From Boys to Men:
The Changing Voice
Many boys' voices begin to change between twelve and thirteen years of age; this change reaches its most active stage usually between thirteen and fourteen, settling down when they are eighteen.
However there are many variations to this. We’ve had boys' voices changing at ten and I remember retiring one at sixteen even though his voice was still a strong treble.
It is a medical fact that boys voices are now changing earlier than they did. In the past thirty years, physical changes have meant voices are changing about eighteen months earlier than they did. This acceleration in puberty is thought to be a result of better diet and a cleaner environment. One wonders what the situation will be in fifty years time if this trend continues. Hopefully it will now settle down.
Cathedral choirs always used to retire boys at about thirteen and not encourage any men into the choir until they were eighteen. This was said to be due to the idea of ‘resting’ the voice, but was really due to the school system which dictated that boys left prep school in their early teens and could return to the back row after A levels.
Resting the voice is seen as very old fashioned nowadays. We don’t speak on one note, so unless someone remains a mute for five years they can hardly rest their voice!
Now we believe in singing at a pitch that the young man feels most comfortable. Some say this should mean singing at a pitch dictated by your lowest note. It is always best to err on the side of caution. However, everyone is different and it is what you feel most comfortable with. Care must be taken not to sing a part just to be with your mates, but what suits you. The most important thing is to sing softly and not force the tone.
You’ll notice I’ve not used the term ‘break’. The dimensions of the larynx change at puberty but the voice box doesn’t break, it just changes. Voice changes should be perceived as a beginning, not an end!
How do I know if a voice is changing?
Changes are normally, but not always associated with growth spurts. At twelve/thirteen the timbre of the voice changes in the middle range. This is just a maturing of the sound and does not mean the voice is about to go. However at about fourteen the young man will experience “off days” and times when he cannot control the sound, sometimes with alarming yodelling effects. However, some voices just contract inwards. An ability to sing the very high and some quite low notes is common in choristers because their voices are trained and are flexible. However, it normally means the inevitable is about to happen.
A boy’s voice is at its best just before the change, just like a flower is at it’s very best just before it dies.
And do girls' voices change? Yes they do, at around fifteen, but their vocal chords tend to thicken rather than double in length, so the change is not so noticeable.
So the Lord gives and the Lord taketh away. – Oh bother!!!!
Changes are normally, but not always associated with growth spurts. At twelve/thirteen the timbre of the voice changes in the middle range. This is just a maturing of the sound and does not mean the voice is about to go. However at about fourteen the young man will experience “off days” and times when he cannot control the sound, sometimes with alarming yodelling effects. However, some voices just contract inwards. An ability to sing the very high and some quite low notes is common in choristers because their voices are trained and are flexible. However, it normally means the inevitable is about to happen.
A boy’s voice is at its best just before the change, just like a flower is at it’s very best just before it dies.