Daily voice Changes.

[Jon Morss]

Julie,

I find that as the day progresses my voice gets higher and less resonant. Earlier in the day I have what I call my “Morning voice” which is nice and resonate and a bit lower. But, by the end of the day most of the resonance is gone and I seem to speak at a higher pitch. I do perform vocal exercises in the morning, but even if I repeat these during the day my voice still seems to change.

Is this common and do you know of a cure?



Thanks,

Jon

[Grant Holmes]

Get up later?? :)

[VoiceHaven]

Oh Grant..... ya beat me to the punch with that line... :lol:

BTW Jon, I have almost the same issue with my voice. If I want that "movie trailer" voice... I've gotta use it in the morning most days.

[Grant Holmes]

Mine drops as the day goes on. Especially if I do a lot of talking on the phone. Singing doesn't seem to effect it the same way for some reason.

Steven, Just like with VO123, you gotta get the jokes in EARLY!

[JBarrett]

I have this same problem. While I don't know if this theory holds water or now, my gut instinct is that I'm just being sloppy in how I speak throughout the day. I'm not allowing my voice to relax and project naturally, and instead I'm putting some kind of mild strain on it that gradually pushes the pitch higher. After relaxing my voice overnight, I feel like the sound is more natural the next morning.

If this theory is correct, I've somehow developed a habit that needs to be broken, and it's going to take a conscious effort to break it. My personal attempts to fix this have just involved a greater concentration on what I'm doing as I speak throughout the day. I feel I've had some success with this effort, but as with any bad habit, it's going to take a lot more work to fully break it. Even when "broken," it'll probably still be something to monitor on a regular basis so I don't slip back into old habits.

That's my take on it. I'd love to hear Julie's thoughts on the subject as well!

[Lee Gordon]

Originally Posted by Grant Holmes

Get up later?? :)

If I got up any later it would be tomorrow. :shock:

[Julie Williams]

Wow. This is a tough one!

My voice is same throughout the day... BUT I am a bit hoarse in the morning. I attribute this to vocal cords not being warmed up. I believe they're muscles. If they are, then--like any other muscles--they need to be warmed up before being used.

If I"m too hoarse in the morning, I'll sing before recording. But if your voice is changing by end of day...that I've never heard of. If it gets higher, one would think... (making it up as I go along here...) that perhaps they're tighter. Makes sense? Tighter instrument, higher sound? So perhaps some hot tea would help.

This was a weird one for me to answer, John! Let me know if it helps cos I really don't know anymore than what I speculated above! It's not an issue I've run into in my 30 year VO career!!!!

Better yet... try chocolate! :)

[Bret Brizzee]

Originally Posted by Jon Morss

I find that as the day progresses my voice gets higher and less resonant. Earlier in the day I have what I call my “Morning voice” which is nice and resonate and a bit lower. But, by the end of the day most of the resonance is gone and I seem to speak at a higher pitch. I do perform vocal exercises in the morning, but even if I repeat these during the day my voice still seems to change.

Is this common and do you know of a cure?

I would say this is common amongst men.

Did you know your height is greatest (tallest) upon awakening from sleep and least (shortest) before you go to bed at night? During the day, the body's upright position facilities compression of the spine by weight and gravity. While you sleep (assuming you sleep lying down and not sitting upright) your spine decompresses because gravity's angle of force has changed.

The characteristics of vocal resonance change during the day for similar reasons. When you wake up in the morning, your throat is relaxed and your vocal chords have lengthened with non-use. Longer vocal chords typically result in a lower or "deeper" pitch. Over the course of a normal day, you will speak off and on. The more you speak, the more you "warm up" your voice. Vocal chords get shorter - although not significantly shorter - over the course of the morning. At the same time, mucus in the lungs and throat, accumulated while lying flat in bed, is drained. (A small amount of mucus in your lungs - even though you might not feel or notice it - contributes to a resonant, gruff sound.) Simply moving around and speaking regularly during your morning will eliminate that "morning voice."

I have the same "problem." I want a deeper, more resonant voice. When I wake up, that's what I have. As I speak and move during the day, my voice gets higher and less resonant. Under normal circumstances, my real voice is the voice I've reached by 2 PM (sooner, if I perform vocal exercises). I've had to face the reality that my voice is just not as deep as I'd like it to be.

You should be catering your vocal performance to the warmed-up, tuned-up voice, not the ideal "morning voice" we wish we could have. Once you realize what an asset your normal voice is, you'll be free of the morning sound roadblock.

If you're dead-set on that gruff, deep sound, the good news is that all human voices tend to deepen subtly with age.

EDIT: Note that vocal chords (which was supposed to be vocal cords in the first place) should be replaced with vocal folds, and that length is not the only factor in voice frequency. As Wikipedia notes, "length, size, and tension of the vocal folds" all have an effect. Presumably, a morning voice primarily has less tension (which means more potential for oscillation). Also, my experience and knowledge should be held below the advice and knowledge of the professionals here!

[Bill Davis]

Hi Jon,

I've been doing V/O for a number of years now and have battled this problem for as long as I can remember. I definitely do my best work in the morning. Often by afternoon my voice is higher and more breathy.

The one thing I would add is that some of us don't drink enough water throughout the day. If you know you're going to do afternoon or evening V/O, try keeping the water intake up through the afternoon. I've found that when I do that, I'm able to maintain much of that morning resonance. Try not to tank up on it just prior to a session though or you'll get what Pat Fraley calls "the girgles" (lots of stomach noise, aka. "the aquarium effect").

I love coffee, but it has a way of killing resonance too. I try to avoid it close to a session.

What's really freaky is that I have an all day "trailer voice" about two days before coming down with bronchitis. It's a blast doing V/O then! But once the bronchitis sets in, the nose cloggs, the voice cracks, and I'm hosed.

BD

[voicesdotcom]

Hi guys,

As a voice major, I'd like to jump in with my .02 :)

Many of you have pointed out that your peak performance time varies from person to person, some preferring morning, others night, pre-sickness, etc. I believe it is all relative surrounding a number of factors that may contribute to how your voice behaves at any given time.

If you're in a pretty tight routine, your voice will most likely behave the same way each day.

For instance, if you hit the hay early (before midnight), your voice will have more energy the next morning. Sleep is a huge component of how your body performs and your voice is your instrument.

Food - consuming coffee does tend to dry things out (anything caffeinated really), and dairy is just a nightmare for some. Try to stay away from foods and beverages that are drying, sticky (stuff that makes your mouth clack), or gooey (dairy fits in this category).

Conserve your voice - talking on the phone is a major voice killer. If you have to speak on the phone before a session (even if you're on the phone a few hours before), remember to limit the conversation and amount of energy you are putting into it. If you have kids (directly related to straining of the voice!), be sure that you don't yell on a day you are recording, whether it simply be to give them last minute instructions as they are running out the door, calling for dinner, or otherwise.

Be aware of external factors that affect your voice - second-hand smoke, pollution, exhaust, hair products / perfume / shaving gel / aftershave / antiperspirant / deodorant / cologne, or any other scents may do more harm than you'd ever assume. During concerts, we weren't allowed to wear strong scents that might cause breathing difficulties or vocal strain on other people in the choir. Obviously, that was even more enforced at recitals and as a professional voice actor, you are basically having a recital each time you sit down at the mic :)

As Julie has said, most definitely warm up your voice before you do any voice over work or rehearse. Your vocal folds will thank you (these used to be called vocal cords). Even if you can't sing or carry a tune, you can still stretch out your vocal muscles prior to doing voice over for awesome results. There are a number of free warm up resources out there to check out, tongue twisters, etc.

Be sure to pay special attention to your resonators, articulators, breath support and loosen up your tongue and facial muscles. Leading vocal warm up is fun - if you were here with me, I'd happily show you some exercises - maybe another time!

Hope this has helped a bit. It's certainly inspired me to get this down at VOX Daily for today's article. I'll reference this thread and direct people to sign up to continue the discussion.

Cheers!

Stephanie