My immediate concern when thinking about the audio essay is the use of voice…my voice. The physical voice is not usually a concern in writing classes. Jeff Porter sums this up nicely, writing that “we do not usually think of our voices in the literal sense when writing. We have been effectively schooled in sophisticated ways to reduce the idea of voice to its message…” (Essayists, 193). This worries me mainly because I’m afraid that I have a monotonous voice. How can my voice engage my listeners instead of putting them to sleep?

Jeff Porter, in the same essay, discusses NPR’s innovative success from the early eighties to the nineties. NPR used a variety of imperfect, human voices radically different from the disembodied, authoritative anchor voices of early radio days. (Essayists, 190-191). Sarah Vowell, whose voice Porter describes as sounding like “a disaffected teenager scheming revenge from the basement of a library” (190), is a good example. Vowell’s voice, though young and nasally seems to fit perfectly with her diction. During “NRA vs. NEA” on This American Life, Vowell comments on her father’s cannon exploding by saying, “I wish there were a more articulate way to say this, but I’m telling you there isn’t. It’s just really really cool” (11:21). Vowell chooses a diminutive form of expression that accords with the voice of “a disaffected teenager scheming revenge from the library basement”.

Yet, voice and the words spoken make up only a portion of Vowell’s essay. She incorporates other voices throughout: her Dad’s, the hikers’, her sister (the loneliest twin in history), and her mother. Then there is the music—interludes that give a sense of travel to the essay, and, of course sound effects, mostly guns going off (and a cannon!). Vowell’s voice does not stand alone. It sounds genuine, not only because she speaks honestly, but because her voice does not dominate the essay—it is in conversation with other voices, other sounds, and music.

In my audio essay, then, how do I use my voice as a player in an orchestra? Our voices are not meant (unless it sounds like silk dripping with honey) to be heard alone. We have to figure out how our voice works in concert with other sounds and voices. How can the voice (even a monotone voice) supplement other sounds? How can sounds work together to form a musical totality? That question must be reflected on. I suspect that the answer is different for everyone.