Voices en femme...you change yours?

[Chloe_S]

When you go out in public dressed and interact with people, do you try and make a more female-ish voice?

[Val_Blackbird]

Ninety-five percent of the time, or more, when I go out, I'm going to a particular gay bar, since it's just safer. So, no, I just speak normally. I'm not fooling anyone, anyway. :idontknow: On the few rare occasions I ventured into the general public, I did not speak to anyone, for any reason.

I may try some practice on fem-voice, at some point, but I don't consider it a huge priority, at the moment. No offense intended. That's just what works for me.

[Phoebe Reece]

I speak a little softer, but I don't try to adjust the pitch of my voice to make it higher than normal. Speaking with confidence in a normal voice works just fine for me. I always assume that everyone I interact with has figured out I'm a crossdresser. That's never caused me a problem.

[CynthiaD]

Yes, always. It's not just speaking in a higher pitch, which is easy for me. It's getting the "sing-song" of the female voice correct. Actually, I find speaking like a female (or some approximation thereof) to be most enjoyable.

[Natasha.k]

I can change my voice. I have no issues. My girlfriend enjoys going out with Natasha. They are BFF. I even go to karaoke nights. Natasha does great.

[MonicaPVD]

I speak a little softer, but I don't try to adjust the pitch of my voice to make it higher than normal. Speaking with confidence in a normal voice works just fine for me. I always assume that everyone I interact with has figured out I'm a crossdresser. That's never caused me a problem.

Ditto. I speak softly and slowly as compared to my typical voice. I find that most gurls who alter their voice sound like a caricature of a woman. That becomes more dissonant and distracting than just using one's own voice in a less aggressive way.

[Robertacd]

I Kinda try to when saying "Hi", and "Thank You", short things like ordering a beer. I just try to generally talk a little softer. But back when I could go out with friends or when I am out my wife, I don't really bother trying when talking to them.

I have thought about voice lessons, a lot of the transwomen I know seem to have this voice modulation thing they do.

[Rachelakld]

softer/quieter sometimes when I want to project a more fem attitude
- never with family or friends and occassionally ...
a deep "Good day mate" reply when someone delibrately tries to out me (so they know they can't wind me up).

[Helen_Highwater]

As this subject comes up regularly I'll reply the way I usually do. I once while enfemme got chatting to a speech therapist and she said the biggest mistake CD's make is speaking too high so you end up sounding like a BeeGee.

Her advice was starting at your normal pitch sing the scales, Doe, Ray, Mi, Fah and go no higher. Ray or Mi are probably the best choices, just sufficient to alter your voice but not in an exaggerated way.

It's not just pitch, inflection plays a big part and just as importantly, eye contact. Women tend to pay attention to what others are saying. That non verbal element goes a long way in establishing a rapport with those your talking to.

[Teresa]

Chloe,
On a daily basis no I don't change my voice , maybe I don't use the more forceful male emphasis . Having regular conversations I don't beleive it's possible to sustain it . Maybe look at it from a different angle , I go out as Teresa ( Terri to some ) I hope people accept I'm female but can never say for certain . The visual impression is what they read you by what you sound like is secondary to that . Also consider there are so many telltales we can't cover them all .

[Sandi Beech]

Chloe,
No I do not bother although I may be a little more soft spoken. I am not really trying to fool anyone. You can still look pretty even with a male voice. Kind of like Val , I have mostly been to lgbt bars and clubs where I felt safer. Obviously no one is going to be shocked to see a cross dresser at a drag show. I have had an amazing time at some outings and my voice had no bearing on it so why bother. My 2 cents.

Sandi

[Leasa Wells]

I just got approved for voice therapy. Up till now I just spoke using my very deep voice. Sometime I get a look which doesn?t bother me since upto this point I couldn?t do much about. Sure sometimes I spoke softer it felt strange to me. I want my voice to match my feminine self better. When the therapist ask what my goal was I said Mae West I will never be a high voice without surgery an this is a good start. Women also phrase sentences differently an I want to harness this in my training.

[Jillian Faith]

I do attempt to adjust my voice to a more feminine range, (head voice instead of chest voice). My wife tells me that I sound female when I do.

[CharlotteCD]

Are there any good online resources that people have used which are free? I can't commit financially to this, and it almost seems pointless given my frame, but I would really like to improve my female voice so that I can be that step closer to passing.

[Ceera]

Yes, and I have a relatively passible female voice now, though it gets rough if I get really tired, or if I need to urgently shout at full volume. I don’t even think about it any more. It just comes naturally. In fact, it is kind of hard to ‘do a male voice’ any more, without thinking about it. I talk in a quite chatty manner to random strangers anywhere I go, and no one reacts adversely to my voice as a ‘tell’. This is after four years of frequently going out socially as a woman, to anywhere I want to go publicly, followed by two years where I have been living full time as a legally female person.

I am among the lucky few who pass pretty well visually. Oh, I am still tall, at 5’ 10”, but there are taller cis women. No one would mistake me for a 20-something cis centerfold model, but I am prettier and more feminine, and present a nicer figure, than Over half of the cis women I know. In short, I present a lot more visual cues that say ‘female’ than I do that say ‘male’, and I always have, from my earliest efforts at going out as a woman. So I worked hard on feminizing my voice before ever going out, even when I was only going out to gay bars. I did not want to blow that ‘advantage’ by opening my mouth and sounding like a male football player somewhere behind me was playing ventriloquist as a joke, while his girlfriend silently mouthed the words. I wanted to simply be seen and accepted for the woman that I am.

I studied a set of You Tube videos by a very successfully passing transwoman, as well as purchasing two CD sets of ‘feminizing the male voice’ lessons, by different authors. I used a musician’s pitch sensor to objectively verify how I was modulating the pitch of my voice. It helped that I was already trained to sing, and had a vocal range that went from bass to high tenor. So I could already control pitch well, and mostly needed work on changing resonance.

If you don’t pass at all, or don’t care if you pass, or don’t even want to pass, I suppose it doesn’t matter how you sound. But if, like me, you plan to transition fully to a female life, and if you can pass at all, I feel it is worth the effort to work as hard on your voice as you do on the rest of your feminine presentation.

[Krisi]

I try to speak as a female the best I can, but I try to avoid situations where I would be having a conversation with someone. Usually, it's just "Hello" or "Good morning".

Unlike some folks, when I go out, I'm trying to pass as a female, not as a crossdresser. Looking like a female but speaking as a male would ruin it for me.

[Cheryl T]

As many said, I go a little softer and just a little higher pitch.
A falsetto is a tell and I don't try to do that, just be a little less male sounding. When you watch movies or TV you'll notice that many women speak in almost a whisper. It's difficult to master but it does make you sound more feminine.

[Just Dana]

I'm not ready for public outings yet, but have been thinking about this and playing around with it some.

I was a military brat, twice over, and bounced around the US a lot as a kid. I spent my time around puberty, when accents generally fossilize, out west, so my usual accent is close to the average American TV accent. But, I was born in and spent a lot of years in the south. And my mom has a wicked southern accent. The first time the thought of trying to change my voice popped into my head, southern belle popped out of my mouth. It is slower and more sing-songy. It's also bordering on cultural appropriation and would definitely stand out in Chicago, so I'm trying to not do it. It feels very natural, though.

Dana

[Angela Marie]

I have been complimented on my feminine voice many times. I really don't have to try that hard which is good since it makes it sound more natural.

[kimdl93]

I have spent many hours using a well know voice training audio app for transwomen. I found it helpful and with little conscious effort I can step up a half octave or so, just to sound a bit softer. My goal has always been to sound like Terri Gross on Fresh Air, but she wouldn’t sound the same with a Norwegian/Minnesotan accent!

[Micki_Finn]

Nope. Don’t really bother. I speak more in the gay/drag patois, but don’t really change my voice.

[Patience]

I don’t really change my voice. If anything, I guess I try to do it subconsciously, as the pursuit of femininity is an ongoing exercise and being too deliberate may make one cross the line between emulation and caricature.

[Kandi Robbins]

While I soften it slightly and lose the profanities, no, my male voice is what I got!

Never one single problem all these outings later.

[Maria 60]

Last week I went for a drive and I wanted a coffee. I went to a drive threw and figured I'll wear a mask when I pick up the coffee. When I was asked what I want at the drive through speaker for some reason I paused and didn't know how to speak. When they ask again what I wanted I just spoke in my male voice. I could see the look of confusion on the girls face when I showed up at the pick up window. I guess I need to work on a gem voice

[BeckyPickleschlitz]

While I soften it slightly and lose the profanities, no, my male voice is what I got!

That's me. The shift is natural and pleasant. I think it is that I'm relaxed and happy and content as opposed to my normal grumpy self.

[VivianNewkirk]

Absolutely, and really quite naturally. I've been involved in public speaking since elementary school, so vocal modulation comes easily. Whenever I'm dressed I just start speaking as Vivian would, without thinking about it.



And my mom has a wicked southern accent. The first time the thought of trying to change my voice popped into my head, southern belle popped out of my mouth. It is slower and more sing-songy. It's also bordering on cultural appropriation and would definitely stand out in Chicago, so I'm trying to not do it. It feels very natural, though.

The daughter of a colleague grew up in Georgia with a thick southern accent. She was accepted to college in the state of Washington. She tried hard to eliminate the accent for fear of being taken as a hick. One week after school starts my colleague talks to her daughter on the phone, and the southern accent is back with a vengeance. It seems the daughter discovered that the northern boys all love the southern accent!

[JenniferWhenCD]

I slow down a bit, raise the pitch a bit, and make the voice a bit more breathy. I probably add a bit more expression as well.

[Krisi]

In my experience, women typically speak faster than men. And use more words to convey the same thing. ;)

[Andi.Devine]

I try. And I thought maybe I was successful. Then my wife informed me that not only do I still sound like a guy, I'm still walking like a guy too. Oh well, I'll keep trying though.

[adelinapa]

I think I'd have a hard time maintaining a higher voice so like many others just try to speak more softly. I feel that I do use more body language though, and it's less pronounced.

[tooshytogoout]

This has to be the hardest thing. It's not just pitch. I think it would require a lot of practice