Sounds Like Meg?

I was going to open with "For me, voice is the holy grail of dressing" but it doesn't really deserve a place above, say, a more girlish figure or finding killer shoes that are really comfortable.  I thought of changing that to "my great white whale" but although it's something I'm very interested in, it's not an overriding obsession.

So let's skip the superlatives.

I have tried other voice programs, and I've looked on the interwebs, but that was before I moved out of my house and it was difficult to find private time to practice.  I tried practicing during my commute but it was always iffy.

I did get the first lesson in the EVA app from Kathe Perez ~ I didn't work at it hard enough because I had to be at home to practice.  I wanted to see what the second session was like but there was a long delay and then it didn't want to work properly on my phone.

I remember trying something that was repeated on many sites on the web.  People swore by the technique but all it did for me was give me days of sore throat.

One guy had a really scary technique wherein he pushed his voice up an octave or more, which also lifts the Adam's apple.  Then he pressed hard below the muscle to keep it raised.  I don't know how delicate that bit of anatomy is, but it seems like a good way to damage something related to something you might enjoy doing, like breathing or swallowing.

As far as current techniques/programs go, this is the last I'm going to try.

I'll try to be diligent and practice and I'll report back on my progress (or lack thereof).

And if I can get it down, I will add femme voice to my femme-ish presentation at work.

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Do Re Mi Fa Sol La T

It's been an expensive month.  Last minute tax investments and my potential federal and state deficit will total about $9000.

My car decided it needed a couple of grand in repairs for a defective part that was replaced for free in earlier years (I'm not happy, Toyota!).

Our trip to New York wasn't much but it's just One More Thing.

So to celebrate all of the things I HAD to buy, I got something for me: yesterday, I purchased Kathe Perez' voice program.  I won't have a chance to try it until probably next Wednesday (see taxes, above) but I kept putting it off and I really had no good reason to.

Here's to the start of something new and wonderful (I have high hopes).

Chico to woman singer: you sing high.
Singer: yes, I have a falsetto voice.
Chico, laughs: That's funny.  My last pupil, she had a falsetto teeth.

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Kathe Perez! You're On Notice

Last week, I wrote about my to-date failed attempts to improve Meg's voice.  I got some good advice in comments (thank you, Annie and Diana).  And Chris wrote:

I have found only Kathe Perez's voice training program to be useful, as she is a speech therapist.

And she's not the first one.

As soon as I have a bit of time, which may not be until I finish my taxes, I'm going to order Kathy Perez' voice program.  I'm going to do my best to follow the regimen and give it the best chance I can.

And I'm going to log progress here.  I haven't decided if it'll be in full-post updates or notes when progress is made (or walls are encountered).

I'm pretty excited about this.

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Voice

I've tried on a few occasions to change the pitch of my voice, to sound more femme.  I know there's more to girl voice than pitch, but that's definitely the place to start.  I've watched videos, I've purchased courses, but I can't seem to get it.  I think I need to do some one-on-one with a voice coach, but I haven't ~ probably because I'm convinced I just can't do it.

Most of my attempts result in a strained voice or a sore throat.  Or both.

 Now, with a new job, I wish I had my Meg voice down pat!  If I can't start a new job with a totally new look, next best would be to start a new job with a new voice.

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Walks Like a Woman But Talks Like...

In July, someone commented:

do you present with a fem voice?

Alas, no.  But I started working on it in earnest and I'm quite discouraged.  I have a link to a tutorial where the presenter talks about using a pitch program to monitor your pitch, to try and keep it within female parameters.  The ones I found respond so quickly I can't tell from word to word (or from word to breath) what the pitch is.

I purchased Melanie Anne Phillips' voice training last June, with high hopes.  So far, the voice has eluded me.  And I know there's more to female voice than pitch, but pitch is prime.  And my pitch is low and inside.

So I keep my voice soft and I keep practicing the first step, where I try to keep my voice from breaking as I lower from a falsetto.  All I've managed to do is strain my voice.

But I keep trying, and I keep looking for new approaches.  Feel free to send me yours in email me or comments.

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I've Never Done THAT Before!

My voice is not a girl's voice.  I listen to women all the time, and wish I could sound like them.  I can look like them, if the viewer is nearsighted and not looking to closely and easily fooled, but my voice fools no-one.  On the phone, I can do my best "Meg" voice and get "sir'd" from the other party.

I do try though.  I practice when I'm walking by myself, I practice in the car.  I've tried the femme voice websites, but I've not been able to get my voice where I want it.  Not ever.  I just use a quiet, slightly higher tone and hope the listener is the equivalent of nearsighted and not listening too closely (and still easily fooled).  I do try.

The first time I was out, I was in my car with my makeup lady and she said "say something in your girl voice."  I shook my head and said "I can't do that!"  Looking back, I can't believe I was presenting to the world as a girl for the first time, all made up, in a wig, blouse, skirt, and heels and I was embarrassed to try to speak like a woman!

But I didn't do it.  I let her talk whenever I needed to say something.  I might smile or nod, but not talking except to whisper to her.

Fast forward.

A couple of weeks ago, we had a few friends over.  I don't recall the details, but I was relating an event with a verbal content.  When I got to "and she said..."  I used my Meg voice.

I didn't even think about it.  I just did it.  While I was talking I remember thinking "hey... that's my girl voice I hear!" but I didn't hesitate or switch back.

One other time, I surprised myself by realising I was speaking in my girl voice: before my trip to Richmond, I got dressed and said goodbye to my wife.  We spoke a couple of sentences, and I also noticed I was speaking in MegTones.  My wife said nothing.  But that time, I was dressed.  This is the first time I wasn't dressed yet getting into femme mode without thinking.  I've got a long way to go, but I've come a long way, baby!

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