Hi All,
If you wish to look at it politically (why not, it's election time):
WW1 is long over; WW2 is still reporting a fair amount of regonal fighting, and some areas are still fully in the hands of powerful groups that show great endurance and organization.
No.1 was from 78 to tape; no.2 was is from analog tape to harddrive....but I digress.
These are the things that determine how you will record someones's session:
1. Is it a favor/is it paid?
1a. Do you have the time/how badly do you need the money?
2. If it is paid, who is the recording aimed at: just the performer, the performer and family, or as a demo (which you have discussed already with performer, and, if need be, family, if they are paying.)
3. If this is beyond a simple demo, you already will have a written agreement (right?) of some sort about the estimated time/budget, and what is included in terms of editing/polishing/tarting it up if need be. Also who the heck has the rights and clearances if this thing gets picked up for 'development' (yeah right) by The Majors.
4.THE BIG ONE: how much of your sense of quality/arranging/engineering/ears/compassion/SENSE OF ARTISTIC INSPIRATION are you willing/daring enough/reckless enough to let interfere with the paycheck and your sense of well-being that steps 1 through 3 so far have set up?
I do wish there was a computer simulation that one could use to parse that particular problem, one of those clever things with simulated outcomes and such, but I am afraid it wouldn't do much good.
Because we have feelings. Feelings that change. So the rules of war are set, until someone utters: "That doesn't sound like what I wanted." Cue flushing toilet.
Now the diplomacy begins anew, and it's really just the same as the original recording/mixing diplomacy, except with bigger weapons. You are now on the defense, and the client/friend/thing in front of the mic has the Weapon of Mass Destruction known as the Missing Check.
Because you have recorded. You have edited. You have added. All of this with the conviction that, since they like the idea of 'filling in the song' with more instruments...hours have passed, days. Of first putting good takes together for the lead, easy. Then orchestrating, to be big about it, to flesh it into the demo they were indicating they wanted. Then playing/mixing the parts. Time goes on.
Telephone Response From Artist who is Young Hopeful paid by Parents: Hi, this is ....... got the disc, thanks so much for helping out (this being the accompaniment); I think there are too many instruments; can you just send the vocal and (artist performed) guitar? Why of course. Now I have to check if the breath edits will work solo with just reverb, if her strummed guitar is in time enough to leave in the mix....And, ladies and germs, I CAN'T CHARGE FOR ALL THE HOURS SPENT.
The above is real, just for anyone who thought I was just being a self-righteous blowhard about the rules. I had this session occur within the past month, and I went the conscious producer route: if the client doesn't know and says they want 'more', bring them to a better place though your instincts.
My instincts gave me a nice cd mix of her doing her own composition with my orchestration that, to be frank, I like, but it also gave me, in addition to all the orchestration, the unpaid job of remastering and looking at re-eqing work to give her two tracks of her and guitar. So there. Recording 101, in a certain sense of the word.
Please, someone, post and tell me I am not unique
Best,
CC
