Ok, I've looked about for a while and couldn't find anything of this type, so I thought I'd dare and post this new thread - gulp! If this has been discussed somewhere else, or would fit somewhere else, then please, mods, replace at will!

So, I would like to know of you what you imagine Sirius' voice to sound like. For me, voice is a major identifying mark of characters and it also influences me when I watch movies that have been adapted from novels I've read. Best example: Alan Rickman as Snape. I don't know, but Rickman just has that great voice that made me reevaluate Snape altogether. Shame that his voice is already sooo Snape for me, he'd make a good Sirius voicewise!

And Gary Oldman is a great Sirius Black, but oddly, I can't reconcile his voice to my imagined Sirius. Weird, I know...

So my Sirius has a deep, sort of raspy, chesty voice ... uhm, chesty, meaning that it comes from deep inside his chest, like a dog's growl, something where you can feel the reverberations. It also has a certain edge to it. I imagine this comes from JK constantly telling us that his laugh is like a dog's bark and, well, I imagine big dogs!

Voices that come close would be Viggo Mortensen ( the rasp is great!), and for the gamers here, anybody agree on Auron's voice in Final Fantasy X (deep, dark, very manly)?

So, what do you imagine Sirius' voice would sound like?

Try the audio books. I think Jim Dale does an awesome Sirius!! Sounds like a growl everytime!!

Anywho... that's how I hear Sirius in my read when reading the normal books.

*scratches long ears*

I've been musing about this...and I can't quite pin-point Sirius' voice. I don't imagine it as very deep, but kind of rough, and especially croaky in PoA.

However, I do imagine him speaking very proper English, with a slightly aristocratic tone, and very clear.

Actually, the voice that comes close is Bruce Springsdeen, just without the American drawl, lol.

Oh yeah, Springsteen works great!

And as for the way he speaks, I'd go for clear pronunciation too. Don't know if this is just a generalization, but I find that most Brits I know have a real problem with swallowing sounds, really hard to understand! I don't believe that Mrs Black would have allowed slurred language in her house!

I've been thinking a lot about voices recently, and though everyone has their own Sirius voice in their head when reading, I can't find an actor or elsewise prominent person where I'd say, yes! That's him! Totally! So I thought I'd ask you guys for help!

I also like Russell Crowe's voice for Sirius- though I don't dig his other features so much ... hmmm ... Do you think it's actually possible to fully seperate voice and looks?

spam: OooooOOOOooooo I'm on fire /spam

samwise wrote:

I find that most Brits I know have a real problem with swallowing sounds, really hard to understand! I don't believe that Mrs Black would have allowed slurred language in her house!

I'm not sure what you mean about swallowing sounds. Maybe when people talk too fast or use slang or maybe drop letters? As to Mrs Black, I know she was strict, but I'm not sure whether she would've had that much control over Sirius (particularly once he was at school). Also, I think that he would've deliberately gone against what she wanted to show that he could and to show that he was different.

I've never listened to any of the audio books and I'm not quite sure how I imagine Sirius' voice.

Having said that I never imagined him as having a Received Pronunciation accent (RP - 'proper' English). I can see how that could be imagined because of his family, but I think that Sirius' accent would've been influenced by his schoolmates and also by his desire to be different from his family (not necessarily a conscious decision).

I imagine his accent not RP, but not completely common either - somewhere in-between. I don't imagine his voice to be particularly deep. Hmmm...

I think he would have an aristocratic voice as well, first because of his family's self-image as being "practically royal," and secondly, because of the fact that he would have been at home until time to leave for Hogwarts at age 11, so domestic pressure to speak properly would have been strong. I could imagine him trying to annoy his parents on school holidays, going back home and trying to sound a bit more working class just to wind them up. As far as the speaking timbre of his voice, maybe a mid-range barritone. Somewhere between Alan Rickman and Hugh Laurie...authoritative, confident, self-aware, strong and full.

For some reason I've always imagined Sirius as having a Brad Pitt kind of voice. Deep (and sexy) but not gravelly. It's hard to explain exactly...

I don't think Sirius would have a too deep voice, probably a higher baritone. I always imagined his voice as kind of rough and not too full because the years in Azkaban I believe would have "emptied it" if you know what I mean. I can't really relate his voice to anyone in the real world.

twelvegrimmauldplace: I couldn't think of the right word that night! What I meant was: mumbling. As I pointed out, I might be biased, because, well, my Dad is British and he mumbles all the time!! It's like decoding his language most of the time. A simple sentence like:"pass me the salt" becomes something like: "ba m so" And the rest of the family's not much better, lol! Oh well, you get used to it after a few years... (Speak it too, in fact, grin)

(Love you Papa!! -uhm, don't know if he'll ever read this, but... just in case!)

See, it's not really slang, or speaking fast, it's just not opening your mouth wide enough to let the sounds come out properly... Lazy-like. And I don't think Sirius did that. He's definitely not the lazy type, not even in his language!

I never listened to the audio CD's, so I'm free from any preconceptions, except of course Gary Oldman's voice. Which, although I really like him as Sirius (he was my first choice ever since they called in Alan Rickman for Snape), doesn't fit the voice I hear in my mind...

Solitaire: I absolutely agree with you that, while Sirius would or could try to use different language at home in the holidays, the education he received at home prior his Hogwarts days would stay with him for a long time. "Domestic pressure" shapes in ways that shouldn't be underestimated, even if the person involved wants to stand out from his family. I should know, I mumble like hell

Roooaaaar!!!! Like a lion.... deeeeeppp and sexy... I agree with you Samwise. I think voice is an important mark of identification too.

Sirius is a tall man, with a strong temperament. He is not small and thin, not weak like Peter Minus for example. He needs to have a deep voice because voice is a mirror of his personality.

Ammagad, I haven't even thought about it... Well, I have actually thought about how he would sing, and I think he sings a bit like Mick Jagger/Bruce Springsteen/Alex Turner in Arctic Monkeys.

Hm, I know how I don't think that Sirius voice sounds like, I don't think he sounds like Seth Cohen in the OC (although I love Seth) cause he talk's kind of... boyish, and I don't think Sirius talked boyish... But kind of like a deep voice. Sexy. Oh, now I've got it, like Aragorn in LotR. Very masculine and strong and... erhm, HOT.

missmonroe wrote:

Oh, now I've got it, like Aragorn in LotR. Very masculine and strong and... erhm, HOT.

Now that I think about it, Viggo Mortensen as Sirius's voice would be excellent. Although, in my mind, I'd probably always picture him as Aragorn...

Hm. Must go pick up some HP audio books.

Voice is a real mark of identification. Don't you just love Alan Rickman's voice? It is so distinct, so unique. Because I started reading Harry Potter the same time the first movie came out, I have never imagined his voice to be anything different. It is just so perfect for Snape.

I imagine Sirius' voice to be hoarse, and a lot like Russel Crowe's voice. I imagine him to be very well spoken, and to have a touch of a Cockney accent. Gary Oldman's voice is excellent for being Sirius.

I have often found that the description of a voice in the books is difficult for me to picture. I cannot imagine what a 'croaky' voice would sound like at all. Frankly, all croaky makes me think of are frogs, and that does not suit Sirius at all.

On a side note, can anyone here imagine Voldemort's voice as being 'high pitched', the way it is described in the books? I certainly cannot.

Kycoo wrote:

missmonroe wrote: Oh, now I've got it, like Aragorn in LotR. Very masculine and strong and... erhm, HOT. Now that I think about it, Viggo Mortensen as Sirius's voice would be excellent. Although, in my mind, I'd probably always picture him as Aragorn...

Yeah, I've actually pictured the grown up Sirius a lot like Aragorn to. Glad someone agree!