My name is Mark, and my
email address is mkhodge@sonic.net
- should you wish to contact me.
I'm a male chorus/karaoke singer in my early forties with
a very *unusual type of natural voice for a male.
If you listen to the "mp3"
songs on my song pages, it might give you a clue... or then again maybe not.
So far my voice has been classified inaccurately by: Voice teachers,
Choir teachers, Myself, and others.
I was originally considered a Baritone by choir directors, but that range
was very uncomfortable to sing, and because of this I was graduated to the
tenor section. Over time, it also became too uncomfortable to maintain,
and I had to quit. At
present I've found that the normal "alto/soprano" ranges to be
the easiest to sing so far - not in a normal "male" falsetto voice either. It
appears that I
have a naturally high singing voice, and a wide vocal range - not all
natural. Unlike most men who
find their greatest singing comfort in the middle and lower notes of
the male ranges, my natural singing voice seems to prefer the middle and
higher notes of the female ranges. My voice does not exactly fit into the normal
classifications of voice (bass, baritone, tenor, alto, soprano,
coloratura). I don't possess either a true male or female voice quality - something a bit different. My natural speaking voice is also not in the
normal categories. All is explained in greater detail below, with sample "mp3" clips to
listen to.
My low speaking voice which most people would associate with either being "Tenor" or "Baritone" is not my natural voice at all. It is a strained lower voice I use to imitate the natural low vocal characteristic of most other men. (see below link for more information, and sample "mp3" clips of my speaking)
My 6 minute "LIVE" "mp3" solo interview, with examples of my voice in action. In the interview I demonstrate my natural as well as unnatural vocal techniques. This interview is also the best example of my extended speech capabilities in my naturally higher voice, with a short sample of my lower unnatural "glottal fry" speech included.
It all began many years ago, in the Bass section of the local chorus, singing as a baritone. The Harmoneers & Harmonettes production showcase was a musical extravaganza entitled “Kismet”. I was assigned to the Bass section because of my low speaking voice pitch, and the Bass section was to be my home base in chorus for a number of years. I discovered many years later, that my voice had been incorrectly classified. Needless to say I struggled desperately to keep my voice down in that deep timber zone, but it always had it’s perpetual consequences (hoarseness, after each practice). I endured this way through several smaller choral seasons, and another major musical production - “Lil’ Abner”. All this time I hadn’t a clue of what was wrong, as I just assumed that chorus teachers were God, when it came to vocal placements. Anyway, I finally decided that after a number of years of this madness, that something must be wrong with my singing technique. Following on the heals of this wild assumption, I began the task of searching out vocal teachers, in the hopes that they might solve my dilemma. Of course they all failed in both properly diagnosing my voice, and in discovering what was causing the problem with my singing. Never was my habitually low speaking pitch considered a possible factor, as it sounded normal to the teachers ears. After this I voiced my concern to the chorus teacher, by giving her a quick demonstration up the musical scale, and was quickly reclassified as a Tenor {whew!}.
So began my next adventure into the world of chorus and musical productions, only this time around it was as a 1st Tenor singing in the higher male ranges. I soon became involved in a number of choral seasons, and a few other major musical productions; “Music Man”, “Fiddler On The Roof”, and finally “Hello Dolly”. These were to be the last of the major musicals, as the company eventually disbanded, and all that remained behind was the local chorus. Of course through it all my voice production was still far from perfect, as I still hadn’t yet found a teacher I could count on to help me with my voice. The Tenor section was by far a more tolerable environment than the Bass section had ever been, but it was still not the answer (too much vocal strain). So I set my sights back on the road of vocal training, only this time to learn proper technique as a Tenor. I thought that must be what my voice truly was. Not finding a reliable voice teacher, I began to seek out solutions by trial and error.
It was around this time that I entered the karaoke arena, and this is actually where the truth of my voice began to unfold. It was through karaoke experimentation that I discovered that my voice was indeed very different from other men’s. I could fairly easily sing in my natural voice, high notes which other guys could only dream of hitting. I kept much of my repertoire primarily confined to the high register rock n’ roll genre, with bands such as; Led Zeppelin, Yes, Journey, Boston, Triumph, ACDC, Guns n’ Roses, along with a slew of heavy metal screamers; Steelheart, Slaughter, Dokken, Skid Row, Cinderella, and so on. During all this time I was still struggling with the tenor section in chorus, but thrilling myself and the audience with my high voiced rock concoctions at the karaoke clubs. Of course this was perplexing to me, and so I once again voiced my perplexities to my choral teacher, through a vocal demonstration of my rock n’ roll side. The teacher was jointedly; amazed, perplexed, and bewildered, at my apparent vocal abilities. In her words I had a very unusual voice, which was not unlike the famous “Yma Sumac” in character. I spent the remainer of my time in her chorus experimenting with all the parts. I found "soprano" to be the easiest to manage overall. In the end, she gave me up as being unclassifiable vocally.
Anyway, afterwards I tried a couple more similar singing endeavors again as a "soprano", but the result was always bewilderment and disbelief. During this time I aquired a couple of voice teachers, who determined that my unusual voice range was not my imagination. However they lacked the knowledge and skills to do anything with my voice. In the process, I met a female soprano voice teacher, whom I have been with ever since. She is helping to unravel many things regarding my voice. Being a therapist as well she can relate to my performance anxiety - unlike the other teachers.
I can't really say for sure yet, but there is one physical aspect which may have some value in my situation though - at least in partially explaining my odd voice. It has to do with the “Adam’s apple”, the small knob located on a persons neck (front, and middle), which defines the voice box (larynx). Although everyone has an Adam’s apple, it is less significant in women and children than in men, and some men even have a very pronounced knob. The vocal cords (vocal folds) are a “V” shaped apparatus in the throat, which allows us to speak and sing, and are located within the larynx.
During puberty a boys voice breaks dramatically, and their voice drops approximately a whole octave - creating the bass/baritone/tenor voice categories. A women’s voice on the other hand only changes slightly, therefore so does the pitch of their voice. What happens in boys is that their vocal cords double in length and thicken, thereby giving a lower pitched tone, and a deeper range than before. Once the change occurs however, it simply cannot be reversed by natural means, and so his voice maintains the natural deeper tone of a grown man for life. Once his voice is transformed however, he can no longer sing naturally in the high voice he had before - he would have to use his falsetto voice. Most men cannot do much with their falsetto voice, as it is not naturally produced, and therefore difficult to work with.
As far as my own details are concerned, I do seem to have a very insignificant “Adam’s apple” (small sized voice box or larynx), which might account for my desire to sing or speak mainly in the female voice range. My natural speaking voice octave (optimal pitch) is in the same basic pitch range as a female's. Oddly my vocal break points are not like those in a man however, but rather more like those in a woman or possibly child. The part of my voice which is tagged as being my falsetto register, is really my natural upper head voice register (basically the upper range in my natural voice). The lowest part of my voice however, is unnaturally produced (glottal fry), but with learned skill gives the illusion of a wider vocal range than I naturally possess. The quality of my voice however at best could be called androgynous (neither male or female sounding), and that is something I will just have to live with. It may be that my voice didn’t break in the usual manner, and so I still have basically retained a child’s natural high voice, but in the full grown body of an adult male - a natural castrato voice (endocrinological castrati). I have already worked with a speech therapist to establish my "high" natural speaking voice, but have not yet learned how to use it in conversation.
My Song Story: In regards to voices similar to mine...
There is a certain type of male singer, who has purposefully developed a way of manipulating his falsetto voice to sing high. This type of singer is called a “countertenor” or a “sopranista”, depending on whether he sings “alto” or “soprano”. The range choice is dependent on his inherent vocal capabilities, and not on which vocal classification he desires to employ. Usually “tenors” develop the “soprano” element, whereas “baritones” work on the “alto”. Although this technique can be quite effective with training, it never sounds quite as natural as a normal voice would in the same high range (a woman or child). Some of these voices however are basically natural, and either their voices broke insignificantly, or some other unknown factor is present.
Another type of male vocal classification is called a “castrati” voice, whether it be artificially or naturally produced. Regardless of the means involved, this is basically a voice which was interrupted during the puberty process. The end result is a boys voice which never broke, and so he can still sing naturally in the high range he had before. Nowadays this type of voice is very rare indeed among voices, as it is usually caused by natural
means, hence the term "natural castrati". Back in the 18th century however, they were practically a dime a dozen, and basically part of the common folk. Their unique artificially produced voices, were highly acclaimed and much desired, both in the church and opera houses.
Nowadays there are possibly a number of natural castrati voices mixed in among the countertenor population, and so we have a new breed of singers to contend with overall.
Males singing female ranged parts, both in chorus, and in the opera
house, and as well in some modern pop/rock music.
|
More about special male voices can be found in the below links |
||||||
|
My Song Story: Where things stand at the present time...
Karaoke,
and more karaoke (club and online)...LOL. I may eventually pursue the choral avenue again,
but not until I've somewhat mastered my voice. I would possibly enjoy
getting into a local rock/pop band, should the opportunity present
itself. I also would consider getting involved in musical
productions, though the opportunities for my "countertenor"
voice type are fairly limited in that arena. The types of music I would be
interested in performing are indicated in my song postings. I don't do
"rap", "hip-hop", or "disco". I Prefer 80's
rock music, and will do some pop music, but would rather not do much
country music. If you would be interested in working with me, you
may email me a response (see top of page).
Anyway the mystery behind my voice is slowly rising to the surface now, and some
folks still are not convinced that I’m using my natural voice when I sing. I suspect that the androgynous quality apparent in my
tone confuses
them. The funny thing is, regardless of my obvious vocal talents, I’m basically a
fairly modest singer, who enjoys pleasing the audience with song. On the stage I don’t consider myself the greatest thing on earth, but rather a humble singer, who is simply emotionally moved by the music he sings.
The plain fact is though that people who hear a man singing in a female range think it rather odd, and so their first assumption is what they have learned and therefore expect - namely falsetto. Overall I still manage to struggle my way through it all, and my vocal friends support me
along the way in my endeavors.
My voice seems to be mostly soprano in nature, though my skills are
lacking. A large part of the problem is speaking outside my natural
upper voice character, which forces my voice to mold itself otherwise -
incorrectly. The end result is being unable to sing comfortably in a
natural fashion. I don't have a normal mans natural lower
voice range, which has been proven through extensive vocal training.
Singing the duets also is a challenge, as I have to switch registers on
the bottom octave - I use glottal fry technique.
It's easy for people to suggest that I use my natural voice in conversation, but it's
another thing for me to actually do it. Vocal rehabilitation is not necessarily as cut and dried as one might think. In fact the whole process involves unlearning bad vocal habits. It is especially difficult when the vocal problem involves crossing the
"vocal" gender line, which is how it appears to be in my case. Being a natural male soprano is not
easy overall. By day I play a raspy "baritone" going about my business,
and at night on the karaoke stage out comes an angelic "soprano" like
voice - very contrary indeed.
It's somewhat amazing how nature regulates things sometimes - for us
creatures of voice.
Some women speak and sing extremely low, whereas some men speak and sing incredibly high.
I guess we each have to learn to live with the hand which was dealt to us
- back in the beginning.
Mark