I mentioned Voice Banking in my last post – here’s a few
more details. Almost everyone with ALS
eventually lose their voice – it can be one of the first signs in ALS called Bulbar Symptoms. I find Bulbar Symptoms perhaps one of the
most distressing aspects of the disease – but what is is. And I don’t get to vote.
When I first heard about losing my voice I didn’t think it
was such a big deal. I figured I’d just pick a voice out there; how about Steve
Hawkins’ voice? Or better yet – Darth
Vader to scar the dogs! However about a
month ago Susannah mentioned that she wanted to hear my voice – not someone else’s.
So I started investigating Voice Banking.
So I’ve started using an on-line program called ModelTalker– which is a free service
for those losing their voice. It’s
funded through grants and donations – a truly remarkable organization.
There are a couple of things that you have to do before
starting the process – first you have to get a very good microphone &
headset. I bought one they recommended
from Amazon for about $45 – the Sennheiser PC 36 Call Control USB Binaural
Headset.
Next you have to find a silent location to record in. When I started we were traveling in our
Airstream trailer – which when all windows are closed is amazingly quiet. So that was been my recording studio; now
it’s my home office.
ModelTalker’s process is for you to record your voice using
prescribed sentences. They show you a
sentence then the reader reads the sentence and you try to repeat the sentence
as closely as possible. They then rate
how you repeated based upon amplitude, pacing and pronunciation. The goal is to record 1600 sentences!
Eventually ModelTalker will use the 1600 sentences to
generate your own synthetic voice. The
sentences are from “The Wizard of Oz”, “The Call of the Wild” and other
classics.
Ironically long before my ALS I have frequently joked that
the only foreign language I know is English, and I don’t even speak that very
well (as an aside, I was born and raised in the U.S.). At one point in the recording process I was
having trouble pronouncing a word. After
a number of tries, I finally got it correct - I mentioned to Susannah that I’ve
had trouble with pronunciation – she quipped “What’s new about that?”
It takes me about 45 minutes to record 100 sentences. You can listen to your sentence recording and
re-do it if needed. You can also hear a
sample of a synthetic voice based on the number of samples already
recorded. I’m currently about half way
done with the process. Here are 2
examples – the first is my current voice:
While the second is a sample of the synthetic voice:
My voice has been changing – I am quieter then normal, my
speech rate has slowed down, I’m having trouble with some pronunciation and it
gets harder to speak as the day wears on.
This morning for the first time I noticed I’m getting tongue fasciculations. So there’s
some urgency to my recordings now.
5 comments:
Thanks for sharing. I didn't know this technology existed. Is there any way I can help you get your recodings done and conserve your energy?
You are amazing Rasjad! I admire how you open you always are to new ideas. It's terrific that you are dedicating your time to this as you have such a soothing yet energetic voice. It will be great to hear it always...
Your friend,
Linda
Hi dad, that's sounding better than the first sample I heard! I'm so glad to see these posts, I'm happy you've been rolling along with these, they're great. See you in a couple days, I miss you guys!
Love,
L
That's a funny thought - it wouldn't sound like me anymore.
Is there drive through voice banking?
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