The Secret To Great Recordings
To sound great, you need a great song, a great arrangement of that song, and a great performance of that song.
That’s it in a nutshell.
“…the magic tends to come from the performer—not the gear.
No amount of microphone sizzle is going to make up for a lousy vibe.”
- 18 Tips for Running a Great Recording Session, by Nick Messitte, iZotope contributor, July 26, 2017
From Mixerman’s book Musician’s Survival Guide to a Killer Record comes similar advise:
“Anyone and everyone who has ever spent any part of their career as a designated recordist [recording engineer] can tell you without equivocation, that the quality of a recording is based purely on the artistry before them. If the artistry is great, the recording will be great.”
It’s no coincidence that the Pro’s know all too well that it’s in the hands and voices of the artists!!
(The following is borrowed and paraphrased from Joe Guilder's Email Newsletter, www.joegildermusic.com/)
"I love having kids. I have an automatic excuse to watch kid movies.
I was watching a Pixar flick recently, and something dawned on me.
What is it that makes Pixar films so great?
At first, you might think about all the crazy cool things they are able to do with graphics.
These cartoons look so real...it's kinda mind-boggling.
So is technology the driving force behind their success?
Is crazy-good animation the reason their movies are so great?
I don't think so.
Think about the last few Pixar movies you've watched (or any other popular animated films, for that matter).
What's the common thread?
It's simple. And it's as old as dirt.
The "secret" is simply a good story.
All the great animation tricks in the world won't hold a kid's (or adult's) attention for long if it is not also
accompanied by a good story.
Let's apply that to studio stuff, shall we?
The "secret" to a great recording is a great song.
All the fancy recording tricks in the world won't save you if the song you're working on is awful.
Yes, technology is important.
But technology cannot replace creativity...
Focus first on the song [and it’s arrangement], then the performance, and THEN the recording.
Flip that order around, and you're in trouble.
So what do you do once you have a great song and fine performers with well-rehearsed parts?
You need to record it well. And you need to mix it well.
Trust The Process!!
Listen to some of your favorite music and think about what it must have taken to craft those songs!
When you understand the work required to write a great song, you’ll be ready to write one.
When you write a great song, you will not be happy until the arrangement is just right.
Then when the arrangement is perfected, and you decide you want to preserve it for all time… you will
rehearse it to equal perfection.
When you and your band can perform that perfect arrangement of that great song without thinking about it…
…you’re ready to record it!