Orientation to Tedland – please read.

Welcome to Cincinnati’s high-tech/high-touch production studio. The single goal here is to make the best possible recording given the goals of the Artists.

My role is Engineer and Producer. That means I turn the dials, but I also have make some decisions about the music content. Having someone in charge saves lots of time and frustration, and provides an objective look at what is being produced. This does not mean that the music must conform to my vision – far from it – your vision, talent, and ideas are the key to success – however, in the end they must all become manifest in the music. All ideas are created equal – but not all are implemented in the music – so someone has to decide. I take everyone’s point of view into account and then make the decision. Taking about music is like dancing about architecture – sometimes we just have to try something to see if it will work. I will make suggestions. We can try them if people like them. If we don’t like the result – we’ll try something else.

Production values determine the ultimate sound that comes out of a studio. My values favor texture, simplicity, and humanity. Play less notes, focus on the essence of your part and play only that, with passion. Most people go into automatic pilot in the studio, or get nervous, or overplay – all natural of course, but relax and trust the other players to fill the spaces.

The environment. Despite the fact that 2923 Wold is a private residence (ie my house) it is one of the quietest studios in the city. I have two sons both of whom are musicians, and a wife who digs the fact that cool new people come here to record. Feel free to hang out on the kitchen etc. and relax. Smoke outside, however. An occasional interruption from the household is inevitable – but being here allows everyone to be comfortable, and allows me to have high flexibility and low rates. The bathroom is across the hall from the studio door. When loading in, put cases etc. in the hallway or one of the other rooms. It gets a bit crowded once in a while. Try not to knock over a mic stand. Mics are sensitive instruments easily killed by a fall – and mine cost thousands of dollars. If you want to see me cringe – a good way is to bang mics. Feel free to bring beer food and drinks with you but keep food out of the studio please – and ig you spill drinks on the carpet I will be unhappy.

While Tracking. A little structure makes for better sessions. Here are some guidelines. Turn off your cell phone. Stay out of the way when we are resetting Mikes, or positioning the next performer. Try not to step on cables. When we are tracking don’t make noise – but feel free to grab some headphones and listen to what’s going on. I’ll get you some if you need them, but ask. Don’t assume the sound in the phones is exactly what will emerge in the final recording. The headphones are imperfect. If your sound is not the way you want it however, be sure to say something. Remember your mic placement is a matter of inches. Feel free to move while performing, but just remember if your instrument moves too far from its position relative to the mic(s) – the sound won’t be the same sound.

On the mix: Give feedback. I will listen, and discuss it with everyone. No one ever hears their own music the way others do. There will be issues, and I will make the final call. We can try anything because I have a big “undo” button. The big monitors sound the same all over the room, but the small monitors give a different feel to every spot. Put your head where mine is if you want to hear what I am hearing.

I will make mistakes, since that goes with risk taking. Hopefully, I will not delete your best ever solo. I keep backups of all sessions. I have undo’s for 99% of operations. If you think of something I need to do – ask. I won’t be insulted.

My tasks are to properly mic each sound so as to flatter you and your playing and fit with the final mix and your goals. Then my job is to record each performance and keep trying until you like it. Don’t be disappointed if you don’t like it at first – the recording process is shockingly objective. My mics are the best and my recorder is the best technology out there so… You do sound like that. For many people, it’s the first time they ever heard themselves the way they really are. Its brutal – but the best training there is. For each song or part I need to set up signal routing and levels. Please be patient wile I do that. I will take breaks. Just let me know what your needs are and we can accommodate them.

Rates and Credits. I charge 30 per hour and will produce an invoice if you like. Because this rate is so low (1/2 of big studios), I charge for setup (usually one hour). This keeps the pressure off me to set up too quickly which results in better recording, and often allows me to set up in advance so that you can be somewhere else when I’m working. I also charge for Mix time when you are not here if I work on the project. Trust me you want it this way. Alone I can be very efficient, and my judgment is not clouded by input overload. Any time I am working on your record, you are welcome here. Sometimes I’ll wake up in the middle of the night with an idea and just go try it (that’s free). Sometimes I will put a guitar or percussion part on a song just to share a production idea. That’s free too. You can keep the part of throw it out… its up to you.

I don’t require payment immediately – but if you go months and many reminders you will never record here again and you will go on my Bad Credit list, which is published. You can send a check, or whatever. I do not want to do installments. We will just settle up once in a while. No big deal. I’m very flexible on compensation. I’ll even trade gear. Remember this: Also, I own the material and all rights until I am paid in full, except by prior agreement.

I may or may not want a credit on the record. Usually I do – but if the goal was “quick and dirty” – I may not. I don’t want my name on stuff in which the process was constrained so much by the goals that the product is weak. I do take paypal.

Privacy. I do not publish your material for any reason without permission. I have on occasion given some rough mixes to people who loved a record, or who could help the band – but I use my judgment here. I’m on your side. For example, a guy from England was visiting me during a mix and asked if he could take a copy back to England. I let him because it might have resulted in a London gig for the band. Obviously, I will conform to whatever agreement we make – but if you want absolute no-share, tell me, and no one will hear the material, not even for feedback.

Publishing. For “big” records, you should use a mastering house, but for small projects I can master here. Either way, I will give you a CD with the songs, in order, ready to be reproduced or mastered. I will also give anyone a copy of the session roughs on request. This lets you listen at home so you can work on the parts. CD’s are so cheap now I don’t charge for them. Remember: rough mixs are ROUGH and may even damage a home stereo system with extreme low end. This stuff is always fixed later in mixing or mastering phases – it might sound great to you, but I advise you not to distribute anything until we are “done”. Too often I hear my rough mixes on the radio – and you don’t get second chances to impress a radio audience. I will not get involved with artwork, reproduction, distribution, marketing (except to do an interview about the record), etc. My job is to get the music right

Scheduling. I work by appointment but I’m very accessible. Just call and I can work you in in weeks or maybe minutes. No harm in asking. I like to work small sessions (1/1) on weeknights, and big sessions when we have more time, like weekends. I do weekday sessions sometimes, but normally I do my day job at P&G where I manage Marketing development for Interactive.

What to Bring: You can bring any gear that will make you sound the way you sound. However, I have a lot of great equipment you can use. After 30 years of playing guitar professionally, I have accumulated one of the best collections of amps and guitars around. You can use any of it. The Drum set here is Yamaha recording custom. Have your drummer call and we can talk about what they need. I also have hand percussion, congas, small drums, midi gear including an Oberheim synth, slide guitar, baritone guitar, bass guitars, tuners, cords, preamps for bass, and more. I can easily record an entire band that brings no equipment of their own.

Overall process. Mostly, I meet with people before tracking and make a plan, test mics with your voice, figure out how we will approach the material, what supporting musicians we will need, talk about the session and material to set expectations. I will do preproduction and chart songs and work arrangement ideas with a client. This allows a pretty good product to be created from fairly rough ideas. Studio musicians are expensive but worth their weight if we can get them to perform with passion. Great players make great records – and people who are used to doing live music are often shocked when they hear themselves recorded. I think its fair to use the best players you can get because once a record is made, its made. Retakes and editing eat up time. Being well rehearsed in advance is a huge time saver as well. Don’t let this scare you – most people who record here are inexperienced players – and they become experienced very fast.