Recording - February 2012 - 49

My friend and recording guru Greg Harvey reminded me of a cool trick that I think is one of the best alternatives to headgear. Have the artist sing in front of the speakers, then record a pass with them in the same position, but not singing. Invert the phase on this track and bounce it with the recorded vocal track to eliminate virtually all the bleed. Also, building an ideal monitor mix for a singer is much different than what would be a final mix. Not only should the blend be inspiring to sing against, but the elements that provide the most accurate pitch and timing references must be highlighted. Panning these instruments may provide some added separation that may be helpful as well. Pay special attention to carving out a nice place where the vocal can sit and won’t compete against other sounds in the mix, otherwise you may be entertaining requests to turn up the vocal track to excessive levels. ...to last a whole life long As if there wasn’t enough pressure, it’s probably not a good idea to highlight that the recording that you’re about to make will most likely outlive you and your singer... but you should keep that in mind. There is a responsibility to capture the definitive version of the song that you’re recording. If a singer’s inexperience threatens the potential lifespan of the

song, you must find creative ways to work around the obstacles. This “magical take” may not happen on the day that you’ve scheduled for vocals, but if you prioritized singing with attitude over technical precision, you can edit and tune problematic sections into a compelling vocal track. I find that playing back your Frankensteined vocal to a beginning singer can act as a guide and inspire a re-singing session that will ultimately yield a better vocal track, naturally. Also, you’ll find that after being left with the task of piecing a problematic vocal together, you’ll intimately know what you should be more focused on the next time you track his or her vocals. Don’t worry that it’s not good enough... Well, you should be... but that can’t be something the singer should be fixated on. In fact, singers should be encouraged to immerse themselves in the subject matter and the vibe of the song. Initially, your judgment over what is good enough should probably be kept to yourself while you’re recording complete end-to-end vocal takes. You can focus on some troublesome areas after you’ve captured these genuinely performed passes. Your time is really limited with singers who are unaccustomed to recording. You may only get five or six usable passes to

edit together into one “super” vocal after the session. Being cognizant of the rise and decline of a singer’s performance is important, so that you don’t burn their voice out before being able to pick up a few punch-ins on areas that may need some dedicated attention. Just sing... It’s easy to get caught up in making gear more important than the very music that you’re trying to improve by acquiring it in the first place. At the most basic level, most songs can be boiled down to a melody and its lyrics. Children don’t need a fully equipped recording studio to express themselves through song, and we can certainly learn something from this innocence. While you still may not feel entirely comfortable with taking in recording advice dispensed from puppets or ’70s-era easy listening lyrics, there is some merit to taking a few steps back and re-thinking the way we approach the most important element of the song. Maybe next time Bobby McFerrin’s “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” can talk us through parallel compression or multiband dynamics? Frank Gryner (gryner@recordingmag.com) is a multi-platinum recording engineer whose time is monopolized by music software development for Jammit.

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Recording - February 2012

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