An Investigation into Learning Methods of Voice Mimicry Artists.
The purpose of this study was to investigate voice mimicry artists from the Indian state of Kerala, and their ability to develop new voices for mimicry purposes. Voice mimicry is a performance art that involves imitating another human’s voice for entertainment. The aim was to understand how voice mimicry artists learn how to mimic other voices.
Twelve mimicry professionals participated in multiple interviews. The aim of the interviews was to ask about the process of developing a voice for mimicry, what makes some voices easier for mimicry artists, and other concepts related to mimicry as a voice performance. Participants were also asked about what strategies, if any, they used to perform voice mimicry. Later, the data from the interviews was analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis.
The results indicated that the participants utilized common strategies, such as audio/video recordings of the target voice for practice, repetition, and references to other mimicry artists, to learn new target voices. These strategies helped them to learn to make alterations to their natural voices in pursuit of a target voice. According to the participants, some voices are easier than others. Easier voices consisted mainly of those closely matching the mimicry performer’s natural speaking voice. Matched accent/region made mimicry a simpler process. Additionally, the participants found that imitating the target’s notable/well-known dialogues was more convincing and easier to perform. Finally, some target voices may be extremely similar — and therefore, easier to learn multiple voices at once.
In conclusion, the study reveals that successful imitation is a blend of several factors, including exaggeration based on feedback and observation, confidence, ease of execution, knowing one’s range and limits, the importance of practice, emotionality of voice, managing nervousness, maintaining the learned voices and understanding more about this art form. By mastering these aspects, performers can achieve a convincing and captivating imitation of the target voices.