Another Side of J.S. Gilbert

Phyllis K. Day · **Voice Talent** Joined: 03 Nov 2006 Posts: 251

As some of you know, I can see sound, and I’ve coached a few of you, much to my enjoyment (and yours too, I hope). So I’d like to share something interesting with anyone who has read the posts of J.S. Gilbert. After reading a few of them, I smiled to myself and thought it might be interesting what I could “see” of his work – after all he’s had to say. We all read the long and arduous lists of credits some on V123 have on their sites, and his, while impressive looking, was not that different from those long in voice acting work. So I had a listen and a good look.

Yikes. Where can I begin? I have never heard anyone whose voice could be so completely changed from within, that at times I thought I was actually looking at several different voices – not a voice coming from the same person. To be able to do that requires such an effort, I cannot even begin to explain. And this is not something J.S. would be able to do on a whim, this is something that must be part of his abilities, whether trained or natural – that have been there a very long time.

There is no mask, there are no walls, there is nothing impinging anything. He goes from a voice with a certain set of “bars” and then they change to another kind – and one seemed to be not bars or circles at all, I don’t know what it was, I couldn’t see it very well! The whole tone and quality of his voice can change on a level that absolutely bowled me over.

I’ve always been impressed by how many voices or dialects people can do or how resonate or clear or dense their voice is, but this was different, it was as if there were different people’s voice images. It was amazing. I checked again, to be sure that his demos were all his demos, and not a compilation of people who work for him and they are indeed, all J.S. Gilbert. Well, it is just amazing – it’s way beyond the title of his V123 website: Real & Believable, Guy Next Door. Very Wide Range.

http://jsgilbert.voice123.com/

I have to say that this is “customer service” at the highest level – to literally be able to morph into whatever voice his client requests. That looks (and sounds!) pretty amazing to me.

J.S. Gilbert · Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2007, 19:56 (GMT) Post subject: Wow, thanks Phyllis

Thank You for the kind words.

Phyllis K. Day · **Voice Talent** Joined: 03 Nov 2006 Posts: 251

J.S. Gilbert

I'm a big Giants fan and I had a chance to do some commercial work for them (er, um a few years ago?) Back then the athletes were so gracious and accomodating. Willie McCovey is a great, kind role model. A better man than I could ever hope to be.

In all honestly, after having voiced hundreds of projects, what you hear on my demos is in my opinion is a combination of what I get hired to do most and those performaces that came out best. It's a combination of having good writing, good direction and the license to be free as an actor to explore my character as fully as possible. For many, many of the works I do, there is no award to be handed out. But the common factor that most good performances have regardless of the circumstances surrounding the performance, is having emotional attachment to the words you're saying. For those of you that do lots of different voices, I would say that the difference between "doing voices" and working as a developed character is the emotional state(s) you can express while in character.

Despite having done this for many years, I am awed at how incredibly good some people are with their instruments and I continue to study and work to improve myself.

Robert Jadah · **Voice Talent** Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 2627

JS:
I must admit that your first posts may have set me in an Anti-Gilbert pose.
But by Gollum, when I hear your stuff, Sir, I was impressed.
You are good. You are a voiceover artist we can all aspire to be.
You feel it. You articulate it. You bring it.
And - best of all - you bring your experience and views to these forums. You'll never win a Nobel Prize for diplomacy, but you don't hide. You're a success story. But you don't sashay with the Dance of the Seven Veils.
You're out there; come and get it, you say
Free advice.
I thank you. I salute you.
But Willlie is - at best - the seventh-best Giant ever.

Phyllis K. Day · **Voice Talent** Joined: 03 Nov 2006 Posts: 251

J.S. Gilbert

Thank you Robert. I know I must be a bitter pill for some of you out there to swallow. I appreciate the kind words.