Can This Girl Sing? [Plunge Acoustic]

[brightonrocks]

I would agree with some of the comments above regarding falsetto..... Her vocal tone is beautiful, but the first line of each chorus might sound better if it was full voice and not falsetto, otherwise it's in danger of being in the same area as the verses/B section, that would also help bring the song's message accross.... From a mix point of view, it sounds wicked already, but I would be tempted to add some bite into the vocal, a little boost somewhere between 2K and 4K would add some presence and make the vocal lift out from the backing slightly (although you might have to split tracks as later on when she's going for it, there's plenty of bite).... i can hear a little room sound on her vocal... A tiny bit of long reverb way in the background somehere might just help that out.... also, if you do boost as suggested here, you will raise the 'esses' which are already quite prominent in the first verse, a bit of gentle de-essing work would'nt go amiss..... in the aft-chorus and instrumental sections, try panning the guitar and violin outwards on either side a bit more as it will give them more definition... It's certainly not thin at all, but if you are worried about that, boost around 180-250 with a low Q on the piano a couple of deebs

Wicked song, and beautifully recorded!!!!

[o'malley]

Lovely... brilliant...

[Gargoyle]

Nice stuff, plunge. Yep, definitely she can sing and has rather a nice voice too.

If I was being picky I would say that clarity of word and strength of tone have lost out to some stylistic affectations. I would rather suspect that in places the vocal line would sound better if it was sung as directly as possible, rather than trying to warble or use the falsetto slide as an effect.

Nice work by both of you

[Bagungie]

Hi Plunge, great to hear your rich and interesting involvement once again,

Now on to my comments, with a lead in from Ben...

very nice.. she has a good voice, very pretty... very airy and light...

Does she have lessons?.. if she doesn't, she should ( I don't mean that in a rude way... It's just that a voice this good can be made even more amazing with lessons )... occasionally she slurs a little especially in "falsetto" bits... I think it might that that the others are picking up on... a slight straining in the voice maybe...

but yes.. a very good voice...

Ben

There is no question at all about Leora's obvious musical talent, and terrific voice as well...

Being a trained singer and vocal teacher over many years, may I suggest to Leora that she gives some consideration about how her vocal technique can or WILL develop over time, (even subconsciously)....

The term "Falsetto" referred to in the posts of others, seems to adequately sum up the easthetic issues that have been addressed in this nicely written and performed song. Leading on from this is that, "Technique can often be translated as a 'developed habit' ".

The reason that I say this is that a lot of young untrained singers allow their 'styles' to develop, purely from a 'means-to-an-end' process of being able to comfortably reach the higher notes, yet, tone and dynamic range are often compromised because the 'means-to-an-end' approach of self and unguided technique, is frought with the 'benefit' of short-term gain, at the expense of long-term bad vocal habits, which includes a severe limitation of distilled vocal expression, in any context.

This really needs to include the full spectrum of tonal colour in the vocal range, and even in an extended range of pitch in the 'chest' and 'head' range of the voice.

What this means, is that Leora can benefit the best from listening to MANY different styles and genres of singing, in order to broaden her base of reference. This will help Leora's discernment and expression of her very promising vocal talent.

Leora, please give some serious consideration to get some vocal training from a 'well rounded' teacher.

Don't choose a teacher with a name for only one particular style. Instead, choose a teacher who has had a very broad exposure and CV in:
Theatre; The Club Scene; Musical Commedy; Gospel/Sacred; even Opera if they are available.

Plunge, as always, I really enjoyed your input and your mix is well suited to the material buddy.

Leora, your gift WILL make way for itself. Just make sure that the gateway in which you choose, is not too narrow for your talent!

PM me if you have any questions about this spiel.

Warm Regards,

[plunge]

Holy cow. I go to sleep for 5 hours and this thread goes crazy. I love it. Can't wait to show her.

After we recorded, I felt it was a little too much 'head voice.' The song may be written in a slightly awkward range for her because so much of it is sung not in her chest voice but in the head. We even sang through it a couple nights ago to see how it would sound in the chest voice during the verses, but it was too much power and sounded too agressive.

So she does it well and it makes the bridge that much nicer. Plus, I felt like I was getting overly coachy when we recorded and I wanted to let it be hers and not mine, you know? She's the one who wants to give away the ocean, not me. I think sometimes artistic integrity wins out over picky producing.

BUT, I love that so many have had input here. I'm very proud to be part of this.

Usually I like to respond to each comment individually, but you're overwhelming me. Anyway, nice, nice comments and generous input. Thank you thank you. I'll ask Leora to say something later.

[Beardedone]

Very good singing on an excellent song. Leora's voice has a very expressive quality that I love. I like the fiddle too.

Just a caution - I think Leora may be straining her vocal chords a bit. Mqake sure she gets some coaching so problems don't develop down the line.

Thanks for posting this. Very uplifting.

[Sascha Franck]

I have now been listening to this several times more.
IMO it'd be best if you don't change a single thing! It's just wonderful as is. And that completely included her voice. Maybe a trained voice would sing it a bit different. But then, you know what it would sound like? Right, just like any other trained voice!
Better keep it fresh and natural!

[AndrewSimon]

Great work Plunge and Leora.

Quick idea/suggestion.
I agree about the too much 'head voice' in this song and instead of changing the lead vocal you could just add background vocals to "fatten up" the spectrum of voices.

In any case if you do nothing it's still a gorgeous complete work.

Leora's voice reminds me of Jennifer Warrens, one of the nicest voices out there.
I would suggest you listen to her "Famous Blue Raincoat " album for inspiration and ideas.
I also wanted to point out that this album is the best mixed album I ever heard.

[mr.me]

Wow, she has a lovely voice.

Great track.

thanks for sharing this.

[geeseaplenty]

Fantastic.

Is she hot?

[mayan]

incredible and mature voice - compelling piece

[plunge]

Very good singing on an excellent song. Leora's voice has a very expressive quality that I love. I like the fiddle too.

Just a caution - I think Leora may be straining her vocal chords a bit. Mqake sure she gets some coaching so problems don't develop down the line.

Thanks for posting this. Very uplifting.

Thanks Gordon. Everybody's all concerned about her vocal chords and proper singing. I appreciate (and I'm sure she does too) the concern, but I think her form is pretty decent. I'm curious what makes you all say that. Is it that so much is in the head voice, or the strength of the bridge? Not trying to argue, just curious. Anyway, I'm glad you like the song. Your input is always appreciated!

It's just wonderful as is. And that completely included her voice.

Thanks Sascha. I kind of like it too. I guess I didn't want it to just be exactly what you might expect Sarah McLaughlin to do or something. If it were going on a CD, I might have her do a couple lines over, but it ain't too shabby.

In any case if you do nothing it's still a gorgeous complete work.

Thanks! We debated bgv's and she sounded really good on them, but really liked the simplicity of it without. There's a little line in there where I took an alternate take and used it for a BGV, but that's it.

Thanks also to Mr.Me and Mayan for the feedback and compliments.

Fantastic.

Is she hot?

We had to keep the doors to the guest bathroom closed while she sang and it got pretty warm in there. That's really perceptive that you picked up on that.

[mystahr]

At points I was trying to imagine the two of you singing together

She has a very own voice that is a great joy to listen to I must say, though i feel she loses definition a bit when she sings more louder. It certainly deserves more then just one track.

[Marc JX8P]

Great track, great voice! The points made on the singing style are valid - but at the same time the way she sings it now creates a very natural, 'live' athmosphere. Very good!

[No name]

It's quite funny...You got people who are making so much a year singing, like britney spears. And the girl in this song sings 1000 times better than she ever could. I dare say that she would evern deserve a spot up there with the big dogs? Anyhow, a very well mixed, well sang song! Great job