Recording Session Preparation

When heading into the studio, there are several things that can help you make the most of this very expensive day. I’ll outline a few of the most important ones for you, and explain why I think they’re worth noting.

First, be sure that you’re well rested. I know, I know – this is sort of a “duh”, but I’ve seen so many people who end up tired because they stayed up too late. And staying up too late doesn’t always occur because of an intended party or late-night carousing. In fact, a lot of amateur studio types (read: the people who don’t do this stuff daily) make the earnest mistake of preparing for the big day by endlessly reviewing, singing, practicing, double-checking etc, way into the long late hours of the night, only to find that they’re insufficiently rested for their
15 minutes (or 10 hours) of fame.

Bottom line – by the time you’ve actually booked the studio, you should be well-prepared enough to get a good nights sleep before the session. Don’t spend all night fretting; your next day performance will suffer incredibly.

Another good thing to do to prepare yourself, going hand-in-hand with rest, is to know your material and intended outcome. Again, this is a “duh”, but a lot of amateur artists don’t have a solid handle on their material. Couple this with self-producing, and it’s a recipe for disaster – picture five capable musicians, one engineer and a great studio all sitting around waiting for an instruction from you, the Artist-In-Charge, and not being able to make a decision because you don’t actually know what you want to accomplish. Upwards of $250 per hour ticking away while you query the musicians for their opinions…

Bottom line – spend your own time (that’s cheap) on working out the arrangements, feel and keys. Know the form and structure of each song.

In the “humble thyself” vein, don’t be afraid to admit what you don’t know. From an industry point of view, we see (and are happy to work with, I should add) plenty of “non-professional”
artists; that is, singers who don’t do this for a living, hire themselves out to sing for other recording artists, have limited professional studio experience etc. While a joy to work with because of the refreshing lack of attitude, occasionally we see some who display a forced hipness or a bit too much of a “hanging out with the guys” mentality.

If you’re new to this (indeed, if it’s your first time in a big studio), don’t be afraid to admit it. Studio musicians are accustomed to working at a rather quick pace, and get frustrated when they get hung up because the Artist won’t ask for help on how to use the Cue8 system or wants everyone to stop because s/he missed the first
vocal entrance. Letting everyone know you’re
new allows the crew to help you, by explaining studio conventions before they become a problem.

Bottom line – don’t try and fake your way, because studio work is all about vibe; nothing kills a vibe faster than a faker.
More to come!

www.advantagemusicproduction.com

Sandy Tipping is Co-Owner of Advantage Music Production and has frittered away the rest of his life as a studio musician, arranger and producer in Nashville.