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IS this the future of music?
Please, check this folks:

http://www.zero-g.co.uk/index.cfm?articleid=762

It must be a joke
:eek:

__________________
Eng. Alécio Costa
Producer/Singer/Musician

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Comments

falkon2 Thu, 07/17/2003 - 07:00

It looks authentic enough... The demo was actually pretty good, other than the pitch bends and vibrato being a little robotic (nothing some attention to detail can't fix) and the samples sounding like they were 8kHz.

We'll see what develops. Ten years ago who would have thought Hans Zimmer would be able to whip up authentic-sounding symphonic demos from his house?

Ethan Winer Thu, 07/17/2003 - 07:56

Alécio,

No, it's not a joke. That's been discussed quite a bit lately in the press and around the 'net.

Personally, I'm not very impressed. The Japanese demo sounds very convincing, but only because Japanese is foreign sounding to me. When you hear the English demos you can quickly tell how inadequate the technology is - for now anyway.

--Ethan

falkon2 Thu, 07/17/2003 - 08:02

After listening to the demo a little more (I listen to quite a lot of Japanese vocals, though for the life of me I can't understand anything :D ) it seems to me the robotic quality also comes from the times being rather quantized - no one sings with such strict timing precision... Add some fine detail to that, maybe some breathing sounds, and fine volume control, and we have a potential winner.

jdsdj98 Thu, 07/17/2003 - 08:23

....amateur enthusiasts as well as professionals can now enjoy creating music with great-sounding vocals.

I've got a novel idea that gives you the same result.

Save the money you'd spend on Vocaloid (just the name sounds like a freakin' robot), buy a decent mic, and use an actual singer that can actually sing.

Boom.

Problem solved.

This has to be one of the worst ideas I've ever seen.

anonymous Thu, 07/17/2003 - 19:56

Hey look, we all just need to accept the progress of science. They had this same debate when the steam-shovel came along. People said, "Hmm, that contraption sure LOOKS interesting, and that salesman has a snappy patter, but it'll never replace a team of sweating men armed with spades." Well look what happened- not one person in any neighbourhood across this wide, wide world would consider working in their garden without the aid of their trusty steam-shovel.
:D Doc

anonymous Thu, 07/17/2003 - 23:44

I believe none of us will escape the fact that in a year (or sooner) there will emerge a bunch of Europop/Technopop songs cluttered with the vocaloid, -and sell a bunch of records. (Just like the usage of the vocoder and the autotune fx).

It will be popular for awhile, then in year 2030 someone will say: -"I've gotto have that cool vintage vocaloid gadget", "They made such great crappy sounds back in 2004..."

For myself, I would rather program the vocaloid to make J Lo talk dirty to me. :D

anonymous Fri, 07/18/2003 - 01:24

Originally posted by mixopenta:
For myself, I would rather program the vocaloid to make J Lo talk dirty to me. :D

Hadn't thought about that possibillity! :D

But without joking, the next step in karaoke will be a processor that will change your voice into the voice of Barbra S, Frank S, Robbie, W or whoever you like, in real time and with autotuning.

It's all the fault of digital technology! :D :D :s:

UncleBob58 Fri, 07/18/2003 - 07:57

Wow! Scary stuff!

:p :d:

Anybody remember when they said synthsizers would put every musician on the planet out of work? I'm not terribly worried. There is nothing that can compare to true talent working a great instrument.

Uncle Bob

:p:

Remember, no matter where you go, there you are!

Guest Fri, 07/18/2003 - 13:44

LMAO!!! :D :D :D

Well,let's see...that just about wraps it up for the music industry. Profits should soar now that they don't actually need "people". Well, atleast not anyone with any talent. Hell, they can hire a monkey to program for'em...

Don't 'ya just love progress? :roll:

MisterBlue Fri, 07/18/2003 - 15:38

Just because there's McDonalds everywhere doesn't mean that you have to eat there. Still plenty of great restaurants around, if you're catching my drift.

My theory is that the amount of "real talent" in this world has not significantly grown with the availability of fancier tools and "little helpers". Give them all the expensive (and not so expensive) tools they like and still 99.5 % of what comes out of it is just a pile of sh*t that gets about 3-5 people excited if they are stoned enough.

Give a truly gifted artist a cheap instrument and an SM58 microphone and there is still magic.

Just my twisted opinion :D

MisterBlue.

realdynamix Fri, 07/18/2003 - 16:31

:) Hi Alécio!

Periods of time in the evolution of music, eh?

Machines :roll: mmm?

Watch Woodstock, or see a great Pops Orchestra. If you don't get chills or goose-bumps at one point or another, you are musically dead.

When I was a young man wearing bell bottomed jeans, a tie-dyed T-shirt, and panhandling to get into see (one of a kind) awesome performances from Terrible Ted, Led Zep, Johnny or Edgar Winter, I EXPECTED to be blown away.

Sometimes the crown would be so transcended with the finale of a performance, there would be 3 seconds of absolute silence before the crowd would applaude for 10 minutes or more.

Funny though, I can get the same feeling from a great street musician, or a damn good club band.

Nothing will ever replace the emotion, skill and talent of a fine artist's performance regardless of WHAT they use for tools.

Happy Friday,

--Rick

anonymous Fri, 07/18/2003 - 17:16

This new software gives some support to a prediction I made recently that there will be a 100% computer-generated hit single within the next one to three years. People who listen to the radio today are getting used to the sound of someone who can't sing at all being auto-tuned into key; this synthesized-voice stuff isn't too far off. Probably the technology will have evolved enough in a couple of years to fool the masses at least, if not audio engineers. I wonder if they will update Band-in-a-Box or similar software to write lyrics as well?
.c

realdynamix Fri, 07/18/2003 - 17:24

Originally posted by chroma17:
there will be a 100% computer-generated hit single within the next one to three years. People who listen to the radio today are getting used to the sound of someone who can't sing at all being auto-tuned into key...

:) I better get Celine to do a sampling session soon! :cool:

--Rick