My Voice, Auto-Tuned

[jchitty]

Hey, Suz...I like yours and Mark's suggestion that singing is just getting into character and acting for the most part. Thanks for posting the song interpretation worksheet....that's something that I think will help me. There are some excellent suggestions there. I'm also gonna look into purchasing the book you listed, "Voice Power" by Joan Kenley. That's what I love about this forum....folks here are so helpful. I can't tell you how many times my songs were made better by critiques, etc....so now, you're helping me with my vocals.

[devin]

(*munches popcorn*)

[suzdoyle]

Yahoo, Janet!It is fun being on these Taxi Forums -- I love the vast expanse of knowledge and ideas (not to mention the wacky jokes and creativity) here . . . Here's another idea: In the book "Using Your Brain . . . for a Change," the authors describe some user friendly ways to change behavior based on Neuro-Linguistic Programming techniques. I found the regular books on this waaaaayyyyyyy too intense and detailed for my needs, but in this book, they offer a very effective way to deal with things that feel too big (e.g. stage fright, or fear of fully using one's voice).1. Focus on what the fear (or hesitation) feels like. Most likely it will be very large, vivid, bright, loud, etc.2. Make that smaller (draw a circle around it, imagine it being a movie that is slowly fading to black and white or being played backwards; or put it in a bubble and let it float away).3. Then imagine what your voice looks or feels like (it may seem small or far away). Make it bigger. Add color. Brighten it up. Put Arnold Schwarzennegger muscles on it. Whatever your imagination can come up with to make it more powerful.Then try singing. This may sounds wackydoodle, but somehow it works. It makes sense that if our brains can amplify fears and make them feel vivid and intensified, then we can use those same brains to change that.Just a thought . . . SuzQueen & CEO of "Hmmmm, I wonder if that might work?", Inc.

[jchitty]

Thanks once again, Suz. I will probably go to my local library first, and I'll see if they have both the books you mentioned....we have a very extensive library here...or I'll just look for the books at Amazon.com if the library doesn't have them. LOL, I like 'the put Arnold Schwarzennegger muscles on it' part of the list you posted....I just gotta blow it out.

[ernstinen]

Aug 25, 2008, 10:43am, aubreyz wrote:Hmmm... just a quick clarification, sibilance is usually most obnoxious in the 5 to 7k range. 10k and up is mostly "air". If you reduce 12k, that will darken the overall vocal which is not the desired goal.There are two options... either "draw in" volume rides manually to reduce the ssss's or use a good de-esser. Although it only works in Pro Tools, Steve Massey (google it) has released one that IMHO is as good as it gets. It's cheap and has an unlimited time demo version (which won't keep settings but doesn't add pops or beeps).I've heard Massey's plug-ins, and they are great! I don't have a clue why he does them for free, or cheap!As to sibilance, I'd estimate it to be about in the 8k range. But I agree that 12k is WAY too high, and I LOVE putting highs on vocals from about 12k to 22k. That's the AIR that Aub talks about. I know, I know, that some say that people can't hear beyond 20k, but I highly disagree! I've worked with Massenburg EQs that go up to 24k, and 'I' can hear the difference! Maybe I have the ears of a dog, but I DEFINITELY can hear the "air up there!" Ern

[feaker]

chitsHere is my two cents.Your voice on the lower notes has much appeal. Not sure what happens on the high notes, but the character lessens. Maybe "does not project" might be better put. Still very good, but if you are looking for perfection, look there. Might be that confidence thing everyone is talking about.Very impressive. You have come a long way.Paul

[jchitty]

Aug 30, 2008, 3:39am, feaker wrote:chitsHere is my two cents.Your voice on the lower notes has much appeal. Not sure what happens on the high notes, but the character lessens. Maybe "does not project" might be better put. Still very good, but if you are looking for perfection, look there. Might be that confidence thing everyone is talking about.Very impressive. You have come a long way.PaulThanks, Paul. I know I have some range issues when I hit those high notes, and I tend to hold back, but I'll work on that.

[cameron]

Chits,I'm faced with the same dilemma. Before I heard your song I was prepared to tell you to hire the best singer you can find, as Jason Blume always advises. And, usually if you compare the songwriters version with the professional demo, it's pretty apparent why making pro demos is a good idea. However, I do think that you demo this song very effectively yourself and I'm not sure you would gain much by making a studio demo of it.That said, I'm not sure it's always the case. Obviously, this song fits your vocal style, but if you've written a song that you feel might be suitable for Beyonce, for example, you might want to showcase it with someone who sings in that style.I speak with convincing authority for not knowing anything, don't I?Personally, I'm leaning towards making pro demos only of the songs I think are either really good or might have a future as a "broadcast quality" Taxi listing. I'm working on improving the quality of my home recordings (aren't we all?) so that maybe it won't be as necessary for me to go to the studio for every single song.Cam

[jchitty]

Hey, Cam....if I ever do learn to engineer my own demoes, I would use my voice mainly for my country songs...I agree that for R&B type tunes (Beyonce) my voice just wouldn't fit there. I also agree about making PRO demoes for certain songs as well....there are just times when a studio production is best. Thanks for your thoughts.....they are appreciated.