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The "Does my voice pass?" thread

Started by Isabelle, September 19, 2012, 02:14:55 AM

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Eryn T

Quote from: Serenahikaru on June 02, 2018, 01:37:01 PM
I've been practicing for like 3 years now. I starting to get comfortable with my voice, but I wanted to see how passable it was. PS. Does anyone have any singing tips? 

https://soundcloud.com/user636000848/reading-test

@Serenahikaru
I'm sorry I missed your post originally, Serena!  I think you have a very lovely voice, sometimes it does sound a bit like 'doing a voice' but I think you'd pass pretty much all the time in real life! It reminds me of Pichu or what's her face that I hear those League of Legions commercials for...



I am not a singer, but I enjoy singing, and all I can suggest is doing daily warm-up exercises to allow you to have more strength and control over your voice; and at least for me, I just have lots of different female sung songs that I listen to in the car and try to sing along to. What I've noticed is certain vocalists(or songs) I mesh extremely well with in terms of harmonizing, and others, not so much.  And I think if you can find vocalists that are closer to your own natural singing voice, that will help you sing much much better. 

For me, I sang along, then I sang along with the volume lowered, I also sang along to male vocalist songs, but attempting a female singing voice, and now I'm trying all sorts of stuff.  I don't know how 'femme' I sounded tonight, but I was singing along to Greenday's American Idiot ^_^

Looking to make and keep friends! Spreading the love, now that I can truly love myself!

Transition Blog: https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,237152.msg2131598.html#msg2131598

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Serenahikaru

Thank you. ^~^ I agree, I should practice more on a daily basis. It's just that it feels awkward practicing with others around. >>
"There'll come a day where you realize you were so afraid of what others thought, you never got to live the life you wanted."
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SammyHatesGreenEggs

@Eryn T great advice in this thread!  Also, major props for posting the YouTube video.  Your male voice is very similar to mine, so that gives me hope yet for the future.

I guess I'm overdue to join in the fun in this thread, so here's a short clip (about ten seconds) of me doing the first sentence of the rainbow passage:

https://clyp.it/vnxzvzmv

Any constructive criticism is welcomed and I will definitely not be offended by any advice to improve.
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Lucca

Sounds pretty good to me, I'd assume it was from a woman. If it sounds fake, it's more just because it sounds like you're reciting something, if you spoke with more conversational intonation it would be more natural-sounding.
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SammyHatesGreenEggs

Thanks @Lucca !  I tried to do that (even while reading something) and you're right that it's made a huge improvement to me.  In addition, when I saw my speech therapist today, she noticed a major improvement by me adding better intonation.
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Eryn T

Quote from: SammyHatesGreenEggs on June 11, 2018, 07:15:47 PM
@Eryn T great advice in this thread!  Also, major props for posting the YouTube video.  Your male voice is very similar to mine, so that gives me hope yet for the future.

I guess I'm overdue to join in the fun in this thread, so here's a short clip (about ten seconds) of me doing the first sentence of the rainbow passage:

https://clyp.it/vnxzvzmv

Any constructive criticism is welcomed and I will definitely not be offended by any advice to improve.

Thank you so much, Sammy! That's all I can hope for from throwing myself out there. I'm not a very good teacher, but I was hoping to give girls like you some courage in their beautiful voices! :)

The link is dead for me. Was it like a temporary thing?  I wanted to have a listen, you can also just send me the file at TransGamingYoutube@hotmail.com too, if you'd like.

I always want to be helpful, but im so new to everything that I usually hang out in the introductions forums, and only feel comfortable(somewhat) giving advice on voice.
Looking to make and keep friends! Spreading the love, now that I can truly love myself!

Transition Blog: https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,237152.msg2131598.html#msg2131598

Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCd5cx6Iok3BQYrGwdYbVqWA

Twitter: https://twitter.com/_TransGaming_
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Lucca

I got another clip, me reading from the rules for Pathfinder:

https://soundcloud.com/lucca-connor/pathfinder/s-z9GiH

This is pretty typical of what it sounds like when I practice now, I know something's still off but I can't quite put my finger on what. Is it too high-pitched? Is it too weak-sounding?
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Eryn T

In my opinion, Lucca, yes, and yes.

It is very difficult(but also necessary, or at least it was for me) to speak femme for long stretches at a time; and it's definitely not something I would recommend doing right away.

I think your voice doesn't really sound weak, it IS weak, you are cracking all over the place, hun!  I think you should calm down on practicing your voice and focus a bit more on your muscle control in your neck and stuff. 

Unfortunately, I wasn't really hearing girl so much, but right at the beginning and also at 1:10 or so, you sounded completely female to me. Sometimes it can be certain phrases or what not that help, too. And it does take a lot of work to maintain your voice properly when speaking for longer than a few sentences.

It seems like you get it very close to right when you're thinking about it, but when you start to do it(maybe caused by the strength of your vocal chords) you struggle and then the sound isn't as smooth as it used to be.

I know that feeling very well, but right now for me, it's kinda the opposite. When I first start talking, it comes out a bit 'off' and then after I've said a few words, I can 'correct' myself and then focus more on the intonation, etc.

For me, what was always my training(and still is) go-to is "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe. My wife says that's a terrible thing to practice in a female voice lol but it works for me!

See, part of thing I think is, if you have something like an opening line of a book or a poem that you've memorized, and you recite it over and over- you start to know how it sounds in your head and have a better idea of when you're improving or what you should sound like.  I do read all sorts of things, but if there's nothing to read, I start reciting that poem again.  If I didn't have a go-to series of lines that I have memorized, then I think it would be much more difficult for me to really notice when I am making positive progress.

Similar to how I said you sound in the beginning and at 1:10 of your recording; if you can pin-point the moments/phrases spoken when you sounded your best, you can begin to understand how(for you) to apply that same feeling to other things.  I notice this more closely with music, too; because some songs just flow out more naturally and it isn't totally reliant upon who the singer is.
Looking to make and keep friends! Spreading the love, now that I can truly love myself!

Transition Blog: https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,237152.msg2131598.html#msg2131598

Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCd5cx6Iok3BQYrGwdYbVqWA

Twitter: https://twitter.com/_TransGaming_
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Lucca

Hmm, you think the very beginning and end are the best? The beginning still sounds kind of "Mickey Mouse" to me but is still one of my better attempts, but the end is where my voice is cracking and straining the most.

Also, I'm not sure where the big THUMP near the end came from, haha.
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Eryn T

Quote from: Lucca on June 19, 2018, 08:25:43 AM
Hmm, you think the very beginning and end are the best? The beginning still sounds kind of "Mickey Mouse" to me but is still one of my better attempts, but the end is where my voice is cracking and straining the most.

Also, I'm not sure where the big THUMP near the end came from, haha.

Sorry, Lucca. I didn't mean the whole end after 1:10, just a few seconds there.

Mentally, I equate it to running a race/marathon. At the start of the race, you burst out the gate in full sprint, in the middle you're kinda of still running but not quite able to push your body, and then when you anticipate the finish line, you get that last little push and run faster.

Maybe that's not a good analogy, but it's what reminds me of it.  Without good muscle control(I think) it's going to be more 'breaky' the higher pitched you are, so you might want to try at a bit lower pitches to start with, until you really find that smoothness. Yes, I did advocate pushing higher to hear how 'off' I am, but it's not going to be helpful if you haven't the muscle strength yet in your neck.

The larynx-swallowing and holding exercise is something I do every day, and whenever I am not talking; also, it doubles in public because I have an extremely protruding adams apple and when doing that, I can somewhat hide it, so I find that I do this in public often.
Looking to make and keep friends! Spreading the love, now that I can truly love myself!

Transition Blog: https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,237152.msg2131598.html#msg2131598

Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCd5cx6Iok3BQYrGwdYbVqWA

Twitter: https://twitter.com/_TransGaming_
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Lucca

I'll try more muscle exercises and lower pitch. The breaking I presume is largely due to difficulty holding my larynx up after a bit, so that will probably improve with stronger throat muscles. The pitch though is really throwing me off, if it's high it sounds fake, but if it's lower it just sounds like a smoother male voice. I can't quite find the proper range.
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Stephanie G

#1391
Here is my voice at the moment, it's easy to do though I don't feel fully comfortable with it yet :S.
https://vocaroo.com/i/s06SEeeDNBA7
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Madeline

Quote from: Isabelle on September 19, 2012, 02:14:55 AM
Hi all, I thought I'd start a thread where people can upload audio clips of their voices and get feedback, in the hope we can all help each other out :)
Anyway, I'll go first... I should point out this is from my first day training my voice.. It's not great but, my "male" voice was pretty andro to begin with.. Anyway take a listen and Id love to hear what people think

http://soundcloud.com/natjs/voice-day-1

Please feel free to comment, and upload your own clips !
(I use soundcloud.com for a free account, and there is an app for smartphones that's easy to use and simple to share sounds on :) )
You sound awesome!
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[They say to live life to its fullest, but are you even living if your not really you?]

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Stephanie G

Quote from: Lucca on June 19, 2018, 10:52:42 PM
I'll try more muscle exercises and lower pitch. The breaking I presume is largely due to difficulty holding my larynx up after a bit, so that will probably improve with stronger throat muscles. The pitch though is really throwing me off, if it's high it sounds fake, but if it's lower it just sounds like a smoother male voice. I can't quite find the proper range.

I know it's a while after you posted the clip, though I was bored and decided to download it to run it through praat(amazing software to analyze voice btw). Your mean frequency is 200 hz, a female voice is 165hz to 255hz. So you are within the range for pitch, your pitch varies alot(which is good). The problem is where your voice is coming from(resonating).

You can have full control of your larynx and still sound male, you have to kinda push your voice up, try to make it feel like your voice is just coming from the top of your mouth(like the inside). After that you can start relaxing it out to get a fuller voice. Though until you know the feeling it's hard to describe.
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Lucca

Thanks, I'll try to work on that. I haven't been practicing for awhile because I wasn't feeling very well, but I'm doing better now, so I'll try to get back into the groove.

Your voice sounds great, though!
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Sarah1979

Here's what I sound like, trying to make it more conversational... slow process  :embarrassed:
https://soundcloud.com/user-452595566/voice
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josie76

Quote from: Sarah1979 on August 13, 2018, 01:05:07 PM
Here's what I sound like, trying to make it more conversational... slow process  :embarrassed:
https://soundcloud.com/user-452595566/voice

Sarah, I think your pitch is a bit too high. You sound like you are into falsetto. It sounds more child like. Try letting it come down just a bit and I think you will sound perfect.
04/26/2018 bi-lateral orchiectomy

A lifetime of depression and repressed emotions is nothing more than existence. I for one want to live now not just exist!

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Sarah1979

I'm definitely at the edge of falsetto, but not quite into it, I'll try letting it down a little.  Thank you
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Angela H

    Hi guys and gals!

    I think my voice "passes" well enough, but I really want some honest feedback on it and I don't feel like my friends/family members are unbiased enough to give that to me.

    So from the sample do you think I sound good? My goals with my voice are to sound pleasant, natural, and consistent, in that order. I really want to have a beautiful voice; my voice was honestly the biggest source of my gender dysphoria (it still is, in a way).

    https://soundcloud.com/angela-lawter/vocal-sample-09282018/s-IKOcx
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