Karaoke Forums

ur links not working for me steven sorry

reposted Billy.. Probably hadn't posted to the main site yet.


Easy- redo-repost
http://www.ksolo.com/actions/showSongPr ... uid=391398

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

Singer:   Cletus Smith

Song:    Third Rate Romance

Artist:   Sammy Kershaw

Style:  Country

 This was an attempt at something new.  Using a different microphone as well.  Shure 565 older dynamic microphone.  Since I don't have a clue how to do this style.  it's fair game for mass scrutinization.. "I'll even say I'll can it if you want me too"

http://www.ksolo.com/actions/showSongPr ... uid=391398

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

steven i'll have to wait till u get cep going, it's not really that hard a program just to get started...nothing fancy...a few min ur ready to go....but the way ur recording now it's hard to tell anything....not sure if it's effects r ur recording r ur voice....hard to tell....but i agree u did sing out a lot more...if u sing a song just for fun if u learn something then ur ahead....

steven, i'm not much for critiquing but i guess i can let you know what i thot about it...i think you're coming along with each song you sing....on this one it sounded like you let loose a lot more and it sounded like you were having fun, which meant that i had fun listening to it...to me your pitch sounds very good and i really liked how you sang the 'talky parts'.....sounded very natural....i really enjoyed the song....

get rid of those effects!  feels good saying that to the guy that's always getting on to me for MY reverb.....ha!  

,  Thanks Milo.  I will get rid of that phase shifting I used.  I'm using a different microphone too.  This one seems to be a higher output.    I need to figure out Adobe Audition now..  Billy,  I need to figure out how to load songs in mu Document-Music program into Audition.

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

Steven, from what I could hear on your recording of Easy, your upper range is getting higher and stronger. When you are singing your vocal are you singing the words by memory or are you following the words on the screen? Sometimes your phrasing is a little bit choppy as if you're closely following the words on the screen.
This was overall a big improvement though compared to your very early efforts.

Please explain to me how recording a song with Ksolo works.  Do you first download their music track to your own computer or do you simply upload your vocal to Ksolo as you're playing their song file online?

Thanks Don.  I'm pretty "unsure" and anxious when I sing just about everything still, and as you stated, I totally agree that my songs are choppy, and not "flowing". My higher range has always been very strong when I haven't held back, when confident I have a VERY strong falsetto range, however, I don't really know how to use it, what I should do with it in terms of tweaking it..  Prior to recently ALL I had was a falsetto range in fact.  K-Solo is a site with songs on a menu by Artist, Song Title, Song Genre.  You pick your song, and it shows up on a screen as any monitor would display Karaoke,  It's a standard Karaoke format you sing ON that site, you can't (to my knowledge) download, save, edit, tweak parts, etc..  It's a one take site.. IOW, if you mess up a song, you can erase it,  or do the whole song over.  No partial editing.. You sing live as you would in a bar... and you can post it.

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

Steven, at the risk of sounding overly simple, I think your confidence will build more as you put in more hours singing. And I'm thinking your abilities will increase with your confidence level.  You've naturally "got the ear" already.  That's half of it right there I think. I wouldn't worry a lot about more advanced issues of singing quite yet. Get to a point of feeling comfortable and more confident with the basics like pitch, timing, feeling, breathing and volume.  That's my two cents worth based on my limited knowledge of proper singing.

Also FYI, Adobe Audition probably won't do you any good for recording songs for Ksolo. Since you stated the vocal is recorded straight to the Ksolo sight with no multitrack recording allowed, you'll have to rely on a good mixer with built in effects or use an external effects unit like your Zoom unit. Adobe will be great if you ever decide to sub songs on SS, E-snips or many other places because you have to upload your own recorded, mixed down MP3 files to the sites.

This is a tough song Kappy.....I'm not the best at wording what I feel needs to be improved, but I really think you relied too much on your falsetto to reach the higher notes. The only parts in the song where falsetto is utilized is the "whooooo" parts before the chorus...When you try to use the falsetto stuff where it should be a belt it sounds a little weak and breathy. It's also very apparent that your making a huge effort to keep yourself on pitch as opposed to really feeling the song and singing it from your heart. Sure, pitch is very important, but I feel emotion is even more important....so i'd suggest trying to breathe a little more life into it as opposed to being overcome with keeping yourself on pitch, it just makes the song sound mechanical....i'm gonna listen again and see if I can add anything.......

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Satisfaction is the death of desire

Agreed 100% Nathan !   Thanks so much !   While singing,  if I ask myself what it is motivating me I'd have to honestly say "getting the song over with without making a total fool of myself".  So the "Fear" really is noticeably showing, and that's really good to know.  

Many have told me that it can be noticed that while I'm trying to "do the song", *I'M* not "getting into it", or investing myself.



Thank you !

I'm going to listen to the original Lionel Richie song now.  I should've done this before attempting it !

Much appreciated, and very astute observations..

Do you think if I listen more carefully to the song and the composers technique, and assuming at that point I still feel I should attempt the song, by singing it more confidently the "putting more heart into it" will come ?  Or is that more of an emotional aspect that's apart from just confidence  ?   Are confidence and projection of feeling in this case two different areas?  I'm trying to figure out if I need to project myself more, and that will bring with it confidence and feeling or if that will just come when I allow myself to be apart of the song..

Is it common for people starting out singing to fear "putting their heart into it" for fear of exposing themselves and making a fool of themselves ?

What I'm finding amazing about singing, is that I really CAN'T hide behind anything, and get away with it !  It shows.


Thanks again.

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

This critique thread is for EVERYBODY wishing for a Critique to participate in. Doesn't anybody else want a critique ?

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

Well you have to get over the jitters......that would be the first step....Just think, noone here is going to be coming over to your house for whiskey shots later, one click of the X and were all gone, so there is nothing to be embarrased or nervous about, it actually makes for an ideal learning environment I would say. I can't really explain to you how to sing from your heart, it's just something that I think will come to you. Try to read the lyrics and really get into the story behind them, singing is not much different from acting really, your telling a story.

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Satisfaction is the death of desire

Kappy...Go listen to okwhatnow's "sweet memories"...it is a perfect example of what i'm talking about, you can literally feel the pain and longing in his voice, I think in any form of popular music this is what is most important, many famous singers have gotten by with mediocre voices...Tom Petty, Mick Jagger, and of course Dylan to name a few.....

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Satisfaction is the death of desire

Thanks Nathan !  Much appreciated.

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

I wanted to give this some thought.



I suppose a means I might be able to use to stop getting down on my own timbre,  tonal characterists etc, is realizing that "preference" in singers of any style, or perhaps why we deem one vocal quality more suitable than another quality for specific genres is just something that evolves in the listener. It's just conditioned preference that evolves over time..  What starts as new, gravelly, harsh, and often times just plain weird, in time evolves from what is retrospectively considered "innovative",  and over time the listener becomes conditioned or "used to" a style that becomes preference or "good".

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

Artist:    Me

Genre:   Holiday Traditional  

Song:  "Oh Holy Fright"

Artist:  God only knows...


Just figured I'd leave rock all together and join the Mormom Tabernacle Choir.


http://www.ksolo.com/actions/showSongPr ... uid=391398

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".

O Holy Night

Kappy, darling....this is said with love....please take it as such....SING OUT LOUISE!

The thing is, on this piece - which I know very well - I hear a lot of potential in your voice...WHEN I can HEAR it.  It's very difficult to give an accurate critique when I simply can't hear what I am critiqueing.

My general impressions are this:  you are holding WAY back...because you are afraid of what you are trying to sing?  I think this is causing you more problems then what would happen if you just SANG.  I get the sense that you just aren't sure where you should be going with this.  You sound nervous.  The first verse actually started out fairly well.  The tone of your voice is working for this song.  You sound very much like you just aren't supporting it.  There are pitch issues which could most likely be solved simply with better breath support.  RELAX.  You sound tense...so you get to those higher notes and just kind of choke on them rather than letting them fly.

You also attack the louder/more powerful parts....just kind of out of nowhere.  

When I listen to this...I see you in my head kind of standing with your shoulders hunched and collapsed in on yourself a bit with your head lifted up, and your shoulders pulling up to your ears.  I'm sure this isn't how you're standing, just the visual I get from the sound.

Really focus on your breathing, how you are standing...think about where you NEED to take a breath, and don't let all your air just come out.  Control it.  

Maybe do get away from the rock a little and work on some traditional things.  With the rock, you have a very preconceived idea of what you should sound like.  In trying to achieve that  sound, you may be ignoring some technique things.  If you are working on a traditional piece, you're not as likely to expect to hear a certain thing in your voice.  Pick one song  maybe even this one - and work it TO DEATH.  Get completely comfortable with it.  

Mix yourself better - even bringing your voice a little above the music.  I know why you don't, and I understand, but it's difficult to offer advice when I'm really not sure I'm hearing things accurately.

Hope this helps!

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"I hold the key to an open door....will I ever be free...?"

Thanks Operakitty.  I'll redo this today or tomorrow and keep in mind what you've told me, thanks again..  Is it possible my soft timbre makes it difficult to "Cut" or should this really be projected even if my timbre is soft ???



True,  should I build to the crescendo ?   parts such as "Oh Night",  "Oh Holy Night", not sure how much forte to put into that part, and how dynamics should be used

On the notes that build to the crescendo "Night",   "Devine"  should I sustain the notes with no vibrato, or try to add some vibrato ?

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Northeast United States runner up for the "Singing Hall of Shame".