English voiceover

Our Voices in the Smithsonian’s NMAAHC Mobile Audio Tour App!

February 23, 2017 by Rosi Amador

Happy Black History Month!

In September of 2016, the Smithsonian Institution unveiled the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) in Washington, D.C., an important and overdue addition to the Smithsonian museum system. It’s the only national museum devoted entirely to African American culture, life, and history, and we’re proud to announce that our voices are featured in the Spanish version of the museum’s Audio tour app.

Established by an Act of Congress in 2003, the NMAAHC is an important contribution to the preservation of our national history, and an architectural wonder! As construction of the museum was underway, my family and I were honored to receive a request for our voices for the innovative NMAAHC interactive mobile audio tour app. I’ll never forget the excitement I felt when it was confirmed that we would be “the” voices of the app that brings this extraordinary museum to life. When I first became a full-time voiceover actor, one of my hopes was to record audio tours for significant national museums, so this truly is a dream come true.

Audio Tour App Expands Access to Exhibits

The history of African American innovation in the United States isn’t always adequately represented in the media. Now, thanks to the Spanish mobile app, the vast wealth of information at the museum is now accessible to Spanish-speaking visitors from all over the world. My husband Brian, my daughter Sonia, and I are proud to have lent our voices so that others can learn about the impact of African Americans on the history and culture of our nation. The Smithsonian continues to rely on us for updates for the app and I recently recorded some additions for the 2017 version of the app, so stay tuned to hear more.

You can download the app on your mobile devices or tablet by visiting this link and take a virtual tour even if you’re unable to get to the museum at this time.

We’re deeply grateful to Mary Ann Findlay and Patricia Musariri of Intrinzinc, for choosing our voices for this project and to Clearly Innovative, the designers of this amazingly interactive app that is one of a kind. We hope you enjoy the sample audio tours that we recorded for the app as much as we loved recording them.

Shiny New Voice Over & Music in 2017

December 16, 2016 by Brian Amador

NEW Music & Production Services and NEW Commercial Demos!

New Musical Production Services Just Launched! — **New Music & Production Services for our Clients**

Bringing Our Musical Roots Into Voiceover – After 27 years of singing, composing and performing our Latin music, Brian and I stumbled into our current career as happy bilingual voiceover actors who get to build cross-cultural bridges using our voices day in and out. We launched ABVO in 2010 and haven’t looked back. We’ve gone and done it. We’ve married our two loves – music and voiceover!

Announcing the birth of our favorite new “shiny thing,” our Music and Production Service! Just launched by composer/guitarist Brian Amador and ABVO senior engineer/ music producer/composer Camilo Gómez. Listen to samples of their awesome original music, now available for spots, documentaries, web videos, corporate use and more, from Latin music genres to electronic, pop and solo Spanish guitar. And we can handle production, too. Read all about it here.

But that’s not all….. BRAND NEW SHINY COMMERCIAL DEMOS FOR 2017!!

Check out Rosi’s English & Spanish Commercial demos, and Brian’s English commercial demo. Fun, right? From real person, conversational to authoritative, sensual and upbeat/high energy, we love to mix it up for the brands who put their trust in us, whether in English or Español! Let us know what you think. Incidentally, HAPPY HOLIDAYS to you and your loved ones. Gracias – thank you for joining us here. We wish you a peaceful and prosperous 2017.

Guest Blogger – Allison Schneider of StudySync

November 4, 2016 by Brian Amador

allison schneider guest blogger It’s our great pleasure this month to feature a guest blog by one of our favorite clients, Allison Schneider of StudySync, developers of digital Language Arts curriculum. The entire ABVO family (Rosi, Brian, Sonia and Alisa Amador, plus our honorary Amador, engineer Camilo) have had the pleasure of recording a LOT of wonderful literature for Allison and her team in English and Spanish.

About StudySync

Allison here with StudySync. It’s a joy to share a bit about the work that StudySync and the Amadors do together. As a digital English Language Arts/English Language Development curriculum, StudySync engages students with media and technology. One of the foundations of our product is a growing library of over 1,200 text selections, many of which include voiceover readings to help students better access and understand the text. That’s where the Amadors fit into the StudySync picture, and it’s where they’ve made a lasting impact on students across the country. I’d like to share a couple of particulars about what makes our collaboration with them so rewarding.

Engaging Students Through Literature

In their work with StudySync, the Amadors engage and inspire students through great works of literature in English and in Spanish, exposing them to the works of prominent multicultural authors including Sandra Cisneros and others. The voiceovers provided by the Amadors help bring Spanish-speaking students along on Tom Sawyer’s adventures by voicing a Spanish translation of Mark Twain’s beloved work. They’ve contributed several dozen voiceovers to StudySync, and with each one, they strengthen our ability to inspire students of diverse backgrounds.

A Shared Passion

StudySync’s work with the Amadors is especially strong because they share our passion for education. That shared commitment shows in every voiceover that they create for StudySync. It makes every project that we work on together meaningful.

A Family Affair

When you work with the Amadors, you’re working with family. Working with the Amadors and their team is a true family experience. First, you don’t get just one talented voiceover artist—you get five! Second—and most importantly—they make you feel like you’re a part of the family. The Amadors don’t just bring talent to the table. They bring friendship and a collaborative spirit.

As StudySync’s curriculum continues to grow, we look forward to having the Amadors along for the journey. Gracias, Amadors, for sharing your talents with us!

Two Sides to “Bilingual”

May 18, 2016 by Brian Amador

The growth of the Hispanic population in the U.S. (17.4% of the population in 2014) has brought with it an increased demand for Spanish and bilingual content in all genres of voiceover, from commercials and explainer videos to Elearning, corporate narration, promos and more. And the increase in demand has brought an expansion of VO talent offering services in Spanish, from eloquent native speakers to people who took a little Spanish in high school.

I think anyone serious about doing Spanish or English-Spanish bilingual voiceover work would agree that a person shouldn’t sell themselves as Spanish-speaking talent if they’re not able to speak the language fluently, expressively and with an impeccable accent. In this regard, there are obvious advantages to hiring talent who were born and educated in a Spanish-speaking country.

But it’s not an absolute necessity. There are U.S. born Spanish speakers who are completely bilingual – native speakers of both English and Spanish, and able to switch effortlessly between the two.

Fully Bilingual = Value Added

In my career as a bilingual voice actor, my standard when voicing in Spanish is exactly the same as in English: perfect, native pronunciation and expression. I find that sometimes being a native English speaker is as important as being a native Spanish speaker. Being fully bilingual has its advantages.

It’s important to recognize a bad translation and to be able to make suggestions for correcting it. Sometimes English expressions are translated directly into Spanish; being familiar with the colloquialisms in English can make it easier to find the best way to express them in Spanish.
Some translation problems are due to grammatical errors or ambiguities in the source text. Having a complete command of written English makes these errors easy to recognize and correct.
In overdubs, translation errors can be due to the translator having misunderstood spoken English words due to the speaker’s accent or dialect. Being a native speaker of English enables me to understand many different accents (although I still watch “Masterpiece Theatre” with the subtitles on!)
For projects that need to fit into a specified duration, having a full command of both languages makes it easier to adjust translations to fit in time and still retain the meaning of the source copy.
It’s an extra perk for the client to be able to use the same voice in English and Spanish, and for both to sound natural and conversational.

Quality is What Matters

Given the number of Spanish-speakers in the United States, and as a matter of principle, the standards for Spanish and bilingual voiceover should be every bit as high as they are for English. For producers of content in Spanish, as in English, it’s important to find voice talent that speaks the language perfectly, whether that talent is “domestic” or ”imported”. There are two sides to “bilingual”. In some projects, mastery of English may be just as important as mastery of Spanish.

How Bilingual Voice Actor Rosi Amador Achieves the Ultimate Work-Life Balance

March 27, 2014 by Brian Amador

Interview with Voiceover Actor Rosi Amador by Lin Parkin

If there’s one thing that most working mothers share in common, it’s the desire to balance work life and home life. Achieving that elusive goal of fulfilling your calling as a parent as well following your passions and career choices can feel like the Holy Grail.
[Read more…] about How Bilingual Voice Actor Rosi Amador Achieves the Ultimate Work-Life Balance