In the recording studio in penang, many students ask me, about the practical stuff of what happens in a life recording process. Some thinks recording sessions are stressed filled with tension. Nothing must go wrong, don’t screw it up. Get this take right, are the levels set properly? Ok, what’s the db level…frequency response? Compressions armed?
Well, the true fact is, it does not have to be that complicated. I believe music is an art, and recording is capturing that fine art. Recording engineers should stay relax but also alert during the recording session. The understanding of making music and capturing it, taking away all the technical thoughts is crucial. I’m stressing there are no one straight way of recording. Some great records are recorded using very stupid and funny ways.
I am going to list few of the most important topics here. Well, first get the singer or musician to relax! Let them have their time, & respect that. Nothing is more tiring than to record countless takes, and the performer still being unable to cover one tiny part of a song. If I were to always charge hourly, I bet the musicians that comes to the studio, does not feel relaxed, and tries to hurry in the session. And that? Probably won’t make her or his best recording.
(At the Cat Studio, we don’t charge hourly in our recording studio, penang, but we can do so, if requested)
The second next thing is to get performers to rehearse a few times through the song, to get them warmed up to the different atmosphere and the sound acoustics. And during that, don’t stand and watch. RECORD the performance already! This is crucial to monitor how loud the band or singer would go and then get your recording levels set correctly.
Who knows, you might capture the best performance of the band at this time, and use it for the master song mix!
All in all, after those processes, let the performer hear his/her recordings. It’s also important to know what they are hearing through the headphones! If you follow this basic steps, you’re likely be getting a great recording, and a little more bit effort, gets you professional.
ALWAYS keep in mind, that working with musicians are the true jobs of recording engineers, and having some musical knowledge, is a good bonus.
That’s all for now, and do listen to some our music on our website! Some great vocals are captured in our recording studio, penang with this basic processes.
Email us at reuben@thecatstudio.com.my to experience your own recording session!
