Recording Studio: Careers, Training and Pro Tools

The world of professional recording, professional studio work and recording engineer training is expanding every day. Professional engineers are paid handsomely to mix tracks for many of today's top artists including Lil' Wayne, Rihanna, Lady Ga Ga, and Beyonce. Getting work in this exciting and lucrative industry is not very difficult if you receive the proper training.

A background in musicology is not important to enter the field of professional recording. A musical background is helpful but you will want to have more of an education in electronics and audio recording.

Next, you will want to build a network of bands and musicians. If, on the advice of people who will say that recording studios all have to work with portable book of business start your trusted place for people to become friends with everyone. 

Any audio recording studio will need some mixers with mixing experience and knowledge at some point. Even if you need to give the initiative to record some live shows for bands, or just start in your bedroom, the greatest quality, and persistence is not the key.

Finally, you need to get a portfolio together with a professional resume and audio mixing tracks attributable to you. If you have a good shot until late in the recording studio job search process you will be excited to gather many more contacts in the industry. Home studio experience is good and works to get you work as well.

The first search quality of a recording studio manger is looking for in an employee's hearing capabilities. From the audience, I mean the ability to distinguish phonetic sound. On the contrary, is the ability to hear what others do not: the small space between the words and notes, a strange sound or an imbalance between the bass and guitar. I worked in radio for decades and spent many hours in the studio looking at the people we call the "engineer" and cock his head to remix or re-record something that sounds good to me.

If you do not have sensitive ears, you will not succeed in a recording studio. You have to know how to listen.

The second quality is the willingness to work long hours for low wages with those who are sensitive but tough. Throwing objects and shouting are not uncommon in long sessions and a boy or girl can not do the work of the mixer may be concerned or the situation will soon be reduced to a bad dream. Are you able to see how others lose? Can you sit and wait out the storm? An even temperament is an asset.

Third, can you do it right the first time? If musicians and even an announcer made a mistake and will want to repeat things and it is accepted as part of their work, but if the recording engineers happen to make mistakes and have to repeat the whole session you may turn the clients into crazy people. Know your job.

Meet the recording team and how it works. A good recording engineer arrived there in the early morning before a session established and ready before anyone else, can finish within the time specified, and make other people sound better than they really are.

Audio mixing study time is not expensive and the band, broadcasters and others who demand that the studio is ready when you are and will be relentless with technical errors and equipment damage.

A recording studio is not a professional business in the traditional sense. The people who work there have no time until you find something better. Many engineers and mixers are highly skilled musicians and the art of music. Some university-level training in sound engineering.

If you do not have the training and began to learn about the study of mixing, consider working for a local band and develop your skills - and contacts - to help the band to produce better sound.

You want a Recording Studio that is looking for people who do magic. If you think you can do it, willing to take whatever it takes from going to the back door to sweeping floors and cleaning of equipment. Soon discover that the best engineers and mixers who see it as a call, gifts, and will do for free if needed. Is that you?

As a recording engineer you may need to occasionally answer the studio phones when people call to book time in your studio. Even the early seconds of a phone call can mean the difference between a period of intense activity, or a weekend to watch the sports replay. Some things you can do to prevent a potential client interested in visiting, and, finally, booking a time reservation.

Most major studios have the advantage in the game. Reputation, equipment and marketing are all on their side. However, the price is to your advantage. You can overcome these obstacles, beat their prices and compete in the small-world. Just use your head and stay prepared.

We see some things that will help you book your studio and building a customer base.

Suppose you've done all the preparations necessary to actually make the call. Do you have a website, MySpace, Facebook? Have you visited the clubs, business cards press, local place, etc? You did not do these things? So get to work. If nobody knows who you are, they are not for you.

First contact

Make sure you have a professional phone. I do not want the race to buy a $ 50,000 phone system routing. You must have a number of information. Voice mail should be created with the name of study and deadline for the return call. Do not put your heart beat or a song downloaded as a last salute. Short and sweet to the point. This will also help monitor calls future performance. Nothing will turn into a person before you wait five minutes before the message.

I really do not care if it's a phone or a landline phone. Make sure that if you can not take the initial call, will return to the caller. Remember that your new client is probably around calls to other studies for pricing and / or a tour of the facility. The first answer is usually the winner.

Call back quickly and have all the information prepared for any questions. A calendar, list of equipment, service plan, and any reference numbers should be at hand. Be ready for any question. If you need to call a second time with more information, you will lose your client to someone who is ready with an answer. Often, the potential customer does not know what to do. Then take note of what I mean when I talk about her study. I do not want the script, but if you have an idea of what your study in question, which helps break the ice.

Got Pro Tools? No? Better to have a ready answer when asked! Many years ago I opened my first studio. I was a fan of Cakewalk, then moved to play. Customers who do not know anything about recording knew the term "Pro Tools". So the first question would be: "Do you have Pro Tools?" I think the thing I did not know that the next call was a dial tone. Be prepared to these questions and have a quick response.

Do not assume the client knows the art or what is the ultimate in audio. Often they are reacting to marketing. A question like: "I heard that XYZ makes a big microphone," for example. The answer might be: "Yes, this is a good microphone. But I have a microphone ABC and it sounds very similar to XYZ. You should come and try and feel how the voice sounds incredible on this thing."
Head to Head

It is time to visit in person. Set a time for your potential client to discuss his project. However, keep a few things in mind. Reach for the initial appointment. Nothing turns a person off more than having to wait for someone. Even if you have time musician, who is disrespectful and may give the impression that I do not care. Also, if it appears just in time or a little later, he sends the signal that you're not too busy. So it is not very good.

Got anything good to prove? Let me see!

Never, never speak ill of other studios. This is bad karma, and proves that you are insecure. Know your competition. Make the customer aware of the unknown. Although other studios speak ill of you, your positive attitude shows the visitor that you are honest and trusting.

After the greetings, tours and conversation, be prepared to play something that is in or adjacent to such music that the customer is into. Play a mixture that is up to snuff, and not a hack job. Make sure that the monitor, board, and the connections are good. This is not the right time to do the maintenance of the studio. If you do not have any specific music, then you have to play the best choice. Continue to remind the client during this process that you can do anything, and what we can do for you.

Negotiations on the price

There is an old saying in this business that goes something like this: who says that the money first loses. We hope that you have given your price by phone, but everything is negotiable. Here is where the real art comes in. Ask for doing so, the budget and how much time they have for this project. Give them an idea what is expected now and try to work with them.

For example, suppose you have a $500 project, and they want to do 15 songs. Explain that you can do if they want to, but they are fast and can damage anything (such as mixed). Do not be negative. Introduce the process and how long things take. Many new artists think that if a song takes about 5 minutes, then the registration process should be about 5 minutes.

Go through the process and explain how it works. Do not say "are you crazy?" If you still do not understand, tell them to divide them into 2 or 3 songs and the budget, how it goes. This helps to build trust relationships.

Pre-booking

In this respect, we are talking about studio reservation and price negotiations, that you have booked your guest! Discuss all the details with the artist. Or to meet in person or speak by phone before the meeting. Make sure that there are no surprises. These pre-production and is the most ignored, but important step has been registered. Do you think I feel an ax, but I think that you are the next Jay-Z? Get it clear that before you start.

Ask a lot of questions. What files will be used as a base? What format? They understand that you can not change the reason for the individual instruments collided within a stereo file? Who is the manufacturer? Who makes the final decision? How many people are in the band? Is there someone who must be recorded in the video? Several members of the family, dogs and cats, boyfriends, girls and other characters are coming? What food? Can you buy? I do not know that you break every now and then to eat and a clear head? They know that they have to pay you to set up microphones, or are you going to throw that?

You should also have some sort of legal documents and decided with the client to begin before the meeting and that the non-refundable deposits, broken equipment and liability if someone has an accident. What is your policy on studio smoking, alcohol abuse and illicit substances? If all of these things have been tampered with or increase during the session, your task is to maintain peace at all. Nothing destroys the session or a future business relationship faster than the collapse of the session.

I hope this helps some of you there the owners of a new studio. Maybe it's also a reminder to some of you as well as veterans. Possession of the studio and the location is hard to do, but you can do. Keep in mind that it is working, and even if it is a creative field, you still have time to follow certain evidence. Now go record.