As self-declared life-long learners ourselves, we love helping first-time recording clients get the most out of their session time. For newbies, studio environments can be expensive and intimidating. Worrying about wasting time due to inexperience while you're on the clock makes it even worse.
Our goal is to help our clients avoid those pitfalls and have the best possible experience, all while learning the ropes and gaining experience for the next time you're in the studio.
Who knows?!
Studio time is billed by the hour and there are a myriad of factors that contribute to the time it takes to record "a song". Is it 2 minutes long, or a 1 hour epic? Is it just one instrument and a vocal or a whole band? Large ensemble?
One of the most important determining factors is if the artist is capable of a quality, professional performance. This is something only YOU can know before the session.
(See above!)
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An extra point to put on this specific version of the "how long will it take?" question is to consider the time needed for set up (especially with drums) and the time needed to edit/mix the tracks you've recorded. Don't forget to plan/budget for editing and mixing time!
Some new clients are surprised when they learn that there's more time to be spent mixing, editing, or treating tracks after they've left the live room from their performance. If you're after a modern sounding product, this "next phase" of the studio experience can be a lengthy one, depending on how may tracks there are to work with and what you'd like done with them. (And how well they were played...)
It's best to talk about your expectations for the finished result in pre-production conversations so your engineer can give you a rough idea of how long it will potentially take to process the amount of tracks you're intending to record.
Short answer, no.
While we have played on hundreds of recordings over the years, we aren't a musician-for-hire service. If you'd like to record yourself singing to something, you should seek out the karaoke track online and download it in the highest possibly quality format - preferably .wav .
Absolutely!
Again, we aren't a musician hiring service, but we have met quite a few talented folks over the years with whom we can put you in contact.
Please note: Any contracts, agreements, rehearsals or other arrangements between the two of you don't involve the GFMA in any way.
If recording is new to you, we beg you to keep an open mind about how you will go about it. The most important first step is to have a discussion with us about your project goals. What you want to accomplish, how much you have to work with in your budget, and what (if any) kind of timeline by which you are constrained. Discussing these factors, among others, can help us recommend the most economical and realistic course of action with which to proceed. Ideally, this leads to less cost to the client, along with a positive learning experience for the next time, and as quality a result as the parameters will allow.