I think that voices have a big power on the way we perceive people, and I think that power is that big because we don’t even realize it. I myself realized that from two things. The first is that sometimes you find people (actors, for example) very sexy, although objectively they are not beautiful, and you don’t know them enough to love their personality. For example, here in France, we have Richard Berry (I’m too lazy to find a link but if you’re interested you can find it for yourselves). The second thing is that this opinion (sexy or not, for example) changes when you see movies in original or dubbled version. Since I’m French, I saw a lot of movies dubbled in French, and now that I’m getting found of original versions in general and English version in particular, I see the most movies in original versions. I found that the actor playing Snape in the Harry Potter movies (Alan Rickman) was incredibly sexy, so I tried to find if he had played in any other film I could see. I searched on the Internet, and I was very surprised to find that I actually saw him in a lot of movies: Robin Hood, prince of thieves, for example, and I hadn’t found anything particular in him. But that was because I saw that movies in French versions, and the guy who dubbles Rickman doesn’t have the same kind of voice! I found that funny, that’s what I wanted to share with you. Any other experiment that proves or infirm the power of voices on the judgment we can have on a person?
[ October 29, 2003, 04:22 PM: Message edited by: Anna ]
Posted by Mr.Funny (Member # 4467) on :
Listen to my voice... You are getting very sleepy... Posted by Anna (Member # 2582) on :
Posted by Dan_raven (Member # 3383) on :
Wow, Mr. Funny put a smiley to sleep.
My wife had a grandfather with a deep base voice that scared away more than one of her perspective boy friends before we met.
I really appreciated that.
Posted by Annie (Member # 295) on :
Yes, quite agreed.
Case in point: you haven't heard sweetness until you've heard Hobbes say "awwwww..." Posted by Anna (Member # 2582) on :
I love to hear people in love.
Posted by Ryuko (Member # 5125) on :
I also think Alan Rickman is a severe hottie.
I find that the tone of voice often shapes what we think about people, which is why it's somewhat refreshing to get to know people online, where they can't judge you if you have a nasal voice or something.
Posted by Pixie (Member # 4043) on :
I definitely think a person's voice can be very powerful. My best friend moved to Ohio over the summer and Paul's still in Iraq (still will be until February) so I'm very thankful for the voice-mail each has left on my cell. Just hearing the voice of one or the other or both can take away a lot of stress/not-so-good feeling. That and there is honestly nothing like hearing the way someone's voice changes when they say they love you. Posted by tabithecat (Member # 5228) on :
I have a thing for John Hannas voice. If I could find a book on tape that he is reading I would be in heaven. on a personal note I work in a call center so I'm on the phone all day. I've been doing this for about 3 years and in that time I have had customers tell me that they love my voice to the point where on one Saturday morning I spoke to Michael from North Carolina for about an hour and he asked me to marry him by the end of the call. I also have dinner dates any time I'm in one of many cites across this fine nation of ours. OH and let's not forget the free room at a bed and breakfast in New Mexico, he was real nice too. so it is my experience that the voice has great power. use it wisely.
Posted by Storm Saxon (Member # 3101) on :
Note: if you meet someone on-line and call them and they sound really hot, this does not mean they will be really hot, in actuality.
Posted by Narnia (Member # 1071) on :
My 3 month old niece can sense my brother (her dad) the minute he comes home from work, even if she's asleep. He has a deep voice that carries, and even though I'm sure he tries to keep quiet when she's asleep, I think she's sensitive to the vibrations or something, because if he's not where she is and saying 'hi' within 3 or 4 minutes of his arrival, she gets rather upset.
She also likes to lay on his chest while he's talking. She'll stay awake like that or fall asleep. And she won't do it with anyone else. I think she likes his rumbly voice.
Posted by littlemissattitude (Member # 4514) on :
Voices can definitely enhance someone's attractiveness. Or detract from it.
And, may I say, I too find Alan Rickman's voice quite attractive. Posted by Dragon (Member # 3670) on :
A teacher at my school has strained her vocal cords and talks like she has a sore throat all the time. She says that people often ask her if she's sick (and give her meals) when they first meet her. On the phone people can't tell if she's male or female. Many people pity her and treat her like she has a desease or handicap. It's odd.
Posted by Ryuko (Member # 5125) on :
Voices are also a big part of determining gender. If I know someone who has a very gender-neutral voice, it might take me a minute to realize whether or not they're a man or a woman.
Posted by Anna (Member # 2582) on :
Alan Rickman sure has a real talent to play bad ones (maybe because of his fascinating voice ?), and I think it must ask more than to play good ones. I recognized him dubbing the big bad one in an animated movie called in France "Gloups, je suis un poisson", three children turned into fishes and a fish who almost become a human. EDIT : I checked, the movie is called "Help, I'm a fish" in English.
[ October 29, 2003, 04:09 AM: Message edited by: Anna ]
Posted by ClaudiaTherese (Member # 923) on :
I fell in love with my husband's deep tones (he has played a blues DJ on the side, and with good reason).
Anna, I think you're right. Voices are powerful.
Posted by Anna (Member # 2582) on :
I fell in love with my future husband's voice too. We were singing in a choral group, and he had the most beautiful tenor voice I ever heard. And a beautiful laugh too.
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
Barry White <sigh> and James Earl Jones. That kind of voice melts me...
Posted by Anna (Member # 2582) on :
I would like to know if it's the same for men. Come on guys, which voices make you melt ?
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
Moderately sultry British accents make me all gooshy.
Posted by Anna (Member # 2582) on :
I remember some people telling me the same about French accent I love an English speaker speaking French, too.
Posted by UofUlawguy (Member # 5492) on :
Well, guys' voices tend to be more powerfully evocative than women's voices, I think (unless you're calling a 900 number).
But I do think that alto voices tend to be more attractive to me than soprano ones. Especially when they're singing, but even if they're just talking.
UofUlawguy
Posted by Taberah (Member # 4014) on :
I love British accents, and all of the Scottish, Irish, South African, Australian, and Kiwi derivatives. They can make even the most mundane statements rich and entrancing.
If you want to hear a great voice, check out Fiona Ritchie. She's the host of a celtic music program on NPR called The Thistle & Shamrock, which I rather enjoy. You can hear (and see) Fiona discussing Scottish music here.
Posted by Xavier (Member # 405) on :
Amy Lee from Evanescence all the way. I'm not particularly attracted to her physically, but she's a goddess when she's singing.
Posted by UofUlawguy (Member # 5492) on :
Fiona Ritchie sounds exactly like what Mike Meyers' mom was trying to sound like on So I Married an Axe Murderer.
Posted by Annie (Member # 295) on :
So do I. I juice everythin' now. This paper contains facts. Look a' this: "pregnant man gives birth." Now thass a fact!
Posted by Da_Goat (Member # 5529) on :
Men can't get pregnant...so the baby must have been born instantly, or something.
Anyway, I agree. Voices do have a large impact, especially on first impressions. A, not necessarily sexy, but unannoying voice is almost (<-- take a note of that word) necessary in a successful relationship, since successful relationships are built on communication. You'd certainly have communication problems if you had a hard time listening to your partners voice.
Posted by qkslvrwolf (Member # 5768) on :
Agreement on Fiona off the thistle program. I love that show, when I get a chance to listen to it.
I also had an English friend, once, and yeah...everytime I even think about her voice, which was a rich alto with a normal, "neutral" english accent...I just want to curl up in a ball and rest my head on her lap (which is 3000 miles and 2 more recent boyfriends impossible, I'm afraid...)
As for men's voices, its not just iness...If a man has a deep, rich voice, I'm more likely to listen to what he's saying...especially if he also knows how to speak well. Its not just about their voice...if I can't understand them because they're mumbling or not enunciating (as happens so often here in teh south), then their voice loses all power.
What I don't understand is that the recordings I've heard of many famous speakers (FDR, Churchill, etc.) don't have particulary nice voices...whats up with that?
One last note: James Earl Jones has got the most badass voice in history. When he read Edgar Allen Poe at the beginning of "under a moon" (computer game)...it still gives me shivers. I would...do many bad things for his voice. Not that mines bad, you understand.
Posted by Paul Goldner (Member # 1910) on :
Apparently, my voice sometimes is really sexy. I have a low voice, and if I talk quietly, it rumbles. I have been told by several women that, when I do talk softly, it makes them tremble. My male friends, on the other hand, go "what did you just say?"
On the other side of that, I have never had an experience where a woman's voice turned me on. Maybe I am not as receptive to sound as some of my female friends? Maybe lower voices are more evocative then higher pitched voices? I don't know. I think women may be more sensitive to the lower registers then men, and its quite possible it is those low registers that carry the greatest "sex appeal."
Posted by tancath (Member # 5769) on :
I remember once talking on the phone to my husband's collegue. It was a very deep, beautiful voice. Some time later, I found out the guy was a horrible, ugly, completely uninteresting litlle nothing! Deceiving!
Posted by Eruve Nandiriel (Member # 5677) on :
I couldn't help thinking of Dune when I saw this thread. Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
I watched Donnie Darko at Celia's last night. If Frank's voice isn't sexy I don't know what is.
Hobbes Posted by Eruve Nandiriel (Member # 5677) on :
Anybody with a scottish or irish accent. I love it, it's so cool!
to name a few: Billy Boyd Sean Connery Mel Gibson (australian is close enough )
![[Sleep]](graemlins/sleep.gif)
![[Wink]](wink.gif)
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
![[Evil]](graemlins/evil.gif)
OH and let's not forget the free room at a bed and breakfast in New Mexico, he was real nice too. so it is my experience that the voice has great power. use it wisely.