhausted and need three days just to recover from the work week.  Flying for a living is glamorous until you actually do it.  Quickly, it became just a job.    After five years as a line captain, I became a flight department manager, which required we live near company headquarters.  That meant a move to Cleveland.  Working in the office meant I was home every night but as a manager, the schedule was still challenging.  I would work in the office all week and then be expected to go out and fly the line on weekends.  I referred to it as my “5 on 2 on” schedule, because it felt as though I had no time off at all.   About the same time, we moved to Cleveland, my wife and I became “empty nesters,” with one son in the military and the other away at college.  Sadly, my work schedule didn’t leave much time for Sally.  Add to the fact that while Cleveland is an awesome city, I just never felt comfortable expressing my feminine side.  Most of my outings, and believe me there weren’t enough, occurred while I was on vacation and away from home.   One of the most memorable outings occurred over a long weekend.  I had stumbled across an online notice for a spring formal being held in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, hosted by a local trans group there.  I reached out to Willa to see if she was up for an excellent adventure.  She was, so I picked her up and we drove to Harrisburg together.    The formal was held on Saturday evening and we had the absolute best time.  It turned out that organizers were a group named TransCentralPA.  Everyone was wonderful and I made a lot of new friends that evening.  We learned the spring formal was one of the group’s annual events but for the following year, instead of a spring formal, the group wanted to do a local transgender conference.  That local conference would become the Keystone Conference, and I would attend every year for the next 12.  My move to the west coast was the only reason I stopped attending annually.  I went to the first annual Keystone Conference as an attendee, but in subsequent years I served as a volunteer and as a workshop presenter; more about those in the next installment.   For my Cleveland years, the Keystone Conference would be my major outlet for feminine self-expression.  Yes, I did get out on other occasions, but they were too infrequent.  The managerial job just didn’t allow me the freedom I needed to adequately live my feminine life, and my frustration level was slowly, but steadily on the rise.  It amazed me how adversely not being able to express the feminine half of my personality was affecting my happiness.   However, a major life change was upcoming, and while it would prove to be a significant challenge in many ways, the events would ultimately benefit my female persona.  First, my mom and dad got sick.  They were in and out of the hospital and required personal care.  My wife and I did our best but living in Cleveland, we were too far from them to give them the support they both needed.  Second, I was experiencing serious job burn out.  I decided I need to find another job and I needed to be closer to my parents.    Things changed for the better when I got hired by an aviation training company as a flight simulator instructor.  I would be training business jet pilots.  The training facility was located in New Jersey, which put us much closer to my parents, and the work schedule was much better for quality of life.  Most importantly, this life change would help Sally re-emerge and once again flower.    Hugs,   Sally       
    • Mmindy
      I made a living talking about bulk liquids in cargo tanks transportation as a driver and mechanic. Safe loading/unloading, cleaning and inspecting, as well as emergency response scenarios.   Hazmat and fire behavior in the fire service as well as emergency vehicle operations and safe driving. "It was on fire when they called you. It will be on fire when you get there." Arrive ready to work. I could also talk about firefighter behavioral  heath and the grieving process.   The real fun thing is I can do this for people who are not Truck Drivers or Fire Fighters. Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Citizen Tax payers about Public Safety Education.   I love public speaking,   Mindy🌈🐛🏳️‍⚧️🦋
    • Mmindy
      Congratulations to the mom and family @Ivy on the addition of another child.   Hugs,   Mindy🌈🐛🏳️‍⚧️🦋
    • MaeBe
      Congrats to you and yours!
    • Ashley0616
      YAY! Congratulations on a granddaughter!
    • Ashley0616
      I recommend CarComplaints.com | Car Problems, Car Complaints, & Repair/Recall Information. A lot of good information
    • LucyF
      I've got Spironolactone ___mg and Evorel ___mcg Patches (2 a week) going up to ___mg after 4 weeks 
    • Ivy
      Got a new Granddaughter this morning.  Mother and child (and father) are doing fine. This makes 7 granddaughters and one grandson.  I have 2 sons and 6 daughters myself.  And then I  switched teams.  I think this stuff runs in the family. Another hard day for the patriarchy.
    • Ivy
      Like @MaeBe pointed out, Trump won't do these things personally.  I doubt that he actually gives a rat's a$$ himself.  But he is the foot in the door for the others.   I don't really see this.  Personally, I am all in favor of "traditional" families.  I raised my own kids this way and it can work fine.  But I think we need to allow for other variations as well.   One thing working against this now is how hard it is for a single breadwinner to support a family.  Many people (I know some) would prefer "traditional" if they could actually afford it.  Like I mentioned, we raised our family with this model, but we were always right at the poverty level.   I was a "conservative evangelical" for most of my life, actually.  So I do understand this.  Admittedly, I no longer consider myself one. I have family members still in this camp.  Some tolerate me, one actually rejects me.  I assure you the rejection is on her side, not mine.  But, I understand she believes what she is doing is right - 'sa pity though. I mean no insult toward anyone on this forum.  You're free to disagree with me.  Many people do.   This is a pretty complex one.  Socialism takes many forms, many of which we accept without even realizing it.  "Classism" does exist, for what it's worth.  Always has, probably always will.  But I don't feel like that is a subject for this forum.   As for the election, it's shaping up to be another one of those "hold your nose" deals.
    • Ivy
      Just some exerts regarding subjects of interest to me.
    • Ivy
      Yeah.  In my early teens I trained myself out of a few things that I now wish I hadn't.
    • Abigail Genevieve
      I was thinking in particular of BLM, who years ago had a 'What We Believe' section that sounded like they were at war with the nuclear family.   I tried to find it. Nope.  Of interest https://www.politifact.com/article/2020/aug/28/ask-politifact-does-black-lives-matter-aim-destroy/   My time is limited and I will try to answer as I can.
    • Ivy
      Well, I suppose it is possible that they don't actually plan on doing what they say.  I'm not too sure I want to take that chance.  But I kinda expect to find out.  Yet, perhaps you're right and it's all just talk.  And anyway, my state GOP is giving me enough to worry about anyway. I remember a time when being "woke" just meant you were paying attention.  Now it means you are the antichrist. I just don't want the government "protecting" me from my personal "delusions."
  • Upcoming Events

Contact TransPulse

TransPulse can be contacted in the following ways:

Email: Click Here.

To report an error on this page.

Legal

Your use of this site is subject to the following rules and policies, whether you have read them or not.

Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
DMCA Policy
Community Rules

Hosting

Upstream hosting for TransPulse provided by QnEZ.

Sponsorship

Special consideration for TransPulse is kindly provided by The Breast Form Store.
×
×
  • Create New...