HOLDCOM is pleased to announce that Liz, a prolific, bi-lingual (English/French) member of HOLDCOM's voice talent roster, has recently been cast as the French voice of "The Scarlet Witch" (also known as Wanda Maximoff) in an episode of the X-Men animated series that will air in France later this year.

"I was thrilled to be cast!" Liz told the HOLDCOM Voice after being tapped for the role. "As a full-time voice over actor, I'm always looking to expand my range and what I can offer my clients. Most of my voiceover work is bilingual medical and technical narrations, message on hold work, as well as radio and TV commercials, but this role has opened up a whole new world to me. And let's face it, being associated with the X-Men franchise is awesome!" Asked about the experience, Liz went on to say, "This is a very different type of voiceover work, because you have to be very conscious not only of tone, but of timing. I'm dubbing over the English voice, so what I say in French has to come in in the same amount of time as what was said in English. Since French tends to be 'wordier' than English this can sometimes be a challenge. You also have to match the 'lip-flaps' meaning that if the animated character's lips come together or stay apart at the end of a word, we need to make sure that the French word ends the same way. I am bringing a character to life, which really brings much more voice acting into play, and I love that!"

While "The Scarlet Witch" was the primary character Liz voiced in this X-Men series, she was also asked to voice several other supporting characters in other X-Men episodes of the same animated series.

If you want to book Liz for your next message on hold project, just call and say that you want "The Witch," Liz won't mind at all! Check out her voice at http://www.holdcom.com/voices.

OK Holdcom Voice readers – hope you’ve been continuing your Think Green streak since our last article. This feature is back to remind you that you just have to make small changes in order to have BIG impacts on our environment.

A great tip for the winter - turn your heat down just 1 degree. Two days later, subtract another degree. After a few days of modification, if you hear your first complaint or feel slightly uncomfortable, then move the temperature back a degree or two and you’ll be all set.

There is no need to be walking around your house in the winter in shorts & a T-shirt. A sweater or sweatshirt and long pants is appropriate.

And if you’re escaping the cold weather for a vacation, then don't forget to adjust the thermostat. Don’t pay to heat the house when no one is there!

Programmable thermostats are available and usually run under $100.

It's tough to calculate the monetary savings with energy costs fluctuating regularly, but a round estimate is 1 degree = 1% of your energy bill, not to mention that using less energy means less needs to be produced which means less CO2, and less fuel.

Warm weather readers – you’re not off the hook… adjust your air conditioning just the same!

We’re crossing the pond this month to introduce you to one of our male British Voice Over Talents: Matt.

Matt was a radio presenter in England, when about two years ago his friend started a company that required voices, so he helped him out. “Then all of a sudden I was doing loads for other companies and never looked back!” explains Matt.

No matter where our voice talents call home there seems to be a consistency as to what they appreciate best about their chosen line of work… which is how the content of their work varies. Matt states, “You never know what you’re going to talk about next. One minute cars, the next… Carrots!”

OK, here’s something we’re pretty certain Holdcom Voice readers have never read about… Matt can speak with two voices at once. “It's a little party trick, I suppose, where I can fill my cheek with air and make a voice while talking with another voice at the same time,” he explains.

What does Matt do in his free time? “I am also English so I do tend to enjoy copious amounts of tea and I enjoy running,” says Matt.

Sample Matt’s voice at www.holdcom.com/voices - you’ll only hear one voice at a time, but it may be just what you’re looking for for your next project.

There are many factors that go into capturing a great recording, but the first steps are crucial. Recording with too high of a level introduces clips and distortion, and recording too low results in a very noisy recording.

When you first go to record, you have to set your input level on your recording interface. The ideal goal is to get the level meters between –18dB and –6dB at the loudest sections. Ideally, when you’re not speaking, the levels should be as low as possible. If you aren’t speaking into the mic, and your meters are halfway lit, you’re going to end up with a very noisy and unusable audio file.

Mic placement for vocal recording is fairly straightforward. You should be sitting or standing, however you are more comfortable. A pop filter is an essential tool for voice recording. It “catches” the hard consonant sounds from “P”s, resulting in a smoother overall sound. The pop filter should be about 3 inches in front of the microphone, and your mouth should be about 6 inches away from the pop filter. If you get too close to the pop filter, it can’t do it’s job!

Next month’s article will cover sound treatment – one of the easiest things you can do to improve the sound of your recordings!