BTS.talk: ATS WillyPalooza 2005

Originally posted by Relentless
P.S. For those of you doing karaoke - where are you getting the background music from?

OK, i've never done Karaoke before yesterday or even had the desire to try such, so I started out with a little trial and error. I started with several differant karaoke programs and found that most of them ar crap. either they won't let you save your finished song or they have time limitations so you can't complete your song unless you buy the program.

I finally found one that would do what i wanted and it has a 15 use limit which is probably 14 more times then I will ever use it. Its called Kanta and you can get it by going to the link.

I then went to free karaoke For the music I wanted. They have thousands of songs to choose from.

The music is D/l'd as a KAR file so I just stuck all of the songs I got into one folder on my desktop.

After installing Kanta i loaded the songs into it and after that it was a breeze.

Kanta has a red record button near the center of the screen. First pick your song, then hit record and it will ask you where to save the song to. pick a location and hit save. Then on your bottom left you have a play button. hit it and the song will start.

Sing your heart out.

When your finished it will have saved your recording as a wav file so to upload it you will need to convert it to an MP3. I did that with Encoder 2.5 which was really simple to use.

Anyway, hope this helps. Love and light,

Wupy

Thanks for that info Mrwupy, it's really helpful. I think I have something to add to this wonderful collection now.


--Kit.

Yay!

Can't wait to hear your contribution, kits.

Eveyone's has been great so far! WOS will love it!

I have one planned that I hope will make him chuckle. Gotta see how recording goes as soon as I can.

--Kit.

well I can't for the life of me figure how to do this which is probably a good thing as my voice has gone on a bit of a time out right now. I sound like a cross between a very whispery Marilyn Monroe (or is that Marilyn Mason?) and Betty Boop. About the only thing I might manage right now is to scare him out of the hospital bed. And I'm sure that he doesn't want to make any sudden moves in the immediate future.

Okay, I am Karaoke impaired

For the life of me I can't get the thing (MrWupy's) to record the voice without the background music being barely audible. Ugh, it's late, I'll try again in the morning - lol. But I found a song and I personalized the lyrics for fun, but now I just have to get it in a podcast. My free trial might run out before I get it right though.

How much time do we have left?

Edit: By the way, I did find I can open the file in Audacity if anyone uses that normally, so then you can just save it as an MP3 and upload as usual.

[edit on 12/31/2005 by Relentless]

yes i need a timeline as well if we have one.

I might have to go out and buy an actual mic seeing as recording with headphones has stopped working heh. too late to steal my dad's mic too. tch.

--Kit.

We have at least 2 or 3 days. WOS will be in the hospital for at least a full week.

Unrecognized Talent

(RANT)

I know it's customary to belittle ourselves and speak modestly of our lack of talent, but screw that.

I was busy cranking out my podcast yesterday evening and now have had a chance to catch up on some of the podcasts my fellow members have contributed and I just want to say: wow!

Yeah, I know there's some gagging and funning around, but I'll say flat out, some of you are not giving yourselves enough credit.

I know all about being shy about singing: it's the story of my life. But seriously, some of you who say you “can't sing” are – and I hate to be so blunt about it – lying.

It's obvious as hell to me that you can.

I'll single out two members who really demonstrate what I mean.

First off, Val, it's plain as day that you know what you're doing. If you honestly think you're that bad, you're wrong. I'm not the only one who knows it. You've got a great voice. Use it!

And then there's howmuchisthedoggy, who says “I don't sing”, then duly sets about not just reciting but singing awesome verse. Dude, anyone who can recite verse like that can sing.

Trust me on that or call me a liar.

If Louis Armstrong and Billy Corgan can sing, anyone can sing. But just like any musical instrument, it takes practice.

The #1 reason people “can't” sing is because they don't sing.

Practice makes better. There is no such thing as perfect.

Queen's English

And UK Wizard is “far too English” to sing. What the bloody hell?

Is it the vaunted English stoicism that holds you back, or the inexplicable embarrassment over accents that I keep hearing from my beloved friends in the Commonwealth?

I am truly and incurably baffled over the phenomenon of members being somehow ashamed that they actually speak real English.

I am utterly unable to comprehend this.

Maybe it's because I'm an American. In my country, Commonwealth accents are considered exotic and people with these accents are sought after for a wide range of voice work, including advertising and the stereotype of Aussies or Brits doing MC work at concerts, which I lovingly lampooned in my podcast.

In short, Americans love Commonwealth accents. So if you're thinking we don't, you're mistaken.

Yes, we have fun with accents here in America, because we have so many. I love them all: from the nasal edge of the legendary “New Yawker” to the twang of the Western Cowboys (in my neck of the woods) to the syrupy drawl of the Deep South to the easy clip of the New Englander, each dialect gets its love – just as in the different parts of the U.K.

And just as we enjoy American accents, we also love “foreign” accents (many people with these accents are actually American citizens and thus as American as any other).

So I say: Speak with pride, sing with pride!

/(RANT)

Studio Majic

Meanwhile, speaking of that, I couldn't resist doing a “studio mix” of The Sun Will Rise Again (WOS) which omits the intro and crowd noises.

It also has a little more post-processing to give it a fuller sound and smooth out some of the “liveness” I wanted to project in the original (all the vocals are first-takes, for example). Studios tend to compress out dynamics, which has its pros and cons, but the “studio mix” sounds more like what studios crank out these days.

I mixed the new version and posted it to music.majic-12.com, and originally felt it would be vain to do a separate podcast for the same song.

However, vanity or not, I decided to podcast the “studio mix” on the BTS Music feed anyway, both to keep it from distracting from the intent of this thread and to allow separate commentary on the song.

The podthread for the “studio mix” is: BTS.music: Majic: The Sun Will Rise Again (WOS)

The Best Of Times

For my fellow members worried about timelines...

I initially worried about “missing the boat”, but then I realized that yes, WOS will be receiving an initial “care package” of a CD burned from our podcasts. So for that, the sooner the better, I'm sure. As Val says, in the next few days.

However, it doesn't need to stop there, nor should it. WOS will be getting more updates and (hopefully soon) will be able to log in and check out WillyPalooza 2005 himself.

So my advice is to not worry about time per se. Do your podcasts as and when you can, and don't sweat “deadlineitis”.

This thread's going to be around for a while, and I'm sure WOS will appreciate every submission, regardless of when it's submitted.

So don't worry, be happy.

PODcast: ATS WillyPalooza 2005 (reply 14)
ww makes a fool of herself singing

length: 01:59
file: btsmpod_1154.mp3
size: 1874k
feed:
status: live (at time of posting)

I can't believe I'm doing this

[edit on 1-1-2006 by worldwatcher]

Oh my gosh! ww, I LOVE IT! Thank you so much for your contribution. And if we have to ship you more champagne to get follow ups - we'll do it!

Everybody is so great and WOS is going to love this so much.

Okay, I found a fairly priced program for $19.90 and it's working for me. Now a few more takes and getting past one very difficult part of the timing on the song I am doing the take off on, and I should have something half way decent to contribute later today.

DH has lovingly advised to NOT do it with the head set, but rather the regular mic & speakers because he's been listening to me do some takes and reports I'm not hearing myself properly with the headset on and.... it's a problem. I won't read into that one any further

The program I will be using is Microsing Winkaraoke Recorder.

Well, even though the karaoke program you're using sounds like a disease ( ) LOL - I CAN'T WAIT! Bring it on Sister.

Originally posted by Majic
So my advice is to not worry about time per se. Do your podcasts as and when you can, and don't sweat “deadlineitis”.

Totally agree with this! WOS will hear whatever you PODcast here so don't let the deadline stop you! He's got a long recovery ahead and your contribution will be appreciated whenever he hears it, I'm sure!

Also wanted to second majic's words on the talent shown here. You guys are awesome!

And the accents, it goes without saying that I love all of them, too!

Relentless, I can't wait to hear yours!

Was I that drunk last night??? oh my, I can't believe I posted that.

I didn't even mention that the song is titled "my heart is beating" and it's from the 1975 Bollywood flick "Julie", original singer...Preeti Sagar.

maybe a do over is in order

Awesome, WW> That was great!

Originally posted by worldwatcher
Was I that drunk last night??? oh my, I can't believe I posted that.

You didn't sound drunk at all! It was adorable! Right on tune and everything. I loved it!

And such cultural diversity in this thread! Raggae, bollywood, Irish poetry, Country, Soul, Oldies, Ballad! We're a well-rounded group!

(Parr, I gotta say, I have to keep going back and listening to yours. It's PRECIOUS!)

PODcast: ATS WillyPalooza 2005 (reply 15)
My karaoke version of an old favorite by Bobby Darin (Somewhere Beyond the Sea), Now entitled "Somewhere Beyond The Net"

length: 03:40
file: btstpod_1155.mp3
size: 2479k
feed:
status: live (at time of posting)

Okay here it comes:

Disclaimer: By the time I got it working what I didn't realize was the "concert hall reverb" was default, and though I find it annoying, I just can't get it out of there now.

Another thing - this project has taken half my weekend and proves to me I HAVE TO QUIT SMOKING! Yikes - where did my voice go? I used to be able to belt out a tune better than that - I just don't have the breath for it anymore. Oh well, it's the thought that counts right?

Hope WOS enjoys and of course under the circumstances he gets a bat bat bat from my big baby blues, and not just anyone gets that

Edit: I have always found the best vehicle for loosening up the vocal cords is Harvey's Bristol Cream, (besides - it's downright upright!) but it was only noon when I started, so I really had to hold back there

[edit on 1/1/2006 by Relentless]

[edit on 1/1/2006 by Relentless]

Originally posted by Valhall
Well, even though the karaoke program you're using sounds like a disease (

) LOL - I CAN'T WAIT! Bring it on Sister.

Geez, it does, doesn't it - lol - leave it to you to point it out before I did my take - oh the pressure.