Singers: Describe your preferred recording experience.

raindog.promo

Assume all the music is recorded and YOU are just coming in to do vocals. Describe the perfect way you would prefer it to happen, As a vocalist.

What type of procedure would you be looking for in a recording session?
Any preferred method? anything you can think of at all. It just helps to get the ball rolling.

What type of time frame would you expect (as in how long would you expect it to take to do all takes, overdubs, (no effects, that comes later) and factor in time with mistakes, retakes, fluffed takes etc for just one song?

squibs

I dont sing, so I'll pitch in with what I think a vocalist wants to experience.

Even the old pros are often very stressed before a take. The walk to the vocal room/booth is a long one, so I accompany them. I check that lighting is OK, that the music stand is adjusted to the right level, that they have a drink and then I leave them - saying I need to do something techy, but really to give them a minute to compose themselves. Depending on the singer, I'll "wet the cans" with some vanity 'verb from a cheap outboard unit.

Timeframe? How long is a piece of string? Sometimes one take. Sometimes send them home to come up with some different ideas after they lapse into a weedy falsetto on the high C for the 12th time.

Had one guy who had a hopeless sense of pitch, but it was completely consistent. For some tracks, he couldn't sing on key, but would faultlessly sing in harmony and stick to it through the entire song

Niall - Dahlia

Good thread, I'll be interested in replys, though I think you'll find no vocalist is ever the same, so experiences differ so much from session to session that you can't say there's a single best way to record a vocalist.

I'm not a singer, but having recorded plenty of them I'll pitch in with some of my experiences.

First of all like squibs said, it can be a daunting and nerve-racking experience as a vocalist, even for people with plenty of previous experience. Number 1 priority for me is to make the performer as comfortable as possible. Take time to explain the whole process and don't presume it's self explanatory. Even if a person has recorded in a studio before, things can differ from studio to studio.

Give them plenty of time to warm up before you're even set up (not necessarily infront of the mic; outside, in the kitchen, in any spare room). Some people are a bit shy about warming up infront of people, others will blow your ears off right there. Use that time to decide on what mic and pre you'll be using.

Show them the room they'll be recording in. Be relaxed yourself! If you're nervous it's gonna rub off on them.

Consider recording in the control room with a handheld, the perceived loss in quality might be worth it if the singer is more relaxed and you capture a more natural performance, that's the main thing after all.

When it comes to it, like squibs said go into the room with them and make sure everything is fine with mic height, pop shield distance, etc. If they absolutely have to read from a sheet, have a sheet music stand to avoid the singer looking away and down from the mic (and rustling paper!). Ambient light! Might sound stupid, but a few candles or a dim lamp inside the room instead of a blaring (and often hot) ceiling light can do wonders and create a nice vibe.

You should be all patched up and ready to go, don't leave the singer waiting, the longer he's waiting the more nervous he/she is going to get.

Talkback mic, very important! Once you're back in the control room keep it on as often as possible. Avoid the fishbowl effect, nothing worse for the singer's paranoia and nerves to see people talking but not being able to hear them, they'll instantly think they're talking about them.

Ask them what song they want to begin with, you'll often find there's songs a singer will be more comfortable with, you'll want to start with that to get the confidence going.

Headphone mix! Vitally important. Some singers will need it loud, so you have to compromise this with spill concerns. Some singers like their voice high in the cans, others low, some like verb, others find it distracting, they might want some distracting elements of the mix taken down or removed....take time to get a comfortable headphone mix, couldn't stress that enough.

Do a rough take of the song. Explain how you'll be adjusting during this rough take, but to keep singing regardless. The singer can warm up further, relax on the mic and get use to the headphone mix while you tweak inside. Be careful with headroom, you'll often find as a singer gets into his stride he'll be hitting the meter hotter and hotter each take.

After each take I'll either just shoot straight into a new take if i feel there were too many mistakes/poor performance, or I'll ask the singer/producer what they thought of that take. Usually I'll try to get the singer back in pretty early after the first few takes to hear what's going down, the monitor mix will sound alot better than their headphone mix and can often boost their confidence when they hear it. I'll also use that time to make any suggestions, usually regarding mic technique/performance issues.

Can't think of anything else at the moment, hope that helps.

dav nagle

When using the talk back mic I would suggest to keep from over doing the chit chat. Use the record and playback function to show the singer that she is in good hands and with the press of a button she can start again and have another take. There is no need to try and push a singer too hard, especially if she or he for that matter have a better vocal range and knowledge than you. It is important to make the singer feel comfortable over the talk back mic, not to be a mentor. The singer knows they are good, you know they are good, if you both know that it should be a good session! The singer might need to be put in there place when it comes to wind and distance so be prepared to suggest taking a few steps back form the mic and try explaining that everything is better off not fixed in the mix but before hand. I worked with a singer recently and they wanted all the wind and air to be Q'd out upon mixdown, they wouldn't listen, so I had to do it because they were adamant that it could be done in the box. Best of luck.

PaulBrewer

Point the mic vaguely at them and tell them you'll shoot them in the face if they don't sing right ........

Sham Squire

PaulBrewer wrote: »

Point the mic vaguely at them and tell them you'll shoot them in the face if they don't sing right ........

Worked for Phil Spector.

Mr Alan

PaulBrewer wrote: »

Point the mic vaguely at them and tell them you'll shoot them in the face if they don't sing right ........

you were a lot nicer when i met you and joe on Saturday!

maybe i'll have to rethink this whole thing!

raindog.promo

Thanks for the replies.

Quite interesting points made all round.

PaulBrewer

Mr Alan wrote: »

you were a lot nicer when i met you and joe on Saturday!

maybe i'll have to rethink this whole thing!

Shizit! Caught out!!