KVR Audio

zircon · Post by **zircon** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:04 pm

Part of the effect of her songs comes from the smooth, pad-like harmony voices. You can almost perfectly replicate that effect with Disc 4's "Pop Stacks" from Symphony of Voices. Seriously!

emdot_ambient · Post by **emdot_ambient** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:09 pm

...xander wrote:...For one song he used over "120 layers".

And here I just thought her voice was over drenched in reverb

Stan from South Park speaking of Enya: "I can't take it anymore, this music is terrible, it's, it's cheesy, but lame and eerily soothing at the same time."

DevonB · Post by **DevonB** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:15 pm

...xander wrote: Indeed quite interesting. I wanted to think that he'd have faithfully reproduced vocal layering using multiple duplicate tracks (and I'm sure he must have at least a few times) but you lose the inflection/nuances/juxtaposition in that case, which is what he claimed he wanted. So indeed there's a lot to be said for the technique and yeah it is similar to orchestral instrumentation placement.

You can't layer the same sound over itself exactly, as you get a phasing effect that sounds terrible.

Devon

lavoll · Post by **lavoll** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:21 pm

i remember reading an interview with her (in keyboard magazine??) where she talked about the layering, and that they were still at the time trying to think of a way to achieve a similar effect live.
from the mp3.com days, i remember a band that did something similar... hmm. white unicorn? white tower? tower unicorn?

xander · Post by **xander** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:22 pm

I REALLY wanted to know how Ryan got that sound -- 15 or 16 years ago now -- but I was never really a way big fan of her musical style or anything (no offense meant -- just not me cuppa).

I had a dream once where I was trapped in an elevator for a week with Chris DeBurgh, Kenny Gee and Enya. Finally, I pulled out my gun, but I only had one bullet -- so I shot myself.

rockstar_not · Post by **rockstar_not** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:23 pm

Don't forget that she also has a fairly rapid vibrato, compared to other singers. Her sister, Maire Brennan (lead singer of Clannad) has a similar voice. I have one of Maire Brennan's solo albums, but several songs could be easily mistaken for Clannad or for Enya.

It also helps to be able to sing in one of the most ancient tongues in the world!!!

Even though I can't understand a word of Gaelic, there is something primal that stirs inside me that makes me listen to the music in a different way when I hear Gaelic or Welsh sung.

-Scott

jupiter8 · Post by **jupiter8** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:26 pm

Lady in red remake with Kenny G doing some of his stuff.
And on the cover they'd wear nothing but skimpy speedos.
A1.Excellent.1337.

Ruined your day yet?

bernhardtjeff · Post by **bernhardtjeff** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:27 pm

the same part 30 times... i have new respect for enya.

xander · Post by **xander** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:37 pm

DevonB wrote:
...xander wrote: Indeed quite interesting. I wanted to think that he'd have faithfully reproduced vocal layering using multiple duplicate tracks (and I'm sure he must have at least a few times) but you lose the inflection/nuances/juxtaposition in that case, which is what he claimed he wanted. So indeed there's a lot to be said for the technique and yeah it is similar to orchestral instrumentation placement.
You can't layer the same sound over itself exactly, as you get a phasing effect that sounds terrible.

Devon

Indeed, there's that problem as well. There are a couple of ways you can avoid phase-effect though, like with delay -- especially on non-articulated tracks that are mainly ooos and ahhhs and have no vocal inflections, and you can also filter the phasing or 'reverse-phase' a track so that it nulls the cross-phasing between it and a copy. But I believe they really did all those separate layers as he said.

Sepheritoh · Post by **Sepheritoh** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:40 pm

Wow!!! Thanks very much for all this information. I have a lot of work to try this out. Actully, myself nor anybody that I can get hold of to do the singing has the capability of singing 30 times exactly the same.

I always had respect for her and a fair bit of liking of some of her songs. Now I have a lot more respect and want to listen more closely to more.

BTW her latest album is great. I got it this week. Admitedly, her music may sound a bit sentimental at times, but I love the fact that they seem to care a little less about the pop form. Also I think the general filmy/soundtrack kind of sound apeals to me.

I noticed she say on the CD cover that "all instruments played by Enya", meaning that she must be a pretty talented midi orchestrator as well.

tuzemec · Post by **tuzemec** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:42 pm

...xander wrote: I had a dream once where I was trapped in an elevator for a week with Chris DeBurgh, Kenny Gee and Enya. Finally, I pulled out my gun, but I only had one bullet -- so I shot myself.

Real nightmare, I guess

Ok, ok... I liked one or two songs by Chris DeBurgh... But that was long ago.

And I've never liked that Kenny Gee guy. Just the other Kenny. McCormick.

Stupid American Pig · Post by **Stupid American Pig** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 2:48 pm

About the phasing, isnt there some phase adjustment efx or plugins that you could use to tweak that? I know Aleksey has written something like that. Also, when you get up to 30 layers, would it still sound like that? I have never even thought to try something like that. I would imagine it would sound washed out and reverby like enyas voice.

DevonB · Post by **DevonB** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 3:04 pm

...xander wrote: Indeed, there's that problem as well. There are a couple of ways you can avoid phase-effect though, like with delay -- especially on non-articulated tracks that are mainly ooos and ahhhs and have no vocal inflections, and you can also filter the phasing or 'reverse-phase' a track so that it nulls the cross-phasing between it and a copy. But I believe they really did all those separate layers as he said.

Have you tried doing it that way to avoid phasing? It sounds unnatural still. Multiple takes has been the only way I've found to get it to sound right. I usually stack 4 tracks of guitar for my guitar sound, for example. Yes, it's a pain, but it works.

Devon

xander · Post by **xander** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 3:26 pm

Stupid American Pig wrote:About the phasing, isnt there some phase adjustment efx or plugins that you could use to tweak that? I know Aleksey has written something like that. Also, when you get up to 30 layers, would it still sound like that? I have never even thought to try something like that. I would imagine it would sound washed out and reverby like enyas voice.

The phase-shift only occurs between two *identical copy* tracks because they match each other frequency-by-frequency and amplitude-by-amplitude. A slight separation between the two tracks is inevitable even when synced and causes the tracks to sound as if someone put a phase shifter on it. This is how the phase-shift effect was made on the early Beatles stuff, etc.

So, if you record a separate original track -- even if it *sounds* exactly like the other track, as long as it's not a duplicate copy, there won't be any phasing.

Voidoid Surrealist · Post by **Voidoid Surrealist** » Thu Dec 01, 2005 3:32 pm

...xander wrote: I had a dream once where I was trapped in an elevator for a week with Chris DeBurgh, Kenny Gee and Enya. Finally, I pulled out my gun, but I only had one bullet -- so I shot myself.

No joke, I once dreamed about Kenny G getting the shit kicked out of him by Brotzman and Zorn

Anybody knows how to create the Enya vocals sound?