3 Tips For Mixing Backing Vocals with Sara Carter

00:16:22
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5Mbbpm4UrE

الملخص

TLDRVideo presenter Sarah Carter shares three essential tips for mixing backing vocals effectively. She emphasizes the importance of giving backing vocals proper attention during the mixing process, as they significantly enhance the depth, emotional impact, balance, and overall interest of a song. The tips include ensuring consonants in backing vocals align with the main vocal to avoid distractions, controlling sibilance to prevent harsh sounds, and using EQ to dull high frequencies so that backing vocals sit well behind the lead vocal. By following these guidelines, mixers can create professional-sounding backing vocals that complement the lead singer.

الوجبات الجاهزة

  • 🎤 Backing vocals add depth and richness to songs.
  • 🎶 They emphasize emotional content in lyrics.
  • ⚖️ Create balance by highlighting key elements in the mix.
  • ✨ Add interest with layers of textures and harmonics.
  • 🕒 Ensure timing of consonants aligns with the main vocal.
  • 🔊 Control sibilance to avoid distracting sounds.
  • 🔧 Use EQ to dull high frequencies in backing vocals.
  • 🎚️ Consider using tape machines for a cohesive sound.
  • 📏 Adjust levels to ensure backing vocals sit well in the mix.
  • 🎧 Aim for a professional sound that complements the lead vocal.

الجدول الزمني

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:00

    Sarah Carter introduces three tips for mixing backing vocals, emphasizing their importance in adding depth, emotional content, balance, and interest to a song. She highlights that backing vocals should not be an afterthought, as they significantly enhance the overall sound and listener engagement.

  • 00:05:00 - 00:10:00

    Carter discusses the technical aspects of aligning consonants in overlapping vocals to avoid distractions. She demonstrates using audio editing tools to ensure that consonants in harmonies match the lead vocal, which helps create a cohesive sound. This attention to detail is crucial for maintaining listener focus on the main vocal.

  • 00:10:00 - 00:16:22

    The final tips focus on controlling sibilance and adjusting high frequencies in backing vocals to ensure they sit well in the mix. Carter suggests using EQ and compression techniques to manage these elements, ultimately leading to a polished and professional sound that complements the lead vocals.

الخريطة الذهنية

فيديو أسئلة وأجوبة

  • What are the benefits of backing vocals?

    Backing vocals add depth, emotional emphasis, balance, and interest to a song.

  • How can I ensure my backing vocals sound cohesive?

    Focus on timing, control sibilance, and adjust high frequencies.

  • What should I do if consonants in backing vocals are mismatched?

    Use audio editing tools to align consonants with the main vocal.

  • How can I control sibilance in backing vocals?

    Use a de-esser or manually adjust the volume of sibilant frequencies.

  • Why should backing vocals sound duller than the main vocal?

    To push them back in the mix and ensure the main vocal stands out.

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الترجمات
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التمرير التلقائي:
  • 00:00:00
    hello there Sarah Carter here for
  • 00:00:02
    produce like a pro and today I've got
  • 00:00:05
    three tips that I think will help you
  • 00:00:07
    mix better sounding backing vocals
  • 00:00:11
    [Music]
  • 00:00:16
    there are four great reasons for giving
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    backing vocals a great deal of attention
  • 00:00:21
    during the mixing process I remember
  • 00:00:24
    that I probably guilty of not giving
  • 00:00:26
    them as much attention as they should
  • 00:00:28
    have had when I first started mixing
  • 00:00:31
    they're always felt like a bit of a
  • 00:00:32
    secondary thing or the last thing to do
  • 00:00:34
    at the end of every mix but really back
  • 00:00:37
    in vocals play a huge part in adding
  • 00:00:40
    depth Dimension and richness to a song
  • 00:00:43
    making it sound much more captivating
  • 00:00:46
    and dynamic than one that is perhaps
  • 00:00:49
    just got one or two solitary vocals and
  • 00:00:52
    when you're writing back in vocal parts
  • 00:00:54
    for your Productions there are four
  • 00:00:56
    areas where backing vocals can really
  • 00:00:59
    enhance your songs first they add depth
  • 00:01:03
    and dimension to the song and they do
  • 00:01:05
    that by giving the track a sense of
  • 00:01:08
    space because they really fill out the
  • 00:01:10
    Sound Stage and therefore the song will
  • 00:01:14
    come together in a much more
  • 00:01:16
    of where secondly they can emphasize the
  • 00:01:19
    emotional content of the lyrics and they
  • 00:01:22
    do this by emphasizing certain phrases
  • 00:01:25
    or lines and they can change the whole
  • 00:01:29
    mood of the song as well depending on
  • 00:01:31
    the type of effects you use to process
  • 00:01:33
    them by mixing the backing vocals in a
  • 00:01:36
    way that supports the emotional message
  • 00:01:39
    behind the song it can evoke a really
  • 00:01:42
    strong emotional response from your
  • 00:01:44
    listeners so I'm thinking here about
  • 00:01:46
    where you might
  • 00:01:48
    take us back in vocal and make it sound
  • 00:01:50
    really ghostly or ethereal so it sounds
  • 00:01:52
    really far back behind the main vocal
  • 00:01:55
    that's going to create a completely
  • 00:01:57
    different mood to where you might use EQ
  • 00:02:01
    and some sort of distortion or
  • 00:02:03
    saturation to change that tone into
  • 00:02:05
    something that's more telephonic or like
  • 00:02:09
    a megaphone for example thirdly they can
  • 00:02:12
    create a sense of balance in a mix and
  • 00:02:15
    what I mean by that is they add to the
  • 00:02:18
    sense of balance by highlighting key
  • 00:02:21
    elements of the song so for example
  • 00:02:24
    the chorus
  • 00:02:26
    and what plays into that is the
  • 00:02:29
    expectation from The Listener what
  • 00:02:31
    sounds familiar to them makes it more
  • 00:02:34
    easy to listen to and therefore it's
  • 00:02:35
    going to sound like you've created a
  • 00:02:38
    more cohesive mix then mixing the vocals
  • 00:02:40
    in a considered way ensures that they
  • 00:02:43
    won't end up
  • 00:02:45
    overpowering the main vocal or in fact
  • 00:02:48
    even some of the other instruments in
  • 00:02:50
    the mix and lastly they just add
  • 00:02:52
    interest to the song songs more
  • 00:02:54
    interesting when you've got added layers
  • 00:02:57
    of textures and subtle harmonics
  • 00:03:00
    through vocal harmonies through extra
  • 00:03:04
    ad-libs or through counter melodies
  • 00:03:08
    just adds a whole new dimension to a
  • 00:03:11
    song and it this is going to keep the
  • 00:03:12
    listener engaged and this is what we
  • 00:03:14
    want we want listeners to listen to our
  • 00:03:17
    songs all the way through and whilst
  • 00:03:19
    those are considerations you need to
  • 00:03:21
    make early on in the whole process in
  • 00:03:24
    pre-production
  • 00:03:26
    how can we as mixers create back in
  • 00:03:29
    vocals that sound balanced in a mix well
  • 00:03:32
    today I want to share with you my top
  • 00:03:34
    three tips to help you get your backing
  • 00:03:36
    vocals to sound cohesive and gelled in
  • 00:03:39
    your mix
  • 00:03:46
    dreaming of freedom
  • 00:03:48
    back in your bedroom
  • 00:03:51
    if I knew what I know now if there's
  • 00:03:55
    anything any mismatched consonants here
  • 00:03:58
    that catch out here left to right with
  • 00:04:01
    these lead doubles then we might have to
  • 00:04:03
    go in and just line them up with the
  • 00:04:05
    main vocal so that they match and they
  • 00:04:07
    hit at the same time and they're just
  • 00:04:09
    not gonna distract The Listener they're
  • 00:04:12
    not hard panned anywhere they're just uh
  • 00:04:14
    it's kind of wrapping around the lead
  • 00:04:17
    vocal at the moment but it's just
  • 00:04:19
    something to be aware of and to think of
  • 00:04:21
    when you're working with LED vocals like
  • 00:04:24
    this so that is that's Becky's vocals
  • 00:04:28
    sorted out uh let's keep going down the
  • 00:04:30
    line now and let's listen to what the
  • 00:04:32
    guys are doing
  • 00:04:33
    with these harmonies
  • 00:04:35
    looking back the Futures Pride got 20 20
  • 00:04:39
    Vision with hindsight
  • 00:04:41
    so not the guys
  • 00:04:43
    um uh lower Becky
  • 00:04:46
    looking back the future Sprite got 20 20
  • 00:04:49
    Vision with side sites okay well you're
  • 00:04:54
    here and there you're hearing that
  • 00:04:55
    mismatch the the tea of hindsight at the
  • 00:04:57
    very end of the line here uh it's been
  • 00:05:00
    sung at different times so you get it
  • 00:05:03
    becomes really noticeable in the
  • 00:05:05
    speakers a little tip to line up
  • 00:05:09
    consonants in overlapping vocals like
  • 00:05:12
    doubles harmonies
  • 00:05:14
    backing vocals if the consonants are
  • 00:05:17
    mismatched then you can hear that in the
  • 00:05:19
    speakers and it just can be distracting
  • 00:05:21
    so I want to fix that um on this
  • 00:05:23
    performance it's just really this kind
  • 00:05:25
    of last phrase here
  • 00:05:27
    I'm just going to create a cut there
  • 00:05:29
    let's kind of go with a tighter cut
  • 00:05:32
    here and the same there so we've got
  • 00:05:35
    these two doubles these two low
  • 00:05:37
    harmonies that we need the T section
  • 00:05:40
    here to line up with the T section here
  • 00:05:43
    on the main Bridge vocal so the way I'm
  • 00:05:45
    gonna do that I'm gonna do it with audio
  • 00:05:47
    suite and I'm going to do it with
  • 00:05:49
    vocaline
  • 00:05:50
    really great because I could just edit
  • 00:05:52
    it I could just uh put a cut here and
  • 00:05:55
    move the tea later in time but it's
  • 00:05:57
    going to be quite detached then from uh
  • 00:06:00
    this section of the vocal here so it'd
  • 00:06:02
    be quite nice if we can sort of stretch
  • 00:06:04
    that in a way that doesn't sound silly
  • 00:06:09
    so uh see what vocaline can do I'm going
  • 00:06:12
    to use a tightest timing
  • 00:06:14
    uh actual fact let's try
  • 00:06:17
    um slightly loose timing
  • 00:06:20
    I'm going to use the main Bridge vocal
  • 00:06:22
    as the capture as the guide
  • 00:06:25
    and then I'm going to add the first low
  • 00:06:29
    Harmony and then click render
  • 00:06:32
    and it you can see that it's stretched
  • 00:06:35
    it a little bit let's just see what that
  • 00:06:37
    sounds like
  • 00:06:38
    [Music]
  • 00:06:43
    that's much more lined up let's try it
  • 00:06:47
    now with this uh the second Harmony
  • 00:06:50
    capture that
  • 00:06:51
    render it
  • 00:06:53
    okay and again
  • 00:06:56
    [Music]
  • 00:06:58
    yeah it's much better the t is lined up
  • 00:07:01
    now so that's sounding great and then if
  • 00:07:04
    we listen to this phrase with these
  • 00:07:07
    vocals and it's just push the level of
  • 00:07:09
    these up a bit so we can hear them in
  • 00:07:11
    the mix because I just want to hear that
  • 00:07:13
    they sound naturalistic before I add any
  • 00:07:16
    of my compression let's just hear it
  • 00:07:26
    that's done what I wanted it to do
  • 00:07:28
    really quick
  • 00:07:30
    um really easy way to just get your
  • 00:07:32
    backing vocals to line up and the
  • 00:07:34
    consonants to line up so that they don't
  • 00:07:36
    sound mismatched left to right and uh
  • 00:07:40
    pull the attention uh of your listener
  • 00:07:42
    we want them to listen to the music we
  • 00:07:44
    don't want them to notice this kind of
  • 00:07:45
    like weird shifting happening in the
  • 00:07:48
    speakers so all those parts now lined up
  • 00:07:51
    it's particularly noticeable at the end
  • 00:07:53
    of lines so uh I really can make a
  • 00:07:56
    difference now I can move on and I'm
  • 00:08:00
    happy to get my compression in place now
  • 00:08:02
    and any other processing that that these
  • 00:08:06
    harmonies need
  • 00:08:09
    first thing that I think I need to do
  • 00:08:12
    because they're quite a lot some quite
  • 00:08:14
    low
  • 00:08:15
    I'm gonna get this multi-band on
  • 00:08:18
    make sure that we can we're controlling
  • 00:08:21
    the lower mids here and also the S's
  • 00:08:27
    the future 2012 Vision with hindsides
  • 00:08:31
    to pull back a bit looking back the
  • 00:08:34
    Futures right
  • 00:08:37
    pull a bit back on this
  • 00:08:39
    looking back the Futures Pride got 20 20
  • 00:08:43
    Vision with hindsight the other
  • 00:08:46
    consideration with backing vocals is you
  • 00:08:48
    don't want S's and T's being too bright
  • 00:08:51
    we leave that for the lead vocal but for
  • 00:08:54
    the backing vocals just kind of dull
  • 00:08:56
    down the S's and the t's so that they
  • 00:08:58
    too don't distract from the main vocal
  • 00:09:02
    looking back the Futures Pride got 20 20
  • 00:09:05
    Vision with hindsight
  • 00:09:08
    it's really grabbing hope make just cut
  • 00:09:10
    just that 200 Hertz ranges needs a
  • 00:09:13
    little bit of uh of smoothing out
  • 00:09:15
    so I think I may just pull back down on
  • 00:09:18
    the control here
  • 00:09:20
    looking back
  • 00:09:23
    just getting a few of those t's coming
  • 00:09:25
    through
  • 00:09:27
    looking back the Futures right got 20 20
  • 00:09:30
    Vision with hindsight
  • 00:09:33
    that's better and then for good measure
  • 00:09:36
    and follow-up is just to add a little
  • 00:09:39
    bit of uh de-esser as well looking back
  • 00:09:42
    the Futures bright God 2020 Vision with
  • 00:09:46
    hindsight
  • 00:09:48
    yes we've really controlled the s's the
  • 00:09:50
    t's and the timing there of the
  • 00:09:53
    consonants in those low harmonies
  • 00:09:56
    and it's going to feel like a much more
  • 00:09:58
    tight performance as well in the mix
  • 00:10:02
    we'll keep the ratio at four I want it
  • 00:10:04
    to move a little bit more than the vocal
  • 00:10:08
    Bridge which is the main main vocal
  • 00:10:12
    and then my thinking behind that is that
  • 00:10:15
    that movement again that difference it's
  • 00:10:17
    not going to be
  • 00:10:19
    mirror I mean it's sung differently
  • 00:10:21
    anyway but it's not going to be in terms
  • 00:10:23
    of Dynamics
  • 00:10:25
    mirroring the bridge vocal so the bridge
  • 00:10:28
    vocal is at eight to one it's solid it's
  • 00:10:32
    sitting there it's not moving anywhere
  • 00:10:33
    whereas the harmonies we're just letting
  • 00:10:36
    them move a little bit more naturally so
  • 00:10:38
    you're getting that kind of
  • 00:10:41
    um bounce
  • 00:10:42
    rhythm in the harmonies that's going to
  • 00:10:45
    be slightly different to what the main
  • 00:10:48
    vertical is doing so it's going to add
  • 00:10:50
    to that
  • 00:10:51
    separation that feel of separation and
  • 00:10:54
    stereo width again even though these
  • 00:10:57
    um harmonies aren't panned hard left
  • 00:10:59
    hard right that's my feeling behind it
  • 00:11:02
    and thinking behind it anyway
  • 00:11:05
    listen to both of them looking back the
  • 00:11:08
    Futures Pride got 20 20 Vision with
  • 00:11:11
    hindsight
  • 00:11:13
    look at the la2a in as well
  • 00:11:17
    again I'm choosing the gray because I
  • 00:11:19
    don't want these
  • 00:11:21
    harmonies to have too much in the S
  • 00:11:24
    Department looking back the Futures
  • 00:11:27
    bright God 2020 Vision with hindsides
  • 00:11:31
    looking back the Futures bright God 2020
  • 00:11:35
    Vision with hindsight and
  • 00:11:38
    put that over and then one last de-esser
  • 00:11:41
    I've said it before it's a really great
  • 00:11:43
    tip and that is to spread the de-essing
  • 00:11:45
    duties across
  • 00:11:47
    several different de-esses so that you
  • 00:11:50
    get a more natural sound at the end of
  • 00:11:52
    it and you avoid that kind of uh effect
  • 00:11:56
    as well
  • 00:11:57
    looking back the Futures bright God 2020
  • 00:12:01
    Vision with hindsight okay that's
  • 00:12:04
    feeling good
  • 00:12:07
    looking back the Futures Pride got 20 20
  • 00:12:11
    Vision with hindsight
  • 00:12:14
    so
  • 00:12:15
    um let's listen to what's happening now
  • 00:12:17
    with all the vocals
  • 00:12:20
    in the mix at this point
  • 00:12:22
    now that we've got the dynamic control
  • 00:12:24
    and the multibands in
  • 00:12:34
    [Music]
  • 00:12:35
    yeah sounding great uh just need to
  • 00:12:38
    level balance them now really make sure
  • 00:12:40
    that they're sitting nicely along inside
  • 00:12:42
    all this instrumentation so let's go
  • 00:12:45
    ahead and do that
  • 00:12:48
    so first of all I'm going to get the
  • 00:12:51
    studer across these
  • 00:12:54
    to really helped kind of smush them into
  • 00:12:58
    the same space
  • 00:13:04
    back in your bedroom
  • 00:13:08
    so the idea is to hit the tip really
  • 00:13:10
    hard with these backing vocals and this
  • 00:13:13
    this also goes towards that helping that
  • 00:13:15
    gang vocal feel so I'm gonna mute these
  • 00:13:18
    main vocals because I want to
  • 00:13:20
    concentrate on these backing vocals
  • 00:13:22
    right now let's listen again
  • 00:13:25
    oh
  • 00:13:27
    [Applause]
  • 00:13:30
    oh
  • 00:13:32
    with backing vocals gang vocals you
  • 00:13:35
    always want them to sound a little bit
  • 00:13:36
    duller than the main vocals to push them
  • 00:13:40
    back to sit behind the vocal a little
  • 00:13:42
    bit so that's why I've chosen the gp9
  • 00:13:45
    tape here and then if I want to do them
  • 00:13:47
    even further I could just go to the high
  • 00:13:49
    frequency knob up here yeah the key here
  • 00:13:52
    is just to smash the tape oh
  • 00:13:57
    [Applause]
  • 00:13:59
    oh
  • 00:14:01
    so it's also adding an element of a
  • 00:14:03
    distortion as well so there you have it
  • 00:14:06
    my top three tips first of all timing
  • 00:14:09
    make sure your consonants all line up
  • 00:14:11
    with the main vocal so that nothing is
  • 00:14:13
    distracting you in the speakers left and
  • 00:14:16
    right and your attention is focused on
  • 00:14:19
    the main vocal yet it's been wrapped by
  • 00:14:22
    these wonderful sounding Harmony vocals
  • 00:14:25
    secondly sibilance getting those s's and
  • 00:14:29
    T's and sometimes F's under control so
  • 00:14:32
    that they're not distracting and causing
  • 00:14:35
    your listener to focus on the strange
  • 00:14:37
    sounds left and right rather than your
  • 00:14:39
    main vocal yes you can go in manually
  • 00:14:42
    and eat on each s and t and sometimes F
  • 00:14:46
    go in and pull down the volume of each
  • 00:14:50
    of those sibilant frequencies and
  • 00:14:52
    sometimes that can sound more natural
  • 00:14:54
    than using a de-esser or a multi-band
  • 00:14:57
    compressor so you've got to try what
  • 00:14:58
    works best for you because it is
  • 00:15:00
    dependent on the singer the microphone
  • 00:15:03
    the lines that they're singing and the
  • 00:15:06
    rest of the instrumentation so just try
  • 00:15:08
    out a few different techniques to see
  • 00:15:10
    what works best for you and finally just
  • 00:15:13
    taking off some high frequencies with
  • 00:15:15
    simple EQ a high cut filter or a high
  • 00:15:18
    shelf just pull the frequencies down a
  • 00:15:20
    touch so that they just sound a little
  • 00:15:23
    duller and therefore they will sit
  • 00:15:25
    behind the main vocal now you've just
  • 00:15:28
    seen me do it using the tape machine
  • 00:15:30
    which is the same idea and if you
  • 00:15:32
    consider these three tips then you're
  • 00:15:34
    well on your way to having backing
  • 00:15:36
    vocals that complement the lead vocal
  • 00:15:38
    perfectly so thanks for watching this
  • 00:15:40
    video I hope you found it informative or
  • 00:15:43
    at least I hope you found it
  • 00:15:44
    entertaining and by following these tips
  • 00:15:46
    you're going to be well on your way to
  • 00:15:48
    creating professional sounding backing
  • 00:15:50
    vocals that complement the lead singer
  • 00:15:52
    so once again thanks for watching and
  • 00:15:54
    I'll see you in the next video
  • 00:15:57
    I'm finally just taking off some high
  • 00:15:59
    filters
  • 00:16:02
    [Music]
  • 00:16:12
    [Applause]
  • 00:16:14
    [Music]
الوسوم
  • mixing
  • backing vocals
  • music production
  • audio engineering
  • vocal harmonies
  • sibilance
  • EQ
  • compression
  • music tips
  • recording