Recording an album takes time and dedication,it can be very expensive and in this post i am going to explain how this magical process happens.
Dark sand records ( fictional record company )
A record label deals with the recording,production,mastering,and distribution of an album through a process full of diferent areas or departments.
At the recording studio:
* technical team
*producers (writer/band)
*sound engineer
*mixing engineer
*master engineer
Also,inside the label,you will find lawyers,that will look after all the legal side of recording an album,as soon as you see your contract,the artist manager has got the duty to decide if it is the best deal for the artist.
If you sing the contract the label will own your copyrights for the time said in the contract.
The main purpose from a record label is to sell records,that is why being "singed" by a label can be difficult if you are not what they are looking for,all of this is because the label gives the founding to the artist for paying all expenses during the process and this is called "advance" and it is something like a loan which you will have to pay back,plus they will take a huge percentage of the money made by the sales of the album.
The process starts when the artist or artists decide to record an album,to realize the idea you need to find a record label.This is the order on which all the magic starts:
1. Finding the right place
Labels often search for fresh musical ideas and off course talent,the artist manager will try to find and arrange everything for the artist to find a fair deal when singing a contract for their label,this includes copyrights,schedules,and the most important...prices and money.
2. From the heart to the amp
Depending on what the artist is going to record the studio has to be set up,for example instruments, additional effects,singers,chorus etc.. all of this is going to be arranged by the Technician,wich is the one that checks sound levels,sets up the studio,arranges all the effects,sounds.
They work with the sound engineer,mixing engineer.
3. Producers
The producer's duty can vary,there is two sort of producers in this process
* Writer: it'se is to write ideas,write structures,find inspiration for the development of new ideas on the recording session
* Band producer: it'se is to make arrangements on instrumentation, independent ears.
Some producers make their roles as the "directors of the piece" so they are the one that normally decide if what is being recorded sounds right or not according to the artist's vision at the start of the process.
4. Sound engineer
Known as "button pushers" their role is to set the levels by editing,mixing,and in some cases by mastering the sound in the studio,works with the technician as well arranging all effects and sounds of a song,to make it sound as good as possible while the recording is still in place
5.Mixing.
there is a difference between the sound engineer,and the mixing engineer,because the mixing engineer does not touches the song or album until it is ready, the main role here is to put everything together and put it on time,mix it and achieve a high quality sound leaving everything ready for the next step.
6. Master engineer
At this step the album has to be ready to go,the master engineer's role is to make sure that there is not mistakes or problems on the recording,checks the sound levels for it to perform effectively on every player,this means that it would sound good on a phone speaker as it will do on a PA system or Radio stations. For a radio station,the song from the album can change,an example is if the intro or outro of the song it too long it will be cut to make it shorter.
7. Distribution
This is the point where the record gets distributed nice and ready to be sold,it can be on shops, radio stations,internet. In some cases,publicity is used by the distribution team to let people know that a new album or single is or will be available in the market.In this step you will find diferent teams,like the creative team which desing the album covers.
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