This is very interesting. I posted a question here a few days ago to get some opinions and it started rather a heated stir on Twitter. The question was whether it was wrong to employ pitch correction (typically using Auto-Tune) on vocals in a recording project. Actually I may have left out the specification of its use in recording (BTW I think using it for live performance IS a bit of a cheat). Here is the question I posed:
Auto-Tune – Good or Bad?
OK. This is something I want to hear your opinions about, because I had someone say they didn’t want me to use Auto-Tune on their vocals.
What is that? Is Auto-Tune evil? Or is it the holy grail?
I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!
I still want to hear your comments about this. But I also wanted to post a link to today’s article at About.com’s home recording section, which asks the question: Is Pitch Correction Cheating? Interesting juxtaposition of topics. Here is what they have to posit on the question:
http://homerecording.about.com/b/2011/10/18/is-pitch-correction-cheating.htm
Autotune is for losers. I mean, really. The public is easily fooled by things like this, but why fake it? If you can’t sing, there’s a whole genre of music open to you – it’s called rap music. Switch careers.
Well that’s certainly one opinion;).
Never mind that last post. I was just kidding.
I think like all things, it’s a matter of taste. For me personally, I see nothing wrong with a little pitch correction, but the robotic sound of autotune gets old really fast.
Agreed. I do think it shouldn’t often (if ever) be used live though. I like the quote I heard someone say about doing things in the studio that can’t really be done the same live – “Picasso didn’t paint in front of an audience.” The point is, with a recording, the finished product is important because you look at it (painting) or listen to it (audio recording) over and over. Imperfections can really be amplified and ruin the work. So you fix them. Does anyone think painters NEVER make mistakes in their studios? Sure they do. But they fix them. That’s what artists do.