Get A Better Broadcast, Podcast and Voice-Over Voice

2022.03.26 – 0450 – Considerations For Other Reading Styles   There are of course many styles in between these two extremes of presentation, all with differing levels of some of those variables and more. For example, your style may change depending on some or all of these (and there may be many, many more considerations): ·        The content of the mes...

2022.03.25 – 0449 – The Conversational Style of Reading   The Conversational Style Now the desired sound is someone who is more authentic, relatable, believable and conversational. Consumers don’t want to be told what to buy, but to have the benefits of that item explained to them by someone ‘like me’, a friend or neighbour.   This ‘real read’ style is deemed to be better at building a r...

2022.03.24 – 0448 – The Announcer Style of Reading READING STYLES The Announcer Style The ‘announcer style’ was typically an American format in the 1980s and 90s, scripts read with aggression, projection and stress. The announcer was almost telling you what to buy – in fact sometimes literally shouting at you! It was over the top and cheesy and fake. It’s a style now rarely heard apart from perhap...

2022.03.23 – 0447 – Conversational Contradictions So, let’s take what we have learnt so far to the next level. Some of what follows will enforce what we have looked at before, but other parts may seem a bit contradictory for example, building in hesitations, softening intonations and ignoring punctuations – but that doesn’t mean the previous pages/podcasts have been a waste of time. Far from it! Y...

2022.03.22 – 0446 – Sounding Conversational - Introduction   Kids rarely say “can you read out loud to me?” they say “can you tell me a story…? ” And that’s what this section is all about: sounding natural when you’re reading a story. Ideally listeners should not notice you, but just the material – it should appear that there is no presenter, with the audience almost absorbing the message wit...

2022.03.21 – 0445 – Expression Conclusion Gestures will enhance your vocal presentation. They help you focus on the person you’re communicating with and the sense of the story, to concentrate on truly understanding and ‘living’ the message you are delivering rather than simply reading the words. And the audience hears the result of the gestures in your voice, through the resulting intonation and a...

2022.03.20 – 0444 – Choosing The Right Gesture If you are nervous (and there’s more on overcoming stress, later), it may be that you suffer from ‘expression suppression’: the life drains from your presentation and you become stiff and starchy. It’s the last bit of the ‘fight, flight or freeze’ trio of possible automatic physiological responses to a threatening event. You’re not going to ‘fight’ th...

2022.03.19 – 0443 – The Nodding Dog Syndrome Some people get into the habit of ‘self-conducting’ while they are talking, especially when reading from a script. They nod along to the rhythm of the words, or when they ‘highlight’ or ‘lift’ a word’s intonation. That’s not so bad if you are presenting audio (indeed it can help create the rhythm of the read), but on video it can look rather unusual and...

2022.03.18 – 0442 – Expression Suppression Sometimes you may need to sit on your hands and suppress the pressure to gesture. For example, if a newsreader, if it’s a sensitive or emotional story you may benefit from having your whole body ‘small’ and still.   Genuine gestures only Be you – don’t just use someone else’s gesture because you think it looked good. It has to fit with your personali...

2022.03.17 – 0441 – Signature Gestures   What to Remember When You Gesture  Mind your mannerisms When does your ‘signature gesture’ cross from being a trademark (such as, for UK listeners, the Anne Robinson wink [1] , the Huw Edwards pose [2] , or Magnus Pike’s ‘windmill arms’ [3] ) to being irritating, a distraction or a self-parody? When will viewers cheer or jeer what you do, could th...

2022.03.16 – 0440 – Thaw Your Frozen Face   The most communicative voices have active facial language. The voice from a poker face – one that looks like a ventriloquist’s dummy, with no life in the eyes, brow or mouth - sounds mechanical bored and disengaged. You need to thaw them out! Don’t read with a blank face, but animate it. This may be tiring at first but find a balance.  Hosted o...

2022.03.15 – 0439 – More Advantages of Gestures   More advantages of gestures Gestures affect your energy, help lower your tension and raise your resonance On video people will see your energy – it’s obvious, you will be animated. And using energy will releasing happy hormones into your body, affecting how you feel and sound.   Smiling and moving will help release tension, rather than ha...

2022.03.14 – 0438 – Gestures In Voice Acting Voice-over is acting, it’s not just about ‘reading out loud’.   Getting your whole body involved will help you develop your character: a ‘little old lady’ voice will be easier and more authentic if you ‘become small’, maybe hunched over, pulling your clothes near you to keep out the cold. But it’s not just humans. The ‘voice’ of a steam train will...

2022.03.13 – 0437 – Eye Contact For Video And Stage Performers Eye contact for video and stage performers OK this isn’t about the voice per se but let’s just spend a short time looking at this closely associated topic.   When you speak, involve your listeners with your eyes: it’s natural, personal and conversational and helps create a bond with them.   That’s easy of course if it’s a one...

2022.03.12 – 0436 – Gestures For TV and Video Presentations Expressions on Televisions - Gestures on TV and Video TV video work can be a bit different. With audio production (either radio or voice over work) you can make many and large gestures to help your vocal presentation, partly to give life to your words.   TV is more intimate. Gestures are small and your delivery is more conversational...

2022.03.11 – 0435 – ‘Verbal’ Gestures Verbal gestures – ones which enhance what you are saying or replace what you’re thinking, maybe: ·        Moving hands in front of you from one side… and then another – indicates comparisons (that while A was happening here, B was happening there) ·        Closed fists being put on...

2022.03.10 – 0434 – ‘Leading’ and ‘Ideas’ Gestures Different types of gestures When you are speaking with an audience face to face you employ any of these types of gestures to help you influence them. So even if they are not there in front of you, you may still want to use them: [1] Leading gestures – show people what you want them to do, such as: ·        P...

2022.03.09 – 0433 – Adopting Authentic Gestures   So, gestures along with the words we choose and the way we deliver those words (for example a timid or a robust voice) helps in communication – the message we are delivering and the understanding of it and the impact that it has.   In most of the situations that we are looking at here, radio/podcast/video and stage delivery, we want to be...

2022.03.08 – 0432 – Your Lesson In Physical Expression For Better Verbal Connection.   Now this is where we start your lesson in physical expression for better conversation and connection.   Of course, we use gestures all the time: ·        when we are looking for the remote control at home, we may tap one palm with a finger of the other hand as th...

2022.03.07 – 0431 – Face-To-Face Gestures When Talking Face-To-Mic   The ‘father of modern public speaking’ Dale Carnegie, wrote, “ A person under the influence of his feelings projects the real self, acting naturally and spontaneously. A speaker who is interested will usually be interesting ”. If you are interested in your subject, believe in what you are saying, and want to share your messa...

2022.03.06 – 0430 – ‘Using Your Hands To Help Your Voice’ Hold on, this is supposed to be all about talking, with your mouth, isn’t it?   Well yes and no. Talking also involves the rest of your body. Certainly, in breathing you use your diaphragm and throat … but talking also involves your hands, your head – in fact a lot of the rest of the body too: posture and gesture go hand in hand (!) to...

2022.03.05 – 0429 – What is A ‘Natural’ and ‘Conversational’ Sound? Now let’s enter a new section in the [1] ‘voyage of the voice’, with more communication skills. So far we’ve looked at how the voice is produced – with a series on breathing - and how words are formed when we spent some time on articulation. Then we examined the various aspects of speaking from intonation to projection, pace, paus...

2022.03.04 – 0428 – The Speed Of The Read – A Summary And that’s the challenge: to maintain clarity and inflection throughout the script. “Sometimes the most powerful sound in stories is a lack of sound, or a pause, or a silence, or a cadence of the way we speak in person that you can't really get when you're reading print. You hear that in your mind, but you don't really know how it's intended to...

2022.03.03 – 0427 – Peter’s PT For Talking To Time   Take some copy which has a required duration indicated on it, and read it aloud like you might in a demo, and with a stopwatch to hand. How many words did you read in 30 seconds? Or how many seconds were you over? Keep practicing until you can sensibly get the copy in the seconds required, several times in a row. Then take another script an...

2022.03.02 – 0426 – Peter’s PT For The Fast Talker   VOCAL YOGA – PETER’S PT for the fast-talker Here’s one of those infamous ‘Terms and Conditions’ statements you often hear at the end of ads. Can you clearly communicate this script at speed and at ease?   “Representative example cash price 13-4,2,0. Deposit 4,8-9,9-41 Credit amount 8,5,2,0-59 36 months optional final payment 6,2,3,7-67...