20 TUTORIAL 5 By Donovan Leon from DCL Studios
PROFESSIONAL VOCAL PRODUCTION PART 1 e are back with yet another interesting tutorial for you to sink your creative teeth into. This time I want to touch on getting the current pure, clean, in-your-face vocal sound that is very popular in top productions right now. In this three part tutorial I’m going to take you through: Microphones, the proximity effect, recording chains, vocal thickening, comping vocals and tracking them, the good and the bad of using effects after and before, stereo space, tuning your vocal, vocal dynamics and even vocal glitching. We will be starting outside of our DAW and then follow the signal along right into our audio interface and into our DAW where our magic happens, but it’s vitally important to get the outside right so that we have less to worry about in the DAW later on. So let’s get started.
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THE VOCALIST The singer has a critical part to play in music and in the delivery of the message behind the actual song, that’s why it’s so important to make sure everything we do or capture with the vocals is done with care. The character of the vocal is what shapes and defines an outstanding song. The ability for a singer to sing really well is what connects and captures the listener and is vitally important as they tell the story. So in a studio environment the singer needs to feel comfortable and come prepared with what they have to sing. Singing from a note pad can cause the singer to focus more on reading than actual singing so it’s best that the singer is well prepared and has all the lyrics memorized so that they are in no way inhibited when they want to do something out of the ordinary. It’s our job as a producer/engineer to capture the best possible vocal recording during a session, so a well prepared and comfortable singer is essential.
MICROPHONES The microphone is at the front end of our vocalist and is designed to capture the audio through vibrations and convert these vibrations into an invisible audio signal which then travels along our cable and into our sound interface. Choosing the right mic is very important since different mics tend to add different colours and tones to a captured sound. Also bear in mind that every singer sings differently and has a different tone to their voice, so choosing the right mic for the vocalist [as well as preamp] is essential. This will require a bit of experimentation to get right. Another look at microphones is their polar patterns. These allow you to pick up audio in different ways around the microphone. These mics generally require 48v phantom power to run, unlike the dynamic mic (stage mic), which most audio interfaces or mixing desks have onboard. The vocal Cardiod microphone’s polar pattern is designed to pick up what’s in front of the mic so this is perfect for vocals and many more instruments as well. Whether the mic is tube or solid state is up to you and your budget; a tube mic (generally preferred in top studios and usually costlier) adds a bit of harmonic distortion to the sound which colours it and makes it sound really pleasant especially at higher frequencies. For an example take a listen to Rhianna’s voice at a higher frequency. You’ll hear it on almost all her songs. A word on USB MICS - A USB microphone captures the vibration and converts it into data via A/D converters. I personally don’t recommend recording a serious take with USB mics as their converters aren’t that great when compared to standard audio interfaces. It might also be a bit limiting when it comes to volume and monitor control. USB mics are great for recording ideas and podcasting though!
BASIC TRACKING (RECORDING PROCESS) Recording your vocalist is not just about hitting the record button and hoping for the best. There is a lot to take into consideration. For example do we want our vocalist to sound heavy on the bass side or thin and tinny? By making the singer stand closer we get a lower frequency tone and vice versa; by having the vocalist stand further away we get a thinner sound - this is known as ‘the proximity effect’. I also recommend recording with a pop filter (windscreen) as this will help eliminate those unwanted gusts of air produced by explosive consonants i.e., “P’s”, “B’s” and also “T’s”. Some engineers will be familiar with a term called ‘riding gain.’ This is used when we have a really hard dynamic vocal to control; look at it as a human compressor where we act as the compressor and turn down or increase volume while in the recording process. Have the singer drink something soothing for their vocal cords to help them before a session as well as to make them feel comfortable. You want the best recording possible out of them. During the tracking process you should also listen for pitching errors and timing mistakes as this can help you save time rather than having to fix it later on. The rule is to always get things right in the recording process rather than trying to fix it later. Another good tip (and another reason why USB mics aren’t that suitable) is to feed a small amount of reverb into the vocalist’s headphone monitoring. Reverb enriches the vocal delivery and if the vocalist sounds good to him/herself, they are more likely to deliver that uninhibited performance you are after. Note though that the actual recording must still be dry, just the headphone monitor should have this reverb.