According to the polls, after discrediting 1 count for Cardioid and 1 count for Glow, we have 1 vote for Smiling, 3 votes for Glow, and 1 vote for KOKORO'KISEKI. We failed to receive votes from Kana and Ritia. Additionally, our animator was only recently introduced to the team, so we did not have the chance to grab her vote.
Congratulations to those who voted for Glow, and for those who did not vote for Glow, you might find an even better song in a later project. Whichever way, we hope that you will come to love Glow.
You have a very long time, which is until the December holidays to master Glow. There is no rush to learn it right now. Yes, master, not begin learning. We're building up something really good for Glow, so we will have auditions. These auditions aren't for eliminating people, but for deciding your parts. The auditions go this way: anytime you feel that you have mastered the song - really mastered, to the point that you can sing the song without looking at the lyrics - please do a recording, a serious final recording, and send it to me. Honestly, I don't think it's hard to put it into your phone/MP3/whatever and listen to it on the way to school. Listen to it to the point where it gets annoying - that usually hints that you're starting to know the song well.
During the September holidays, we'll be doing something simpler. We'll have the five-singer showcase, in which each vocalist gets to showcase their own voices. Nobody else's voice will be covering yours. Choose a song that's in your range, a song that might show off your range, a song that fits your voice type, a song that you're comfortable with.
Here's the system: members are to do solos, but have the option of featuring another singer.
You know, "Rihanna ft. Ne-yo" and this and that.
A feature means no dueting (yes, no Suki Kirai where Rin and Len sing an equal number of lines) - rather, it's like having a "guest" over. Perhaps the person will do the rap at the front for you, or the bridge, or the harmonies.
If Vocalist A features Vocalist B, Vocalist B still has to sing his/her own solo, but is then rendered unable to feature another vocalist in his/her solo. Further discussion to the cbox, please.
Project Kaze
A six-man team of awesome is coming your way! ♩♬♯ Choruses we're working on: Mr. Music ♪♥♭ Upcoming choruses: Glow
Monday, May 16, 2011
Admin Time! :D
Okay, guys! Here's some administrative info that's preeetty important.
First, let's talk about your icons. If you don't know yet, the icons I'm talking about are the ones that will represent you in the chorus video, like:
As you can see, the pictures come up with the singer's name when the singer sings.
Rule 1:
Minimally, we have to see up to the width of the forearm and the waist. Also, you should try not to have too many parts of the head chopped off. If the picture is big enough (in resolution, not character size), however, it is all right.
Here, we see that we have her shoulders in, and certainly a lot below the waist. Also, we can see her whole head. On the right, her hair and hand is chopped off, but we don't have to care because it's a big picture and already crosses the expectations.
THIS is not allowed because, well, you can see that pretty much everything is cut out.
Rule 2:
Give us a clear picture.
This might look like the previously linked picture, and has all the qualifications, doesn't it?
Only, well, it's not exactly clear, so that's ruled out.
Also, no "friends". You know, like if your character is with a friend, but the friend is waving and his/her arm is kiiinda blocking your darn face? Yeah? Or he/she has pwetty hair but the pwetty hair is blocking you? Yeeah.
Rule 3:
Follow up with the theme of the chorus. If it's a boppy, dancey chorus like Mr. Music, do NOT use people with expressions like this or this and if you are thinking of sending one in as a funny prank I will kick you out for being a sadist. Also, while it isn't required, it would be great if they're wearing theme-relevant clothes (like in this, or this). If it's a Servant of Evil chorus, get them wearing such and such. I'm sure you're getting the hang of it now.
Rule 4:
On to your favourite bit! Who to choose, who to choose? While we strongly encourage
from anime/manga/doujin/whatever we will not reject Vocaloid characters. There is nothing that says Vocaloids are not allowed, but think about it - it's a little redundant having a Append Miku in the music video and an Append Miku icon. That's like... That's like buying laksa and choosing more laksa as a topping. Or vanilla ice cream and vanilla sauce. Or chocolate sprinkle cake and chocolate sprinkles. That's just silly.
Rule 5:
No CG characters, and whether you're using Vocaloids or not, try to find some with drawing styles different from the video's drawing style. The next bit is important: if you know how to use Pixiv, have fun getting what you want from it, but by the by, wherever you get your picture from, note down the credits. Drawn by a Deviantart user? Tell me the screenname. Screenshot from an anime? Tell me the anime. Drawn by a Tegaki artist? Tell me the screenname. Unless you're using something like this, which is pretty much official art, please remember that there are some insane credit freaks out there (okay, not insane - it makes perfect sense).
Rule 6:
I know you're tired by now. After you've scouted your picture and taken notes on the artist, you might want to pick up a few others on the way. You never know if your first choice is rejected, so prepare about 2-3 more.
That's that, folks.
Over and out.
First, let's talk about your icons. If you don't know yet, the icons I'm talking about are the ones that will represent you in the chorus video, like:
As you can see, the pictures come up with the singer's name when the singer sings.
Rule 1:
Minimally, we have to see up to the width of the forearm and the waist. Also, you should try not to have too many parts of the head chopped off. If the picture is big enough (in resolution, not character size), however, it is all right.
Here, we see that we have her shoulders in, and certainly a lot below the waist. Also, we can see her whole head. On the right, her hair and hand is chopped off, but we don't have to care because it's a big picture and already crosses the expectations.
THIS is not allowed because, well, you can see that pretty much everything is cut out.
Rule 2:
Give us a clear picture.
This might look like the previously linked picture, and has all the qualifications, doesn't it?
Only, well, it's not exactly clear, so that's ruled out.
Also, no "friends". You know, like if your character is with a friend, but the friend is waving and his/her arm is kiiinda blocking your darn face? Yeah? Or he/she has pwetty hair but the pwetty hair is blocking you? Yeeah.
Rule 3:
Follow up with the theme of the chorus. If it's a boppy, dancey chorus like Mr. Music, do NOT use people with expressions like this or this and if you are thinking of sending one in as a funny prank I will kick you out for being a sadist. Also, while it isn't required, it would be great if they're wearing theme-relevant clothes (like in this, or this). If it's a Servant of Evil chorus, get them wearing such and such. I'm sure you're getting the hang of it now.
Rule 4:
On to your favourite bit! Who to choose, who to choose? While we strongly encourage
from anime/manga/doujin/whatever we will not reject Vocaloid characters. There is nothing that says Vocaloids are not allowed, but think about it - it's a little redundant having a Append Miku in the music video and an Append Miku icon. That's like... That's like buying laksa and choosing more laksa as a topping. Or vanilla ice cream and vanilla sauce. Or chocolate sprinkle cake and chocolate sprinkles. That's just silly.
Rule 5:
No CG characters, and whether you're using Vocaloids or not, try to find some with drawing styles different from the video's drawing style. The next bit is important: if you know how to use Pixiv, have fun getting what you want from it, but by the by, wherever you get your picture from, note down the credits. Drawn by a Deviantart user? Tell me the screenname. Screenshot from an anime? Tell me the anime. Drawn by a Tegaki artist? Tell me the screenname. Unless you're using something like this, which is pretty much official art, please remember that there are some insane credit freaks out there (okay, not insane - it makes perfect sense).
Rule 6:
I know you're tired by now. After you've scouted your picture and taken notes on the artist, you might want to pick up a few others on the way. You never know if your first choice is rejected, so prepare about 2-3 more.
That's that, folks.
Over and out.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
MOAR HELP.
Tsu is better-sounding when pronounced halfway between "ts" in the "tsu" and "z" in 子. Or, like, when you're irritated and you say "Tsk!"
Also, don't put dramatic stress on your plosives - don't say the "t"s and the "p"s like an American. Soften them, not to the point of saying "Doudemo" instead of "Totemo", but certainly not "Tou!-tei!-mow".
Additionally, in the post down below I asked for the waveform (the heart-rate up-down visual you see in your recording) to be close to the "ceiling" and "floor". I'm not asking you to shout, I'm asking you to project. Drama and Choir members especially - can't do it, get scolded ahaha. |D Also, it's okay if the peaks don't reach as high as the one in the picture. If you really tried your best and can't do it, then (click the picture, there are words on it!):
Also, don't put dramatic stress on your plosives - don't say the "t"s and the "p"s like an American. Soften them, not to the point of saying "Doudemo" instead of "Totemo", but certainly not "Tou!-tei!-mow".
Additionally, in the post down below I asked for the waveform (the heart-rate up-down visual you see in your recording) to be close to the "ceiling" and "floor". I'm not asking you to shout, I'm asking you to project. Drama and Choir members especially - can't do it, get scolded ahaha. |D Also, it's okay if the peaks don't reach as high as the one in the picture. If you really tried your best and can't do it, then (click the picture, there are words on it!):
Over and out,
Shichi-sensei.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
S'more.
A lot of you have issues that need clearing up. I will be free after Wednesday's exam for most of the day - I will be there on Skype, troubleshooting on a first-come-first-serve basis. Additionally, I need to discuss something with prooobably everyone, so do we have a time and date to have a Skype conference on, say, Friday?
-------------------------------
If you have received this message from an unknown and suspicious sender, report and delete this immediately. If you received this message from Shichi-sensei, print it, laminate it, frame it, kiss it, worship it and put it on a wall. The end.
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Help!!
Oooh, the mobile post worked. Nice.
-coughs-
On to business!
Now, I realise that the reason why, although humans improve greatly after hearing their recorded voices ( nothing's as healthy for a novice singer as a good audio slap in the face screaming "DUDE YOU SUCK BUT YOU CAN FIX THIS SO NO YOU DON'T SUCK THAT BAD YET BUT YEAH FOR NOW YOU SUCK" which was exactly how I started off -_-b ), you guys are saying you can't hear the recordings, that the timings are off because Audacity lags, etc etc.
You can fix this with a bit of basic mixing. Hopefully, with this, you can hear yourself better, and pick up on parts to improve, parts that are good, and parts that stink as much as cheese in M.Lee's laundry basket.
Firstly, let's tackle the "OMFG I CAN'T HEAR MYSELF OVER THE MUSIC THE MUSIC IS TOO LOUD AND IT'S YOUR FAULT BECAUSE YOU TOLD ME TO PUT MIC SENSITIVITY TO 0.4 INSTEAD OF 1.0 OOOH LET'S DO THAT NOW-"
I will tackle you, burn you, marinate you, and feed you to Hachune Miku. Srsly.
I tell you to put it at 0.4/0.5 for a reason, darlings. The reason: mic sensitivity ≠ recorded volume. Mic sensitivity is the "strength" of the recording it picks up. If the mic's sensitivity is set to 1.0 and you sing, say, Love is War, your ears will face a lot of pain and suffering. Additionally, your sexy/powerful "AAAAAAAAAAAAAH" will go to waste. Lowering mic sensitivity ensures that all your audio is still picked up, but spiking does not occur while the volume remains the same. If you can't hear yourself even slightly, you're possible not singing loudly enough. Half of loudness comes from energy, while the other comes from your own willingness to actually open your mouth and enunciate.
If you're curious, what I'm saying is "Testing testing 123".
The first chunk is Mic Sens 1.0. The second chunk is Mic Sens 0.4.
As you can see, there's not a single difference in volume, but a slight difference in "softness". These frequency lines depict your frequency range, which is not exactly your loudness/softness.
(Pssst. If your singing is that size, go jump down a building. Naah. Just... If it's not optimally:
Do this for the karaoke track, not your recording. + obviously means an increase in volume, - is the other way round. Adjust your karaoke soft enough so that you can hear both the recording and the karaoke equally. Now, your recording can be heard! And if you think, "Why not max my recording instead of the karaoke track? If I minimise the karaoke, it'll be so sooooft", there's a counter for that. 1: Likely chance you'll forget to push it back to the middle if it's on the recording. 2: Your recording will drop in clarity and quality. 3: If you save it with the lever not in the middle, you're going to have to redo it (or fix it if, luckily, Audacity is still open). 4: Better to hear good vocals over good karaoke music. 5: Just follow the instructions lah, it'll make your life better too. -_-b
-coughs-
On to business!
Now, I realise that the reason why, although humans improve greatly after hearing their recorded voices ( nothing's as healthy for a novice singer as a good audio slap in the face screaming "DUDE YOU SUCK BUT YOU CAN FIX THIS SO NO YOU DON'T SUCK THAT BAD YET BUT YEAH FOR NOW YOU SUCK" which was exactly how I started off -_-b ), you guys are saying you can't hear the recordings, that the timings are off because Audacity lags, etc etc.
You can fix this with a bit of basic mixing. Hopefully, with this, you can hear yourself better, and pick up on parts to improve, parts that are good, and parts that stink as much as cheese in M.Lee's laundry basket.
Firstly, let's tackle the "OMFG I CAN'T HEAR MYSELF OVER THE MUSIC THE MUSIC IS TOO LOUD AND IT'S YOUR FAULT BECAUSE YOU TOLD ME TO PUT MIC SENSITIVITY TO 0.4 INSTEAD OF 1.0 OOOH LET'S DO THAT NOW-"
I will tackle you, burn you, marinate you, and feed you to Hachune Miku. Srsly.
I tell you to put it at 0.4/0.5 for a reason, darlings. The reason: mic sensitivity ≠ recorded volume. Mic sensitivity is the "strength" of the recording it picks up. If the mic's sensitivity is set to 1.0 and you sing, say, Love is War, your ears will face a lot of pain and suffering. Additionally, your sexy/powerful "AAAAAAAAAAAAAH" will go to waste. Lowering mic sensitivity ensures that all your audio is still picked up, but spiking does not occur while the volume remains the same. If you can't hear yourself even slightly, you're possible not singing loudly enough. Half of loudness comes from energy, while the other comes from your own willingness to actually open your mouth and enunciate.
The first chunk is Mic Sens 1.0. The second chunk is Mic Sens 0.4.
As you can see, there's not a single difference in volume, but a slight difference in "softness". These frequency lines depict your frequency range, which is not exactly your loudness/softness.
(Pssst. If your singing is that size, go jump down a building. Naah. Just... If it's not optimally:
then ooh, mixer-kun is going to tsundere-slap you.
Also, the words are wrong - the waves shouldn't be any higher than that, and if they're a little lower, they're good too. Whoops.)
Also, the words are wrong - the waves shouldn't be any higher than that, and if they're a little lower, they're good too. Whoops.)
Someone's mic sensitivity having to be higher than yours does not mean you suck. Mic sensitivity does not 100% rely on your projection ability, and is about 40% reliant on your frequency range, which has nothing to do with skill. Additionally, if you're recording halfway through and then you see that OMFG IT'S SPIKING LIKE THERE'S NO TOMORROW don't lower your singing volume, lower your mic sensitivity by 0.2. If you're at 0.6 and it spikes, try 0.4, and if it spikes, try 0.25. So on so forth.
Yume: 0.4, plzthx, because your mic is a special case, ack. You can do your amp by 2.4, plus minus a bit Nothing over 4.
Ahika: 0.5 for your current headset mic. Will update when you get a new one and send me a demo.
Ahika: 0.5 for your current headset mic. Will update when you get a new one and send me a demo.
Ryuji: 0.5, congratulations on having a new headset.
Choco: 0.5 for now, turns out I can't lend a headset to you because it's gone wtf. Good job parents.
Secret Guest: 0.4 because your room is super weird/awesome and soundproof.
Me: 0.4, yaay.
Next, getting your recording to be hearable! :D
There are various mixer techniques ranging from simple to complicated to a mixture of both, but since we don't want you making mistakes (a mixer's job is not only to make you sound good, but to make you blend with others) that will make your mic stand out too much, let's do it the "other way round".
Do this for the karaoke track, not your recording. + obviously means an increase in volume, - is the other way round. Adjust your karaoke soft enough so that you can hear both the recording and the karaoke equally. Now, your recording can be heard! And if you think, "Why not max my recording instead of the karaoke track? If I minimise the karaoke, it'll be so sooooft", there's a counter for that. 1: Likely chance you'll forget to push it back to the middle if it's on the recording. 2: Your recording will drop in clarity and quality. 3: If you save it with the lever not in the middle, you're going to have to redo it (or fix it if, luckily, Audacity is still open). 4: Better to hear good vocals over good karaoke music. 5: Just follow the instructions lah, it'll make your life better too. -_-b
Now, on to the problem with Audacity giving you lag.
First, zoom in on your recording with the magnifying glass tool by about 2-3 quick clicks.
Then, select the Time Shift Tool and grab your track and drag it as shortly a distance as you can towards the left.
Press the button next to the green play button in the above picture, play, see if it's in timing. If it's gone too "in front" or "behind", adjust accordingly. If you find that the singing starts at the perfect timing, but somewhere along inside the recording something is off-timing, it's a personal mistake. Very occasionally it's a technological mistake, but that won't happen if you close all under-running programmes that cause lag, like MSN, your IE/Firefox/Safari/WTFari, the likes.
Hope this post has helped.
♥
Test post.
Haiiii guyzzz so this is a test mobile post and if it works it means that even without my laptop I can post creepy posts to make your lives hell. ;3
--------------------------------
If you have received this message from an unknown and suspicious sender, report to the authorities and delete this immediately. If you received this message from Shichi-sensei, print it, laminate it, frame it, kiss it, worship it and put it on a wall. The end.
Danger.
Which of you are more negatively receptive to criticism?
During this period of time, I'll be drilling you guys into the ground trying to help you improve, whether it's off-pitchedness, pronunciation, timing - anything, everything. If you're a sensitive sort, please tell me, and I will tread with more caution. Additionally, if you're thinking, "Who is this brat who thinks she can criticise us when she herself can't sing any better?" then it's alright too. I can't say that I'm better than you, or that I have a good ear, but at the very least, I've had the most experience with computers and voices. I know what makes a person sound better - technologically. Since we're all depending on the computer here, some singing tactics won't work very well, so while I optimise your ability, you'll also develop better singing skills in the process. :>
During this period of time, I'll be drilling you guys into the ground trying to help you improve, whether it's off-pitchedness, pronunciation, timing - anything, everything. If you're a sensitive sort, please tell me, and I will tread with more caution. Additionally, if you're thinking, "Who is this brat who thinks she can criticise us when she herself can't sing any better?" then it's alright too. I can't say that I'm better than you, or that I have a good ear, but at the very least, I've had the most experience with computers and voices. I know what makes a person sound better - technologically. Since we're all depending on the computer here, some singing tactics won't work very well, so while I optimise your ability, you'll also develop better singing skills in the process. :>
Friday, May 6, 2011
DEADLINES ORZ
Deadline is the end of the post-MYE holidays. :|
Last day, 12 midnight.
(lmfao i sound like mr faeez)
EDIT 7/05/2011:
Don't be so scared, guys. =_=b
Further discussions are allowed lah.
Like, what if you're going on holiday, yeah?
Last day, 12 midnight.
(lmfao i sound like mr faeez)
♥
EDIT 7/05/2011:
Don't be so scared, guys. =_=b
Further discussions are allowed lah.
Like, what if you're going on holiday, yeah?
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