Looking for feedback on recording & choir question

[partlycloudy]

Here is the recording:

http://picosong.com/9cu2

It becomes much less bad around 01:10 if you want to seek ahead.

I'm off-key sometimes but I don't think I can get a better recording at my current skill level.

Also, I buried the higher harmony due to poor mixing, sorry.

 

Here is a chipmunked version (sped up by 12.5%, which shifts the pitch of all tracks up by one whole step, I think) that is less painful to listen to:

http://picosong.com/9cuh

 

Does anyone know why chipmunking it, i.e. changing the key AND the speed, makes it sound less bad?

 

Here is why I'm posting this. There is a local choir holding auditions this upcoming week and they have told me these are not difficult audtions -- I would just have to sing scales and notes from chords that they will play. I don't have to sing a song or anything. I also don't have to do anything solo once I'm past the audition, it's all choral/group.

I am posting this so hopefully someone will tell me that I'm completely tone-deaf and should not audition. I think I can sing mostly in-tune but could be so severely tone-deaf that I can't even hear that I'm off-key, so I want to make sure before I embarrass myself at the audition!

 

Also, I like a lot of varied music but have only a narrow range of songs that I'm actually comfortable singing (most of them are Evanescence songs, lol, so that's a pretty small set). Any recommendations for songs I could practice are much appreciated.

 

Thanks in advance for your help!

[polarity30]

Thanks for the feedback on my song. I really appreciate it.

 

To me this sounds pitchy. The mix is also very busy so it's kinda hard to tell for sure. I think you would be fine auditioning because you will be somewhere that you can learn and improve.

 

You can also check out http://www.singtherightnote.com it plays a note, you sing it back. It tells you if you got it. You can use that to work on pitch matching, if you can pitch match the rest is just technique. Breathing, how to say words, etc. All of that they can help you learn.

 

Try that website and also maybe upload something that isn't as busy of a song so we can hear the voice a little better?

[partlycloudy]

Thanks for your response. Yeah, it's definitely pitchy. I can sing the right note, the problem is that I'm not breathing correctly (working on that), so I can get pitchy in the course of a whole song (most of it was one take). But I can hear that I'm off and if I were to record every phrase of the song separately, it would be fine because I wouldn't run out of air and get pitchy because of that. But obviously, I'm not going to record the song one phrase at a time, haha. So it will take some improvement.

 

I can't play any instrument that well, so I have to sing over an instrumental, and most of the songs I like are busy/loud. I'll try to post something though.

 

Thanks again for your comment.

[davie]

Hi partlycloudy

 

I think this is probably the first time I've heard you sing. Though your singing is a bit rough around the edges, you naturally have a nice voice. I don't think it matters if you're singing on top of a loud/busy track or not, I can still hear you clearly. The main issues I noticed were occasional "scooping" of notes (sliding to hit the pitch), and a need for more breath support. I think your pitch is not bad, it might go be off once in while, but I think your pitch perception is there. Your vocals at after the 2:32 mark were especially good. You seem to enjoy this type of music, so I think you could stick to songs that are similar.

 

About the "chipmunk effect" or sped up recordings. In some cases, a slightly faster recording will sound better because of a few reasons. First, it shifts the key higher, which usually makes it sound more exciting. Second, a faster tempo generally also makes it exciting. And lastly, a faster tempo makes the timing on rests more narrow, making timing issues less noticeable.

[partlycloudy]

Thanks Davie. That's really helpful, especially about the breath support. That seems to be an ongoing issue for me. I think the scooping is related to the poor breath support. I've finally gotten to the point where I can sing for 5-6 hours in one stretch and get only the slightest sore throat, or no soreness at all. So it's improving, but not there yet.

 

I'm noticing I keep singing behind the beat, but I think it's a recording problem and not an actual singing problem. I can't get used to the latency over USB.

 

I am also not very good at mixing (it took me almost an hour just to mix 3 vocal tracks + this pre-made instrumental, haha) so that's probably not helping anything.

 

Also I have noticed that if I increase (or even decrease) the pitch/speed by just 7-9%, it sounds exponentially better. I think that's in part because it doesn't sound exactly like me, it sounds like someone else, and that's much more bearable for me to listen to. lol

 

Thanks again for your comment Davie!

[davie]

You're welcome!

 

Btw, what are you using to record? (eg. software, microphone, interface)

[partlycloudy]

Audio-Technica AT2020 XLR mic into a Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 interface. Software is Ableton Live 8.2.4 ('Lite' version packaged w/ interface - which has limits on # of tracks and # of effects I can use, but otherwise mostly functions well)

 

Stuff has been sitting around unused, mostly...I sing quite a bit but I don't record, usually.