Richard and Karen’s vocals

[Sue]

I enjoy listening to music especially the Carpenters(stating the obvious sorry)! and am really looking forward to the new album and thoroughly enjoying the experience of being a fan at this time. I wonder how vocals from Richard and Karen singing all those years ago will be combined with the RPO new music. As a total beginner on how recording is done and no doubt asking a bit of a dumb question on this site could anyone explain please??

 

[newvillefan]

I enjoy listening to music especially the Carpenters(stating the obvious sorry)! and am really looking forward to the new album and thoroughly enjoying the experience of being a fan at this time. I wonder how vocals from Richard and Karen singing all those years ago will be combined with the RPO new music. As a total beginner on how recording is done and no doubt asking a bit of a dumb question on this site could anyone explain please??

For albums such as this, briefly what usually happens is the original vocals are lifted off the originally recorded backing tracks, new orchestrations will be charted and recorded (and sometimes new backing tracks will be done, re-recording drums etc). Once that process is complete, the original vocals will be carefully placed back down onto the newly recorded tracks and everything mixed until it is balanced.

You might ask, if they are creating new tracks, how do they keep the right timing so that the original vocals are in sync with the new recorded parts and one does not end up faster or slower than the other? This is usually done with the help of a “click track”, which is mixed out of the final recording so you can’t hear it, but which keeps the conductor orchestrating everything “locked” into the tempo of the original parts. Once old and new recordings are married back together, everything should sync up perfectly.

Sometimes, this process of adding new orchestrations completely transforms a song from its original state, particularly if new intros are added or the ending is made longer with new orchestral sweeps added. A good example of the difference this can make is found by comparing the videos below. Listen to the original Roy Orbison track, which opens right off with the drums, guitar and bass. Then compare it with the newly recorded RPO version, where they have added a new, much longer orchestral intro showcasing the RPO, lasting exactly 30 seconds, before reaching the same point in the song (with all newly recorded rhythm section as well).

Original track



Royal Philharmonic Orchestra version

 

[WYBIMLA]

I agree. Looking at other RPO work or posthumous duets albums will help answer that question by comparison.
This is a unique process and obviously takes extra time and attention because the producers are working with completed vocals. They're careful to not over do it because the singer was reacting to the original track.

The other thing is we don't know a lot of details for the new album, yet.
Maybe we'll see some behind-the-scenes footage later.
And you can bet posthumous works are treated differently depending on the artist and producer.
(E.g. perhaps keeping certain tracks from the original intact, but re-recording string parts, guitar or piano, etc.)
In Richard's case, newvillefan explains it quite well.

 

[Sue]

Thankyou I think I’m a bit clearer now newvillefan! That’s a great explanation and I see what you mean about the Roy Orbison track. I think it’s amazing how Karen’s voice can just be transferred into 2018/19 when it’s so long since she was with us. Fingers and everything else crossed that it’s not totally instrumental, although that would be great I’m sure, it would not be the same without Karen!

 

[Rick-An Ordinary Fool]

For albums such as this, briefly what usually happens is the original vocals are lifted off the originally recorded backing tracks, new orchestrations will be charted and recorded (and sometimes new backing tracks will be done, re-recording drums etc). Once that process is complete, the original vocals will be carefully placed back down onto the newly recorded tracks and everything mixed until it is balanced.

You might ask, if they are creating new tracks, how do they keep the right timing so that the original vocals are in sync with the new recorded parts and one does not end up faster or slower than the other? This is usually done with the help of a “click track”, which is mixed out of the final recording so you can’t hear it, but which keeps the conductor orchestrating everything “locked” into the tempo of the original parts. Once old and new recordings are married back together, everything should sync up perfectly.

Sometimes, this process of adding new orchestrations completely transforms a song from its original state, particularly if new intros are added or the ending is made longer with new orchestral sweeps added. A good example of the difference this can make is found by comparing the videos below. Listen to the original Roy Orbison track, which opens right off with the drums, guitar and bass. Then compare it with the newly recorded RPO version, where they have added a new, much longer orchestral intro showcasing the RPO, lasting exactly 30 seconds, before reaching the same point in the song (with all newly recorded rhythm section as well).

Original track



Royal Philharmonic Orchestra version

Wow listening to the RPO version above that is some FAST string playing Wow!! It’s works quite well too!!