#Mixing vocals over instrumentals professional

Consider the group as an instrument when in one song, they are a blended rhythm guitar and in another song they are the highlighted lead instrument.The Concept: A marketplace & community of recording, mixing and mastering professionals working on projects from their own studios. They arenвЂ™t used to sound like a duplicate of the lead singer. Backing vocalists can be used in multiple ways depending on the song arrangement. Looking beyond the highs and lows, consider these frequencies as a place to start ДЈ kHz вЂ“ 5 kHz: Sibilance (Cut to eliminate)ДЎ.5 kHz вЂ“ 8 kHz: Clarity and Presence The Take Away вЂ“ and a questionДЄll vocalists on the stage shouldnвЂ™t be singing at the same volume level. Cut and boost frequencies so they sound as one. You arenвЂ™t creating three distinct sounds for the three backing vocalists.

#Mixing vocals over instrumentals professional

This is where it helps to listen to professional recordings of the same songs during the week. You can also boost their vocals at a point in the song when a verse has a punched up line that stands out. If the lead singer let the backing vocalists take over for the chorus, then you can easily boost their volume.

Then, you can easily cut or boost their volume so they are always in the right relationship in the mix. Place the backing vocalists into a group and control all of their volumes with one fader.

Blending is more than setting the initial volume levels, setting the EQ, and putting on some reverb. Use a higher compression ratio if necessary, especially if you have one singer who really likes to belt them out. They will be fitting in the mix in a very tight space and you donвЂ™t want a backing vocalist to suddenly sound louder than the othersвЂ¦especially the lead singer. The lead vocal would be good with a short reverb time while the backing vocals can be blended together with a longer reverb like a Hall reverb. First, use a different type of reverb than the lead vocal. Again with a shelf filter so they arenвЂ™t clogging up the instruments while at the same time, not sounding too flat. Remember, backing vocals should be blended together while not sounding like a doubling of the lead singer. You donвЂ™t want to cut out their highs completely, but by using a shelving EQ on their highs, you can make the lead stand out. As well as reducing their volume for lead support, you want to place them in a reduced frequency range, just as you would any instrument in your mix. Roll off some of their high frequencies.How much less? I canвЂ™t assign a magic dB number but IвЂ™ll say it should be noticeable. Therefore, their volume needs to be less than the lead. While there are instances of multiple leads, thatвЂ™s another story. You donвЂ™t have four lead singers, you have a lead and three backing singers. Most of the time, the backing vocalists are supporting the lead singer. The Top Seven Ways for Blending Backing Vocals Mixing the backing vocalists, you need to consider their role (arrangement) in the song and their placement in the mix so their role can be fulfilled. Did I mention song arrangement is an important part of performing music? In this case, the backing vocalists take over during a chorus and the lead singer doesnвЂ™t sing. Much like supporting the chorus, they might be singing a different melodic line. They might only sing the chorus or specific parts, but they are in a supportive roll for adding depth to the mix. They are singing the same words but they arenвЂ™t as loud as the lead singer. Behind the lead vocalist as a means of supporting the verses or chorus.LetвЂ™s get down to mixingвЂ¦Д«efore jumping into the top seven ways, letвЂ™s first look at where backing vocals can sit in the mix Backing vocalists can sing in different ways for supporting the song and/or the lead vocalist. Looking back at my last twenty years of mixing, IвЂ™ve seen worship teams with anywhere from one to five backing vocalists. Backing vocals can define the quality of your mix. Blending backing vocals is a critical step in mixing.Photo provided by jakelieferДonвЂ™t let your backing vocal mixing be an afterthought.