In addition to the top and bottom of my range changing, the transitions between my registers (or breaks) also shifted down. Since then I’ve gained five half-steps at the bottom (blue section) and lost five half-steps at the top (red section). Before I started T, I could sing from C3 (an octave below middle C) to C6 (two octaves above middle C), the purple and red sections on the diagram below. Having a mirror lets you check in on yourself seeing your reflection provides important information as you learn to coordinate your body to produce the most efficient and beautiful sound you can. Unfurling a furrowed brow, relaxing a curved tongue, or releasing tense shoulders can make big differences in the quality of sound a singer makes. While singing is, ultimately, about sound, that visual input can be quite helpful. Mirrors are useful tools for singers, because they allow us to literally see how our bodies make the sounds we’re hearing. The piano in her studio is situated below a tall window through which the late afternoon sun illuminates two large mirrors hanging on opposite walls. I’ve been taking voice lessons with Laura Hynes for a few years now, beginning well before I started taking testosterone. While I don’t think my voice is done changing, this is what’s happened so far. What follow are my experiences singing through the first 15 months of testosterone therapy. Before I get into details, please note that the effects of testosterone and the timing of changes can vary a lot from person to person. Since then my voice has continued to evolve, often in unexpected ways. (For more on my decision to take T, see this post.) I started noticing some shifts in my singing voice about five months after I began taking T. I love singing, and while I don’t do it to pay the bills, preserving my ability to sing is very important to me. This gradual approach was intentional, to allow the changes in my body to happen slowly, especially the changes in my vocal folds. I started with only half of what is considered a “normal” dose and took about ten months to work my way up to a dose that brought the levels of testosterone (T) in my blood to within the typical range for cisgender men. Every other week I’d draw the viscous liquid into a 3 cc syringe, wipe my thigh with an alcohol swab, insert the needle, and slowly push the plunger down. I was assigned-female-at-birth (AFAB) and began hormone replacement therapy (HRT) with testosterone when I was 39 years old, about 15 months ago. This is, perhaps, one of the world’s most recognizable cracks, the Grand Canyon.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |