Is your voice real or are you faking?

Question

A speech therapist acquaintance of mine said that most men don't have naturally deep voices or women high ones. Most peoples voices are what they think they should sound like and that actually men and women are rather similarly pitched. So have you tried to make your voice deeper or yours more girly? Bet you have...

Answer 1

I always thought I had kind of a low voice for a woman, and people agree with me.  I haven't CONSCIOUSLY tried to make my voice higher, but I guess it's possible.

Answer 2

I don't think so.  Whenever I hear my voice on a microphone or recording, I get a little distressed by the fact that I sound like a chipmunk. (Like, Alvin and the chipmunks.)  Telemarketers still occasionally ask to speak to my parents when I answer the phone.  I hate hate hate it.  I guess it's possible I try to lower it to avoid sounding like a chipmunk, come to think of it.

Answer 3

As most people have said, my voice is different in different situations.  However, I do focus on using a very low voice when speaking to women that I am attracted to.  I'm a pretty big guy (6'5 225) so my voice is already pretty low.  When I focus on making it even lower, it seems to have an almost hypnotic effect on who I am talking to.  No fault in using what you got right?

Answer 4

that's cool to know i actually had no idea that that happens. well, in my opinion i don't think i change my voice at all.  I'm not that girly anyway so i don't need to make my voice higher. i also think my voice sounds nice the way it is.

Answer 5

i have different voice pitches for different situations.

normally around ppl who know me my voice is deep...but still feminine.

around ppl i do not like my voice is deep and hateful and growly

if i am flirty i can sound breathy and husky voiced

with children...my voice sounds little girlish and childlike

with authority or something like that..my voice is very business like.

and if i am bored...i sound well...like i normally do...but just bored.

LOL hey Imposter H..how LOOOOW can you go?

Answer 6

I try to make mine medium-low.

Answer 7

That is interesting.. I don't think that I normally do when in comfortable situations.. but I think when I am more aware of my voice, I may subconsciously alter it.

Answer 8

Years ago I belonged to Toastmasters International (an organisation which enables people to learn public speaking skills in a safe, friendly environment), and one of the first things we learned was that it's much harder to be taken seriously if you have one of those squeaky 'little girl' voices.

The most pleasant sounding speaking voice to the ear is mid range, and for *most* people that is easily achieveable with a couple of weeks of practice.

Cheers :-)

Answer 9

I have to admit I do. I still have a low voice, but I make it smoother and distinctly female so that ignorant guys don't say stuff like "Dude, you a l***o." Because I'm not.  

Answer 10

my voice is naturally very feminine and high pitched

Answer 11

I have a low, smooth voice for a female.  

When I'm at work and sometimes when I answer the phone, or meet people for the first time, I use a higher, more bubbly pitch and tone.

I find my "girl" voice is more friendly and light-hearted, which is good for certain situations, while my "woman" voice is more serious and sensual, also good.

It depends on how I want to affect people.  Do I want to be intimidating? Do I want to be flirty? Do I want to tender? I think it's important to embrace all of these voices, as long as you can notice the changes.

Answer 12

Um..well my voice is mine but depending on my mood it changes (i dont really control it) the only time i try to change it is when im doing weird voices to amuse people or if im singing

Answer 13

My voice often expresses my physical state. When I'm tired, my voice is lower, when energetic - higher than usual, etc.

But aside from that, there are times when feeling affectionate, serious, goofy, assertive, etc, that my pitch changes to "match" that state of mind/emotion, even when feeling sensual, my voice at times adapts a different tone, and so on... at the particular moment, I'm not really conscious of it, but have realised during or afterwards, when my ex had mentioned it to me several times.

I'm curious about most males and females being similar in vocal pitch... interesting.

Answer 14

my voice is what my voice is.  if I tried to alter it, I'm sure it would sound obviously fake - I've heard my voice and still can't believe it's mine - doesn't sound like me at'tall...

Answer 15

I've found that my voice gets way deep when I'm mad, and really girly when I'm talking fast.

Answer 16

My voice is quite deep although sometimesd I notice it goes higher if I answer the phone or somethign which annoys me because it's not how I usually talk.  

Answer 17

Mine's weird & nasal. I've never tried to change it, because people would notice immediately.

Answer 18

In spite of your friends thoughts, I use different voices for different situations.  One when I am dealing with children, another for doing business, I can be stern and set because I have had to learn to be.  I can be soft and soothing because I spend time talking people down from panic attacks.  I am rarely girly high on purpose because I hate how I sound when I do that.  

Is it my voice...yes, all are me.  My voice is more than a sound, it's a reflection of who I am.

Answer 19

Very true.  I don't try to change my voice and got teased alot in high school for having a "low" female voice for it.  I'm lazy and it's just so much easier to speak naturaly to tell ya the truth.  Besides, there are alot of woman who keep their low voices and are very successful, Cher, Demi Moore, very beautiful and talented women that rock the deep end of the vocal spectrum.

Answer 20

My voice is kind of low and smooth but I found that when I am on the phone talking to someone I dont know it gets higher pitched. I think your tone changes depending on your situation. My husbands voice is normally of average male tone, but when he gets mad it gets deeper, almost like a growl... Scary...

Answer 21

In 20 years practicing as a speech pathologist, I rarely found that to be true; maybe in 5% of cases.

One's habitual pitch is what it is. While there is a segment of the population who try their best to alter it, most people live with what they have naturally.

Alterations in habitual pitch will often result in voice pathology. This can be especially bothersome with spasmodic dysphonia, intermittent aphonia, and voice abuse cases.

Part of voice therapy is to assist the patient in finding their "natural voice".

I think a lot of what you refer to is situationally determined vocal pitch, just as it's described in a few of the other answers. It is driven by emotion rather than a conscious effort to change it.

Of course, there are people who are too insecure to use their natural voice. In those cases, psychotherapy has its purpose.