The kind of voice you have depends on the size and position of your vocal chords. Vocal chords can be long or short, stretched or relaxed.
Boys and girls have the same short, stretched vocal chords during their early years, and so have similar high-pitched voices. As a boy grows older and reaches his teens, his vocal chords become longer, making his voice deeper.
Girls, however, retain their short, stretched vocal chords and as they grow into women, their voices stay higher than men’s.
When you “lose your voice,” or get laryngitis (an inflammation of your larynx), your vocal chords have actually thickened and can no longer vibrate to make sounds.
When vocal chords are relaxed, they may vibrate 80 times per second, giving a deep tone. However, when they are stretched, they may vibrate 1,000 times per second and produce higher tones!
