Page 38 - CJJuneJuly25

On the Voice

good intonation, because the industry does not use sounds like you had some singers you used for
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auto-tune. Also important is an understanding that more specific genres. Were most of the singers
when you’re in the studio, you’re part of an entity. If you hired skilled in multiple genres and styles?
you have a question about something, you can’t contact
the composer directly; you have to go through the cho- Most of the singers I drew from were quite flexible
ral contractor or the vocal contractor. You must arrive and really good at adapting their sound or approach to
on time and be aware of the work rules. Union mem- the style. However, the size of the ensemble matters.
bership is also important. Based on my experience in With smaller groups, you have to be more selective in
the business, I didn’t do anything that was not union terms of who is skilled in a particular style. Often I
employment. If I were going to hire a singer for a proj- would get a request for a solo (like a little squib in The
ect, they had to be a current in-good-standing member Simpsons) that would be very clearly defined: “We [the
of SAG-AFTRA [the Screen Actors Guild–American producers] want an opera singer, or a fragment from
Federation of Television and Radio Artists]. It is still this aria, or we want someone that sounds funky like a
important to have union work as your goal. I am not rock singer from the sixties,” etc. As a contractor, you
sure younger singers understand how important it is have to keep track of who does what on your roster of
to have healthcare coverage and a pension that builds singers.
over time. Have rules that get you residuals when your
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work is reused. Session singers always have a slow pe- How would you suggest a new singer in the in-
riod during the year where there’s not much work, and dustry go about finding work?
if those residual checks aren’t coming in, there’s no way
to pay the bills. If they are starting from scratch or don’t know any-
one in the community, I would suggest that they submit
When hiring musicians as a vocal contractor, a demo no longer than three minutes of various styles
what qualities did you look for? What type of to the main four or five vocal contractors in town. They
things made you want to hire or rehire a singer? can also send a link to their professional website. Con-
necting with other singers is really how we all evolved
Well, you don’t want someone in front of a micro- in the business. I suggest participating in a community
phone with six other people who are chatting, engag- or church choir, because you often meet people that
ing in conversations, or creating a disturbance. Session can help you connect with professionals in the busi-
singers need to have a professional attitude and a focus ness. Also, those choral experiences put music in front
at all times. Each project also varies. As a vocal contrac- of you at least once a week, helping you maintain your
tor, you have to shape the sound according to what the sight-singing skills.
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composer’s work requires. Session singers who are suc-
cessful in the business can easily adapt their sound to Can you describe more about the expectations
sing different styles. For example, I didn’t want someone of a session singer demo? Should the demo in-
with a big vibrato in the soprano section of the choir. clude an entire song?
Instead, I would be drawn to people who could sing
with a floatier tone. As you get to know the community, No, maybe only about fifteen seconds of a song.
you learn about the skillsets of various singers; some Never a whole song, because the person listening will
excel with a more classical sound, some with a more probably just skip through it and might miss something
contemporary or gospel sound, etc. You try to shape that was really important.
the group’s sound through these personnel choices. Demos should include something that shows your
high octave range, super low range, or strongest solo
It sounds like it’s beneficial for singers to be style. Including something where you’ve layered mul-
versatile in many different styles, but it also tiple voices shows how you can harmonize. If you’ve

36 CHORAL JOURNAL June/July 2025 Volume 65 Number 9