Recording TOTAL STRANGERS!!?! (!)

[cale w]

So up to this point I've only recorded close friends, you know, people you aren't too worried about looking like jackass in front of. Tomorrow I'm going across town to record a jazz pianist/vocalist duo on-location, and I'VE NEVER MET THESE PEOPLE BEFORE! I'm a bit nervous. I'm confident in my abilities, and I have decent enough gear to get the job done, but this is a relatively big milestone for me. Hopefully, none of them are too knowledgable/gear-snobs or know what an ADA8000 is...

I don't have any real questions, just wanted to vent and share a little. I guess, has anyone ever gone to record people they've never met and had it turn into a nightmare senario?

(Also, the whole 5-hour session is apprently being videotaped, so now I'm all worried about what I'm going to WEAR and shit... )

Cheers!

-cale

[chris harris]

who cares what you wear? just dress comfortably. if you go in there and do a great job engineering this session, nobody will ever give a second thought to how you were dressed. but, don't show up dirty.

they'll be able to smell your fear. if you really are confident, then let that confidence guide you. if you really aren't, then you could be in for a long day.

[cale w]

Aw.. the rolling-eyes smiley was supposed to denote that the last statement about worrying about clothes was humorous exasperation. I'm not actually worried about that.

On a related note, I love that part in the mixerman chronicals where he's trying to decide on what to wear when the film crew is in the studio... that shit cracks me up!

Thanks for the advice Subatomic!

[blackdiscoball]

Anyone read the "Daily Adventures of Mixer Man"? in one of the chapters he they are video recording the session and he makes a big deal about wearing something that will make him look like the stereotypically "engineer" then feels like an idiot all day. Just reminded me of that.

[JohnDavisNYC]

well, you can't discount looking right... if you're recording jazz, maybe skip the slip on vans and the vintage sabbath tee, trim your beard, etc... presentation goes a long way in instilling confidence in clients, and to a certain extent you have to dress in a way that makes the clients feel comfortable. wearing a dress shirt and a sweater with some nice boots might be weird to the 19 year old punk band.

be yourself, but be sensitive to the client and the venue so that you are comfortable and are treated with respect.

and be polite.

and easy to work with.

and kick ass at recording.

then you should be fine.

john

[newfuturevintage]

well, you can't discount looking right... if you're recording jazz, maybe skip the slip on vans and the vintage sabbath tee, trim your beard, etc... presentation goes a long way in instilling confidence in clients, and to a certain extent you have to dress in a way that makes the clients feel comfortable. wearing a dress shirt and a sweater with some nice boots might be weird to the 19 year old punk band.

be yourself, but be sensitive to the client and the venue so that you are comfortable and are treated with respect.

and be polite.

and easy to work with.

and kick ass at recording.

then you should be fine.

john

totally agreed. always a good idea to project as much professionalism as you can muster!

[aitikin]

well, you can't discount looking right... if you're recording jazz, maybe skip the slip on vans and the vintage sabbath tee, trim your beard, etc... presentation goes a long way in instilling confidence in clients, and to a certain extent you have to dress in a way that makes the clients feel comfortable. wearing a dress shirt and a sweater with some nice boots might be weird to the 19 year old punk band.

be yourself, but be sensitive to the client and the venue so that you are comfortable and are treated with respect.

and be polite.

and easy to work with.

and kick ass at recording.

then you should be fine.

john

...and show up early Nothing looks more unprofessional than showing up later than the musicians!

[xhavepatiencex]

the only "nightmare" scenarios I seem to get are with people I know, but are not close friends. Working with people I have never met generally works out great, they actually respect me!

[cale w]

The session went great! Thanks all for your input.

We were recording at a guy's house with a really nice grand piano. The highlight of the day was when the 87-year old grandpa, who used to be a USO singer in the 1940's, ambled into the room (between takes thankfully) and announced that hewanted to sing a song. He put "Left My Heart in San Fransicso" in front of the pianist and began crooing away. It was great! I had to roll tape on that...

-cale

[Gentleman Jim]

cale w wrote:

The highlight of the day was when the 87-year old grandpa, who used to be a USO singer in the 1940's, ambled into the room (between takes thankfully) and announced that hewanted to sing a song. He put "Left My Heart in San Fransicso" in front of the pianist and began crooing away. It was great! I had to roll tape on that...

That's so cool! I certainly hope you can get them a few mixes of that quickly, so they can share it with friends and family at the holidays.

[signorMars]

That's so cool! I certainly hope you can get them a few mixes of that quickly, so they can share it with friends and family at the holidays.

above suggestion = repeat clients / referrals to all their friends.

[antilog]

I have fond memories of when I started recording strangers. Went around to local open mic nights and offered to record folks to help get them CD's to sell and use to get gigs. Definitely stepped out of my comfort zone. Learned a lot about audio work and dealing with people in general.