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This week I am going to record some new songs. The recording studio environment is not unanimous among musicians. Some say that the recording atmosphere never matches the energy on stage and therefore would be a lesser representation of the real potential of the artist, and I understand their point. In my case, however, I love both situations.

Sure there are some shortcomings in capturing sounds. I once heard a guitarist say something very clever about using microphones that also applies to recording sessions: “It’s a losing battle.” Indeed.

There is no denying that no device will be able to reproduce the natural voice, with all its imperfections and unique sonic details, during a live, unamplified performance. There is something magical about this unmediated contact between the voice of the singer and the ears of the audience, no arguing with that.

Another interesting aspect that greatly differentiates these two types of performance is the ability to correct your voice. If you, like me, perform live without using any technology to correct your voice (Pro Tools, etc.), then you will understand what I mean. When you go up on stage, everything is for real and it only happens once: Did you get the lyrics wrong? Keep going! Did your voice fail? Keep going! The stage is perhaps one of the places that best illustrates the maxim “The show must go on”. Recording, however, is a completely different story.

You will always want to record one more line, re-record a verse, try out some idea for the chorus. And even when everything goes well, you will inevitably hear from your producer (in my case, from myself): ‘I want to do another take, just in case.’ In a live performance, the song is finished when it is finished, but in a studio session, well, the work is never really finished, or you will never really consider it finished.

I think that was the great moral I took from the video in which I recorded the entire recording session of a song (yes, just one). There are moments of great discovery, about how an ultra-powerful microphone was not the best suited for my voice or the difficulties of recording a guide vocal.

It is not an edited video. It is raw material, just like that which we have when we leave a studio, before the mixing process. It is a raw record of one of the aspects of the job of a singer job, but perhaps it would be interesting to you because it is also an example of how to deal with a team and, above all, of accepting that, many times, it is the clock that will dictate the pace of your creativity.

The song is called “Cadê Você?” (Where Are You?), and I guess I can call it a waltz. The recording took place in the studio of the State Library Park in Rio de Janeiro. The musician who accompanies me is Guido Tornaghi, and the technicians are Leo Nzazi and Davi Amorim.

Enjoy!

Recording session: Cadê Você? (Geisa Fernandes)

Be seeing you!

G.F.

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You probably know the story of Ugly Duckling , but just to be sure: Danish author Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875) first published it on November 11, 1843. The tale was part of the the first volume of “New Fairy Tales”, and it has been been adapted for various media, including opera, musical, and animated film.

In the plot, a baby duck suffers a lot of verbal and physical abuse because of his appearence. After a classic “hero’s journey”, during which he goes through a harsh winter hiding in a cave on the partially frozen lake, the ugly duckling, now grown, finally discovers that it was, in fact, a majestic swan.

The way I see it, Ugly Duckling and Superman have a lot in common. I talked about super heros here already, but today I would like to talk specifically about Superman, more specifically about the Kryptonite x Superman relationship. And his relationship to Ugly Duckling.

You see, in both cases the first source of destabilization came from the family. The parents of Superman and the solo mother in Ugly Duckling both tried, in some way, to protect them, but their efforts were not enough to free our characters from the terrible suffering caused by their origins, whether in the form of bullying or as a symbolic artifact. Actually, we could sumarize both plots in two words: family, caution.

Maybe the reason for the huge success of these characters is related to the fact that we feel represented, when we realize that families/environments of origin in general, and not only ours, can be the source of much of our joys and good memories, but they might also become the first element of oppression one must face.

I am particularly impressed by the number of people who claim to have their most fervent supporters among their family members. People who believed in and supported their ideas and encouraged their careers from the ground up.

Very beautiful stories indeed, but they do not even remotely resemble mine. Some of us need to get things done without the extra support of family members.

Despite what the gossip magazines say, a significant part of us needs to go on even without standing ovations, without huge financial sums involved in our contracts. The truth is that a huge number of performers have a routine much closer to a factory worker than a fairy tale princess.

Perhaps people get confused by the way the life of many artists is represented on screen and in literature: they are either starving bodies carrying tormented souls, or millionaires followed by paparazzi day and night.

The dichotomy confuses our family and closest friends, who think that if you are not rich or famous like that guy they showed on TV, so maybe this thing you do is just a hobby, and you should probably get yourself a real job.

Most of the time, this distorted view is not even expressed in words. Non-verbal signals include disapproving looks or small gestures (rolling eyes come to mind) that can be quite painful for those at whom they are directed.

If you are part of the happy 100%-family support bunch, you probably have no idea what I am talking about. For the rest of us is either Ugly Duckling or Superman.

I do not know how you handle your kryptonite, but I really wish you would not give up on your swan flight.

Be seeing you!

G.F.

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Que será, Será is a 1956 song by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans. It was part of the movie The Man Who Knew Too Much[, and a immediate success. Among its many versions, the one, by singer and actress Doris Day is considered a classic.

The song talks about fate and uncertainties of life and the answer to the question “how it will be”, repeated all through the song is only one:

Que sera, sera
Whatever will be, will be
The future’s not ours to see
Que sera, sera
What will be, will be

As I opened my fortune cookie, these verses popped up on my mind. It said: “It is never too late to start it all over again”. Fortune cookie hits the bull’s-eye again! It is amazing how they never fail! This is exactly how I feel now: starting it all over again.

Remember the set list odyssey? Well, my friend, it was only the beginning. Ready for the new challenge? Looking for the right musicians. And how many failed along the way… And before you think I am being picky, let me remind you that I am not even talking about musical skills, oh no! I am actually talking about a behavior that you be in compliance with what is expected in the twenty-first century. Sounds too vague?

In one example: I have already cancelled (yes, that´s right c-a-n-c-e-l-l-e-d) a gig because during rehearsals it became clear that the musician I was working with was tremendously patronizing, which is always something unpleasant to handle and far worse if you are the boss. Got the picture? Anyway, let us drop this part and jump straight to strictly music related matters.

The right musicians to work with are the ones, who are not only interested in the gig (and we all are, nothing wrong about that), but also in taking part of the project in a deeper way, buying the idea and improving it. Musicians that are able to respect my vision, and yet leave their own signature” are the right ones for me.

And talking about talented musicians who have a signature, I would like to end with a special note to my dear friend V. and say that the sensitive souls are the ones who suffer most, but they also bear the power of turning pain into beauty. I am sure you are going to find a way to turn those rainy days into bright, starry nights.

Be seeing you!

G. F.

p.s.: more songs about fortune telling?

Superstition, (Stevie Wonder.)

Bijuterias, (Aldir Blanc/João Bosco)