back up vocals

[paresh]

Hi - I'm starting to work w back up vocals (just me singing one or more harmony parts to my own lead vocal), and I haven't hit on any mixing/processing combination that I like yet. I've tried chorus, doubling the track wet/dry or reverb/slapback delay...Still experimenting. Anyone want to share a favorite trick to make back up vocals sound good? (I'm just using an entry-level audio sequencer - Cakewalk GT Pro). Thanks.

 

[Chris Tondreau]

Record lots of layers. Keep going.... sick of it yet? Good! Keep going.... Wanna slit your wrists yet? Perfect.... a couple more layers should do it. Make sure they're perfectly in tune and perfectly in time.

Now compress the crap out of each and every one.

Try that.

Chris

 

[tmix]

Lose the Low End

On background vocals, unless you want that Barber Shop Quartet sound lose the lows. I usually dump everything around 300-350 hz and then compress them a fair amount. It makes them sit in the mix better and wont fight with the main vocal.

 

[mstudio1224@aol.com]

If you dont know HARMONIES, no stacking in the world will help you.


TENOR, SEPRANO, BASS, and so on

If your not sure of your range, try singing the MAIN PHRASE FIRST
LOUD AND CLEAR, then back that up with a slightly different one, then on the 3rd voice, LISTEN, -----and figure out a --DIFFERENT--voice that FITS within those 2, ((more than likely a seprano part))
(that's the voice that sounds ODD when sung by itself, but within 2 accenting voices, when played back, it'll be like CHYEAH BABY)


Try it, if it sounds right keep going to your liking, if not,

sing the HOOK/CHORUS the same way 3 times, then change your voice, and then sing it 3 times again (differently)

Pan the first 3 right, left, middle then the second set
Pan them right, left, middle ---- this should give you a lil somthing

 

[Chris Tondreau]

Good advice, overall, mstudio. If you don't know WHAT to sing, then you can't present it. A little knowledge can go a long way. If you brush up on your theory, you can save yourself some time too. For instance, if you need to harmonize against a D note being sung over a G chord, then a good bet might be to sing a B... that sort of thing.

Just a point of technicality, though.... soprano refers specifically and exclusively to a high FEMALE voice.... not just a high voice. (unless you want to count boy sopranos.... but that's another ball of wax...) A male with a high voice is considered tenor of some description (lyric, etc.), no matter how high he sings.

Chris

 

[mstudio1224@aol.com]

Chris Tondreau

True on the part of Soprano being in high female voice
and the male counterpart of that would be Tenor.

Let's hope I didnt confuse him too much, and hopes he goes to TENOR