The 50 Most Essential CDs Since 2001 - Harp - Each Note Secure

http://www.eachnotesecure.com/the-50-most-essen...

clipped by tokyokevin Oct 14, 2006

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First, let me say that I have a guilty pleasure with lists. Yes its true, I love a good list. I love the drama that can ensue when one item is placed above or below another and the web-based brawls that result. This list wont ruffle too many feathers though, as Harp Magazine, of which I am a loyal subscriber has the top 50 Most Essential Albums since 2001, a time period of which most of us should be quite familiar with, right. Harp is doing this in celebration of their 5th birthday.

50) Gillian Welch - (Time) The Revelator
49) The Roots - Phrenology
48) Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf
47) Silver Jews - Tanglewood Numbers
46) Guided by Voices - Isolation Drills
45) Neko Case - Blacklisted
44) Solomon Burke - Dont Give Up On Me
43) Kathleen Edwards - Failer
42) Mark Lanegan - Bubblegum
41) Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros - Streetcore
40) Lucinda Williams - World without tears
39) Missy Elliot - Miss E…So Addictive
38) Sparklehorse - Its a wonderful life
37) The Libertines - Up the Bracket
36) The Black Keys - Rubber Factory
35) Franz Ferdinand - S/T
34) Wolf Parade - Apologies to Queen Mary
33) Bob Dylan - Love and Theft
32) The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
31) Drive By Truckers - Decoration Day
30) Ryan Adams - Gold
29) Steve Earle - The Revolution Starts Now
28) Elvis Costello - The Delivery Man
27) The Strokes - Is This It?
26) The White Stripes - White Blood Cells

25) The Shins - Chutes Too Narrow
24) The White Stripes - Elephant
23) Cat Power - You Are Free
22) Loretta Lynn - Van Lear Rose
21) Devendra Banhart - Cripple Crow
20) My Morning Jacket - It Still Moves
19) Outkast - Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
18) Steve Earle - Jerusalem
17) Iron and Wine - Our Endless Numbered Days
16) Wilco - A Ghost is Born
15) PJ Harvey - Uh Huh Her
14) Kanye West - Late Registration
13) The New Pornographers - Electric Vision
12) The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan
11) Sleater Kinney - The Woods
10) The Mars Volta - Frances the Mute
9) MIA - Arular
8) Anthony and the Johnsons - I Am A Bird Now
7) Tom Waits - Real Gone
6) My Morning Jacket - Z
5) Tom Waits - Alice
4) Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
3) Brian Wilson - Smile
2) The New Pornographers - Twin Cinema
1) The Arcade Fire - Funeral

Obvious omissions…..
Interpol
Spoon
The National
The Mountain Goats
M Ward

Best Radio Voice using VOICE method

http://www.bookmarketingworks.com/Voices.htm

clipped by tokyokevin Mar 31, 2006

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Use Your Best VOICES on the Air

Brian Jud

Appearances on television and radio are excellent ways to sell books – if you perform successfully. Both the content of your message and the way you deliver your words determine your ability to communicate with your audience.

Here is a tip to help you speak more effectively while performing on the air: control your VOICES. This is an acronym made up of the first letter of the words Volume, Other's viewpoint, Inflection, Confidence, Enthusiasm and Speed. Vary these as you speak and you will deliver your message more effectively and pleasantly:

Volume. Before your segment begins, a sound check will be conducted and the audio controls will be adjusted accordingly. However, your general apprehension might make you feel less sure of yourself, and your voice may become progressively louder or softer. If this occurs, the host may mention it during a break. Or, if you are on a television show you may see the producer alerting you via hand signals to adjust your volume.

Others' viewpoints. The audience did not tune in to be sold something. It does not care about you or your book, but wants to be entertained or informed. Engage audience members by involving them in your presentation. Convince them it is to their advantage to listen because you have information that will help them. Before you go on a show, know who is in the audience and how the information in your book will benefit them.

Inflection. Avoid a monotonous tone of voice by accenting important words, emphasizing them as you speak. Alter the way you accentuate your words so you control their impact. Adjust your volume periodically to emphasize important points and to avoid talking in a monotone.

Confidence. People associate competence with confidence. If you sound confident, the audience is more likely to believe you know what you are talking about. The sound of confidence is not necessarily a deep, resonant voice. It is a ready answer to a tough question or a command of the facts supporting your position. But if you experience nervousness, there are several techniques you can use to project confidence.

· Listen to the interviewer's questions carefully, giving you time to think of an answer.

· Do not be afraid to say, "I don't know " or "I can't recall," if you do not or cannot. Some questions are meant to throw you off balance to see if you really know what you are talking about (but these are usually asked by the host before you go on the air, if they occur at all).

· Breathing exercises can help alleviate anxiety.

· To the extent necessary, your hosts will try to make you feel at home. They recognize that you are apprehensive about appearing on the show, and they will do what they can to help you relax. If you have any questions, ask them before the show begins.

· Do not think about your spouse, family and friends in the audience. Think about the questions you may be asked and how you will use them to reach your objectives for the show.

· Be yourself. Speak naturally and use personal stories to create camaraderie with the audience. Do not try to tell a joke if you feel nervous. It is less likely to go over well, and the lack of laughter (if you are performing before a live audience) will make you even more apprehensive.

· People are rooting for you to succeed. They empathize with your fallibility and may support you more if you prove yourself human. Do not worry about making a mistake because it can make for a better interview. Learn to laugh with yourself.

· Many radio studios have a cough button on the console. If you must cough or clear your throat, press this as you do so and it will not be heard over the air. If there is no cough button, turn away from the microphone and cover your mouth. Keep water with you and take a drink regularly.

· The audience is less aware of your nervousness than you are. Do not call attention to it on the air, but if you feel it necessary, admit it to the interviewer before the show begins. This will help you relax, as well as build rapport.

· Relax and enjoy yourself, but do not get too comfortable and make flippant remarks. Maintain your professionalism and think about what you are going to say before you say it. If you are unsure if a comment will be suitable, do not say it. As the saying goes, "If in doubt, leave it out."

Enthusiasm. Temper your self-confidence with enthusiasm, communicated by speaking with a smile in your voice and passion in your heart. Use inflection to project enthusiasm as you accent important words.

Note: Transferring enthusiasm doesn't mean you must jump up and down, emphasizing every word. You can achieve it by speaking slowly, articulately and with conviction. It can be communicated by pausing before answering a question, speaking with a smile in your voice and being prepared with responses to questions and objections. Adequate preparation will serve to enhance your enthusiasm.

You can have some fun as you conduct radio interviews via telephone by watching yourself in a mirror. This will enable you to practice gesturing (to add inflection to your voice) and smiling. You may also find it helpful to stand as you speak. Doing so opens up your diaphragm and allows you to speak with a more resonant voice.

Speed: Your rate of speech can interfere with effective communication. Your general nervousness will cause you to speak a little more quickly than you would normally, distorting your articulation and interfering with effective communication. And the faster your vocal cords move, the higher your voice will pitch. Slow down your speech and your tone will drop, giving you a confident, resonant voice. If you talk too quickly, your pronunciation will suffer. The show host may ask you to repeat yourself regularly, which becomes irritating to all parties. In addition, you may sound either nervous or untrustworthy.

The normal rate of speed is about 130 - 140 words per minute. You can learn where you fit on this scale by speaking for one minute into a cassette recorder. Then play it back and count your words. If you speak too quickly or too slowly, practice until you get a good feel for your most comfortable and effective rate. Practice better enunciation by reading aloud to yourself and to your family or friends.

You can even use affirmations to help. For example, if you tend to talk too fast, remind yourself to slow down through this affirmation: "I regularly speak particularly slowly and articulately." It's difficult to say this quickly, and repeating it will help improve your articulation.

Performing on the air can be as much fun as it is productive. Use your VOICES wisely and you will sell more books, entertain and inform the audience and provide the host with a good show. It is a win-win situation for everyone.

Brian Jud is a frequent guest on radio and television, host of the television show The Book Authority and author of the media-training video program You’re On The Air. Contact Brian at P. O. Box 715, Avon, CT 06001; (800) 562-4357; fax (860) 276-2453; brianjud@msn.com or visit http://www.strongbooks.com

Microphone Distance

http://www.shure.com/booklets/distancelearn.html

clipped by tokyokevin Mar 31, 2006

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Talker-to-microphone distance

One of the most significant factors in determining the performance of an audio system is the distance from the talker to the nearest microphone. As the microphone is positioned farther away from the talker, the loudness of the speech reaching the microphone decreases, so the microphone's sensitivity to sound - its ability to "hear" - must be increased to compensate. This causes the microphone to pick up more of the desired sound (speech), but also to pick up more of everything else - background noise, reflections, sound from the loudspeakers, etc. The farther away the microphone is from the talker, the more hollow and noisy the sound will be.

So, when it comes to microphone placement, how far is "too far"? It so happens that there is a certain distance from the microphone beyond which a talker will sound hollow and difficult to understand, regardless of what type of microphone is used or which way it is pointed. This is called the Critical Distance, abbreviated D_c . The Critical Distance is different for every room, and is determined primarily by the volume of the room (in cubic feet) and the decay time. Those talkers who are at or beyond the Critical Distance from the nearest microphone will be difficult to understand, no matter what type of equipment is added to the audio system or how it is adjusted. Given that most classrooms have a Critical Distance of from two to five feet, the following guidelines should be used for determining acceptable distance from the talker to the nearest microphone:

less than 2 feet is ideal
between 2 and 3 feet is good
between 3 and 5 feet is marginal
more than 5 feet is unacceptable

Typical Classroom

In a typical classroom, microphones should be located less than two feet from talkers.

When in doubt, always place the microphones nearer to rather than farther from talkers. Moving microphones closer to talkers is the single most significant improvement that can be made to most classroom audio systems.

Microphones: Pick up Patterns

http://arts.ucsc.edu/EMS/Music/tech_background/...

clipped by tokyokevin Mar 31, 2006

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How to use a microphone

http://totalcommunicator.com/vol2_3/microphone....

clipped by tokyokevin Mar 31, 2006

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Communication Skills: Using a microphone

When You're Using a Microphone ...

A microphone is a tool to amplify your voice, not a substitute for good vocal expression. It won't make a boring voice interesting—just louder. Learn the techniques of good microphone use.

When you use a microphone, you still have to use your full voice to engage your audience and establish your identity as a speaker.

Under the pressure of presenting before an audience, a speaker can lose natural vocal expression. Be aware of that risk and guard against it. As you rehearse, experiment with volume, pitch, and rhythm to achieve optimal expression and emphasis.

By varying your volume, pitch, and rhythm, you'll be able to convey meaning and emotion. Without variation, your voice will sound boring, monotonous, and robotic.

Even though you're using a microphone, your audience will still listen for the emotional and semantic cues contained in your voice, cues that a microphone doesn't supply. Use vocal diversity to make sure your audience understands and feels the tone of your message.

"Experiment with volume, pitch, and rhythm."

Do a sound check.
In some situations, a technician may set up the sound system and actively control the levels while you speak. In that case, rely on the technician to set the right levels for the size of the room and the audience. But make sure you get rehearsal time so you can participate in the sound testing.

In other situations, a technician may set up the system and leave the rest to you. In that case, do the sound check yourself. Don't be tempted to skip it. Even if you have experience using a microphone, every system or room presents potential issues for which you need to be prepared.

Find someone to act as your audience, moving around the room to evaluate sound volume and quality. Test for the levels that fill the room with sound. Then go slightly louder to compensate for the murmuring and rustling of an actual audience.

If you have no access to a technician and have to set up the system yourself, keep written instructions nearby. Follow them precisely. Take extra care with the sound check to make sure the system is operating properly.

Know how the microphone works.
Obvious as it may seem, know when a microphone is on or off. You certainly don't want to be caught broadcasting remarks that you meant as a private comment. Nor do you want to get off to a great start, only to find that the mike is off. So make a mental note of the off, on, standby, or mute modes. Before and after you speak, switch to the appropriate mode.

The lavaliere mike: placement is key.
The lavaliere mike is the type that clips to the speaker's clothing, so how you dress is a primary concern. Wear something with a lapel or tie so the mike can be easily clipped to it. A jacket or a blouse that opens in the front will also do, as long as you can fasten the lavaliere firmly.

A lavaliere mike can be wired or wireless. The wireless type makes an additional sartorial demand: its transmitter pack will be attached to clothing in the back of your body near your waist. So wear a belt or something with a pocket to keep the transmitter in place and neatly out of the way.

Most types of lavaliere mikes work best when placed eight to 10 inches below the chin-ideally, in the center. If you're using slides, fasten the mike slightly more towards the side where the slides are, since you'll be looking at the slides from time to time as you speak. If the mike is placed too high, it'll create hot and cold spots when you turn your head. (Imagine that the base of the letter "V" is coming up from microphone. You can move your head within that "V" and be heard.)

Make sure buttons, material, jewelry, and strands of hair are well out of the way. If they hit or rub against the mike when you move or shift your stance, each small rustle will be amplified and transmitted.

"If the mike is placed too high, it'll create hot and cold spots when you turn your head."

The lectern mike: position yourself properly.
If you're using a microphone that rests on a lectern or stand, be sure to place yourself at the proper distance. The capabilities of different equipment make different demands on the speaker, so find the position that will clearly capture and carry your voice. Speak over or across the microphone, not into it.

Make sure that the microphone (or anything else that may be on the lectern) does not block your face or interfere with your gestures and movement.

Stand with good posture.
To create sound, the vocal apparatus needs breath and space. Enable your voice by standing straight, aligning your head with your spine.

Warm up to avoid throaty tension. If you're hunched, bent, or tense, the sound waves you produce will bounce around your throat rather than flow out toward your audience.

Twisting or bending the neck puts your voice at a biomechanical disadvantage. By holding your head up and not looking down, you will assure that air flows out smoothly as you speak.

By standing upright, you will improve the sound of your voice and facilitate the most effective use of the microphone. From an upright stance, you won't be talking into the microphone, but across it. That's what you want to do.

Don't crowd the mike.
Most people get too close to the microphone. Crowding the microphone will distort your posture and your voice. Don't get so close to the mike that you could chomp a bite out of it. The microphone is designed to capture a voice that flows over or across it, not into it. If you get too close, the mike will amplify every breath, every snap of your jaw, every click and hiss of the words you pronounce.

Crowding the mike can also create annoying feedback, popping, and screeching from which most audiences will recoil. While your listeners may tolerate one or two such incidents, they will tune you out if the problem persists.

In communication, your goal is always to reach your audience. The vocal elements you build into your delivery have everything to do with achieving that goal. And keep in mind: The microphone is a tool. It won't turn a poor delivery into a good one.

How to Use a Hand-Held Microphone

http://www.mediacollege.com/audio/microphones/h...

clipped by tokyokevin Mar 31, 2006

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Sure SM 58 The term "hand-mic" generally means any microphone held in the hand and used to pick up human speech. Hand-mics are used in a huge variety of settings, from musical performances to television interviews. When you say "microphone", most people picture a hand-mic. Everyone knows what they are and what they do, and everyone thinks they know how to use them. Sadly, this is not the case.

Although there is a knack to using the hand-mic properly, it's really not difficult to learn. Perhaps that's why it's so frustrating to see people get it wrong - because it's so easy to get it right.

Listed below are some general rules of microphone technique. We've used the example of a television presenter conducting an interview, but these rules can be applied to most situations.

Be aware of what type of mic you're using. In particular, you should know about it's directional characteristics.
Make sure you do a sound check yourself, well before the interview. Position yourself and the microphone, and speak exactly as you intent to during the interview.
If the mic has an on/off switch, keep an eye on it. If the mic is battery-powered, make sure you turn it off when you've finished.
Hold the microphone firmly. Remember that the mic will pick up any handling noise so be careful not to move your hand around on the mic casing, or bump the mic into anything.
If you're exposed to the wind, try and give the mic some shelter.
Hold the mic at a constant distance and angle from your mouth (or your subject's mouth). Around 15-20cm from the mouth should be fine.
Any more than this, and not only will the voice become weak, but other noises will become more prominent.
Any closer than this, and you'll get various unpleasant sound effects (such as "popping").
(Note that musicians have a special set of rules for mic distance. Most vocalists hold their mics fairly close to their mouths.)
Always direct the mic towards the person who's talking. You can also use mic-pointing to direct your subjects. When you point it at yourself, you're talking. When you point it at the subject, you're saying "Now it's your turn to talk". If you have more than one subject, you can use the mic to point toward the person you want to speak.
Never give the mic away during an interview. It's not uncommon for a subject to want to hold the mic, but don't let them. It creates all sort of problems and it's just not worth it.

If you want to see some good examples of microphone technique, watch television talk-show hosts moving around their audiences. These people know how to use their microphones - not just as technical instruments, but as a means of maintaining control.

Vocalists tend to eat their mics. Whilst this works well for singers who know what they are doing, it is not appropriate for speaking and general mic work.

How to Position a Microphone

http://www.mediacollege.com/audio/microphones/p...

clipped by tokyokevin Mar 31, 2006

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The 50 Most Essential CDs Since 2001 - Harp - Each Note Secure

12

October

Best Radio Voice using VOICE method

Microphone Distance

Talker-to-microphone distance

Microphones: Pick up Patterns

III. Pick Up Patterns

How to use a microphone

Communication Skills: Using a microphone

How to Use a Hand-Held Microphone

How to Position a Microphone

Distance

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