Here’s another nugget to examine. How do you suppose they make conversations and songs so clear when watching them in a movie, television, or on different shows? Need a hint? That’s right, voice-overs. What is a voice-over? I’m glad that you asked.

A voice-over is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative —is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentations. The voice-over is read from a script and might be spoken by someone who appears elsewhere in the production or by a specialist voice talent. Wikipedia

Still not clear? When a film is being made, there are ambient noises that can be picked up in the audio that you have to remove. When you do that, you replace the narrations with a voice-over that an actor or voice specialist records in a studio. The specialists will read the script while watching the mouths of the actors in the film or show, and it is recorded and synced with other audio needed in the production.

There is a lot of work that goes into making a production audible and exciting. That’s why you shouldn’t rush the completion and release of a show. If it’s not done right, it will be noticed.

Let me hear from some of my voice-over specialists. You certainly are qualified to shine a brighter light on this subject.

“Foley is the reproduction of everyday sound effects that are added in film, video, and other media in post-production to enhance audio quality”. For those of us who aren’t familiar with what foley does, it is the sound of the wind you hear in a storm, the sound of thunder, waves crashing against the rocks, explosions and the creaking of doors, the sound of footsteps, etc,… It’s everything you experience in a movie or television show that makes you jump. Things that you notice if you were presently there. What it also is, is the embellishment of those sounds to a higher degree, so that it has an effect on the listeners. And what’s so incredible about it, even more, is that it’s all around you. All you need is a recorder, maybe an extension mic, and imagination. After recording whatever you like, you can upload it in your daw, and manipulate to desired taste. Foley is free, but you have to want it enough to put in the work. Not many have the patience and prefer to hire someone to do it for them or purchase them from someone. Either way, foley is an invaluable commodity, and in-demand right now! Something to think about, huh?

I’m not sure if you feel the same as I do concerning audio in films, but it’s a thorn in my flesh. I watch movies and television shows just to critique the work that has been done. I no longer watch for the enjoyment, because the obvious sticks out like a sore thumb to me. Everything is being done too fast and without attention to detail. For those of us who aren’t aware of what’s being produced, it may be fine, but I cannot appreciate sloppiness. I know this may sound like a rant, but I’m sure you’ve noticed it, too. For example, the last episode of Game of Thrones. How many mistakes did you notice? And there are plenty of others being done the same way. Can we slow down and make sure that everything is done right?

I probably could have just said growing up, but transitioning sounds more professional. Everyone has had to struggle through finding what works best for them, in terms of getting the best equipment that works for them. Whether it’s analog or digital, you still have to become skilled with it, and that takes time. Depending on what you were doing before getting the equipment, you may have to reschedule your calendar or have some late night practicing to gain the skills needed to master what you’ve invested in. These are necessary growing transitions every engineer go through. It starts off difficult, but with determination and time you will perfect your latest addition to your studio and be able to wow your clients. This makes transitioning worth the investment. What are your transitioning stories?

So maybe you haven’t thought about this or maybe it’s not on your top priority list, but it’s probably one of the most important things to get and keep going. Think about it. If nobody knows who you are and where you are, you’ll never get any business. They also need to know your hours of operation and maybe a list of things that you offer. Advertising can be as expensive or inexpensive as you make it. It can be as simple as a website or social media page, or as difficult as hiring an advertising agency to do it for you. Whatever you choose, depending on what you’re able to afford, you need advertising. And it should be monitored regularly in order for you to know who wants your services. Don’t short yourself and miss your potential business. Invest in your business and get the recognition that you deserve. Or don’t. It’s your business.

What drives you? What keeps you going when your efforts seem impossible? Do you talk with friends or family about your struggling goals? Do you listen to the successes of others or read their stories of success? Do you throw in the towel and except failure? Do you tell yourself that you can make it, and that you just have to try harder? These are some of the things that others have shared with me and now I’ve shared them with you. There will be times of struggle. There will be discouraging moments, but you don’t have to give up. Be encouraged. Look at what you’ve been doing up to this point and tell yourself that you’re going to make it. Nothing worth having ever comes easy.

I’m gonna make a list of how you can get the most out of your studio time with me.

1. Come 15min. early so that you get all of the time you booked. If you come late, you’re still going to get the time scheduled and charged the same agreed price, so don’t be late. If it’s my fault, I’ll add makeup time at no additional charge.
2. Come prepared. Nothing eats up time more than having to get organized when you should be recording. Practice should be done on your personal time, not on your recording time.
3. If you know, let me know what you’re wanting before you come to record, that way I’ll already have everything set up when you come.
4. Don’t bring any distractions with you, ie.., friends that are not involved in the recording or girlfriends that want your attention while you’re recording. If you want them around that’s fine, but just know that any distractions can slow the recording process for you. I don’t mind the company, I just want you to have an enjoyable experience.
5. Get your head right before coming into the studio. I don’t know what gets you motivated, and it’s not my business, but I do record different genres of music, and I don’t want to offend any of my other clients. Let’s give them respect, too.
6. If you complete your recording ahead of time, then you may use the remaining time for editing, if it’ enough time. The less time you spend on takes leads to extra time for other needs. My job is to give you the best experience in my studio, with 100% professionalism.

If you are not completely satisfied, I give a 50% discount or book you for another session if that is what you prefer.  My ambition is to serve you, not beat you out of your money.

It’s more than a recording: It’s your story.

Music production is songwriting, arranging, tracking, editing, mixing, and mastering. Songwriting comes from a story, experience, or situations that have been inspired and written in the form of a note, poem, or book. Many songwriters tell a story that they feel people want to hear about. Some explain a narrative of history, dreams or adventures. After the song or story has been composed, the arrangement on how the song is presented comes in to play. Arranging a song deals with what makes a song interesting. What instruments are to be used, and the texture of how they are introduced in the song. Also, you don’t want the format to be repetitious. That makes the song boring, and nobody will stay interested in your story. After agreeing on the arrangement, the tracking process begins. For me, this is the fun part, because you get to use the equipment to work your magic. You get to use a selection of mics that will define the instruments and or vocals being recorded. The goal is to capture the performance of the song and place them on tracks, and sometimes it may take several takes to get the best ones. Remember, it’s your story, and you want it told right. You then move to the editing phase of the project. Which actually can begin along with the tracking phase. In doing this, you save time having to clean up most mistakes made in recording. This is not set in stone because you should work with what works for you. And you don’t want to overdo this process, because you can end up destroying the song completely. Now, you want the song commercial ready, and this happens in the mastering process. You want everyone to enjoy your work being played on any device that they use for listening. Whether it’s a phone, in a car, or on a home entertainment station. Mastering prepares your creation to be heard with clarity and quality, and that’s what you’re wanting everyone to experience. So, the process may take some time to complete, but it’s worth every cent. On a side note, make sure you have a good producer who can relay to the engineer(s) what you are going for.

I don’t think it’s fair to ask if most of you remember Silent Movies, so I won’t. But, I do have a question concerning the terminology. Why were they called silent movies, when there was music playing in the background? Silence is the absence of sound. I understand that the movies were created without sound, but no one watched the movies without a musical (sound) accompaniment. Could you imagine watching any of your favorite shows without sound? Try it out for yourselves. Turn off everything in the house that makes noise, and mute the television. Try to watch through at least 15 minutes of the program. I understand that those who are deaf do it all of the time, but that is because they were either born that way or suffered a condition or accident that caused it. What I am saying is that sound is crucial in our lives. Even those who can’t hear would love to hear whatever they are missing. What we do as engineers and producers, is very important to everyone. Not only do they want to hear what’s being said or played, but they expect to hear it in quality. That’s why what we produce is important. We are responsible for intensifying our listeners’ experience. All the music, crashes, explosions, arguments, etc.. Even a whisper is important. Don’t ever think what we do is useless. We matter. We’re necessary. We make a difference.

There’s nothing like good live sound, except for the ambient crowd noise. That’s where studio recording gains it’s popularity. But does it, really? With the constant growing of technology, you can record live music and add as much ambient sounds as you want. And the same goes for studio recording. Just mix in crowd noise to your taste, and voila. So…… which is better? How about you guys comment and let me know. I think it’s going to be interesting. Have a great weekend.