Yeson surgery & Singing

[LittleEmily24]

Im sure this has been discussed in the extensive yeson threads lol but I don't really wanna have to go through 50 pages looking for the answer to this question xD

Now, i dont know if I ever plan on doing the Yeson thing, even though it looks/sounds amazing, and this is partially because my voice (according to my wife and friends) is "neutral" meaning it doesnt sound predominantly male or female, i guess its kinda andro and the other part is because I'm a singer and i plan on making a career out of it (plus i love to sing), and I already sing like a girl (this has me feeling hopeful for just having some voice training done that would be as effective as yeson)

So i guess my question is that, would yesson affect your singing voice? is it possible that it can damage your singing voice? My vocal range when singing is around the Katy Perry level of highness and Florence + The Machine level of feminine lowness ( i can obviously go lower, but at that point i sound male).

This is more of an intrigue than a passionate desire, I'm sure i'll be fine with a few years of voice training, but knowing that there's a 2nd option is always great, so I'm just wondering if anyone knows if the yeson surgery has any drastic effect on your singing

[Jennygirl]

The Jury is still out for me on the singing voice. I've developed it enough to sing alto in vocal arrangements (I used to sing bass/baritone), but the strength and control I used to have is still far from what it was and solo alto singing is still quite difficult.

If you plan on making a career out of singing after Yeson, do proceed with caution and know that it will take a lot of time (I have heard up to 2 years) to get full control/power/range back to your voice.

Granted, I rarely ever practice singing. I stopped singing long ago and even my pre-op voice was not what it once was.

I have lost about an octave off of my lower range and gained just over a half octave up top, and I am now almost 9 months post op I suspect if I did more singing practice it would help a lot with my upper range, and someday I might get around to doing that... it's just not that high of a personal priority.

I hope this helps!

[LittleEmily24]

Very much so! You couldn't have answered it better lol thanks <3

[Jennygirl]

Very much so! You couldn't have answered it better lol thanks <3

You're welcome Let us know what you decide. I know there has been a korean trans pop star that had the Yeson procedure fwiw!

[AmyBerlin]

Dear Emily,

Now, i dont know if I ever plan on doing the Yeson thing, even though it looks/sounds amazing, and this is partially because my voice (according to my wife and friends) is "neutral" meaning it doesnt sound predominantly male or female, i guess its kinda andro and the other part is because I'm a singer and i plan on making a career out of it (plus i love to sing), and I already sing like a girl (this has me feeling hopeful for just having some voice training done that would be as effective as yeson)

I'm in a similar situation. I've been a pro piano player who's also doing some singing for the past 15 years. People tell me I sound fine, but, since my original vocal range is a baritone, singing convincingly in the alto range takes a huge amount of support and control, especially in the midrange. The lows are easy, and A#4 up to G#5 is a piece of cake too. But E4-A4 is excruciatingly hard to sing well, esp. at mid-to-high volume. And in the end, the sheer laboriousness of the process won out and I decided to take the plunge and go to Yeson. I'm going to have the procedure mid-April.

You have to understand that it took me 20 years of consistent use of a feminized voice with a male voice box to bring me to this point. I had to realize that I'd always be but a mediocre alto, well, because actually I wasn't an alto at all.

So i guess my question is that, would yesson affect your singing voice? is it possible that it can damage your singing voice? My vocal range when singing is around the Katy Perry level of highness and Florence + The Machine level of feminine lowness

I've agonized over these same questions over and over for years. If your voice really is that versatile, don't change a thing!

I'm sure i'll be fine with a few years of voice training,

This one has me wondering. Is your voice fine the way it is or are you hoping to get there with voice training? Let me give you a word of caution though: There are quite a few voice therapists who work on the trans speaking voice, i.e. will teach you how to speak in a range other than what your voice box was built for. There are vocal coaches who will teach you singing. But very few, if any of them, will probably be open to the idea of training you to sing in a register that doesn't match the physical properties of your larynx.

Regards,

Amy