Restless Heart - album-making diary #4 (January 7th, 2015)

 FB entry on January 7th, 2015

[album-making-diary] [Restless Heart album] My friends told me this is the closest I would get to being pregnant - giving birth to an album. I cannot agree more.

All the hours spent inside the studio and near the studio (lunch break, dinner break, suppers, brunch, breakfast, etc); all the hours spent there chatting, working, eating, dreaming, arguing, laughing and crying - I guess, are like the ups and downs of someone waiting to go into labour.

It dawned on me only a short while ago (weeks) that for first timer in album-making, am charging in this brand new field with am ambition so colossal that you would think am either stupid or foolish, or both. A full album of 10 songs that I hope to complete within two moths, all of the songs selected vastly challenging.

If it wasn't for my ego (to finish what I have started) and how foolishly dreamy I am - I would have deem this project suicidal and lethal and raise the white flag. Secondly, "the show must go on" - for the love of those who believe in me and became part of the project and left me a piece of themselves - without these lovers I cannot go on.

We started recording vocals on the 4th song last night. The album title song is now ready to be mixed. It was emotional to listen to the rough mix of Restless Heart and recalled the years I have behind me since I first learn this killer song. I told my producer Seah Song-fan that I am finally proud, of myself (not because the singing on the track is perfect) - for the work that have gone into the song. Thank you Zalina Lee and Elvira Arul for lending your crazy magic in the back up vocals. And Tay Cher Siang for being bossy enough to make me do this, much much love to you, stay bossy.

The songs on this album requires the full spectrum of a singer's voice and abilities - thanks to the faith (and talent) that my composers/arranger have on me, for writing beautiful but complicated materials that call for a `super singer' to take on. The range, tone and character required to do the songs well are frankly, beyond me at the moment. "What were you thinking Janet??" I guess I wasn't thinking enough when the material came to me, I fell in love with the songs and with my own stories and I dived head in, now my body is wet and and cold but my soul is very happy, despite being very scared.

Of course then came along the madness and intensity of an artist from another planet, Song-fan Seah who was crazy enough to say "Let me help you." Without even knowing the album material first, he invested his belief in me.

Now months later, and hundreds of hours of coaching later - Song-fan is still deep in coaxing and guiding the better versions of me to come into light. His bottomless energy (is freaking out of the world that I think he is alien) and tireless approach in teaching moved me so and help me stay focus in the recording booth - no matter how many times I have been asked to sing a line, I keep going, because he can.

Constructive feedback from Song-fan and colleagues help me discover so much of my own voice I never heard or know. It is like living under the same roof with this person for so many years and now for the first time, discovering a new, extremely attractive side of her that you have previously overlooked. Or like staying in the same house all your life but never ever step foot in a room full of treasures - and discovering it after 10 years (this one calls for a separate entry).

I can hear my own voice now, some are clear and confident, some are shy and unsure of itself, yet. There's still so much to do before I wrap the vocal recording of all 10 songs and am happy to say that I'm hooked on the process of discovering. The work is tedious and at times rather gruesome but the rewards are...I have no word for it.

It's a good time to be alive now. Thank you for reading this long post and I hope to share more stories again soon. The studio schedule is hectic this month (this is the last stretch of the race) but there will be lots of updates soon, regarding the Restless Heart concert this March at DPAC. - so sit tight and stay tune.

Album cover shoot next week!!! Weeeeeeee!
#restlessheart #janetleealbum #albummaking #debutalbum #janetleemusic#grateful #living #album #music #janetwrites #diary

Starting out - debut album making diary #1 (July 5th)

Remember taking notes in class, at lectures?  Only you yourself understand your own handwriting and notes, scribbles and symbols, codes and anecdotes... I want to record whatever I can remember from the session yesterday so that I could remember what I need to execute now, as well as providing a diary of this journey so I could look back to this day in future.

So these notes may not be cohesive or anything close to it...just my scribbles :)

July 5th, Saturday 3-6pm.

So here we go...am a bag of emotions, all mixed up.  There's going to be lots of growing up to do in the next few months, or should I say, there's no better way to grow up than to give yourself a decision to make an album, produce it yourself - that is certainly an express lane to growing up - fast.

Song-fan gave me a call few weeks ago to chat about a potential music project that he is hoping to embark on soon, with me :) being the people we are, one topic leads swiftly to others and came my album making topic... "You didn't tell me it's going to be this soon!?" He exclaimed over the phone.  I told him it's going to be just me and my vocal coaches - for the album - to nail the singing parts.  He offered to vocal produce for me.  "Really?!!  Nobody has been interested to produce my singing for this and I thought my repertoire too odd and the project too `shiok-sendiri' to approach anyone else, besides...I can't afford it I suppose.." I confessed.

Anyway, we are going to see things go before he and I make a deal on this one.  He told me to start some studio hours now to get myself comfortable singing in a recording booth.  So we had our first session yesterday.  It went better than I thought :) I was as clueless as anything but now I know, I need a vocal producer.

Song-fan started singing from a young age, trained and worked as audio engineer, more than a decade  of voice-over works and 9 years in performing arts and now, TV.  His understanding of studio recording and his talent in coaching are now looking to be quite indispensable for my recording...ya, really.

We worked on two songs yesterday - Carmen and Restless Heart.  Carmen was selected as an exercise piece because it has a good range of dynamics, quite wordy (hence good for working on my Mandarin diction) and big tessitura.  Restless Heart (composition by Cher Siang with my lyrics) was chosen because a) I have the minus one track, b) stark difference of style from Carmen, c) it's going to be in the album.

Notes to self, tips for studio recording:  (credits to Song-fan's coaching)

1) Volume of singing in the booth: calculated and controlled - often a lower volume of singing in the recording booth helps achieve much more expressions and finesse.  Volume and projection used on a live stage for live audience may not work at recording.  Key words: focus, intimate, close range projection, "subtle intensity"...

2) Projection of audience in the booth: without any audience inside the booth, to help the performer/singer connect closer to the future audience - people who are going to pop the CD into the car stereo or a CD player - imagine the distance of the listener/audience from the mouth or face of the singer.  As close as the microphone?  An arm's reach away?  Once you have decided, you can gage the volume and intensity that should be applied onto your delivery.

We did the session in the recording room downstairs of StarMount Studio where the newly open little cafe is.  This soundproof room has a live feel and it was rather easy to sing in.  We tried my singing without any reverb on my mic (AKG condenser) - SF said that zero reverb setting is wonderful for hearing one own's pitching and flaws.  It was surprisingly...not as impossible as I thought it would be.

I started by singing through Carmen in one take, then all of us listened to the recording in the control room with Alex.  We heard the raw recording, void of effects and without the music too.  SF said the mic may have given my voice a rounder and warmer quality than my `normal voice'.

Tackling the first note of the song was a bitch that day.  The key was C#.  Ever since I started listening to myself more, singing my starting note for Carmen has often been a `hit-or-miss' affair...really annoying.  After many takes and working on my nerves, the C# got slightly better...I am reminded again that many a times, a problem in singing is greatly affected by our fears - a mental condition.  Your head could well ruin your music if you don't do something about it.

Volume.  I enjoyed singing in a much lower volume, singing close to the mic filter..and biting into the little nuances and expressions that could be heard crystal clear in my headphones.  I've done enough jingles to know the thrill of hearing everything amplified on studio condenser mics it's been a long time since my last recording of any song in full length.

We focused on the song's opening and up to the "L'amour" bits just before the main chorus of the song.  That went on for about an hour and then we moved on to Restless Heart.

I did a one take sing-through of the song.  After which SF gave me a rather gravely expression :) haha, there's much work - treatment and talk-through that was needed for this song.

Halfway through Alex needed to leave the control room for a bit to settle his piano-tuner business upstairs so we were left alone to work on the treatment, experimenting and discussion on the song.  Before Alex went upstairs I did another sing-through, with a much more gentle, subtle volume, varied dynamics.

"Don't just give the song attacks everywhere, volumes, and belt all through the song. "

What we covered / what SF requested/suggested:
a) recitative - reworked the idea of volume for this chunk and delivery of lyrics, like 'how to sing without sounding like singing".
b) treatment of tone and dynamics of the chorus
c) giving different dynamics and mood for the repeated higher notes in the song
d) changing breathing places for certain parts of chorus and making lyrical line longer without breathe place "...and I'm down on my knees I know you are smiling down on me."

might try to break the sentence proper into:

When the water runs dry and I'm down on my knees /
but I know you are smiling down on me saying' /
things will be all right /
when you start to sing /

e) giving the word 'sigh' its rightful tone of sigh :)

...lots to think about, to experiment, lots of questions, lots to be coached...and many songs to work through.  The panicky feeling will be replaced with excitement when I start to (well, I have started) work through these old and new songs.

We hung out at the studio cafe after the session, over coffees, tea, vegetarian mini pie, scones and cookies.  Alex specially mentioned the butter when he was serving the scones...true, the taste and texture of this salted butter named 'La Belle d'Andaine' (I asked to be shown the butter packaging) was pretty awesome.  I look forward to another session at the studio...and cafe.

Callista took lots of photos for me at the studio :)

showreel

Long overdue new showreel, though this one is really a bit like a half-cooked showreel - because it hasn't got any live videos in it (a very long story)...rest assured, am working on making another showreel with proper video tracks soon.

Thank you Joyce for putting this one together, images & songs.

The people who date Spring

I missed blogging, have not been able to manage my calender well enough for my blogs. Anyway, one of my most loved and treasured elements of doing theatre work is the process of putting a show together - I love rehearsals, working on the script, memorizing lines, dance steps, the pain of not quite getting something right, and come back the next day to work on it again and cracking the scene and getting it right; of working with coaches, actors, directors, pasting it all together and the exhilaration of seeing the whole thing coming together.

Anyway, about the show.

Dama Orchestra is doing it again, combining its special blend of East & West potion of music with stage drama. This time in the musical adaptation of the award-winning play of Raymond To Kwok Wai (director of Perhaps Love)'s I Have A Date With Spring.

our poster :)

Join the Face Book group to see more pics & video clips of our rehearsals & our preview concert clips

Half of the team are familiar faces while the other half are new to me, but nonetheless the same wacky, talented, funny, noisy theatre people.

And the music!!! Not being able to play musical instruments, I worship the Dama musicians and their easy-going-ness. You know? Diva without the air? They make wonderful sounds and yet are incredibly accommodating and creative.

Ok ok, suppose I just paste the whole damn production team list here then, hehe...

The I Have A Date With Spring - The Musical team: (taken straight from Dama's site)

PUN KAI LOON producer / director

KHOR SENG CHEW producer / music director
GAN BOON WE concert master / asst. music director
LOO FUNG CHIAT & LOO FUNG YING arrangers
MELISSA TEOH production stage manager / asst. director
WONG KIT YAW choreographer
DOMINIQUE DEVORSINE costume designer
LIM ANG SWEE lighting designer
LIM WAN YEE sound engineer
LEE JIN WEN dialect coach
TAN SOO SUAN vocal coach

Tan Soo Suan (Butterfly)

Janet Lee (Lulu)

Chris Tong (Fung Peng)

Chang Fang Chyi (Nancy)

Steve Yap (Karl)

Nell Ng (Yuen Pik)

Samuel Tseu (Tai Kai Lok)

Ling Tang (Poh Yee)

Ho Soon Yoon (Bobby)

Terry Siau (Danny)

Song-Fan Seah (Tony)

Jojo Wong (Ping Ping)

Teoh Sheew Yong (Fei Fei)

Beauty Teoh (Emcee)

Liow Swee Keong (Pak Long)

Rachel Tan Tan Soo Sze (Backup singer)

Anrie Too (Ensemble & u/s Nancy)

Ng Pei Pei (Backup singer)

Chong Wey Yin (Backup singer)

Tam Yee Swee (Ensemble & manager)

Cassie Wong (Ensemble & u/s Fung Peng)

Leslie Cheng (Ensemble)

Roax Tan (Ensemble)

DAMA ORCHESTRA:

Gan Boon We

Khor Seng Chew

Loo Fung Chiat

Loo Fung Ying
See Keh Fong

Tee Hsien Onn

Lai Foo Yuen

Foo Chie Haur

There's a lot to blog about, discoveries and thoughts but till I find another window of time. I better get my ass out of here...to the hair salon, I have a corp gig tonight, yay!!!

NEW ITEMS!! Auction items for The No Plastic Bag Bazaar - now open for bidding!

The No Plastic Bag Bazaar

Aug 31st, 2009 (Monday)

12pm - 6pm

Noble Banquet, 235, Jalan Bukit Bintang

The auction items

interested bidders may email your bidding price & your contact to

soul.doc.lee@gmail.com

Xandria Ooi's babydoll blue dress

Starting price - RM 40

first bidder price (Rosheen) - RM 50

second bidder (SeeMing) - RM 60

third bidder (Celine Koh) - RM 80

4th bid (Rosheen) - RM 100

Xandria Ooi's maron cling dress

Starting price - RM 40

first bidder (SeeMing) - RM 60

Xandria Ooi's floral dress

Starting price - RM 40

first bidder (SeeMing) - RM 60

Xandria Ooi's pink tube dress

Starting price - RM 40

first bidder (SeeMing) - RM 60

Hannah Lo's mosaic art piece - "Prima Donna"

starting price at RM 300

Deborah Henry's Cole Haan white hangbag

starting price at RM 60

first bidder price (Jingnee) at RM 100

second bidder (Shareen) at RM 120

Deborah Henry's green stone pendant

Starting price at RM 35

Deborah Henry's Celine gold bracelet

Starting price at RM 50

first bidder (Shareen) at RM 70

Amber Chia's Stella McCartney Adidas jacket (pink)

Starting price at RM 100

Joyce Kirsten Wong's Aldo handbag

(unused & tag intact)

Starting price at RM 60

first bidder (Jingnee) - RM 100

second bidder (Najwa) - RM 110

Eco Accessory collection by Mah Su Sim

All items price start from RM 55

5 items - Stratum earrings, Fillament earrings, Stratum bracelet, Nova pendant, Flora pendant

Stratum bracelet, starting price RM 55

Nova pendant, starting price RM 55

Fillament earrings, starting price RM 55

Stratum earrings, starting price RM 55

Flora pendant, starting price RM 55

My new website

Finally, FINALLY, F-I-N-A-L-L-Y, it's live, it's LIVE!  :D

passed out in exhaustion*

Thank you YOU, you wonderful babes!!  Paula my designer, Aronil my programmer

simply wonderful....

thank you Roy & Edward for your advise on web hosting packages & managing my domain!! :D

Soul Doc, tomboys & angels @ Annexe this Sat...

The Annexe Gallery presents

TOMBOYS & ANGELS
Fashion Show @ Art For Grabs Xmas Special
Sat 20 Dec, 6pm
The Annexe Gallery, Central Market Annexe
Jalan Hang Kasturi

+

THE HARMONY MUSIC FACTORY
featuring DJs Ribut 10:59, Bunga, Sarchan & JK
DJ Dance Party @ Art For Grabs Xmas Special
Sat 20 Dec, 7pm to 9pm

+ + + +

In conjunction with Art For Grabs Xmas Special, The Annexe Gallery presents TOMBOYS & ANGELS, a fashion show extravaganza that celebrates gender diversity and outrageous individual expressions of style.

The fashion show will feature clothes, accessories and works of art from over forty Art For Grabs arts & crafts stalls, with styling and make up by a team of some of KL's most vibrant emerging style-meisters led by Jun Kit and Ooi Ying Nee. The catwalk will be an installation that mixes politics and irreverence designed by Lainie Yeoh.

The fashion models will feature some of Klang Valley's most interesting everyday people with wicked sense of style and personalities, including:

1. Joyce Kirsten Wong - style blogger
2. Pang Khee Teik - gallery manager + photographer
3. Hazri Haili - biologist
4. Fahmi Fadzil - actor + director + writer
5. Myra Mahyuddin - photographer + publicist
6. Michelle Gunaselan - activist + writer
7. Ze - pop star
8. Bissme S - journalist
9. Sharon Chin - visual artist
10. Mien Lor - activist + filmmaker
11. Janet Lee - chanteuse
12. Sharon Bakar - literary queen
13. Shikin Eris - production exec
14. Davina Goh - actor + dancer

Come and be mesmerized.

+

To cap off the fashion show, everyone is invited to our twilight dance party THE HARMONY MUSIC FACTORY, which will feature the underground greats DJs Ribut 10:59 and Bunga (from Twilight Action Girl) spinning for the first time alongside Sarchan and JK (from WILD! and Disko Darurat).

Party on!

The Sky Is Crazy girl is BACK!!

Hehe, I always get a kick when I tell people that The Sky Is Crazy author Yvonne Lee is my sister, and they go like, "HAA? Really? I have her booook!!! Wow you her sisteeer???"

Well, if you have her first book, it's now time to go get her second book....now in major book stores :)

when she let me go through her manuscripts months ago, I couldn't help but smile and nodding to the stories she tells through those pages...as the title suggest, it's a book We women can relate too, and for the male species, something to understand us a little better.

Nice book for your girlfriends this Christmas!!! Hehe, wicked idea? Well, look out for its review in magazines & dailies :)

Book talk & signing session next Sunday at MPH Midvalley @ 4pm...come join us.

just keep blogging...just keep blogging...

Received an email last week from Sheila of Malay Mail :) this came out today.

The parody people

There is first time for everything :)

YAY!
My first parody performance, opening this Thursday!!!!

Show time details

Sep 18th - Sep 28th - 830pm (Tuesdays - Saturdays) - 3pm (Sundays) No show on Mondays Venue - Pentas 1, KLPac Price - RM 60 & RM 40 - RM 20 for students RM 100 for family of 4 (4 tickets) more on Our blog Tickets - 03-2094 0400/ 1400

The Cast
Mia Palencia, Tria, Zeqthy Nattrah, Tabitha Kong, Janet Lee, Shahila Johan, Sarah Low, Sham Sunder, Ho Soon Yoon, Glamorique & Keith Yew

Writer and Facilitator: Brian McIntyre Production Designer: Edna Tan Executive Producer: Datuk Faridah Merican Artistic Director: Joe Hasham Choreography: Farah Dato' Sulaiman Music Sequencing: Brian McIntyre

THE SHOW

BROADWAY PARODIES LAGI LAH! Malaysian Spoofs of Songs from the Musicals
Back by Popular Demand!! Following a sellout run last year, The Actors Studio proudly presents "Broadway Parodies Lagi Lah!", a rich rojak of slices of Malaysian life garnished with a big splash of humour and served up on a platter of great songs. And with some new songs and a new wonderfully talented cast singing/dancing some brilliant Broadway style choreography, BPLL is a feast of spoofs that will fill your stomachs with laughter, sure-one! Touring Malaysia some more… look for performances in Ipoh, Penang, JB and KK throughout October!!

BROADWAY PARODIES LAGI LAH! Malaysian Spoofs of Songs from the Musicals
What Is It?
A fun filled revue of well known song and dance numbers in which the lyrics have been spoofed to showcase and celebrate a range of uniquely Malaysian culture, characters and icons. Chicken Rice, the Good Morning Towel, the Bomoh of the Bursa - kind of like Reggie Lee and C W Kee's World cartoon characters in lyrical form.


from left, Mia, Tria & Glamorique

Sarah Low & Shahila

The cast & creatives @ press conference on Aug 29th

Publicity shot (note* We lost Sabrina Hassan after the shot due to her scheduling so now we got Zeqthy in the line-up)

go ahead, try that pose you!

yes you! Go try that pose....man, am glad to have found out later that the poses we attempted with Ninie Ahmad's guidance last night were rather ADVANCED :)

It was my first yoga experience, it was lovely but TOUGH one.

the Mamasan
Thank you YC for getting us the passes to the party. A bunch of us made it to the adidas Yoga & Dance party, I met the winners of the Yoga Pose Contest too. Is it the Ramandhan
Not sure if it was because of Ramadan month or were we just lucky? An hour to breaking fast yesterday (6.40pm), there were plenty of parking lots at Gardens. WOW.

We were ushered into a ballroom void of chairs. Many goody bags in sight and many members of the media, not in yoga gear of course. The gang of us who were there already hung out and waited to break fast with our Muslim counterparts.

While hanging out on the floor of the ballroom (of course it was my idea to sit down on the floor to rest my skinny ass), I attempted some major cam-whoring action.

Myself, Cris & WenLi (we go to the same pilates class too)

dinner time, some of us tried to eat less because of the lined-up programs (DANCING & yoga) but you can tell who could eat all their want and still be able to shake their booties, in time and in style

from left - Shahila, Zeqthy, Sarah, Tria & Nicole
The bloggers went to the backstage and worked on the beautiful, it's proven that I suck at posing with beautiful people, so I did more snapping pics of the beautiful people instead (I usually look more beautiful on my own, hehehe).

"I want some pics of hot guys for my blog, please smile."
the hot guys also emceed last night's party, Jien & Henry

I like this shot of Amber Chia and the surrounding, maybe it's the colors, or the composition...(blowing my own trumpet anyway)

It was something different for me, as a blogger who's never attended any bloggers meet/parties, it felt like a mini-female-blogger gathering. I knew these folks were going to be there so I made it a point to look out for them and get to know them.

The other invited bloggers to attend the parties were...

Can you believe this was her first yoga session?! Cynthia is flexible...wonder what she does to work out...

Kinky Blue Fairy (with Stephenie Chai)

Ringo

and Amanda Choe (didnt really get to know her till at the end of party and didn't have pics of her)

anyway, on the parade of very gorgeous people and top the list of gorgeous AND crazy people - gooffy girl Daphne Iking
Stehenie Chai & Deborah Henry

Sazzy Falak

Amber Chia
Lavin
Fouziah

sassy voice diva Dinah strut her stuff and blew the party off with her singing

I love Baby-G's dance session, I learned a few new steps in hip-hop dancing :)

more whoring was required to qualify myself soon as a pro
(pic by Shahila)

the girls who made the party cooool went home with the adidas goody bags :)

from left, Sarah, Shahila, Nicole & Cris
Thank you adidas, the party rocked! Love the dance, the fashion show, yoga, the emcees, fooood!