What about my voice

[Danica]

Going out en femme for me so far has been limited to brief excursions onto my backyard deck under the cover of darkness. I love the thrill of the cool breeze blowing up my skirt. Once, I went for a drive for in the car but got to thinking, when I'm out in public, what happens if someone speaks to me. I mean really, the sound of my voice is a dead giveaway. But someday I hope to go shopping en femme and I could never pass with that. I'm sure I would be very nervous so beyond not speaking, any tips Ladies?

[JoAnne Wheeler]

Speak very softly - and carry a big stick

JoAnne Wheeler

[msginaadoll]

I go with Joanne, as well as carry a wallet or purse full of cash. Be confident and respectful and will take u far. Also women besides coming in different sizes and shapes, also have different voices, tones, modulations etc. You may be suprised.

[Rebecca Sue]

I read on another post to speak from the top of the voicebox rather than the bottom as you do when in man mode, I've been practicing this and it is effective.

[Nataliebabe]

Speak very softly - and carry a big stick

JoAnne Wheeler

Stick, hell !! .40 cal. S&W!!

[Gabrielle Hermosa]

I haven't ventured out in public en femme yet, but I've thought about this a lot myself.

I've tried and tried, but I can't do a female sounding voice to save my life. This may sound silly, but the only thing I could come up with if someone were to try to talk to me in public is to point to my throat, and whisper "I have laryngitis." It's a little easier to whisper like a female than talk like one. Whispering under the guise of laryngitis would also help keep the conversation short, so as not to give yourself away in the process. Not sure that trick would really hold up. Just something I've thought about.

It's really hard - I really can't talk even close to female sounding. It sounds ridiculous when I try. lol

[Carole Cross]

I have only been out to local TG meetings so far and I use my normal voice, as do the others, including the transexuals in the group. Changing your voice will take a long time and a lot of practice for most people. There are videos/tutorials out there and you may find someone who can teach you if you really want to have a female like voice.

[Gabrielle Hermosa]

Geez - I just remembered this.

About a year and a half ago, my boss at work asked me to make copies of some informational papers for his wife. When I looked at them... they were about some kind of workshop speech therapy for transgendered people. When I read it, I almost wondered if he knew about me and was trying to send me a message or something. It really got me thinking and even a little worried at the time. I think he just wanted some copies for his wife though. I believe she was helping in the workshop.

Interesting - I wonder if speech therapy alone can really help a man transform his voice? The clothes and makeup are a lot easier than the voice!

[Mean Green Irene]

Speak softly -- but don't worry about it either. I went out today to have lunch and the man behind the counter spotted me right off. He didn't say anything but I could tell by the look on his face. He then went and was there watching as I checked out. Watching from a distance while I ate. It did not bother me I have been out and outted many times. Just relax and enjoy being dressed.
Irene

[sputnik]

It takes a lot of practice. I'm still working on it myself with slow success.

I've actually found some good free instruction online. Youtube user candiFLA (http://www.youtube.com/user/candiFLA) has a series of voice instruction videos. They start a little slow, but once she gets going they're pretty fun and useful.

The first video is here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbaj4tIX1kw&feature=channel_page).

Video 1 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbaj4tIX1kw&feature=channel_page)

Video 2 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaxxEyZBgR4&feature=channel_page)

Video 3 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7qSJ19f_QU&feature=channel_page)

Video 4 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeBwNWETJ5o&feature=channel)

Video 5 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8AvdUoGD7g&feature=channel_page)

Hope it helps.

[Gabrielle Hermosa]

I've actually found some good free instruction online. Youtube user candiFLA (http://www.youtube.com/user/candiFLA) has a series of voice instruction videos. They start a little slow, but once she gets going they're pretty fun and useful.

Thank you for posting that!

I just watched two of the videos.

Um... wow, I mean, WOW! Just wow! How the... I'm blown away over here.

Not only is she 100% passable (and beautiful) in appearance, her female voice equally 100% passable!

I honestly thought it was a gg at first, just giving instruction until her "male partner" came out. lol Very entertaining to watch.

I can't help but wonder if the vocalizations she can pull off aren't somehow connected to one's ability (or inability) to have a beautiful singing voice. I mean, some people can sing beautifully because they have great control naturally (and work it through practice). Some people will never be able to sing beautifully no matter how hard they try because they lack the natural ability to control their vocal chords properly.

I can do some very wacky things with my voice (including a decent Marvin the Martian lol), but I can't do much of a falsetto, as she talks about. Had it when I was much younger, but almost not there now. Can't do Mickey Mouse. lol

I will definitely be watching more of this. I really want to master this, or at least get better at it.

On a side note: why on earth couldn't I be a young Asian crossdresser??!! I swear, they make the most beautiful gg's and cd's!

[Nigella]

Why not be yourself?

I do not even try to disguise my voice. Be comfortable with who and what you are !!

[Gabrielle Hermosa]

Why not be yourself?

I do not even try to disguise my voice. Be comfortable with who and what you are !!

There are all kinds of variations, levels, or preferences in crossdressing. Not any news to you or anyone here, I'm sure. For many of us, including me, it is all about emulating a female as closely as possible. If/when that goal can be achieved, I'll be a happy, happy cd!

If you're comfortable with your voice, however it sounds naturally, then great! Sounds to me that you've successfully achieved your preferred preference in crossdressing. :)

I'm already very comfortable with who and what I am. But my personal desire is to become better at the cding part - as in emulating, as close as possible, female appearance and voice too, if possible.

[Nigella]

Gabrielle

Thanks for your response to a simple statement from me. Your reply shows that just because you have reached a level, it does not mean that you cannot try to attain more if that is your goal.

I have found recently that my believe in myself has undergone a change. for the good I might add, but your response shows that there is always more :hugs:

[Legs]

Hey everyone.

Just a tip onhow I have managed what I have for a fem voice.

I must clarify I can NOT sing period.

Having said that I started by singing along with female singers such as Cher, and male singers with the higherpiched voices, like I said earlier I can not sing, but the pointis to try and raise your voice to match theirs, which has helped me greatly, it is not about being able to carry the note as it is to raise the pitch of your voice.

By getting into the song and relaxing and just enjoy yourself, singing along works wonders, but also pay close attention to where the sound is coming from, the fem voice does indeed come from the upper end of the throat rather then down deep, once you start singing along with songs you will see what I mean.

Once I kinda figured out where the sound should come from I started counting aloud from 1-10, then 1-25 then 1-50 then 1-100, then added the ABCs, then reading road signs, advertising bill boards, and such aloud, it takes time and practice, and yes atfirst you may sound mor like Mickey Mouse, but the more you practice the smoother it gets, and over time you will settle into a nice tenor fem voice.

Mine is still not perfect (at least not to me) after a year+, but I am getting there, and certainly have it close enough to get me thru limited conversations in public.

As stated by a few girls here, for me the CD thing is about doing it as good as I possibly can, the last thing I want is to be a guy in a dress, when I go from Paul to Samantha, then I want the whole world to see me as Samantha, and I want to be convincing.

Hugggggggggggs

Samantha

[Cassia-Marie]

I can do some very wacky things with my voice (including a decent Marvin the Martian lol), but I can't do much of a falsetto, as she talks about.

If you can do a Marvin the Martian imitation, you may be closer than you think. Don't concentrate on pitch as much as resonance. There's really only a 3-4 note difference between most men's and women's voices. It's the resonance that makes the difference. When you do the Marvin the Martian imitation, you're speaking from the general area of your voicebox that will give you a more feminine resonance. From that imitation, work on raising the pitch just a little and relaxing the throat until it sounds more natural. Also, get a hand-held recorder and record your voice during these practice sessions. The voice you hear in your ears will sound different to someone else's ears. Recording your voice and playing it back will give you a better picture of what your voice sounds like to others.

I hope this helps!

[Gabrielle Hermosa]

If you can do a Marvin the Martian imitation, you may be closer than you think. Don't concentrate on pitch as much as resonance.

Thanks for the input, Cassia-Marie. :)

I can also do a very convincing Kermit the Frog impression. But both Kermit and Marvin involve a strange contortion of my throat while talking like them. It's actually painful if I carry on too long like that (which I do when I can get a laugh out of it).

A few hours ago I had to run an errand. Put on some music and tried singing along in the weak falsetto voice I have while in my car. It kept switching back to my somewhat deep male voice. It cracked me up a little as it sounded as if I was going to puberty all over again. lol But it started to hurt after only 5 or 6 minutes. The falsetto voice is very uncomfortable - more so than Kermit and Marvin. I really have to work my throat muscles hard to do it.

As demonstrated in the video links above, I also tried starting at falsetto and then lowering the pitch slightly, while still in falsetto. This also caused my voice to crack and revert back frequently. I know, I'm very new to trying this technique, but it's kind of painful and difficult to maintain.

Many years so, when I was first dating the woman who later became my wife, I used to do a female voice with kind of generic eastern sounding accent sometimes on the phone with her. It was my way of allowing her to talk about the feelings/problems she had with me, to a female creation that she felt more comfortable talking to. This voice wouldn't pass in public, I don't think, but it worked for her. So much so that she sometimes became upset and confused by the feeling of actually talking with another woman on the phone (who seemed to not be just me changing my voice). I haven't been able to do this voice since my early 20's though. :( It was completely in the falsetto range.

My voice did continue to deepen beyond that point in my 20's. I wonder if that killed my falsetto?

I'm not done trying, but I used to be able to do things with my voice years ago that don't seem to work so well now.

Thanks for the tips. I think the recording idea is a good one. Somehow I need to make my falsetto voice work again without it hurting so much to try. It can't be good for me if it's painful.

[Raquel June]

Working on your voice is very difficult. The TS people I know who have a passable voice have all worked on it every day for at least a couple years. If you're not going to put that kind of effort into it, you're not going to fool anybody by doing some kind of a falsetto or whispering, so just put a little soft pleasantness in your voice and hope for the best.



Stick, hell !! .40 cal. S&W!!

Well, and that. But the .40 is a bit harsh for me, at least in anything small enough to fit in my pocket. I do speak softly and carry a Glock 26, though. :)



Interesting - I wonder if speech therapy alone can really help a man transform his voice? The clothes and makeup are a lot easier than the voice!

I've watched all those CandiFLA videos... she doesn't really get around to talking about voice all that much, but people seem to like the John Wayne impression.

The advice I've heard from most people (well, the people who I know are worth listening to because they actually sound feminine -- some people giving voice advice sound pretty terrible, or at least no better than the rest of us) is just to start by practicing a falsetto, and slowly move it down to something natural. And this is a little hard to explain, but you want to resonate your voice higher up than you're used to down in your chest. It's almost like tightening up your voice in a certain way will make your upper throat resonate, or even the back of your head. You definitely get a different tone that way. When I do that, it sounds more like a super-gay guy talking, but then I try to relax the tone a little and sound more naturally femme. Anyway, I don't quite know what I'm talking about, and even though I've practiced it a lot, it's hard to sustain in any sort of a stable, natural tone, so I don't really use it in public. I mostly just practice it singing whenever I'm driving.

RoxyRocket on this forum has a totally passable female voice. CandiFLA is actually a member, but I think has only been on once.

[Jess_cd32]

If worse comes to worse buy and use that thing on your throat that Ned uses in SouthPark:doh:

[Sweet Jane]

unless you are 100% convincing close up, ummmmm a perfect voice isn't gonna make a difference...my voice is really average, but then close up, i'm not a 'real' girl!

[tricia_uktv]

Why not be yourself?

I do not even try to disguise my voice. Be comfortable with who and what you are !!

I'd go along with that with one proviso. Never shout!

[linnea]

Speak softly -- but don't worry about it either. I went out today to have lunch and the man behind the counter spotted me right off. He didn't say anything but I could tell by the look on his face. He then went and was there watching as I checked out. Watching from a distance while I ate. It did not bother me I have been out and outted many times. Just relax and enjoy being dressed.
Irene


I think that this is good advice. I speak more softly, but pretty much I use my normal voice and it's fine. As another girl said, there are all kinds of voices among men and women.

[Annie D]

About 3 weeks ago, I went into a nearby Merle Norman Studio in drab and explained to the owner/operator that I was a CD and was interested in some beard cover and some hints on doing my make up. We spent about 45 minutes discussing certain possibilities, she showed me some different cosmetics, she gave me some samples to try on and I left not purchasing any product but promising to return.

Yesterday, fully dressed as Annie and wearing some of the make up she gave me, I returned as promised and purchased some products. Upon seeing me as I entered her shop, she thought that she knew me but did not recognize that I was the male customer from days past. She addressed my overuse of make up but generally was complimentary about my clothing, look and presentation. During our conversation, I told her that no matter how good I look and present myself that I felt that my voice was a dead giveaway. She disagreed and said that my voice was soft enough to pass and that my voice sounded as though I was a female ex-smoker. Although I will continue to perfect a more feminine voice, I can live with having the voice of a female ex-smoker. Maybe the smoke will cloud my overuse of make up!

I think that deportment, hand gestures, body posture, a soft voice and a friendly smile will help all of us present ourselves in a more feminine manner and as we grow in confidence all of these aspects of our feminine self will improve.

[Lisa Golightly]

I did the Andrea James Deep Stealth thing... Which was great and if I concentrate I can do the voice thing... Problem is I'm a bit dozy at times and if caught off guard I revert to the old voice and get these really weird looks... Hmmmmm... lol... :)