0213 - The ‘Higher And Louder’ Pitfall

0213 - The ‘Higher And Louder’ PitfallWe look at the volume of a voice a little later, but for now let’s take a glance its relationship with pitch, because there is a potential pitfall of using volume for emphasis, instead of pitch. Doing this might cause people to perceive your voice as shrill, and you as hysterical (something that Hillary Clinton was accused of[1]). Both in a studio and in an auditorium, you should usually be letting the microphone do the work of boosting your volume. Emphasis instead comes from your use of a better vocal range. It’s:·        easier and more comfortable to produce·        causes less damage to your vocal folds·        gives you more vocal stamina·        is easier to listen to·        sounds more spontaneous and natural ·        is more interesting and inspirational ·        a change of pitch alerts the audience to an important point or a change in topic ·        you as a speaker are seen as more in control rather than excitable or deranged. (And as we will see in a later chapter on volume, where a louder voice can certainly rouse a crowd, it can also create a ‘wall of sound’, whereas a softer voice causes people to lean in and pay attention.) [1] https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/hillary-clinton-voice-msnbc_n_56dd403de4b0ffe6f8e9d648?ri18n=true Audio recording script and show notes (c) 2021 Peter StewartThrough these around-5-minute episodes, you can build your confidence and competence with advice on breathing and reading, inflection and projection, the roles played by better scripting and better sitting, mic techniques and voice care tips... with exercises and anecdotes from a career spent in TV and radio studios. If you're wondering about how to start a podcast, or have had one for a while - download every episode!And as themes develop over the weeks (that is, they are not random topics day-by-day), this is a free, course to help you GET A BETTER BROADCAST, PODCAST AND VIDEO VOICE.Look out for more details of the book during 2021.Contacts: https://linktr.ee/Peter_StewartPeter has been around voice and audio all his working life and has trained hundreds of broadcasters in all styles of radio from pop music stations such as Capital FM and BBC Radio 1 to Heart FM, the classical music station BBC Radio 3 and regional BBC stations. He’s trained news presenters on regional TV, the BBC News Channel and on flagship programmes such as the BBC’s Panorama. Other trainees have been music presenters, breakfast show hosts, travel news presenters and voice-over artists.He has written a number of books on audio and video presentation and production (“Essential Radio Journalism”, “JournoLists”, two editions of “Essential Radio Skills” and three editions of “Broadcast Journalism”) and has written on voice and presentation skills in the BBC’s in-house newspaper “Ariel”.Peter has presented hundreds of radio shows (you may have heard him on BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 4, Virgin Radio or Kiss, as well as BBC regional radio) with formats as diverse as music-presentation, interview shows, ‘special’ programmes for elections and budgets, live outside broadcasts and commentaries and even the occasional sports, gardening and dedication programmes. He has read several thousand news bulletins, and hosted nearly 2,000 podcast episodes, and is a vocal image consultant advising in all aspects of voice and speech training for presenters on radio and TV, podcasts and YouTube, voiceovers and videocalls.The podcast title refers to those who may wish to change their speaking voice in some way. It is not a suggestion that anyone should, or be pressured into needing to. We love accents and dialects, and are well aware that how we speak changes over time. The key is: is your voice successfully communicating your message, so it is being understood (and potentially being acted upon) by your target audience?This podcast is London-based and examples are spoken in the RP (Received Pronunciation) / standard-English / BBC English pronunciation, although invariably applicable to other languages, accents and dialects.Music credits:"Bleeping Demo" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/7012-bleeping-demoLicense: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license"Beauty Flow" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5025-beauty-flowLicense: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license"Envision" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4706-envisionLicense: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license"Limit 70" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5710-limit-70License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license"Rising Tide" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5027-rising-tideLicense: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license"Wholesome" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5050-wholesomeLicense: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license Hosted on Acast. 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