Get A Better Broadcast, Podcast and Voice-Over Voice

2022.01.11 – S2011 – 0376 - The Script’s Too Long Or The Time’s Too Short In a commercial voice-over situation, the duration of the piece is of the essence. If the spot has to be a certain length (to fit with the pictures, or because that’s the duration that has been bought, or it’s the duration of all commercials on that network so all breaks are balanced on different transmitters), then that is...

2022.01.10 – S2010 – 0375 - Why You May Talk Fast ·        Fast-talking may be from how you were brought up. Perhaps you had several siblings and in a busy home you had to take any gap in a conversation to blurt out your contribution as fast as possible, and then keep talking to keep attention and ‘hold the floor’ ·       &...

2022.01.09 – S2009 – 0374 - Extremes Of Speed: The Faster Read   EXTREMES OF SPEED - The Faster Read Usually, your listeners won’t have a second chance to process what it is that you have said. There’s no easy ‘rewind’ button on live radio or video and certainly not in an auditorium presentation. When speaking face to face, we can change our pace in response to the feedback we get and our fee...

2022.01.08 – S2008 – 0373 - Changing speed within a story Changing speed within a story On occasion you may change the speed within a paragraph or a story: starting slowly because of the content which is new, important and serious:   ‘Multiple fatalities this morning, as a bus carrying commuters into the city, left the road and mounted a pavement in Stockbridge…’   And then, when giving...

2022.01.07 – S2007 – 0372 - When You May Change Your Reading Rate For example, a weather script on a sunny summer’s day may be quite rushed – listeners are expecting it to be blue sky and high temperatures. But tell them about a forthcoming storm and your speed will slow (and your tone will also change) to reflect the severity of the situation. A lighter story can be read more quickly than a serio...

2022.01.06 – S2006 – 0371 - Changing Your Reading Rate Changing Your Reading Rate If you speak too slowly an audience may lose interest; if you speak too quickly, they may lose the thread of what you are saying. If you keep up the same pace throughout you may sound like a wall of sound – or a smartspeaker A.I device with a monotonous pace and style of delivery.   It’s important therefore to c...

2022.01.05 – S2005 – 0370 - The Average Read Rate The Average Reading Rate This is one which is comfortable for the reader, clear to the listener, and which suits the style of the content. For example, on a radio station that could be anywhere between 140 and 220 words per minute, depending on whether it’s a music station or a news station.   The standard calculations are: ·   ...

2022.01.04 – S2004 – 0369 - Your Natural ‘Read Rate’ YOUR NATURAL READ-RATE There is no ‘correct’ speed to read. It is likely to be determined by: ·        the amount you have to say ·        the time that you have got to say it in ·        the content of the script and · &n...

2022.01.03 – S2003 - 0368 – The Speed of the Read With voice skills I often think of one of the last scenes of the classic film “ The Wizard of Oz, ” when Toto pulls away the curtain to show the Wizard pulling various levers, spinning dials and cranking handles. Reading aloud or presenting, also involves changing (albeit with more finesse and care) so many different ‘settings’: your pitch, tone, p...

2022.01.02 - S2/002 - The Speed of the Read - Introduction A new year and a new topic to get your teeth in to. Today, an overview of the skills in reading fast and slow, and everything in between - including dead slow or stop: the pause! Audio recording script and show notes (c) 2021, 2022 Peter Stewart Through these around-5-minute episodes, you can build your confidence and competence with advic...

2022.01.01 – S2001 – A Look Ahead To Season 2 Audio recording script and show notes (c) 2021, 2022 Peter Stewart Through these around-5-minute episodes, you can build your confidence and competence with advice on breathing and reading, inflection and projection, the roles played by better scripting and better sitting, mic techniques and voice care tips... with exercises and anecdotes from a career...

In which I look back at the voice topics covered in Season 1 of the unique, daily podcast series. Audio recording script and show notes (c) 2021 Peter Stewart Through these around-5-minute episodes, you can build your confidence and competence with advice on breathing and reading, inflection and projection, the roles played by better scripting and better sitting, mic techniques and voice care tips...

The last of three bonus episodes in which I’m joined by a fellow broadcaster and voice over artist ANTHONY DAVIS with his own insight and perspective on voice and presentation skills.   Anthony is a British broadcaster, writer and voiceover artist, born in London and now based in LA, he’s worked on radio and TV shows, in news and presentation, and has voiced campaigns and commercials, documen...

Over three bonus episodes I’m joined by a fellow broadcaster and voice over artist ANTHONY DAVIS with his own insight and perspective on voice and presentation skills.   Anthony is a British broadcaster, writer and voiceover artist, born in London and now based in LA, he’s worked on radio and TV shows, in news and presentation, and has voiced campaigns and commercials, documentaries and live...

Over the next three bonus episodes I’m joined by a fellow broadcaster and voice over artist ANTHONY DAVIS with his own insight and perspective on voice and presentation skills.   Anthony is a British broadcaster, writer and voiceover artist, born in London and now based in LA, he’s worked on radio and TV shows, in news and presentation, and has voiced campaigns and commercials, documentaries...

2021.12.27 – 0361 – Projection Through A Mask As I write this, the world is still mid-pandemic, and even though the use of masks has declined somewhat it’s a chance to write some notes on what we have learnt since early 2020. Wearing a mask: ·        it is harder to be heard, which can lead to a strained voice o  so, you need to be clearer with you...

2021.12.26 – 0360 – Volume and Your Vocal Strength A loud voice, when it is necessary, comes from having a good foundation in ‘vocal strength’, and as we saw earlier, the foundations of that come from things like good breath support, how you sit and stand, and relaxation. It’s a bit like a family car and a supercar: they can both do 50mph but the supercar will do it more easily and comfortably wit...

2021.12.25 – 0359 – Volume, Mics and Processing Studio work is different from stage work: as we have already discussed you usually don’t need to be projecting your voice or raising it beyond the level of a normal animated conversation with someone sitting close to you. That is, a level that if someone was siting almost touching you, they’d neither lean in to catch what you were saying, nor move aw...

2021.12.24 – 0358 – Volume In Character A certain volume or projection may be part of a character you play – perhaps in an animation, video game, commercial, voiceover or book reading. You need to be able to recall the vocal characteristics of that character so they sound the same page after page, or (hopefully) booking after booking. You can make notes describing the level but that can be a trick...

2021.12.23 – 0357 – Volume Variety One of the most important tools to use to engage and persuade is a variety of voice volume - there is a huge power in dropping or raising your voice. To read every story with the same projection level is wearing on your voice and on the listeners’ ears and is not conducive to understanding. Information as a wall of sound is less-easily interpreted than ‘light and...

2021.12.22 – 0356 – Getting A Louder Voice  This obviously depends on which of the above issues (or others) is the cause but here are a few pointers: For (suspected) physical reasons – consult your family doctor or GP in the first instance about issues to do with breathing, and talk with them about a possible referral to an ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) specialist, or a speech therapist. For con...

2021.12.21 – 0355 – Reasons Why Some People Talk More Softly There may be physical, psychological and social reasons someone speaks softly. Physical: ·        Weakness in their vocal cords or breathing problems ·        Nerves can lead to a feeling that your vocal cords are ‘closing down’ – we looked at this previously...

2021.12.20 – 0354 - Voice Extremes: The Softer Voice The softer you sing, the louder you're heard Donovan , musician, ‘Rolling Stone’ magazine (9th November 1967)  We saw some elements about a quieter voice earlier, when we looked at the situations in which we used different volumes, and compared ‘loud’ with ‘soft’.   The advantages of the ‘soft sound’: ·     &nb...

2021.12.19 – 0353 – Screaming And Shouting – Part 2   Remember that screaming and shouting isn’t necessarily about sheer volume. A similar affect may be achieved perhaps by a shaking voice and a whimper, an “ urgh ” or exclamation may replace a ‘ level eleven ’ guttural shout. And even if you are specifically screaming or shouting, the microphone itself can do a lot of your work for you. Afte...

2021.12.18 – 0352 – Screaming And Shouting – Part 1 Screaming and shouting It may be that a script, say in an animation, calls for you to scream – the epitome of projection. This can potentially cause damage to your folds if you don’t prepare correctly, and could limit your work for the next few hours, days or longer.   ‘Hydration before violent projection’ is part of the answer. Wet folds ar...