Imperfection has been proved to be perfection for almost every hit song with a singer in history. That is why they were a hit, no acoustic instrument is perfectly tuned, no human drummer is in perfect time and usually it's the singer that is the most distinctly off tune/beat/melody of them all. Mistakes and imperfection are what make us human they can express emotion, set scenes, cause tension. For example, we all know what it is to take a breath when we hear it or growl or sigh or have our voice break/falter with emotion as we talk about the people we have lost. To "clean this up" to this extent is to rob the listener of why we sing in the 1st place.
Mate, you have eloquently made one of the best responses I've read. 👏 Pitch perfect is an unattainable goal, and it doesn't matter, regardless of the instrument. It's all about performance, passion, interpretation, and most importantly engaging and entertaining. The/ your, audience don't whittle away at, or even care about the minutiae, they're just there and want to appreciate and enjoy, and go home happy.
Yep. And the reason for that is that the "imperfections" make the Uncanny Valley go away. Auto Tune and Pitch Correction is throwing Sounds in the uncanny Valley.
Don't worry - now that AI is reproducing voices and creating lyrics, we don't even need humans and their "imperfections" anymore. RIP music. One more year and it'll be officially dead.
What a sad and shameful thing to do to Carrie Underwoods voice. I have seen her perform live , and she has a beautiful and powerful voice ! I have a question, does an artist have any say in whether their voices can be pitch corrected ?
Not really, except for indie artists. I did live sound for a band with a top 40s hit at the time and they gave me a copy of their album. The singer E-mailed me to ask what I thought about it. I said almost every song on it was great but it didn't sound anything like them live. They were GOOD live too. He replied "we're not allowed to talk about the engineering but I agree."
I was today years old when I realized "live " performances we don't witness live are a lie. I stupidly assumed they didn't mess with them..what a disgrace.
You have to realize EVEN LIVE PERFORMANCES ARE PITCH CORRECTED. THAT'S HOW FAST THE COMPUTER KICKS IN TO DIGITIZE THE VOICE. NOBODY...BIG NAMES...THAT YOU'RE HEARING, IS REAL. LIVE PERFORMANCES ARE FAKE TOO. YUK. I AM A "NOT FAMOUS" JAZZ SINGER...I WOULD FORBID IT.
Thank you, Fil, for helping me to “tune” my listening. There is a reason I didn’t respond the same way to more contemporary vocalists and now I know why. When you know, you know.
That's been my impression as well. She's done some incredible vocals in live performances that surely weren't pitch-corrected. That this great hymn, which can really show off her voice if allowed to, was stepped on in this video, is a disgrace. Fil did some stuff on Michael Buble a while back and made similar comments on a Christmas song Buble had sung. You'd think Carrie would have more say in all this.
Scooching a wee bit off topic although not totally, but while he didn't have the best set of pure pipes, Nat King Cole sings the most beautiful and reverent version of O Holy Night I've ever heard. And I say "reverent" without even being religious.. Instead of showing off and seeing how many runs and how much vibrato singers today do, it's like Cole is describing the birth of Christ as he's seeing it first hand.
I get you completely. I was coming down here to comment on the artifice of her performance and of how many people (mostly 'Murricans, tbh) who perform hymns (whether sacred or secular (I am not a fan of the rather militaristic US anthem, but the famous version in which Fergies sounded as if she was trying her best to seduce the soldiers was...something else)) even if they do not do it on purpose at least SEEM to try to be seductive. I do not like that at all.
She has a very good voice on real life. I've said it many times that pitch correction is not progress. Thanks, Fil for this analysis. Happy Christmas and a Merry New Year!
@@MartinMartin-yi9toShe performed many times when she competed & won American Idol way back in 2005. As a singing competition, contestant’s voices of course were not altered when they competed in The Voice & the other TV talent shows. Anyone who watched those shows, or has listened to her sing prior to this performance could have formed their opinions of her talent over the last 18 years. It’s quite possible, if not probable, that at least some of her performances have not been pitch corrected or auto-tuned over her long career.
Wow. I did not see this coming for Carrie Underwood. Her singing voice seems to be held in such high regard, but this is very surprising and disappointing for me. On a lighter note, Fil’s eye rolling @ 13:11 is priceless! 👁️ 👁️
I just went to the TH-cam performance of Carrie Underwood doing this same song on Jimmie Fallon's Tonight Show and the difference is astonishing! The other is obviously not auto tuned or pitch corrected and it's a million times better! Shame on whoever thought they were "fixing" her voice here.
Try the opera singer Jussi Björlings version of the same song but in swedish "O Helga Natt". Recorded way before pitch correction. He was Pavarottis favorite.
Please keep in mind that a lot of tv networks autotune everything without letting the artist know. This happened to Dave Draiman of Disturbed when they performed The Sound of Silence on Conan. He was furious when he found out.
The NERVE! What kind of soul...if any...do these butchers have? They are not capable of recognizing emotion in a singer's voice. Leave David alone, you heathens.
It's become so ingrained in the modern media industries that they don't even think to ask. It's just assumed everyone wants it because it's so "AWESOME".
Carrie Underwood & Vince Gill - "How Great Thou Art" Live performance. Imperfectly perfect maybe they use pitch correction I don’t know. It doesn’t sound like it to me. She’s flat a few times. but it doesn’t matter. It’s so beautiful I mean having Vince Gill play guitar and sing back up is a pretty good idea as well, but I’m just saying this woman is capable of delivering a fabulous performance without this.
That performance is beyond outstanding. I don't believe there is any pitch correction to that live performance. This is one of my most favorite performances ever and that says a lot.
I get chills just thinking about that performance, I can remember exactly where I was the first time I heard/saw the video via a link someone had posted on social media. We play it every time we have a 'TH-cam' night.
Thank you for the analysis. As ever, really illuminating . I really cannot understand this level of pitch correction, it’s sad. I found some of it this painful, robotic even. I want to hear a ‘real’ voice.
The "computer alarm" comparison was spot-on...grates on my nerves! lol Auto-tune/pitch correction hurts my head. Some of the music they play at work drives me crazy, while my coworkers never even seem to notice. Natural voices are unique and beautiful...leave them alone! ❤🎶
It’s such a shame they insist on doing this. Carrie has a great voice with quite admirable pitch naturally. They made her sound like a glitching alarm of some sort. It’s so annoying
I never wanted to see Celine Dion, but my wife dragged me to Las Vegas, and I was blown away! Her voice was amazing, better than any of her recordings that I had ever heard. I would think that all possible tricks to make her sound better could have been implemented in the studio, or post production. So I think why she sounded so great live was, that no recording can capture the nuances of her vocals.
I would agree. She is a remarkable singer. One note of caution. Her vocal in Vegas was likely very carefully “processed” from choice of microphone, mixing board, PA/amplification, and an highly skilled adept audio engineer…to your ears! If she’s gonna sing “perfectly” she wants everything to be, perfect!
I'm pretty sure that no one is going to be following the link to listen to this performance uninterrupted...your "interruptions" were the only thing that made it bearable. I think you're right, this has got to be the new winner for most overly pitch corrected performance. Judging by your 8 eye rolls, several winces, and one actual groan of dispair, I could see how very painful this one was for you, and understandably so. 🤦♀️🙉🙄 And surely 8 eye rolls during one video has got to be a record!!
My voice coach told me early on that I would develop a critical ear in two regards. First pitch correction becomes easier to detect and the performance sounds sterile, or mechanical. Second performers today may not sound as good as older performers because they just aren't as disciplined with the pitch correction safety net. I personally like live performances as they are always a bit different and remind me nobody is perfect but we can strive to be.
Celine Dion in 1998 sang her version of O Holy Night live. It's here on YT. It was as near perfect as a human can get. Nana Mouskouri's 1970's version of Ave Maria is chilling to the bone it's so pure. Both women sang live just as exquisitely. It is possible for today's professional singers to be, well, professional. I always learn something new on your channel. I know nothing about the modern technology used in performances these days. Thanks for your hard work! I'm late again as I don't use notifications.❤
This is my favourite song and Celine performs it best . She has so much left at the end ,Michael Crawford got there also with a thinner voice . Mechanical was my first thought here .
Agree, but 'belting' mostly shouting is the thing these days. Somehow you're a fantastic singer if you can shout. You can tell the difference when a singer projects their air from the diaphragm and not the chest. God that top note was screechy, ouch!
I hear so many people denying the effects of auto tuning and pitch correction on music, saying it's just the new phase of music. However, we need to think about what the legacy of music from this era will be. With all our cameras adjusting our images, art being made "better" by AI, and songs no longer sounding like the singers...
Sometime get a listen to Gary Puckett (Union Gap) doing this song. Always loved his voice. This song was on a one time only Christmas collection. He was qoted to have said that "This is my favorite song".
Thanks for this, Fil. You're the boss. I heard her on The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in 2014 for Linda Ronstadt and it stuck out that her vibrato was ear piercingly, ugh during "Different Drum." I also believe her mic was louder than the legends she was on stage with when they performed Linda's other hits. I don't want to leave a negative comment, but I take issue with that. Cheers, Fil.
For me, pitch correction trades feeling and emotion for mechanical correctness. If I want a trumpet sine wave, I know where to find it. Even there, I think Herb Alpert's Rise would be ruined by powerful pitch correction because he has slurs along with feeling in the song. Ah, well, just another old guy wishing for the good old days.
I come from a very musical family. Four women and five men. My next-elder sister basically owned this song while we were in school. Year after year, choir directors kept having her solo on it, so I got awfully used to hearing it perfectly done by an amazing mezzo soprano voice. In the 1990's, Rickie Lee Jones did it with The Chieftains and her voice was perfectly broken. I think it's the very best rendition available, because the whole reason Jesus came to Earth was to redeem the broken. I'm not even religious, but I can recognize perfection when it slaps me in the face.
Hey @Carrie Underwood. I genuinely hope this comes onto your radar… this should be in any performance/recording contract you sign. She has an awesome natural voice. The vibrato actually hurts my ears.
Compare and contrast: just listened to Aled Jones singing this in 1985. I am not a fan of church choirs or solo choir boys but it is a breath of fresh air after the 'android' version.
Thank you Fil for educating those of us who enjoy music but didn't have a clue what autotune and pitch correction are actually doing. You have opened my eyes to how the industry is doing a disservice to the artist and conning the end listener.
You are so gracious in your analysis. Sometimes, i would like to hear your first reaction without your normal restraint. 🙂 Wish I had your ability to hears the notes as you do..
Wow is correct....actually very sad. The "sound engineers" have actually taken her personality out of her real voice. It is blatantly obvious as you have demonstrated in your video. I would rather hear a singer on an off day than a pitch corrected song. The human part of singing, whether flawed, or off key sometimes can actually be very pleasing in my humble opinion. I appreciated how you were still kind to Carrie. Thank you again for an excellent analysis. ROCK...
Pitch correcting a good singer is like painting over antique hardwood floors. Sand it down a little, then seal it in with a clear coat. That goes for singers as well.
Breaks my heart when I hear remastered versions of the music of my youth (70's) that just don't sound right. The pitch correction, added compression, rebalancing done post production absolutely removes the humanity from the music.
This was actually hard to watch. If I were a professional performer, I'd be FURIOUS if someone did this to my voice! We all know she can sing beautifully, so just... why?
I think it's sad for the vocalists. If they can sing, and Carrie Underwood can sing, why not let their talent stand on it's own? I promise no one cares if she's not exactly on pitch all the time. That's what makes music such a great art form. If I was a big star, I would insist that my art not be tampered with.
I was a lead and sometimes backing vocalist for ten years. When i sang lead, we could vary our singing for empasis, etc. As backing we needed to blend, but the lead singer has license to play with the song especially with vibrato or a tiny bit off to be creative. What a shame, Carrie can sing without the roboto vibrato 😮 I do think whoever applied this pitch correction was not aware of vocal nuances.
My new motto - "I've been waiting all day for Fil to rant!" Sung to the tune of "Hate Myself for Loving You" which is used for the Sunday Night Football theme song by Carrie Underwood. 😊
WoW Fil, I've learned so much from your clearly defined explanations. And your own voice demonstrations . The mechanical sound I can now hear clearly in this case, is "nails on chalkboard" irritating to listen to. Mechanical also translates to a metallic type sound to my ears. Reminiscent of a violin bow on an actual wood cutting saw. Some people can make that paring sound musical, some cannot.
"Wow. Just wow. We have a NEW 'WINNER'!" Got that right Fil! This is shameful. Does anyone know of any song she's sung that hasn't been pitch corrected? I'd really like to hear HER voice, her natural singing voice.
Elaine, you said exactly what I was thinking. It’s so painful to listen to this which is just the opposite of why we listen to music. Merry/Happy Christmas 🎄 to you, Fil and all the subscribers. 😊 4:25
They can fake live performances, too. Celine Dion does not sing that big note from the Titanic theme live at her shows. That one note (or part of the line) is a recorded, studio version. You can see it in analysis videos.@@veramilton833
This song is meant to be sung by the purest of voices, or at least the purest of intentions. But pitch correcting something as beautiful as O Holy Night is sheer *blasphemy* Carrie and her manager should be ashamed of themselves.
Thanks for all you do Fil .My favorite version of this song is by the blind Italian opera singer Andrea Bocelli. Also Andy Williams had an amazing voice. I saw him perform once in Branson, Missouri. * Maybe you could get Tommy Emmanuel on your channel sometime?
There is a viral video going on with 15 year old Emma Kok with violinist/conductor Andre Rieu. It would be interesting if you could react and/or vocal analyze her. She's amazing in my opinion.
Wow I am shocked. I didn't think that country singers used auto tune and pitch correction as much. She has a beautiful voice and her voice doesn't need to be produced.
I am sorry this was done to her voice because she can sing. I listened to Andrea and Matteo Bocelli sing this , my favourite Christmas song, yesterday. It was beautiful. This sounds mechanical to me. What a shame. Thank you for the analysis. Merry Christmas to you and yours.
I saw Carrie in concert about nine years ago and she was excellent. I don’t know why they feel they need to do this. I’m sure she can do a tremendous job that would have more feeling without the pitch correction.
imperfection is what makes a performance perfect ..the irony is its just killing what could be the perfect performance ...it for me sucks out the main key point ,the feeling ....
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! You are the best! You give us so much to think about when listening to music! I guess I am lucky because the ones I think are really good singers, according to you they really are! Like Karen Carpenter, Bobby Darrin, Jay Black!
Carrie is in an exclusive and highly exclusionary club. She is a former contestant from a karaoke contest television show that has had a legitimate career. Well done young woman.
I would be cool if you could find the original vocal of one of these pitch corrected vocals so we could hear the difference. On a side note, you could do wayforms for "Chances Are" by Johnny Mathis... I always thought this guy was so spot on with his vocals.
A Fantastic view Fil and Spot on! This truly is eye opening as where is music heading like a Rock Band that just supposedly retired, then become Avatars? Where is creativity or artistry in it? Music naturally has some flaws & or Tone imperfections that's what I love about music. A great view and so well articulated. Ty Cheers! 🍻🤝🏼✌🏼💫
Now, do yourself a favor, check out Home Free All Vocal Band (acapella) singing “O Holy Night”! It’s stunning & even though it’s a few years old the guys sound the same when they sing it in concert. They are on their Christmas tour at this time. Their harmonies will blow you away! You REALLY need to hear it!!! The official video in a beautiful church is spectacular!!
I dont know why the label companies want to "perfect" an artists voice, all it does is take away the emotions that the singer is trying to portray in his/her song. This time I caught that this song was pitch corrected before you answered the question, and i saw it on the pitch monitor too. Again, I'd rather hear the singers natural voice, flaws and all because that's what makes the song beautiful. Thank you Fil, for this excellent analysis! 😉👍
@@R.Akerman-oz1tf Thank you! I heard Carrie's voice and knew right off the bat that it was pitch corrected, and I saw it on the monitor. Carrie's voice is much better than that. I don't have it all figured out, but I'm still learning. 🙂
What I've learned from Fil's videos is that they do it to save time/money . When recording in a studio it might require many "takes" of each song to get topnotch performance of all parts of the song. This takes more, expensive, studio time. Then they have to pay the editor to pick through all the tracks to find the best parts of each and edit them together seamlessly. With the computer software approach, they can record the song a couple of times and let the computer do most of the editing.
Your comment about a singer's natural vibrato "changing" (deteriorating?) over time was very true in the case of Jerry Vale (a pretty damn good singer!) whose voice really coarsened with time into an almost exaggerated version of his earlier work. It's interesting to me that it is a _natural_ progression.
I have to add another comment. I had a "discussion " in the comments of the Yoko analysis. I decided the next day to learn from this and not have my knickers in a twist (pride). But how to learn ? Well you did this analysis. Perfect timing for my subjective/objective- natural/pitch corrected learning. Thank you for this. And lol.
It would be interesting to see some Eurovision analysis. I’m pretty sure that even though they say it “has to be live” , the majority of them mimed, and most likely to a pitch corrected track.
Should commercial recordings that have been pitch corrected or auto tuned be declared on packaging as having been corrupted by some sound engineer so consumers know of the fraud because the recording isn't actually the artist's fans are paying for.
Thanks Fil. I didn't need to watch, or hear the voice, to know what was happening the expressions on your face spoke volumes. Very entertaining, and fun, just watching you.
So sad that the record industry does this. I really miss hearing ‘imperfections’. I hate to use that term because it’s more like perfections and identity. Thanks again, Fil!
9:20 struck me it sounds limited/compressed too, feeling her vocal intensity that is. Great answers Fil. Merry Xmas to you and all of us. -Don't Bflat, Bsharp 'n 🤸♀️ Rock !
I’ve watched a lot of your videos. There is a gospel singer, David Phelps, who performed this song live back in 2012 on Bill and Gloria Gaither’s concert. It would be interesting to see you analyze that vocal.
My question is why do artists allow this to be done to their talent? Do they really believe it sounds better? We the public need to say no with our $. Thank you for educating us!!!
Great work Fil! Patti LaBelle sang this on Carson and it was the best I heard, but THAT performance is not the one on YT currently. Also, this song, my fav, is very similar harmonically to Chopin’s Fantasy Impromptu, but that’s another topic.
Thank you for the video and analysis. I just don't understand the motivation for doing this pitch correction. These singers have great voices and we will really never hear them.
![ลองสั่งของจากแอพ temu ถูกจริงหรอ?? [โกงไหมครับ ep.88 ] | DOM](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/RTcZSQTiDZw/mqdefault.jpg)
Imperfection has been proved to be perfection for almost every hit song with a singer in history.
That is why they were a hit, no acoustic instrument is perfectly tuned, no human drummer is in perfect time and usually it's the singer that is the most distinctly off tune/beat/melody of them all. Mistakes and imperfection are what make us human they can express emotion, set scenes, cause tension. For example, we all know what it is to take a breath when we hear it or growl or sigh or have our voice break/falter with emotion as we talk about the people we have lost.
To "clean this up" to this extent is to rob the listener of why we sing in the 1st place.
Yes, that's Sheryl Crow on keys and vox
But the Beatles maybe were the best at this!
Mate, you have eloquently made one of the best responses I've read.
👏
Pitch perfect is an unattainable goal, and it doesn't matter, regardless of the instrument.
It's all about performance, passion, interpretation, and most importantly engaging and entertaining.
The/ your, audience don't whittle away at, or even care about the minutiae, they're just there and want to appreciate and enjoy, and go home happy.
"To play a wrong note is insignificant; to play without passion is inexcusable." - Beethoven
Yep. And the reason for that is that the "imperfections" make the Uncanny Valley go away.
Auto Tune and Pitch Correction is throwing Sounds in the uncanny Valley.
"No longer a human voice."
That's it exactly. Pitch correction takes emotion out of singing.
Don't worry - now that AI is reproducing voices and creating lyrics, we don't even need humans and their "imperfections" anymore. RIP music. One more year and it'll be officially dead.
@@dermur68 The emotion's still there. It's just ain't honest.
You are so right. I always say 'it hits the note, but misses the soul'
The vocals that lie right on the note line are vocals that sound like an ambulance siren that is stuck.
This is criminal. I got to see Carrie perform last spring. Her voice is incredible and doesn't need pitch correction/autotune.
How do you know her performance wasn’t auto-tuned or pitch corrected? Routinely done in live performances, too.
99% chance her live performances are auto-turned
It was processed and pitch corrected in real time.
@@newnoggin2that is ridiculous
She lipping it
It’s so sad because she has an incredible voice.
You're explaining why Carrie's voice sounds "metallic" or harsh on her recordings. Thank you. The technician does her no favours!
the technician didnt even correct every note..sloppy work actually!
What a sad and shameful thing to do to Carrie Underwoods voice. I have seen her perform live , and she has a beautiful and powerful voice ! I have a question, does an artist have any say in whether their voices can be pitch corrected ?
Not really, except for indie artists. I did live sound for a band with a top 40s hit at the time and they gave me a copy of their album. The singer E-mailed me to ask what I thought about it. I said almost every song on it was great but it didn't sound anything like them live. They were GOOD live too. He replied "we're not allowed to talk about the engineering but I agree."
@stephenbaldassarre2289 ..How very sad ! 😔
I was today years old when I realized "live " performances we don't witness live are a lie. I stupidly assumed they didn't mess with them..what a disgrace.
@@Alecmonster3 Sadly, most pop acts these days are just lipsyncing to pre-recorded vocals.
You have to realize EVEN LIVE PERFORMANCES ARE PITCH CORRECTED. THAT'S HOW FAST THE COMPUTER KICKS IN TO DIGITIZE THE VOICE. NOBODY...BIG NAMES...THAT YOU'RE HEARING, IS REAL. LIVE PERFORMANCES ARE FAKE TOO. YUK. I AM A "NOT FAMOUS" JAZZ SINGER...I WOULD FORBID IT.
Fil, thank you for this analysis. Almost from the first 10 seconds, it was clear that this was a machine voice. It is not alive. It is a travesty.
Pitch correction removes the beauty.
Thank you, Fil, for helping me to “tune” my listening. There is a reason I didn’t respond the same way to more contemporary vocalists and now I know why. When you know, you know.
Same here.
This is such a shame - my partner's sister sang backup for Carrie, and Carrie's voice is so awesome she doesn't need pitch-correction at all.
That's been my impression as well. She's done some incredible vocals in live performances that surely weren't pitch-corrected. That this great hymn, which can really show off her voice if allowed to, was stepped on in this video, is a disgrace. Fil did some stuff on Michael Buble a while back and made similar comments on a Christmas song Buble had sung. You'd think Carrie would have more say in all this.
I believe you😊
i found her voice piercing, not in a good way.
Scooching a wee bit off topic although not totally, but while he didn't have the best set of pure pipes, Nat King Cole sings the most beautiful and reverent version of O Holy Night I've ever heard. And I say "reverent" without even being religious.. Instead of showing off and seeing how many runs and how much vibrato singers today do, it's like Cole is describing the birth of Christ as he's seeing it first hand.
I get you completely. I was coming down here
to comment on the artifice of her performance
and of how many people (mostly 'Murricans, tbh) who perform hymns
(whether sacred or secular (I am not a fan of the rather militaristic US anthem,
but the famous version in which Fergies sounded as if she was trying her best
to seduce the soldiers was...something else)) even if they do not do it on purpose
at least SEEM to try to be seductive. I do not like that at all.
I actually really enjoyed Bastille's version as well
She has a very good voice on real life. I've said it many times that pitch correction is not progress. Thanks, Fil for this analysis. Happy Christmas and a Merry New Year!
How do you know? Chances are she uses playback live.
@@MartinMartin-yi9toShe performed many times when she competed & won American Idol way back in 2005. As a singing competition, contestant’s voices of course were not altered when they competed in The Voice & the other TV talent shows.
Anyone who watched those shows, or has listened to her sing prior to this performance could have formed their opinions of her talent over the last 18 years. It’s quite possible, if not probable, that at least some of her performances have not been pitch corrected or auto-tuned over her long career.
@@OwnedByACatNamedC.C. And you really beleive they're not lypsyncing on TV? Yeah.....TV worked on you and your opinion isn't worth a thing. Cheers!
@@MartinMartin-yi9to : (
@@MartinMartin-yi9to How does she know? Maybe she had a private concert in her home? How do you know she hasn't?
"Now a human voice is a piano" - I think this sums it all perfectly. I miss the old times and old performances
Wow. I did not see this coming for Carrie Underwood. Her singing voice seems to be held in such high regard, but this is very surprising and disappointing for me. On a lighter note, Fil’s eye rolling @ 13:11 is priceless! 👁️ 👁️
I bet she didn't know
love the eye roll !!!
😂😂😂
@@oldermusiclover I bet she did.
Those eye rolls tell the story.. so painful to hear her voice just trashed!
I just went to the TH-cam performance of Carrie Underwood doing this same song on Jimmie Fallon's Tonight Show and the difference is astonishing! The other is obviously not auto tuned or pitch corrected and it's a million times better! Shame on whoever thought they were "fixing" her voice here.
Try the opera singer Jussi Björlings version of the same song but in swedish "O Helga Natt". Recorded way before pitch correction. He was Pavarottis favorite.
Yes to that. Compare the two. No one does it better that Jussi
He did a beautiful duet with Robert Merrill of the Pearl Fishers. No duet has been performed batter, since.
Being swedish I might be partial but Jussi’s version is the only one I’ll ever need.
A 'plus' here from me - I was coming to suggest it, too.
Please keep in mind that a lot of tv networks autotune everything without letting the artist know. This happened to Dave Draiman of Disturbed when they performed The Sound of Silence on Conan. He was furious when he found out.
❤i would be mad as well...love Dave
The NERVE! What kind of soul...if any...do these butchers have? They are not capable of recognizing emotion in a singer's voice. Leave David alone, you heathens.
It's become so ingrained in the modern media industries that they don't even think to ask. It's just assumed everyone wants it because it's so "AWESOME".
i haven't seen anything where he referenced that performance and autotune. where did you read this?
Exactly!!!
Carrie Underwood & Vince Gill - "How Great Thou Art"
Live performance. Imperfectly perfect maybe they use pitch correction I don’t know. It doesn’t sound like it to me. She’s flat a few times. but it doesn’t matter. It’s so beautiful I mean having Vince Gill play guitar and sing back up is a pretty good idea as well, but I’m just saying this woman is capable of delivering a fabulous performance without this.
That performance is beyond outstanding. I don't believe there is any pitch correction to that live performance. This is one of my most favorite performances ever and that says a lot.
I get chills just thinking about that performance, I can remember exactly where I was the first time I heard/saw the video via a link someone had posted on social media. We play it every time we have a 'TH-cam' night.
Thank you for the analysis. As ever, really illuminating . I really cannot understand this level of pitch correction, it’s sad. I found some of it this painful, robotic even. I want to hear a ‘real’ voice.
The "computer alarm" comparison was spot-on...grates on my nerves! lol Auto-tune/pitch correction hurts my head. Some of the music they play at work drives me crazy, while my coworkers never even seem to notice. Natural voices are unique and beautiful...leave them alone! ❤🎶
It’s such a shame they insist on doing this. Carrie has a great voice with quite admirable pitch naturally. They made her sound like a glitching alarm of some sort. It’s so annoying
100%
I never wanted to see Celine Dion, but my wife dragged me to Las Vegas, and I was blown away! Her voice was amazing, better than any of her recordings that I had ever heard. I would think that all possible tricks to make her sound better could have been implemented in the studio, or post production. So I think why she sounded so great live was, that no recording can capture the nuances of her vocals.
I would agree. She is a remarkable singer. One note of caution. Her vocal in Vegas was likely very carefully “processed” from choice of microphone, mixing board, PA/amplification, and an highly skilled adept audio engineer…to your ears!
If she’s gonna sing “perfectly” she wants everything to be, perfect!
Well, that was painful 😬. Only for you would I sit through that whole thing!
I'm pretty sure that no one is going to be following the link to listen to this performance uninterrupted...your "interruptions" were the only thing that made it bearable.
I think you're right, this has got to be the new winner for most overly pitch corrected performance. Judging by your 8 eye rolls, several winces, and one actual groan of dispair, I could see how very painful this one was for you, and understandably so. 🤦♀️🙉🙄
And surely 8 eye rolls during one video has got to be a record!!
My voice coach told me early on that I would develop a critical ear in two regards. First pitch correction becomes easier to detect and the performance sounds sterile, or mechanical. Second performers today may not sound as good as older performers because they just aren't as disciplined with the pitch correction safety net. I personally like live performances as they are always a bit different and remind me nobody is perfect but we can strive to be.
Celine Dion in 1998 sang her version of O Holy Night live. It's here on YT. It was as near perfect as a human can get. Nana Mouskouri's 1970's version of Ave Maria is chilling to the bone it's so pure. Both women sang live just as exquisitely.
It is possible for today's professional singers to be, well, professional.
I always learn something new on your channel. I know nothing about the modern technology used in performances these days. Thanks for your hard work! I'm late again as I don't use notifications.❤
O goodness! Nana Mouskouri! Her voice was incredible! Lovely to see her remembered and mentioned.
Dion makes cats abort and wolves eat their own. Praise heaven she's giving us a respite from her insufferable yowling.
@@SuperMoofie ❤
This is my favourite song and Celine performs it best . She has so much left at the end ,Michael Crawford got there also with a thinner voice . Mechanical was my first thought here .
Dion is my go to version. Her singing was an acquired taste, but now I’m hooked.
Man, if ever there was a song that DIDN'T need to be belted, this one takes the cake.
Agree, but 'belting' mostly shouting is the thing these days. Somehow you're a fantastic singer if you can shout. You can tell the difference when a singer projects their air from the diaphragm and not the chest. God that top note was screechy, ouch!
PRECISELY! I couldn't find the words and I can't thank you enough for hitting your nail on the head!!! Thank you and God Bless!❤
She's a show off that way. I find her belting annoying AF. She usually ends up sounding like a stuck crow somewhere along the line.
Seth Mcfarlane nailed it at the Oscars when he said they had time backstage for a bit as Adele was still busy out there shouting at the audience.
@@ranchodelreyband167 truth!
I hear so many people denying the effects of auto tuning and pitch correction on music, saying it's just the new phase of music. However, we need to think about what the legacy of music from this era will be. With all our cameras adjusting our images, art being made "better" by AI, and songs no longer sounding like the singers...
She is such a great singer. A person's normal tone is what brings life, emotion, realism. Perfection cannot bring that. Thanks Fil😊🎙🎼🕯🌜⭐️
Carrie has a great voice and does not need pitch correction. Too bad. Thanks Fil.
Sometime get a listen to Gary Puckett (Union Gap) doing this song. Always loved his voice. This song was on a one time only Christmas collection. He was qoted to have said that "This is my favorite song".
Thanks for this, Fil. You're the boss. I heard her on The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in 2014 for Linda Ronstadt and it stuck out that her vibrato was ear piercingly, ugh during "Different Drum." I also believe her mic was louder than the legends she was on stage with when they performed Linda's other hits. I don't want to leave a negative comment, but I take issue with that. Cheers, Fil.
Spectacularly awful. A worthy winner, and a pox on everyone involved in the production and release. Bring back music.
For me, pitch correction trades feeling and emotion for mechanical correctness. If I want a trumpet sine wave, I know where to find it. Even there, I think Herb Alpert's Rise would be ruined by powerful pitch correction because he has slurs along with feeling in the song. Ah, well, just another old guy wishing for the good old days.
I come from a very musical family. Four women and five men. My next-elder sister basically owned this song while we were in school. Year after year, choir directors kept having her solo on it, so I got awfully used to hearing it perfectly done by an amazing mezzo soprano voice.
In the 1990's, Rickie Lee Jones did it with The Chieftains and her voice was perfectly broken. I think it's the very best rendition available, because the whole reason Jesus came to Earth was to redeem the broken.
I'm not even religious, but I can recognize perfection when it slaps me in the face.
Hey @Carrie Underwood. I genuinely hope this comes onto your radar… this should be in any performance/recording contract you sign. She has an awesome natural voice. The vibrato actually hurts my ears.
Compare and contrast: just listened to Aled Jones singing this in 1985. I am not a fan of church choirs or solo choir boys but it is a breath of fresh air after the 'android' version.
Thank you Fil for educating those of us who enjoy music but didn't have a clue what autotune and pitch correction are actually doing. You have opened my eyes to how the industry is doing a disservice to the artist and conning the end listener.
You are so gracious in your analysis. Sometimes, i would like to hear your first reaction without your normal restraint. 🙂
Wish I had your ability to hears the notes as you do..
Wow is correct....actually very sad. The "sound engineers" have actually taken her personality out of her real voice. It is blatantly obvious as you have demonstrated in your video. I would rather hear a singer on an off day than a pitch corrected song. The human part of singing, whether flawed, or off key sometimes can actually be very pleasing in my humble opinion. I appreciated how you were still kind to Carrie. Thank you again for an excellent analysis. ROCK...
Pitch correcting a good singer is like painting over antique hardwood floors. Sand it down a little, then seal it in with a clear coat. That goes for singers as well.
Breaks my heart when I hear remastered versions of the music of my youth (70's) that just don't sound right. The pitch correction, added compression, rebalancing done post production absolutely removes the humanity from the music.
Fil if you want to hear her real voice check out a video of her and Vince Gill sing How Great Thou Art it will give you chills
I don’t know why they do this. This performance is almost unlistenable. Every note just grates on my nerves.
Defeats the purpose of singing😬
Oh, that melisma or what ever they call it? Just hold a note, already!
Strongly agree. She has a lovely voice - but you wouldn’t know it from this rendition. 😡
@@Ann-vi5ns🎯
Compare tom jones live performances from 1960s and today’s performances it’s absolutely embarrassing
This was actually hard to watch. If I were a professional performer, I'd be FURIOUS if someone did this to my voice! We all know she can sing beautifully, so just... why?
I think it's sad for the vocalists. If they can sing, and Carrie Underwood can sing, why not let their talent stand on it's own? I promise no one cares if she's not exactly on pitch all the time. That's what makes music such a great art form. If I was a big star, I would insist that my art not be tampered with.
I wish you would examine David Phelps version of O’Holy Night. One of the best versions I have ever heard.
I was a lead and sometimes backing vocalist for ten years. When i sang lead, we could vary our singing for empasis, etc. As backing we needed to blend, but the lead singer has license to play with the song especially with vibrato or a tiny bit off to be creative. What a shame, Carrie can sing without the roboto vibrato 😮 I do think whoever applied this pitch correction was not aware of vocal nuances.
My favorite Christmas Carol….RUINED! You’re killing me, Fil….! Rock!!!!
If your gonna kill me, at least give me more Jo Stafford. That is some off pitch singing I can get behind…because I’m Stayin’ Alive! Rock!!!!!
My new motto - "I've been waiting all day for Fil to rant!" Sung to the tune of "Hate Myself for Loving You" which is used for the Sunday Night Football theme song by Carrie Underwood. 😊
I love listening to you. It is so educational and you have such an adorable personality.
Wow. She sounds so much better live. That’s usually not the case. It’s funny - I’m starting to recognize pitch correction in every song I hear.
Can you do an analysis of a Christmas song from an old crooner? I don’t care who, but just a natural voice. Pretty please?
How 'bout Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" (1942)?
WoW Fil, I've learned so much from your clearly defined explanations. And your own voice demonstrations .
The mechanical sound I can now hear clearly in this case, is "nails on chalkboard" irritating to listen to. Mechanical also translates to a metallic type sound to my ears.
Reminiscent of a violin bow on an actual wood cutting saw. Some people can make that paring sound musical, some cannot.
"Wow. Just wow. We have a NEW 'WINNER'!" Got that right Fil! This is shameful. Does anyone know of any song she's sung that hasn't been pitch corrected? I'd really like to hear HER voice, her natural singing voice.
I would too. I cried during this performance. What a voice she has.. It is a shame that some decides to pitch correct her.
I have seen her perform live . Carrie has a beautiful and powerful voice ! This pitch correction just ruined this song !
@Elaine_Parhamovich It would be interesting to see the waves on her stage performance in The Sound of Music.
Elaine, you said exactly what I was thinking. It’s so painful to listen to this which is just the opposite of why we listen to music.
Merry/Happy Christmas 🎄 to you, Fil and all the subscribers. 😊 4:25
They can fake live performances, too. Celine Dion does not sing that big note from the Titanic theme live at her shows. That one note (or part of the line) is a recorded, studio version. You can see it in analysis videos.@@veramilton833
This song is meant to be sung by the purest of voices, or at least the purest of intentions. But pitch correcting something as beautiful as O Holy Night is sheer *blasphemy*
Carrie and her manager should be ashamed of themselves.
I think that it would be interesting to what would happen if both the pitch corrected and uncorrected performances were released.
Thanks for all you do Fil .My favorite version of this song is by the blind Italian opera singer Andrea Bocelli. Also Andy Williams had an amazing voice. I saw him perform once in Branson, Missouri.
* Maybe you could get Tommy Emmanuel on your channel sometime?
That sound of the pitch correction is awful I can’t listen to much contemporary music because of that.
I love her ! Voice of an angel
All the humanity that would have been there is replaced with a nauseating robotic whine.
It's a wonder that artists allow (want) this to happen...?
There is a viral video going on with 15 year old Emma Kok with violinist/conductor Andre Rieu. It would be interesting if you could react and/or vocal analyze her. She's amazing in my opinion.
That is painful
i found her voice piercing, not in a good way.
Just so sad to me bc we know she’s got a good voice, personally all this “perfection” has the opposite effect & just feel so mechanical & empty
Well done Fil. The eye roll at 14:34 cracked me up … followed by the exasperated, “ohhhhh …” … both of which sum things up perfectly. Cheers!
Wow I am shocked. I didn't think that country singers used auto tune and pitch correction as much. She has a beautiful voice and her voice doesn't need to be produced.
How do you know? Her vocals were probably 'produced' since day 1.
I would love you to do an analysis of this carol sung by Leontyne Price - no auto tune, no pitch correction, just sheer beauty.
Thank you for directing me to Ms Price. It was a glorious rendition of that extraordinary song. 💖
I am sorry this was done to her voice because she can sing. I listened to Andrea and Matteo Bocelli sing this , my favourite Christmas song, yesterday. It was beautiful. This sounds mechanical to me. What a shame. Thank you for the analysis. Merry Christmas to you and yours.
I love your cheeky grin while listening to those 'perfect' pitch corrections!
I saw Carrie in concert about nine years ago and she was excellent. I don’t know why they feel they need to do this. I’m sure she can do a tremendous job that would have more feeling without the pitch correction.
I love that you ACTUALLY discuss why they might use pitch correction. It's just strange because you think she probably has great pitch naturally
imperfection is what makes a performance perfect ..the irony is its just killing what could be the perfect performance ...it for me sucks out the main key point ,the feeling ....
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! You are the best! You give us so much to think about when listening to music! I guess I am lucky because the ones I think are really good singers, according to you they really are! Like Karen Carpenter, Bobby Darrin, Jay Black!
Carrie is in an exclusive and highly exclusionary club. She is a former contestant from a karaoke contest television show that has had a legitimate career. Well done young woman.
I would be cool if you could find the original vocal of one of these pitch corrected vocals so we could hear the difference. On a side note, you could do wayforms for "Chances Are" by Johnny Mathis... I always thought this guy was so spot on with his vocals.
A Fantastic view Fil and Spot on!
This truly is eye opening as where is music heading like a Rock Band that just supposedly retired, then become Avatars? Where is creativity or artistry in it? Music naturally has some flaws & or Tone imperfections that's what I love about music. A great view and so well articulated. Ty Cheers! 🍻🤝🏼✌🏼💫
Now, do yourself a favor, check out Home Free All Vocal Band (acapella) singing “O Holy Night”! It’s stunning & even though it’s a few years old the guys sound the same when they sing it in concert. They are on their Christmas tour at this time. Their harmonies will blow you away! You REALLY need to hear it!!! The official video in a beautiful church is spectacular!!
I dont know why the label companies want to "perfect" an artists voice, all it does is take away the emotions that the singer is trying to portray in his/her song. This time I caught that this song was pitch corrected before you answered the question, and i saw it on the pitch monitor too. Again, I'd rather hear the singers natural voice, flaws and all because that's what makes the song beautiful. Thank you Fil, for this excellent analysis! 😉👍
Good eyes/great ears. Thnx Tammy.
@@R.Akerman-oz1tf Thank you! I heard Carrie's voice and knew right off the bat that it was pitch corrected, and I saw it on the monitor. Carrie's voice is much better than that. I don't have it all figured out, but I'm still learning. 🙂
What I've learned from Fil's videos is that they do it to save time/money . When recording in a studio it might require many "takes" of each song to get topnotch performance of all parts of the song. This takes more, expensive, studio time. Then they have to pay the editor to pick through all the tracks to find the best parts of each and edit them together seamlessly. With the computer software approach, they can record the song a couple of times and let the computer do most of the editing.
Elementary Sir. Producers can be obsessed by perfection too.@@johnwatson2887
John Berry,January 1, 1995. My favorite version of this song.
Your comment about a singer's natural vibrato "changing" (deteriorating?) over time was very true in the case of Jerry Vale (a pretty damn good singer!) whose voice really coarsened with time into an almost exaggerated version of his earlier work. It's interesting to me that it is a _natural_ progression.
I have to add another comment. I had a "discussion " in the comments of the Yoko analysis. I decided the next day to learn from this and not have my knickers in a twist (pride). But how to learn ? Well you did this analysis. Perfect timing for my subjective/objective- natural/pitch corrected learning. Thank you for this. And lol.
You need to listen to Andy Williams sing this song, Accept no substitute.
It would be interesting to see some Eurovision analysis. I’m pretty sure that even though they say it “has to be live” , the majority of them mimed, and most likely to a pitch corrected track.
Do these artists have zero control over their reputation? This can't be good for her.😢
Should commercial recordings that have been pitch corrected or auto tuned be declared on packaging as having been corrupted by some sound engineer so consumers know of the fraud because the recording isn't actually the artist's fans are paying for.
Thanks Fil. I didn't need to watch, or hear the voice, to know what was happening the expressions on your face spoke volumes. Very entertaining, and fun, just watching you.
I never thought they would ever pitch correct Carrie Underwood! I guess Fil is right that they use pitch correction on everything now.
In tune?
I have no idea what you guys are talking about.
Signed, Neil Young
Can you imagine a Neil Young pitch corrected song? 🙀
Imperfections are what makes performances perfect.
Please listen to David Phelps sing this live from a concert from 2000
No artificial anything used, just his beautiful tenor voice
The explanation is really interesting. Thank you for all the details.
So sad that the record industry does this. I really miss hearing ‘imperfections’. I hate to use that term because it’s more like perfections and identity. Thanks again, Fil!
You’re absolutely right! I hear what you are talking about. Very interesting video.
Yikes! 🙉
Producers, for the sake of Music, say NO to pitch correction!
Fil, thanks for your insights 🖤🤘🏽
Would love you see you compare this with a live recording from someone seeing her in Vegas at Resorts World singing this same song.
9:20 struck me it sounds limited/compressed too, feeling her vocal intensity that is.
Great answers Fil.
Merry Xmas to you and all of us.
-Don't Bflat, Bsharp 'n 🤸♀️ Rock !
I’ve watched a lot of your videos. There is a gospel singer, David Phelps, who performed this song live back in 2012 on Bill and Gloria Gaither’s concert. It would be interesting to see you analyze that vocal.
My question is why do artists allow this to be done to their talent? Do they really believe it sounds better? We the public need to say no with our $. Thank you for educating us!!!
Perhaps they don't have enough talent.
Great work Fil! Patti LaBelle sang this on Carson and it was the best I heard, but THAT performance is not the one on YT currently. Also, this song, my fav, is very similar harmonically to Chopin’s Fantasy Impromptu, but that’s another topic.
Thank you for the video and analysis. I just don't understand the motivation for doing this pitch correction.
These singers have great voices and we will really never hear them.