VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[elkrafto]

Hi everyone,
I'm trying to put together my first VO demo. I've cobbled something together from a Librivox story I did, as well as some bits from a podcast I do. I'd love to hear your opinions, and I have a very thick skin.

Thanks!

-Erik

http://www.erikpkraft.com/vo/kraft_voice_demo.mp3

[Scott Pollak]

Hi, Erik. First of all, you are to be commended for posting your demo here for critique and to being open for feedback, be it positive or otherwise.

So...........

First let me say I like the sound of your voice for the most part. It has a lot of character and is unlike most voices you hear out there. That is a GOOD thing, as it helps you stand out. I can hear your voice on a wide range of things, whether commercial or narrative, that would want - for lack of a better word - a bit of 'quirkiness'. You don't have an 'announcer's voice' (another good thing) and you need to play to that unusual and kind of neat sound you DO have.

As far as the 'demo', it's not really a demo. While it IS a collection of short bytes, it's not anything you'll want to put out for the general public.

- There's no production going on at all. That is, it's nothing but dry reads. Not a one sounds like an actual, finished, paying piece of work.
- There's no variety. I'm not hearing any range in you. Unless a client is looking for EXACTLY what you have here, they'll move on. And they'd move on anyway because this isn't a professional demo.
- Some (most, actually) of the reads aren't good enough to compete. You need some acting training and coaching to put some believability and life into your delivery. These sound more along the lines of a teacher reading out of a book.

I think you have a lot of potential, really. But I also know, for a fact, you're a long ways away from being at the point yet where you can make any money doing this.

Invest in yourself, invest in time and training and a buttload of practice, and when the time is right - and not before then - invest in a top-notch, professionally produced demo.

Can't wait to hear what you sound like then!!
_________________
Scott R. Pollak
Clients include Pandora, NPR Atlanta, Wells Fargo, Cisco, Humana, Publix, UPS, AT&T, HP, Xerox and more.

www.voicebyscott.com

[elkrafto]

Hi Scott,
Thanks a ton. Your take on my voice is exactly what I hoped you would say. And your take on my recordings are exactly what I feared you'd say! But I'm just starting out, so I will practice, practice, practice. And I do have a class to sign up for, but it doesn't run until December. So until then I'll practice on my own. I appreciate your input.

-Erik

[Mike Sommer]

+1 Scott.

You have the kind of voice that stands out in a crowd, It's a great original character voice. If you learn how to use it it will take you far. You could be another Eddie Deezen or Bill Thompson.

Develop your breath control, get lots and lots of acting and improve training along with a lot of VO Coaching. You need to find a coach that can mould you into a great character actor.
_________________
The Blog:
http://voiceoveraudio.blogspot.com/

Acoustics are counter-intuitive. If one thing is certain about acoustics, it is that if anything seems obvious it is probably wrong.

[elkrafto]

Thanks, Mike. That's very encouraging. I just got a copy of Vocal Power, and hopefully that will be a good start.