Capturing The Vocal Performance [Recording Vocals Pt 4]

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Capturing The Vocal Performance Recording Vocals
Pt 4

• http//homerecordinghome.com/capturing-the-vocal-p
  erformance/

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From under-rehearsed to distraught, the range of
issues is endless. It often falls to the producer
to pull forth the best performance from a singer.
Lets look at some of the challenges involved
with capturing a good performance
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The Power (and Burden) of the Director
You are responsible for giving your actor the
motivation, mood, and inspiration they need to
give their best performa attention when its time
for them to record. Dont take phone calls. Dont
fiddle with backing tracks.
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You need to be focused on them for a few reasons
The Voice is a Finite Resource - Singers cant
give their best performances all day, everyday.
Emotion is Hard to Handle - A good
performance demands that both actors and singers
access the emotion where a song comes
from. Youre in the Drivers Seat  - You have
the best view of the entire picture, so you know
when something is right. 
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Setting the Mood

• Here are some tips how
• Turn the Lights Down - The less a person can see,
  the more they can feel. Word of caution dimmers
  can cause hum in your equipment, so try having
  several light sources. 
• Practice Jedi Mind Tricks - You need to develop a
  rapport with a singer (or any musician) and be
  able to work them into a frenzy, feel the depths
  of sadness, or take them to the height of
  elation, just by talking to them.

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3) Adjust the Headphone Mix - Its pretty hard to
connect with the emotion of a song and get a good
vocal performance if you cant hear yourself
sing. 4) Add Some Reverb - Reverb helps singers
with their intonation and hearing themselves in a
dense mix of instruments. 
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Chill Out
If your session is full of stress or if youre a
stressful person to work with, you cant expect
good results in your recording. Do
everything you can to make the session
enjoyable. Give musicians a place to chill
out and relax. Take breaks.
Image bass_nroll via Compfight
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What if the Singer Sucks?
Hopefully, the singer has done their homework.
The studio is not the place for them to practice.
Time is valuable, even if you work for free. Urge
them to practice before the session. Stay away
from judgments about quality and focus on making
them the best singer they can be. Even if it
means they are the best worst singer in the
world. You are there to translate an artists
vision, not impose your own.
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Technical Details
If you set everything up right, you should have
no problems during recording. Modern digital
audio workstations let you do some crazy editing,
but dont rely on it.
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Capturing The Vocal Performance Recording Vocals
Pt 4

• http//homerecordinghome.com/capturing-the-vocal-p
  erformance/