Recording 101 – the basics -
A look at the recording process o Recording Studio Placement of musicians – listen to your engineer, he will know where to put you. Microphone selection and placements – again listen to your engineer, he will know what will work and where to put it. Soundcheck / Rehearsal – the engineer will need the loudest parts to set levels for your recording, think of this as the first song of your set and give it some when you are asked to, and then stop when you are asked to stop. Listen to and talk to your engineer, they are there to make you look good. They have the answers, they have the expertise and they have the gear. And if you upset them they can make you suck! Get someone to take notes of each take for review; this may also help your engineer in the editing process. Understand the communications – if something isn’t clear ask for clarification. No one knows everything and some may forget that they are using techy speak o What is the role of an engineer in short, to push record and capture everything responsibility for all sound and technical related setup and issues advice on recording processes and strategies if necessary listen to the compositions and performances and setup appropriate space / equipment, etc offer better technical solutions or options while maintaining musical relevance – not to much techy speak be honest with the artists and producers in order to get the best from them o What is involved in mixing A mix is the organisation of your completed performances into a balanced and pleasing product The mix engineer is responsible for making this happen at the direction of the Producer and Artist o Basic terms you need to understand Dynamics – Volume and Loudness, it is an expression of the difference between the loud and soft in the track and is known as “dynamic range” Spacial Position – putting your musical performance in its own space in the track using panning, or effects like delays and reverbs Equalisation – EQ is used to control and correct the tone of an instrument or voice, or the characteristics of a microphone, console or room. o Basic Principles of Mixing Making something louder will make it “come forward” in the mix Making something softer will make it “sit back” in the mix Placing similar sounds in individual special positions will give clarity to the mix Placing similar sounds in the same space will reduce their clarity Changing the sound with EQ will make the sound either more or less prominent in the mix o The Sound Cube Volume = forward or back EQ = up or down Panning = left or right Reverb/Delay = soft or hard