Voice Actor's Guide to Recording at Home and On the Road (Book)

304 Pages·2008·7.55 MB·English

by  Jeffrey P. Fisher

Voice Actor’s Guide
to Recording at
Home and on the
Road
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Voice Actor’s
Guide to Recording
at Home and on
the Road
Harlan Hogan
Jeffrey P. Fisher
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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 11 10 09
For Steve Schatzberg:
S2, you always make me laugh,
always ask the great questions,
and always define the
true meaning of friendship.
—H2
For Brian Holmsten once again,
for his wonderful friendship
that I’ve continued to cherish
for all these years.
Thanks!
—JPF
Acknowledgments
HarlanandJeffreywouldliketothankOrrenMertonandMarkHughesofCengage Learning
for asking us to write an updated and expanded second go-round of Voice Actor’s Guide to
RecordingatHomeandontheRoad.Also,oursincerestgratitudegoestoourwonderfuleditors,
Karen Gill and the acerbic, though imaginary, Prunella Sykes. They had the oft-Herculean
task of changing our ramblings into grammatically correct and semicoherent phrases—a
task made even more difficult by the plethora of lame jokes and silly definitions we
found ourselves amused by. We were blessed to have the ever-creative, ever-patient Lon
Czarnecki of Headcake Media shoot our crazy on-the-road recording photos and design
the book’s inventive front and back covers. And we’d be remiss not to acknowledge the
constant support and patience of our families—not just when we’re writing, but especially
when we write. (Who do you think we try the lame jokes out on?)
JeffreywouldalsoliketothankHarlan,thebestwritingpartnerapersoncouldeverhave.It
was even more fun writing the second edition than the first! Harlan claims he wrote some
really nice stuff about Jeffrey, too, but both Karen and Prunella deleted them citing,
“Redundant!” to which Harlan replied, “Ditto.”
vi
About the Authors
HarlanHoganhasmorethan30years’experienceasavoice-overactorandisknownforthe
scoresofclassicandcontemporaryadslogansthathavereachedyourearsthroughhisvoice,
from“It’sthecerealevenMikeylikes”and“Whenyoucareenoughtosendtheverybest”to
hisdailythanksto“viewerslikeyouforyourgenerouscontributiontoyourPBSstation.”He
coauthored with Jeffrey Fisher the first edition of The Voice Actor’s Guide to Home Recording.
Harlan’s book VO: Tales and Techniques of a Voice-Over Actor is a perennial best-seller. In
additiontowritingscoresofcommercials,heistheauthorofanaward-winningvideoseries
forkidscalledAnAlmostPainlessGuidetoGovernment,afull-lengthplaycalledBurytheShow,
and both narrator and writer of Mythic Pictures’ 17-part video documentary America in the
Twentieth Century. He lives in the suburbs of Chicago and telecommutes everywhere via his
home and on-the-road studio.
Jeffrey P. Fisher is an award-winning and in-demand sound designer who provides audio,
video, music, writing, training, consulting, and media production services. He’s also an
award-winninginstructorofaudioandvideoproductionandpost-productionattheCollege
of DuPage in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, and has taught at DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois.
He writes extensively about music, sound, and video for print and the Web and has
authored 11 books, including Instant Sound Forge; Cash Tracks: Compose, Produce, and Sell
Your Original Soundtrack Music and Jingles; Moneymaking Music; Ruthless Self-Promotion in the
MusicIndustry;andProfitingfromYourMusicandSoundProjectStudio.Hespendsalotoftime
in a dark room hunched over a computer working his magic on audio soundtracks for
clients and independent films and documentaries, including the award-winning The Craving
Heart and So You Want Michael Madsen?
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Contents
Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xv
Chapter 1
The New Paradigm—A Home Studio Is a Required Tool
of the Trade 1
The Business of Getting Business—Auditions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
The Business of Getting Business—Sessions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
The Business of Getting Business—Voice Demos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
The Business of Getting Business—The Internet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
The Business of Getting Business—Making Money Recording at Home . . . . . . . . 8
The Business of Getting Business—Studio Speak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
The Business of Getting Business—Global Agents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Casting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Interaction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
Sessions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
The Business of Getting Business—Audition Web Sites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Chapter 2
Recording from the Comfort of Home—Seven Easy Steps
to Get Started 13
(1) Computer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
(1a) High-Speed Internet Access. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
(2) Microphone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
(3) Microphone Preamplifier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
(4) Audio Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
(4a) USB Microphones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
(5) Recording Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
(6) Speakers and Headphones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
(7) A Room of Your Own. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
ix