There are many reasons why someone might want to change their voice. Some people are just curious to hear how their voice would sound if it was higher, lower, raspy, or clear. Others may want to change their voice to help with voice acting or singing. Some may even want to change their voice to sound more masculine or feminine. Regardless of the reason, there are ways to modify your voice either temporarily or permanently.
How does the voice work?
First, it helps to understand the basics of how the human voice works. Your voice is produced by your larynx, also known as your voice box. This is located in your throat and contains your vocal cords, which are two folds of tissue that vibrate to produce sound when air passes through them.
The pitch of your voice depends on the length and thickness of your vocal cords. Shorter, thicker vocal cords produce a lower pitch while longer, thinner cords create a higher pitch.
Your vocal cords are surrounded by muscles that contract to pull the cords together or relax to allow them to open. The strength of contraction controls volume. Tighter contraction leads to louder voice while relaxation causes softer tones.
The sound created by your larynx then resonates through your throat, mouth, and nose to create your unique voice. Changing any part of this process can modify your vocal tone.
Temporary Voice Changes
There are some options for temporarily changing your voice. While these are not permanent alterations, they can allow you to explore how you might sound with a different voice.
Pitch
To temporarily raise the pitch of your voice:
– Tighten your vocal cords. Contract the muscles around your larynx to stretch your vocal cords thinner so they vibrate faster, producing higher tones. You can practice this just by making a higher-pitched humming sound.
– Push air through a smaller space in your throat and mouth. Raising your tongue toward the roof of your mouth while speaking compresses the space above your larynx and forces air through faster, creating higher pitches.
– Speak with shorter phrases. Longer phrases tend to drop in pitch while shorter bits of speech stay higher.
– Raise your soft palate. Lifting the soft part of the roof of your mouth opens more nasal resonance which boosts tone.
To temporarily lower the pitch:
– Relax your vocal cords. Let the muscles around your larynx stay loose so your cords stay thick and loose, vibrating more slowly for lower frequencies.
– Open your mouth and throat wider when speaking. This expands the space for sound to resonate and supports a lower tone.
– Speak in longer phrases. It’s natural for pitch to drop toward the end of a longer sentence or breath.
– Drop your soft palate. Letting the soft part of the roof of your mouth relax minimizes nasal resonance for a lower pitch.
Volume
You can also temporarily change your vocal volume:
– For a softer voice, relax your vocal cords and use less air pressure. Let your exhales be gentle and steady with loose vocal cord tension.
– For a louder voice, contract your vocal cords firmly and use more air pressure. Speak from your diaphragm on forceful exhales.
– Opening your mouth wider boosts volume while a smaller mouth opening emits quieter tones.
– Raising your tongue toward the roof of your mouth directs more sound out your mouth rather than your nose, increasing volume.
Tone Quality
The shape of your throat, mouth, and nose influence the tone qualities of your voice. You can temporarily alter the resonance to change the tone.
Options to reshape your vocal tract include:
– Pushing your tongue forward – Creates a raspy, hoarse tone
– Pulling your tongue back – Generates a thin, nasal voice
– Dropping your jaw – Makes a deeper, booming tone
– Puffing out your cheeks – Gives a muffled, mumbled effect
– Speaking through clenched teeth – Makes a crisp, clipped sound
– Flaring nostrils – Adds breathy resonance
– Pursing lips – Increases high overtones for sharp tonality
You can also play with placing your voice either more in your chest or head to vary the resonance. Speak from lower in your chest for a richer, warmer sound and higher in your head for a floaty, airy tone.
Long-Term Voice Alteration
While the above techniques can temporarily shift your vocal pitch, volume, or quality, there are also options to permanently change your voice over time. Here are some methods for long-term voice modification:
Vocal Training
Working with a vocal coach allows you to develop muscles, habits, and techniques to lastingly alter your voice. Voice training can teach you to:
– Expand your range to consistently reach higher or lower pitches
– Increase your projection volume for public speaking
– Smooth vocal roughness or raspiness
– Support a resonant, pleasing tonal quality
– Improve diction for crisper pronunciation
– Develop better breathing to support sustained tones
With regular practice, vocal training can retrain your voice to adopt new permanent patterns of pitch, loudness, quality, and flexibility.
Surgery
For the most significant voice changes, there are surgical options that actually modify your vocal anatomy. These should only be considered after careful consultation with qualified surgeons. Potential procedures include:
– Cricothyrotomy – Alters pitch by manipulating the thyroid cartilage and cricoid cartilage around the vocal cords.
– Vocal cord implants – Injectable bulking agents or solid implants stretch or stiffen the cords to change pitch.
– Vocal cord shortening/lengthening – Trimming or adding tissue alters cord length and tension to modify pitch.
– Glottoplasty – Reshapes the vocal cords to aid transition between chest and head voice.
– Pitch changing surgery – Crico-thyroid approximation places the cartilage in a new position to tension the cords differently.
– Thyrohyoid elevation – Raises the larynx relative to the hyoid bone to allow greater length variation of the vocal cords.
Hormones
The pitch of your voice is influenced by your body’s balance of sex hormones. Altering these levels can create long-term vocal changes.
Options include:
– Testosterone for masculinization – Boosts lower pitches and development of the adam’s apple.
– Estrogen for feminization – Encourages higher pitches and softens sharp edges in tone.
– Male-to-female transition – Estrogen paired with anti-androgens modifies pitch, tone, and resonance.
– Female-to-male transition – Testosterone alone deepens pitch, strengthens vocal cords, and develops male inflections.
Keep in mind hormone therapy works gradually over months and requires medical guidance. Voice training is recommended to fully adapt resonance patterns.
Conclusion
Modifying your voice can allow you to explore your gender expression, develop vocal skills, or just try something new. With the various temporary techniques you can adjust your pitch, volume, and tone quality for short periods of time. Vocal training offers longer-lasting retraining of your voice while surgical options or hormone therapy provide the most drastic permanent changes. Overall, how you use your voice is a very personal form of self-expression so alter it consciously, creatively, and confidently.
| Method | Time Frame | Effect on Voice |
|---|---|---|
| Temporary techniques | Immediate but temporary | Subtly alters pitch, volume, resonance |
| Vocal training | Permanent with regular practice | Expands range, improves quality and projection |
| Surgery | Permanent | Significantly changes pitch and tone |
| Hormones | Permanent over months | Feminizes or masculinizes voice |
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I permanently change my voice without surgery?
Yes, vocal training and hormone therapy allow you to make lasting changes to your voice without surgery. Through regular practice and voice exercises guided by a coach, you can expand your pitch range, boost projection, and develop resonant tone. Hormones like estrogen and testosterone also gradually alter vocal pitch and quality over months.
What exercises strengthen my voice?
Some good exercises to build voice strength and control include:
– Scales – Sing up and down scales to increase range
– Sirens – Slide pitch up and down like a siren to smooth transitions between notes
– Lip trills – Rapidly vibrate lips while humming to improve resonance
– Tongue trills – Trill tongue while phonating to boost control
– Breath management – Practice deep breathing and steady exhalation to support tone
Can I damage my voice by trying to change it?
It’s best to modify your voice gradually using safe techniques. Pushing your voice too far too fast can strain your vocal cords, causing swelling or lesions. Seek training from a qualified voice coach. Surgery or hormones should only be done under medical supervision. With patience and care, you can safely explore new aspects of your voice.
How long do voice changes from hormones take?
Voice changes from testosterone or estrogen therapy develop slowly over the first 6-12 months. Maximum effect is seen in 2-3 years. People’s voices continue to mature gradually throughout life, so hormone impact is gradual. Voice training helps adapt resonance, inflection, and habits.
Can I sound like a man/woman without being trans?
Biological sex does not inherently limit vocal range or quality. With training and practice, both men and women can learn to speak in traditionally masculine or feminine voice patterns. Some specific voice qualities like vocal fry or resonant chest voice may be easier for one sex. But all people can expand their vocal capabilities through dedicated exercise.
Why do voices crack/change during puberty?
During puberty, rising testosterone levels in boys and estrogen levels in girls trigger growth of the larynx. The vocal cords get longer and thicker. This sudden change in shape causes instability in the voice, leading it to crack or waver between high and low pitches as the muscles learn to control the new anatomy. With practice, the voice stabilizes at the new pitch range.
Can I change my speaking accent?
Yes, you can change your accent with training. An accent is comprised of speech patterns involving pronunciation, rhythm, and inflection. By studying and practicing the speech components of a new accent, you can permanently adapt your vocal techniques to take on new accent characteristics. Immersion in the accent also helps you incorporate native elements.
What procedures can change gender-related voice qualities?
Besides hormone therapy, surgical options to feminize or masculinize vocal qualities include:
Feminization:
– Cricothyroid approximation – Raises pitch
– Glottoplasty – Smooths roughness between chest and head voice
– Resonance surgery – Raises larynx position and shortens vocal tract
Masculinization:
– Vocal cord thickening injection – Lowers pitch
– Cricothyrotomy – Lengthens and loosens vocal cords
– Thyrohyoid elevation – Allows greater pitch range
Can I alter my voice without hormones or surgery?
Yes, you can make both temporary and permanent changes to your vocal pitch, resonance, and quality without medical intervention. Temporary techniques involve adjusting mouth and tongue position. Lasting changes can be achieved through dedicated vocal training to expand your range and develop new speech habits. With practice, you can gain control over many aspects of your voice.