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JLSC INTRA-FORUM CONTEST #6

CRITIQUES OF MELINA'S PERFORMANCE OF

TROUBLES by ALICIA KEYS

JUDGE	COMMENTS
Iggy	Holy cow, what a great voice! Performing a song a-capella (spelling?) must be the biggest challenge a singer faces. Melina's performance absolutely leaves me speechless. I think the decision to perform this song showcased Melina's fantastic vocal range and abilities. For a one time shot, she made a lasting impression. My only comment would be that this type of song gets "old" fast, meaning, for me at least, I would tire quickly after hearing it several times. Overall excellent choice of material to showcase your abilities. Nicely done.
Kneena	I've heard you play the piano your amazing! Your voice is so beautiful! Your vocal range is incredible and I think you did a fantastic job with this song!
Solpig	I know I'm getting really old.I don't know the original on this song,so I'll only compare Melina to Melina.Since I last heard Ms.M on her homepage(older material)her ability and confidence have only grown.Performing all acapella is dark and dangerous water and she seems to have swum through it safely. In the intro to the song,is that spoken word part an interpretation,or part of the original?When doing your own low harmonies, you might want to compress/clarify/and then pan 'em left and right only cuz it distracts from the focus of an otherwise excellent delivery up the middle with your mid and high harmonies. I know these are just throw-togethers,so everything I just said was totally unfair,but if thats the only criticism I have,that is testimony to the fact that it's really good. you go girl.....mr.pig
Kris-S	Melina S: It's funny that you performed this song a capella, because before I made a final selection for the contest I entertained thoughts of doing the same thing. I instead found the prospect of doing that a little intimidating, but you did not. I give you a lot of credit for your entry. About the only thing I could offer is that I found myself trying to figure out some of the vocals because thay may have been recorded a little softly. But hey, like you said it was a demo you threw together. Good job.
Nigel	There's no doubt you have a nice voice with good range. I think your lead vocal is really nice. Here comes the criticism: Multi-tracking an acapella arrangement is not an easy thing. Each new track you add brings out any small inconsistencies with pitch in the other tracks. Your recording does suffer from pitchiness in certain sections. Besides that, well done. Very creative!
EED (Emily)	What a beautiful voice! I don't know the original, but it is an interesting and enjoyable song. Kudos to you for going acapella. It takes a lot of talent to pull that off and you certainly did. My only criticism is that, at the end, there is so much going on, so many voices the melody and focus of the song gets lost. Well done!
David T	Lead vocals are wonderful! A great voice talent. The voice that first appears in the right channel was a little muffled and indecernible, but it could have just been my equipment. Great song!
Tim W	Melina Your talent blows me away. You have the depth most of us pretenders only dream about. What a great gift your voice is. I am unfamiliar with he original rendition, so I won't compare yours to it, but your production and performance were first rate. My only constructive criticism was that "bass, spoken word" voice in the background, which was too far forward for my taste, and detracted a bit from the impact you were creating, especially when the voices got "busy". Overall though a simply impressive effort. I wish I was YOU! OK. I really only wish I had your voice.
Nancy G	Melina..great song to chose. Your voice is so unique. It almost sounds like an angelic chant. Your vocals braid into the chords very well. You make this song enchanting. It sounds much like the original, yet I like your touch and sound better. It's bluesy and jazzy. This song makes me want to hold someone close and slow dance...Thanks Melina, I really loved this song.
Todd	Although I am not very familiar with the original, I do like what i've heard from Alicia Keys, and I like this a capella song. It demonstrate's Melina's singing ability wonderfully, particularly in the primary harmonies. Good job and keep 'em comin'!
James	Wow. What an instrument you have there! I don't know the original and didn't want to hear it after listening to you. I'm in awe of your abilities. You definately have a great future in front of you!
Markus	Wow, what a great voice! A very interesting "instrumentation", which I enjoy very much. You really made this song your own. Congratulations! The only constructive critique I am able to give is that sometimes it is hard to distinguish the "different voices". Maybe it is just a matter of mixing or maybe the recording levels were not ideally set. But beside that, a great job!
Hoaby	Wow....all voice! I have wanted to try this type of music for quite some time...a hard thing to pull off, and you did it wonderfully! I am inspired! You have a very unique voice, and it would be a pleasure to work with you someday.
Meikow	I love the warmth, tone and range of your voice. Tho this isn't one of my favourite songs, after listening to the original I think you did a wonderful rendition with a song this difficult to do a capella, beautiful!
Dave C	Beautiful!!! But I did find the spoken part a bit distracting. Ive heard of Alicia Keys, I dont know why, but Im not familiar with her body of work.
Hazelglow	You know, I have to say that hearing Alicia Keys usually makes me want to reach for the nearest bucket; all that mindless meandering Whitney-esque adlibbing that sounds like cats wailing on the roof at nighttime... So, the fact that I listened all the way through this cover is testamount to your great voice! The song itself does pretty much nothing for me, but your arrangement is darned impressive. I would've liked to have heard more of you, a longer arrangement, but perhaps given the inherent limited appeal of the orginal material it was wise to keep it snappy and short instead of degenerating into the aforementioned catterwailing in an attempt to make it last a few more rounds. Great talent and good job here - love your voice!