Falsetto - Use in Speech

Use in Speech

The ability to speak within the falsetto register is possible for almost all men and women. The use of falsetto is considered uncommon in normal Western speech, and is most often employed within the context of humor. The use of falsetto speech varies by culture and its use has been studied in African Americans and gay men in certain contexts, as well as also noted in the U.S. South, and stereotypically associated with the warcries of American Native tribesmen, and the American Western cowboy. Pitch changes ranging to falsetto are also characteristic of British English.

Some people who speak frequently or entirely in the falsetto register are identified by speech pathologists as suffering from a functional dysphonia. Falsetto also describes the momentary, but often repeated, fluctuations in pitch emitted by both sexes while undergoing voice change during adolescence. These changes, however, are more apparent and occur with greater frequency in boys than they do in girls. Failure to undergo proper voice-change is called puberphonia.