11 comments

  2. Thank you for your kind words!

    By the way, I am based in the UK and currently coaching several transguys.

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  3. Is it possible to get in touch re: vocal coaching? I’m a young trans guy planning on starting testosterone relatively soon and definitely interested in preserving my singing voice.

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  4. Fascinating article and some much-needed research. I’m a student of Musicology in Copenhagen, Denmark and am starting my transitioning now. I will definitely be following your advice given here – if you need more subjects or are interested in supplemental observations from me I would be happy to provide.

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    1. Hi Robin.

      I can help. Sorry for the delay but have been terribly busy and unable to check this site.
      Please contact me via my own website.

      Thanks.

      A.N. Constansis

      Reply

  5. Very interesting article, I’ve always been aware of how different the voice of an ftm is to a bio-male.
    I sing, I didn’t start singing until after transition, at first it was extremely difficult, couldn’t even get to D above middle C, it has improved a bit, now I can hit F or F# on a ‘good’ day but I don’t seem to have a falsetto voice which I am very disappointed about.
    I’ve also noticed that it seems to take a long time to ‘warm up’ the voice!
    I have noticed that the ftm voice seems to lack the power of a bio-male, there are other contributing factors as well which all go against ftm’s such as the skull size and density of bones in general, the size of the rib cage, also general size of body, not sure if the testosterone changes the skeleton that much. The weird thing is I know huge blokes (genetic) that can hit much higher notes than I could ever dream of. Lee.

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  6. Hello, Dr Constansis.

    Thank you so very much for publishing this paper. I was pleasantly surprised to discover it via Google search, and have found it inspirational.

    I am an FTM, 32 years old, and have been on testosterone for 3 years. I am also an operatic tenor, in the early stages of what I hope to make into a very successful career. I was not a classical singer before my transition, but an instrumentalist, classically trained, and an amateur singer of jazz and rock, emulating male voices. About one year after starting testosterone, I began to study classical voice with a brilliant teacher who was aware of my situation and who went about training me as he would train a very young tenor. I shortly fell in love with singing opera. Since that time, I have developed a strong and mobile lyric tenor voice, and have become a semi-professional singer, working with choral groups and regional opera companies.

    If you would find it at all helpful, I would be more than happy to share my ongoing experiences with you through correspondence. I am also interested in hearing more about your experience, both in your career, personally, and with your FTM students. And if you would like to hear it, I can email you a recording of myself singing a Mozart aria and a Purcell song at two years on T and one year of study.

    Hope to hear from you soon, and thank you again,
    Alan

    Reply

    1. Dear Alan,

      Thank you for your comment. Please feel free to email me further details.

      Regards,

      Alex.N. Constansis

      Reply

  9. Alex- I have founded an all-transgender chorus in Boston, MA in the US, and would really love to talk with you by phone. I have shared your article with my students. Also- FYI- the wordpress ID you see me being tagged under is a blog we sponsor- for a young Muslim transgender woman living in rural India. IN any case, please go to http://www.butterflymusic.org to learn more about us and also I hope to hear from you here. I would love to speak with you!!!

    Reply

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