Voice Training
Table of Contents
Introduction
Regardless of how well a transgender person "passes" as their true gender, the voice is often an indicator that causes someone to be clocked as transgender. If you are unsure as to what any of those words mean, feel free to consult the alphabet buttons at the top of this page, and navigate to the section that you think is relevant (I'll give you a hint, it's all in alphabetical order - you've gotten to the v page, if you haven't figured it out yet, I'm not quite sure how you got here).
While most transgender men are able to achieve a natural male voice after only a few months of GAHT, there are some transgender men who do not want to undergo GAHT, or are otherwise unhappy with their voices. This can cause gender dysphoria regarding one's voice, and prompt one to voice train. That being said, transgender women are more prone to having to voice train than transgender men are. The GAHT available for transfeminine people does not alter the vocal cords of someone who was unable to go on puberty blockers before the voice dropped.
The only alternative to voice training for transgender women is intense vocal surgery, which not everyone wants to go through. Either way, having the wrong voice can cause a signifigant amount of gender dysphoria for transgender people, especially transgender women. If you want to be a good ally, be kind.
General Information
Voice training is the process of training your voice to sound a certain way. Here, this pertains to making your voice sound more masculine or feminine. While voice training is more common among trans-feminine individuals (as estrogen does not change your voice), some trans-masculine individuals who opt not to go on testosterone (or are otherwise unsatisfied by the voice drop typically provided by going on testosterone) will train their voices to sound more masculine.
Voice training can be done at any age, and by anyone of any gender. There are no restrictions on who can voice train. That being said, it does require a lot of time and effort to do.
Voice training is often required prior to vocal surgery.
Glossary
- AES/Aryepiglottic Sphincte - AES constriction results in a bright, twangy sound often confused with nasality.
- Air Flow/Breathing - How breathy a voice sounds while speaking.
- Articulation - How clearly someone created distinct words and sounds.
- B.D.S.D. - Big Dog, Small Dog exercise.
- Closed Quotient - How frequently the vocal folds are closed during a vibrational cycle.
- Embouchure - The opening of your mouth. Includes the width, opening of your mouth, shape of your lips, etc.
- Inflection - How tone rises and falls during speech.
- Intonation - Involving the broader pitch patterns in spoken language, this is your voice's melody; which provides additional information beyong the literal meaning of your words. Examples include the way your voice changes when making a statement, asking a question, or expressing an emoition. The flow of louder or softer sounds while speaking.
- Larynx - Also known as the "voice box." This is where the vocal folds are located. The relative position of the larynx can be determined via the location of the adam's apple.
- Open Quotient - How frequently the vocal folds are open during a vibrational cycle.
- Phonate - To create sound with your vocal folds.
- Pitch - How high or low a note is.
- Placement - Using sympathetic vibrations and visualization exercises to attempt to create a certain sound.
- Prosody - The rhythm of words and the way words are stressed, along with the melody and emotion of speech.
- Sympathetic Vibrations - When you phonate and feel tingly vibrations in an area of your body, like your chest, face, or nose.
- Register - A range of tones in the human voice produced by a particular vibratory pattern of the vocal folds.
- Resonance - Anything that changes sound quality or texture without changing the actual pitch of a note. More specifically in terms of the voice, this is how the nose, mouth, and throat affect the sound; causing the listener to perceive the speaker as masculine or feminine.
- Voical Frequency - The speed at which the vocal cords vibrate when a sound is made. Frequency is measured in hertz (Hz). Voices above 165Hz are typically read as female. Voices below 165Hz are typically read as male.
- Voice Pitch - How high or low your voice is, and how that fluctuates as you speak.
- Vocal Tract - Everything that the vibrations created by your vocal folds travel through before exiting your mouth.
External Links
The resources below have been provided for education, information sourcing, and entertainment purposes. The views expressed in these videos, websites, etc, do not inherently reflect those of The Transgender Dictionary. These resources are not sponsored, nor endorsed.
YouTube Resources
YouTube Transfeminine Resources
YouTube Transmasculine Resources
Transfeminine Resources
Transmasculine Resources
Terminology Resources
Sound Analyzer Resources
United States-Based Resources
Additional Resources