John
08-24-2010, 08:22 AM
The X Factor has previously used Auto-Tune on contestant vocals in the live finals, it has been claimed.
Reports yesterday suggested that the show's producers used the controversial equipment to improve how some contestants' auditions came across on television.
Now, a former member of the X Factor production team has admitted that the programme even employed Auto-Tune during the live shows, reports The Mirror.
The insider also stated that vocal effects have been widely used in the past to make contestants sound worse as well as better - an allegation that has been strongly denied by The X Factor's executive producer.
The former show employee told the paper: “It was an open secret on the show that Auto-Tune was used to both make contestants slightly more on - or off - key. It has been used for a long time on the show both for the auditions and the live shows.
"On some occasions it was used to such extremes that while the contestant may have sounded like they were hitting the right note, the backing band had gone right out of tune."
The insider, who claimed that other voice-altering devices such as Melodyne had also been used, continued: “The problem is that you have got a lot of contestants who sound equally good, so how do viewers at home make a judgement on who to pick?
“So Auto-Tune has been used to make good singers sound even better and not so good singers sound much worse.
“Obviously that would result in a much more entertaining show where some singers sounded hilariously bad, constantly missing notes, and others were amazingly polished."
The source admitted that the programme makers were fully aware of the issues surrounding the apparent enhancements, adding: "We all thought it wasn’t right to use that kind of equipment on a talent contest as it gave viewers a misleading view of the singers’ ability. It was a bit of a con.”
However, X Factor’s executive producer Richard Holloway, said: “I can assure you we have never made bad singers worse or that Auto-Tune has ever been used on our live shows. Anything that would affect the public vote, we wouldn’t do.”
ITV has so far received more than 300 complaints about the vocal editing on Saturday's show.
Source - Yahoo.
Reports yesterday suggested that the show's producers used the controversial equipment to improve how some contestants' auditions came across on television.
Now, a former member of the X Factor production team has admitted that the programme even employed Auto-Tune during the live shows, reports The Mirror.
The insider also stated that vocal effects have been widely used in the past to make contestants sound worse as well as better - an allegation that has been strongly denied by The X Factor's executive producer.
The former show employee told the paper: “It was an open secret on the show that Auto-Tune was used to both make contestants slightly more on - or off - key. It has been used for a long time on the show both for the auditions and the live shows.
"On some occasions it was used to such extremes that while the contestant may have sounded like they were hitting the right note, the backing band had gone right out of tune."
The insider, who claimed that other voice-altering devices such as Melodyne had also been used, continued: “The problem is that you have got a lot of contestants who sound equally good, so how do viewers at home make a judgement on who to pick?
“So Auto-Tune has been used to make good singers sound even better and not so good singers sound much worse.
“Obviously that would result in a much more entertaining show where some singers sounded hilariously bad, constantly missing notes, and others were amazingly polished."
The source admitted that the programme makers were fully aware of the issues surrounding the apparent enhancements, adding: "We all thought it wasn’t right to use that kind of equipment on a talent contest as it gave viewers a misleading view of the singers’ ability. It was a bit of a con.”
However, X Factor’s executive producer Richard Holloway, said: “I can assure you we have never made bad singers worse or that Auto-Tune has ever been used on our live shows. Anything that would affect the public vote, we wouldn’t do.”
ITV has so far received more than 300 complaints about the vocal editing on Saturday's show.
Source - Yahoo.