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When it comes to the speaking voice, those which are most appealing to your ear, tend to be deep in pitch. Think of James Earl Jones, Felicia Rashad, Diane Sawyer and Sean Connery. All of these voices have a depth and breadth that you do not hear with the likes of Fran Drescher or Don Johnson. Even Tom Cruise is not known for his voice: in his particular case, his voice is recorded with a large boost in the bass. Fran Drescher and Don Johnson exhibit a great deal of nasality in their tone, which gives their voices a higher sound in pitch because of how the sound is produced – through the nose. [Incidentally, pitch refers to the highness or lowness of sound. Volume, on the other hand, deals with the loudness or softness.] Voices that are produced high in the mouth and/or nose, often result in a strident, shrill, or whiny quality which are not pleasant to the listeners’ ears. And, in many cases, they sound young. Once the individual moves into his/her 60’s & 70’s, the voice very likely will take on an old quality. (When I’m 85, I may look that age but I will not sound like it.) Because Jones, Turner, Sawyer, and Connery are powering their voices primarily by means of their chest cavities, their voices sound ageless. They sound neither old nor young. Just mature. And, as they age, their voices will likely continue to improve. All voices that have depth have one identifying characteristic in common: warmth. Warmth is the result of the resonance being produced by the chest cavity. When you hear Diane Sawyer speak, it is like a blanket around your shoulders. It is an enveloping sound. High-pitched voices, on the other hand, do not have that capacity. They lack not only depth but breadth or fullness as well and tend to pierce through the air instead of resound. A good example of the higher-pitched, nasal voice is like an ill-tuned violin. It squawks. A voice that has resonance, however, is a bit more akin to a cello or bass. If you are not using your chest as your primary sounding board, then the pitch of your voice is definitely higher than it should be. Once you discover your optimum range, however, you will find the pitch of your voice dropping to some degree. It may be a mere ½ step or it could be several steps lower. (You can check out some dynamic voice changes by clicking the link below.) You, too, can have a deeper, warmer, resonant sound if you are willing to break some old habits and instill some new ones. The Voice Lady Nancy Daniels offers private, corporate and group workshops in voice and presentation skills as well as Voicing It!, the only video training program on voice improvement. If you would like to see a dramatic 'Before & After' video clip, visit Voice Dynamic and watch Craig's video in the center of the page.
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