Great realistic delivery on this PSA! I assume you’ll fade or edit out the breaths in lieu of some light background music, sounds very connected to me and good luck with your demo.
I liked the performance. Although I was hearing background noise/static distracting me as a listener. It’s something you might want to eliminate, in case it was your set up or if it’s just my headphone plug in.
You’re doing great. I love your tone, volume, and pitches, but the tempo sounds choppy. I can tell you’re breathing and it sounds like your pausing in the middle of the sentence. It’s important to make sure the read flows and save pauses for commas, periods, etc.
Mary, thank you for commenting on the read. I want to also thank you for comments you made on a read I did a couple of weeks ago,but did not acknowledge them. Please accept my apologies!
Ed
Sorry I think I replied to the wrong recording this one was the one I meant to reply to. The one above about home Depot seems good as well in a natural conversational style although you may want to change tone or get a little more enthusiastic for the ending hope that helps!
I think the way you’re reading is quite fitting. You sound like an authority on the subject, you’re commanding and inspirational, but I’m noticing a lot of pauses and breaths. It’s important to avoid making the script choppy, especially when it’s short like this. Even so, well done!
I like the way you contrasted the first two lines and, especially, how you delivered “…your immune system is” with a slight smile. You pause a bit too long between “is” and “with” which breaks the flow of this sentence. It does make the product name stand out but I found it slightly jarring. Nice job on the closing line and not dropping off on “immune system strong.” Very pleasant voice! I could hear a couple plosives, which you will want to eliminate through mic technique and maybe a pop filter. Thanks for sharing. Bill A.
Thought I’d loosen up a bit tonight and bring more inflection with a light-hearted piece. That shirt rustle is a good reminder to wear “quiet” clothes when recording. Thanks for any feedback… Bill A.
My child has quite an imagination. His teachers say that some day he’ll be doing great things. Right now, he’s already an architect, a designer, an engineer … I think he’s a creative genius … and thanks to Legos, the creative building toy, there’s just no limit to what he can do, LEGOS … the creative diversion that helps develop a child’s potential.
I haven’t been here in a while, but I’m glad to be back. Nice job! I like your light hearted, matter of fact tone and I enjoyed the way you told the story. One thought is that you might try taking this to an even lighter note by leaning into a little bit of spirited boasting about your creative genius child. 🙂 Just another approach to consider. Nicely done!
Hey, Barb. Thank you for the encouraging feedback. I agree with your suggestion and think I’ll have a go at that later today. Welcome back to the forum. I first discovered this community back in 2010 and have always enjoyed coming back. Where are you on your VO journey? Regards, Bill A.
Hi Bill. Thanks, it’s good to be back. I started down this road in 2016 and fell away.. wish I had continued then but nothing happens before it’s time I guess, right? Onward and upward! I’m back, fully engaged and having a good time learning. I should be posting soon! Best, BarbC.
Very nice conversational and enthusiastic tone to this Bill! If you want any critique I would say there are 3 slurred words in there which maybe were done on purpose, I know because I have done the same thing with lists. It’s like a stutter where you extend a word to sound as though your thinking as you speak, it actually creates more realism; “a designer” and “I think” are two I noticed but maybe it was on purpose, enjoyed that though along with my grandson who is a Leggo enthusiast!
Hey, Rich. Yep, I was trying to sound conversational, speaking my thoughts as they were coming to me. And maybe a little hesitant to brag too much about my son. Anyway, I appreciate your critique and your grandson’s endorsement! Good to know he’s engaged in creative diversions! Thanks, Bill A.
Good job — I would just focus on getting a little more emotion from this read. If healthcare is really important, you’re not making it seem important. I should feel more “care” with the first two sentences.
Just my thoughts.
I really like the way you said “to create a partnership that will set a new standard for quality and caring.” You sounded most connected to the script here, warm and inspiring. I think this connection should come across throughout the piece, whether it’s a flat read or not. Thanks, Bill A.
sounds very good mostly, I did notice a little hesitation in turning the script tone more positive when you talk about Aetna partnering, maybe you want a enthusiastic change there?
Hello everybody, I’m practicing some more commercial scripts, as I have my demo coming up this week. Please provide feedback on performance and recording quality. Thanks.
Honest Tea
Open a bottle of Honest Tea and discover and honest world. Filled with real brewed organic tea leaves and delicious organic honey. Or, you could just take a look at the label. Honest Tea. Refreshingly honest.
I love the way that you ended this on a positive note. The beginning of the read sounded a little bit presentational and not very conversational. I’m thinking that the listener that is attracted to something that is “honest” might be more inclined to pay attention to a friend. Great voice though!
Good performance altogether. But then I re-listened to the beginning again. When you say “Open a bottle of Honest Tea and discover an honest world”, the “H” in ‘honest’ sounded rushed. Almost like you were saying “Onest, more with an ‘O’ sound, without the h. But it was a good performance altogether.
Hi everyone, I hope you’re healthy and well. Here are some of the auditions I’ve done in the past week. Let me know what you think. By the way, I didn’t get hired for any of them.
1. Fed Ex Office Commercial
2. Video instruction for prospective employees
3. Video “thank you” from a corporate client
This reply was modified 3 years, 11 months ago by Skinnydog351.
This reply was modified 3 years, 11 months ago by Skinnydog351.
This reply was modified 3 years, 11 months ago by Skinnydog351.
Hi Skinnydog, I haven’t yet trained in narration VO, so I’m just going to provide feedback for the FedEx commercial read. I enjoyed the commercial read. The tone of the read is solid as is the tempo. You differentiate well between sentences, and the items in the list. Lastly the recording quality sounds good. Great job.
You have a fantastic voice! It’s a struggle to find points to critique.. maybe the energy in the FedEx read didn’t quite connect in the middle, but I thought you had it by the end. If I were going to tweak anything else in that read I might play with the lists .. I can hear the differentiation but it almost sounds a bit too intentional if I’m being picky. As for the other two reads — rock solid. You’re voice is very impressive .. in fact, I believe I’ve heard your work.
Hello, I like the way you connect words and phrases together within a phrase/sentence — really professional. Not sure I agree with your choice to edit your performances as you did here, however, removing breaths and some of the pause that would naturally happen between sentences. It makes the rhythm of each piece too constant, in my opinion. Your voice is like a dish of Rocky Road ice cream — smooth, creamy, and deliciously textured. (Feel free to put that on your website.) But I wonder if you love hearing yourself in the headphones. Reason I ask is your performances sound slightly affected to me, like you’re a little caught up with the beauty of your voice. When I crank up my headphones, I tend to listen to my voice too much and don’t stay as connected to the script. It’s a subtle thing. What if you tried performing with headphones off. It might help you listen less and relax into the read…and do it in one take, rather than splice the best version of each sentence together. My apologies if my assumptions are way off. Also, that third piece stood out to me, nice full levels. I heard a small plosive on the first phrase of the second one, between “sleep” and “guide.” Small thing but it could have cost you.
Anyway, I enjoyed each piece and respect your skills. Thanks, Bill A.
Hi all, getting some practice in as I work toward a narration demo. Took a crack at a medical and e-learning script. Any feedback is appreciated. The medical read just felt like a string of large words… I tried to get it to flow as best as I could, but it felt like foreign language.
Guitar Tip
And now for the Guitar Tip Of The Week:
Take care of your hands. You can finger notes more easily if you keep the nails on your fret hand trimmed short. Leave the nails on your picking hand slightly longer to facilitate plucking the strings. Rough edges on your nails will impair the tone of your playing, so be sure to use a good set of clippers and an emery board to maintain smooth nail tips. Wash your hands prior to playing. Clean hands transmit less dirt and help maintain string life and tone.
Phytophotodermatitis (Medical Narration)
Phytophotodermatitis is a nonimmunologic phototoxic cutaneous eruption resulting from contact with photosensitizing substances found in plants; furocoumarins (present in limes and other plants) are typically implicated and get activated following exposure to sunlight, especially 320-400 nanometer UVA rays.
I agree with Skinnydog – you have a great voice! But there were pauses in the read that make it choppy. Also, it sounded like the wrong emphasis on “board” when you read ’emery board’ in the guitar script. I must say, considering the difficulty of a medical script your inflections seemed fine to me .. I wouldn’t have guessed that it felt like a foreign language. Smooth out your reads so they’re less choppy, and you’re off to the races!
Nice voice but watch the pausing. Choppy reads are one of the big reasons people don’t get hired. Read the sentences in a more fluid and connected way and people will hear that great voice and not be distracted by the read. Good Luck!
Hi everyone, more practicing! Please ignore all studio issues, especially the obvious punch in at 0:42. Just looking for feedback on my technique. Thanks!
Script:
Alacola Valley
Water. Clear, fresh and life-giving to the crops of the Alacola Valley. Rushing ever onward to the sea. The waters of the Minset River visit this lush valley to replenish the soil and color the land. Yellow citrus, green vegetables, blueberries and ruby-red fruit checkerboard the landscape in brilliant hues. Farmers, who have tended this land for generations move from field to field inspecting the size, calculating weight and measuring progress. Progress is slow. But only with time can the flavors of the Alacola Valley reach perfection. And it’s perfection that the Alacola Valley is all about. The possibility of a early frost, the likelihood of invading insects and the consequence of even 3 extra days of rain weighs heavily on the minds of the land’s caretakers. But today is glorious and worry will wait until tomorrow.
Good job on this documentary narration work. You sound similar to a local narrator I used to hear in San Francisco who had a show on weekly for destinations to visit with a nature theme. As far as your delivery I like the flow and also your excitement to the read, my only suggestion would be to try and relax to come across as more intimate to your listener as they say so they feel you are just talking to them. Hope that helps and keep up the great work!
history Channel Script is a good practice for lists and variations to make them interesting!
However don’t count on great script writing like this, unfortunately most online audition scripts aren’t very exciting.
History Channel
If you lived before our time, who would you be?
Would you fight your brother for the rights of another? Who would you be?
Would you find new dreams or create wonders?
What if you could choose from a 1,000 yesterdays; a 1,000 lives, when the past was today and the new took your breath away.
Who would you be? What would you feel? How would you live? Who would you love?
Remembering every generation before us;
Remembering for generations to come.
The History Channel. Where the past comes alive.
Great script for your voice! I agree that your rate is a little fast for this piece. The words suggest awe and wonder to me. Slow down on a key line like “Who would you be?” After all, it’s a rather profound rhetorical question, meant to make the listen think. You say it too quickly in my view. Regardless, your mature, rich voice (rim shot) is perfect for this genre. Thanks for sharing. Bill A.
Hey Rich! Really like your vocal quality. Very nice read. My comments may be more for me, than you, as I train my ears to hear things. 🙂 I especially like the opening “If you lived before our time,” which is immediately engaging. I notice a slight change in tonal quality right after the comma, which would be appropriate, however the voice sounds different somehow – a little less full perhaps – maybe because of the rise in pitch, which threw me off a little. Very minor, though. Not sure if you hear what I mean. I think there could be slightly longer pauses between the 4 questions on the 4th to last line. I am imagining changing visuals while the listener contemplates each question. Finally, I like what you do with “Where the past.. comes alive”, however I think “Where the past” is a little too fast. Thanks for allowing me to comment. I’m wondering if you can please comment on how or from where you pick the music pieces for background. Thanks. I like it! I look forward to hearing more of your work.
Thanks for your feedback on this much appreciated. Good points all, since there’s no video I like to keep the pauses minimal but your right. The background music is available under copyright free music online and I usually search under the topic name, (History Channel), there are a lot of them just be careful about downloading scams and Edge Studio has a list under resources as well.