Get A Better Broadcast, Podcast and Voice-Over Voice

Peter Stewart
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Get A Better Broadcast, Podcast and Voice-Over Voice Podcast

Year THREE of short daily episodes to improve the quality of your speaking voice. 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 spent in TV and radio studios. If you're wondering about how to start a podcast, or have had one for a while - download every episode! And as themes develop over the weeks (that is, they are not random topics day-by-day), this is a free, course to help you GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VOICE OVER VOICE. Look out for more details of the book during 2024. Contacts: https://linktr.ee/Peter_Stewart Audio recording script and show notes (c) 2021, 2022, 2023 Peter Stewart Peter has been around voice and audio all his working life and has trained hundreds of broadcasters in all styles of radio from pop music stations such as Capital FM and BBC Radio 1, the classical music station BBC Radio 3 and regional BBC stations. He’s trained news presenters on regional TV, the BBC News Channel and on flagship programmes such as the BBC’s Panorama.  He has written a number of books on audio and video presentation and production (see contacts clink above) and presented hundreds of radio shows (you may have heard him on BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 4, Virgin Radio or Kiss, as well as BBC regional radio) with various formats. He has read tens of thousands of news bulletins and hosted 3,000+ podcast episodes. The podcast title refers to those who may wish to change their speaking voice in some way. It is not a suggestion that anyone should, or be pressured into needing to. We love accents and dialects, and are well aware that how we speak changes over time. The key is: is your voice successfully communicating your message, so it is being understood (and potentially being acted upon) by your target audience? This podcast is London-based and examples are spoken in the RP (Received Pronunciation) / standard-English / BBC English pronunciation, although invariably applicable to other languages, accents and dialects. The 'Peter Stewart' show is perhaps of great interest to those in broadcast voice overs, the broadcast voice, how to start a voice podcast, broadcasting voice training, your speaking voice, breathing technique, and conversational speaking. You may also find it useful if you are searching for information on voice coaching, voice training, voice overs, podcasting, broadcasting, presenting, being a voice over actor and newsreading, audio branding, public speaking, the recorded voice, vocal tips, performance, vocal health education, vocal technique and voice over training. Music credits: all Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license  "Beauty Flow" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5025-beauty-flow Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. 26/09/2023

    1000 - The End

    2023.09.27 - 1000 - The End Thanks for the loan of your ears, for one-thousand consecutive daily episodes. All of my contacts are here: https://linktr.ee/Peter_Stewart Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    5 min

  2. 25/09/2023

    0999 – The Diction-ary of Voice – V and W

    2023.09.26 – 0999 – The Diction-ary of Voice – V and W **V Verbal tic – the repeated use of words or phrases such as “like” or “y’know what I mean?” Velum – the soft palate at the back of the roof of the mouth. The back of your tongue touches the velum when pronouncing letters such as ‘k’. Vocal elements – the various ways (such as inflection, pause, pace and phrasing) that one can make the spoken word more engaging he techniques for making a voice interesting and effective Vocal fold – located in the larynx, a multi-layered fold of tissue that vibrates to produce sound when air passes over them Vocal loading – the amount of impact of the stresses and strains on the vocal folds from talking or singing. The loading can be affected by the amount, volume or the tone of the sound, and also by the speaker’s levels of stress or tension Voice actor – different from a ‘voice over’, who tends to be an ‘anonymous voice’, an actor will appear in audio dramas, audio books, computer games and so on, where they are reading the lines to be spoken by a character in a specific situation Voice guide – a director in a recording situation who will read a script, perhaps line-by-line, for the ‘voice talent’ to repeat ‘parrot fashion’, and mimic the cadence. Usually used when the actor is inexperienced in script reading, but has a great voice or high-profile name that is wanted for publicity reasons. A voice guide may also be the temporary voice-over track, recorded so video editors can choose shots and time their cuts to which the ‘professional’ voice talent can talk to later Voice of God (or ‘VoG’) - loud and large, stentorious and dramatic reads, reminiscent of 1950s (American) radio announcers, and often heard at sports and showbiz events Voice over – the reading of a scrip, or narration over a video Voice quality – one’s personal vocal attributes and characteristics Volume - the loudness of a voice Vowel - speech sounds of a, e, i, o, and u   **W Watermark – or more accurately, an audio watermark. This is a snippet of sound (such as a tone or ‘beep’) used to protect your recording, sample or audition. The sound briefly overlaps with your voice at points during the recording say veery few seconds, or over the brand name. This protects your audio from being misused for example, without payment Whisper phonation – the proper term for when you are whispering Windpipe – the trachea. Windscreen – the covering over or in front of a microphone to eliminate unwanted noises such as that made by plosives Wowing – the changing in pitch of a sound causing distortion Wrap - the end of a recording Wrap — a recorded news or other content feature, of interview clips linked (or ‘wrapped up’) by a presenter or reporter   **X XLR - a type of cable connector, very common on microphones.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    8 min

  3. 24/09/2023

    0998 – The Diction-ary of Voice – T

    2023.09.25 – 0998 – The Diction-ary of Voice – T **T Tag (or ‘slogan’) – the branding phrase at the end of a commercial Take (as in ‘go for a take’) – a recording. Also see ‘pickup’ Take a level (or ‘take a bit for level’) – the instruction given by an audio engineer to a presenter to ask them to say some words so the volume on a mic channel can be checked Talk back – the push-to-talk microphone in a gallery/production area, via which a director / producer will talk to you while in the studio. Tape - recorded audio, almost never on tape Tempo - the rate of speech Thin – a voice which is weak, with a lack of air, energy and resonance. It may be trained to become stronger and fuller with exercises in the areas of posture, relaxation and breath control Thoracic cavity - the area enclosed by the chest Throw – a passing link made from one presenter to another, “And now with the latest weather here’s Susie Celsius” Throwaway (as in ‘a throwaway line/word’) – when a speaker gives little or no emphasis on a word or phrase, reducing its significance Tonal quality – the overall timb re, resonance of a voice Trachea – commonly called the ‘windpipe’, along which flows air from mouth to lungs Track – a layer of recorded audio (or an empty ‘lane’ where recorded audio will sit), which can be adjusted independently of other layers before being mixed (or merged) together in a final mix Transients - very short sounds, such as the beginning of a drum hit TX – used to mean ‘transmission’ **U Unidirectional microphone – one that only picks up sound from a single direction Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    7 min

  4. 23/09/2023

    0997 – The Diction-ary of Voice – S

    2023.09.24 – 0997 – The Diction-ary of Voice – S **S Scratch Track - a temporary recording that is a ‘place-holder’ for the final voice-over. Not ‘broadcast quality’ it is used to help producers feel the pacing and style of a project before a final voice over is added Self op (‘self op studio’) – when the presenter controls their own technical equipment, they are ‘self operating’ Session – the single block of time (say, an hour or a day) spent recording with the voice actor, who is often paid ‘per session’ SFX – short for ‘sound effects’ Shock Mount - a microphone mount that tries to minimize handling noise by using shock absorption Sibilance – excessive ‘s’ sounds (fricatives) while speaking which are prone to becoming unpleasantly loud in audio recording Sing-song delivery - when a speaker’s voice rises and falls in cadence in a predictable ‘nursery rhyme’ type fashion Soft-sell commercial – a script that is read with low volume, low emphasis and in a natural, low-key style S.O.T – ‘sound on tape’, what’s been recorded Sound-alikes – these voice actors are similar to celebrity impersonators, but whereas impersonators usually perform exaggerated and comic impressions of the star, sound-alikes create the vocal tones and mannerisms (style, cadence and inflection) for short retakes or dubs in movies, tv and radio, and commercials. This saves the cost and time implications of getting the original star in the studio to re-record just a few words. Sneak - to slowly fade up or out Speech personality – one’s individual speaking-style Spilling over – a distortion caused by too loud a noise Split-track – audio with different content in the left and right channels, to allows for independent control of levels during production, for example, two guests. Audio must be ‘mixed down’ before it can be broadcast Stand by – the verbal ‘get ready’ direction given just before a programme or recording starts Straight-read commercial – a script presented without flourish or over-emphasis Stroboscopy - an advanced way to view the vocal folds. This usually involves a scope that goes through your mouth to properly identify and define vocal problems Supercardioid - a microphone pick-up pattern that is most sensitive to sounds in front of the microphone, even more so than a cardioid Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    5 min

  5. 22/09/2023

    0996 – The Diction-ary of Voice – R – Part 2

    2023.09.23 – 0996 – The Diction-ary of Voice – R – Part 2 Riding the gain (or ‘riding the mic’ or ‘riding the levels’) – the constant adjustment of the input levels as the sound unexpectedly (and often unprofessionally) varies in volume dramatically Room Tone - the ‘indoor ambience’ or background noise in a room, which should be as close to silent as possible ROT (‘rot’ or ‘R.O.T’) – a recording of what went out on air: Recording Of/Off Transmission Royalty Free Music – music that can be used (with varying restrictions) after paying a one-off fee RP – Received Pronunciation (‘The Queen’s English’, ‘BBC pronunciation’, ‘Standard English’) and English accent without ‘perceived’ regional accent, usually of the type heard in south east England Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    9 min

  6. 21/09/2023

    0995 – The Diction-ary of Voice – R – Part 1

    2023.09.22 – 0995 – The Diction-ary of Voice – R – Part 1 **R Rate – the speed of someone speaking or reading Rate – the amount paid to a voice-over for a day, hour or script Raw audio - unprocessed recorded audio Read (or ‘take’) – a recording of a script (or the ‘copy’) Reaper – a DAW Red-line the meters – to push the audio volume level to the maximum Render – saving and/or converting your audio so others can access it Residuals – payment over and above the initial payment, based on the number of times a commercial is run Resonance – a full-bodied voice (not necessarily a deeper voice), achieved through the sound of one’s voice vibrating in different parts of the body such as the mouth, throat, nose (sinus) and chest areas – collectively known as ‘resonating chambers’ Resonant cavities – the parts of the body which enhance sound and in which resonance develops. Ribbon microphone – the mic type which picks up sound by the use of thin (ribbon-like) metallic elements, suspended between magnets. These vibrate when sound is detected, and converts it into electrical energy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    4 min

  7. 20/09/2023

    0994 – The Diction-ary of Voice – P

    2023.09.21 – 0994 – The Diction-ary of Voice – P   Polyp - usually unilateral (one vocal fold) mass that grows off the surface. Can be hemorrhagic (filled with blood) or not, and’s usually due to voice misuse or overuse.  Pop – when a plosive sound is too close to the mic and causes distortion Pop guard (or ‘pop screen’, ‘pop shield’, ‘pop stopper’) - a fabric, foam or metal shield between the mic and the mouth to help disperse ‘breath blasts’ from plosives and so reduce the likelihood of distorted sound being recorded   Post - the point at which a voice appears, or the start of a sound or part of a sound, for example, a specific drum beat in a ‘bed’: “make sure you hit the post”, that is, stop talking a beat before the drum comes in Post (‘post-production) - the final step in a recording process, including the editing, mixing. “It’s OK, we’ll fix that in post” Predictive eye – the name given to the process of scanning ahead as you read to give prewarning of what's coming up Pre-produce - to mix or record a piece or interview in advance of a live show, perhaps for technical or timing reasons Producer - the producer can have more than one role (much like a director), but usually the one who hires the voice actor and other staff, and liaise with clients and agencies Production master – a final, ready audiobook Production studio – where programmes are recorded rather than go out live Production value – the ‘effort’ (including duration, complexity, and post-production) put into the making of an audio or video show. One lasting an hour with several guests, archive footage, and theme tunes would have ‘high production values’. A single presenter ‘read’ lasting just a few minutes is likely to have a ‘low production value’ Pronunciation - a general term for the way a word is spoken (see: ‘enunciation’, ‘diction’) ProTools - the accepted professional standard for a DAW PSA - Public Service Announcement such as a government or charity appeal PTC – Piece To Camera: style of a video presenter, looking directly at ‘the viewer’ Punch – an energetic reading style Punch and roll - a form of ‘continuous editing’, where you scroll back and record from a convenient break, and then start re-recording where the mistake was made Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    8 min

  8. 19/09/2023

    0993 – The Diction-ary of Voice – P - Part 2

    2023.09.20 – 0993 – The Diction-ary of Voice – P - Part 2   Pharynx – the area between the larynx and the nasal cavities Phonation – the process of making sounds into words, which articulation turns into recognisable speech Phonemes – the different smaller sounds which when combined form a word Phrasing – delivering groups of words within a sentence to enhance meaning Pickup – when you go back to re-record a small section of content, such as a sentence, because of a slip, trip or mispronunciation. A ‘take’ is a longer piece of content. Whereas a Take may be annotated 1, 2, 3 a Pickup will be marked A, B, C, so you may have “Take 21, Pickup C”, which helps the producer keep track of the ‘best bits’. Pickup pattern – the three-dimensional area in which a microphone will best detect sound Pitch - the relative highness or lowness of the register of voice, determined by the frequency of the vibration of sound: the faster the vocal folds vibrate, the higher the pitch that they create. Placement – where you put your tongue in your mouth to create certain word-sounds Playback on smalls – playing back a recording on small sub-optimum speakers to replicate how people will hear the produced version, at home or in the car Plosives - the group of sounds in the English language which cause a small ‘explosion’ of air from the mouth, often at the start and end of words (‘stops’) such as b, d, g, k, p, t. (Put your hand in front of your mouth as you say these letters and feel that rush of air.) Plosives are sometimes called ‘breath blasts’, and travel from a speaker’s mouth directly into a microphone’s diaphragm, causing a moment of deep distortion Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    7 min
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About

Year THREE of short daily episodes to improve the quality of your speaking voice. 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 spent in TV and radio studios. If you're wondering about how to start a podcast, or have had one for a while - download every episode! And as themes develop over the weeks (that is, they are not random topics day-by-day), this is a free, course to help you GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VOICE OVER VOICE. Look out for more details of the book during 2024. Contacts: https://linktr.ee/Peter_Stewart Audio recording script and show notes (c) 2021, 2022, 2023 Peter Stewart Peter has been around voice and audio all his working life and has trained hundreds of broadcasters in all styles of radio from pop music stations such as Capital FM and BBC Radio 1, the classical music station BBC Radio 3 and regional BBC stations. He’s trained news presenters on regional TV, the BBC News Channel and on flagship programmes such as the BBC’s Panorama.  He has written a number of books on audio and video presentation and production (see contacts clink above) and presented hundreds of radio shows (you may have heard him on BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 4, Virgin Radio or Kiss, as well as BBC regional radio) with various formats. He has read tens of thousands of news bulletins and hosted 3,000+ podcast episodes. The podcast title refers to those who may wish to change their speaking voice in some way. It is not a suggestion that anyone should, or be pressured into needing to. We love accents and dialects, and are well aware that how we speak changes over time. The key is: is your voice successfully communicating your message, so it is being understood (and potentially being acted upon) by your target audience? This podcast is London-based and examples are spoken in the RP (Received Pronunciation) / standard-English / BBC English pronunciation, although invariably applicable to other languages, accents and dialects. The 'Peter Stewart' show is perhaps of great interest to those in broadcast voice overs, the broadcast voice, how to start a voice podcast, broadcasting voice training, your speaking voice, breathing technique, and conversational speaking. You may also find it useful if you are searching for information on voice coaching, voice training, voice overs, podcasting, broadcasting, presenting, being a voice over actor and newsreading, audio branding, public speaking, the recorded voice, vocal tips, performance, vocal health education, vocal technique and voice over training. Music credits: all Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license  "Beauty Flow" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5025-beauty-flow Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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