Apple announces iTunes Radio, Pandora’s replacement?

Once again, it was that time of year, June 10, the first day of the Worldwide Developers Conference held in San Francisco, where Apple brought the spotlight on iOS 7, and unveiled the new “Pandora” like service, iTunes Radio... a free Internet radio service featuring over 200 stations, who lets you listen to music stations featured by Apple and created by you yourself.  iTunes Radio evolves based on the music you play and download. Sony, Universal and Warner are all on board.

iTunes Radio has been considered a major threat to Pandora, the first mover in online radio. Although is said to more closely be similar to Pandora's model, Apple's lead over Pandora, is that it already knows your preference. Using your iTunes library, the company already creates Genius Mix playlists, and predicts which artists you may be interested in on iTunes.

Pandora minimized Apple's new service in a statement to CNBC and stressed the hold it has on intellectual property in the radio streaming space. "Apple's new feature is an evolution of their iTunes offering to bring it on par with other streaming music services that have added radio into their feature sets. We have spent the last 13 years singularly focused on redefining radio and benefit from unrivaled intellectual property, deep experience in delivering personalized play lists, and ubiquitous product availability across every platform. We make it effortless for our more than 200 million registered users to connect with the music they love anytime, anywhere," the company said in its statement.

iTunes Radio will offer music fans access to thousands of new songs every week, as well as serving up exclusive music from new and popular artists before you hear them anywhere else; will also be home to special events including live streams direct from the iTunes Festival in London and other exclusive iTunes Sessions. You can also ask Siri “Who plays that song?” or “Play more like this” and Siri will make it happen, or tell Siri to pause, stop or skip.

Apple’s iTunes Radio is set to launch, this fall,  in iOS 7 initially in the U.S. before rolling out internationally over time. The service is free to use in an ad-supported version, and iTunes Match subscribers can enjoy using the service ad-free.

References: Apple.com, CNBC.com

RadioShack - The Seer

Our talented voice artist  Omar Amador is the voice for this campaign. An ISDN recording session done in our studio Elite Music Studios. Miami, FL

App to find Voice Actors Worldwide

Voices.com released a mobile app for BlackBerry 10 users. The company connects businesses with voice actors around the world, making it easier than ever before to find the perfect voice on time and within budget. 

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ADR -Automated Dialogue Replacement

 Is the process of re-recording the original dialogue after the filming process for the purpose of obtaining a cleaner, and more intelligible dialogue track.

ADR is recorded during an ADR session, which takes place in a specialized sound studio. The actor, usually the original actor from the set, is shown the scene in question along with the original sound, following which he or she will attempt to recreate the performance as closely as possible.

There are variations of the ADR process. It does not have to take place in a post-production studio, but can be recorded on location, with mobile equipment.

Our today’s ADR was a remote session with the Actor Kevin James for his upcoming comedy movie Here Comes The Boom. 

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The Art of Foley

A Foley artist recreates sound effects for film, TV and radio productions using different kinds of shoes and lots of props (plates, glasses, chairs). They work under the direction of a Sound Editor and often use their own extensive collection of small props. They are the unseen actors who reproduce sounds, required when the original track is either unusable or completely replaced as in the case of foreign versions.

Foley generally consists of three elements:

Clothing Moves: The Moves Track is a layer of sound that recreates the clothing rustle of actors as they walk, run and move. It sounds like a smooth but distinct white noise that allows the mixer a base coat of sound. It allows the artist to create a “sound design” for the characters and sets the overall tone of the Foley Track.

Footsteps: A Foley artist is sometimes called a 'Foley Walker' because one of the most important elements we provide is the sound of the footsteps. Feet are very difficult to perform. It takes a lot of practice to get the exact feeling and timing while standing stationary - you can' t walk across the room because the microphone needs to be fixed and besides.

 

Specifics: These are the real fun in Foley. They allow you to paint with sound, recreating the actual movements in an enhanced way.

·       Corn Starch in a leather pouch makes the sound of snow crunch.

·       A pair of gloves sounds like bird wing flaps.

·       A heavy staple gun and or other metal parts make can make a good gun sound.

·       Cellophane can make the sound of crackling fire (the effects editor should do the fire but in a pinch it does work).

·       A heavy rolled and taped up telephone book makes a good 'body punching' surface

Without these crucial background noises, movies, TV series, radio productions, etc. feel unnaturally quiet and uncomfortable.

… If your big productions required a very specific sound effect, at Elite Music Studios, we have one of the greatest Foley artist and sound engineer to give live to your creativity.

Recording Session