| Going into a recording studio to record will usually result | | | | For a small price, you can get more advanced |
| in sound quality that is suitable for your "demo" | | | | features, like the ability to edit recordings and apply |
| submissions. However, it can be expensive and in a | | | | sound effects. If you want to start getting professional, |
| professional studio there is little room for error if | | | | you can use programs such as Sonic Foundry's Sound |
| something goes wrong. If a band member is sick or | | | | Forge Studio 6.0. |
| you get a bad engineer- you're out of luck. It is | | | | When the microphone is set up and the right software |
| common for things to go wrong as the studio | | | | is installed, it is time to get on with your home |
| experience is a new experience for many. Happily, | | | | recording.Check that the microphone is at the right |
| there are other alternatives. | | | | height and have a couple of practice runs. Don't forget |
| Computer based home recording gets cheaper all the | | | | to take into account "audio distractions" such as the |
| time so if you feel you have talent and really aspire to | | | | phone, background noise or the neighbors. Don't be |
| be a professional singer you might consider putting | | | | afraid of getting close to the mic, it will sound better. |
| together a home studio. Having your own gear allows | | | | Recording your first take is as simple as pressing |
| you to record whenever you want, for as long as you | | | | "record." When you have finished recording your song, |
| want until you get the desired track. | | | | stop recording and the application can automatically |
| The barriers to home recording entry are low - really | | | | convert your recording into a file that I can be played |
| just a computer, sound card, a quality audio software | | | | back. |
| program for recording and editing and a microphone. If | | | | How well-recorded do my demos need to be? |
| you want to save your songs to CD, you will need a | | | | The answer is actually very simple. For song pitches, |
| cd burner and some blank cd's. | | | | the recording can be much less "produced" than it |
| The first step is to set up the microphone on your PC, | | | | should be for artist pitches. Some people believe that a |
| which has a built-in sound card (a necessity). If you | | | | song pitch demo should leave some room for |
| don't need high sound quality, you can use the built-in | | | | imagination - let the artist or A&R person develop |
| microphone in your PC (if it has one). You can enable | | | | some emotional ownership of the song by imagining a |
| this through the control panel. If you're looking to | | | | tambourine part or a vocal harmony. For band or artist |
| produce something with better quality, then a good | | | | pitches, you may want to flesh out more tracks that |
| quality microphone is essential. | | | | show the artist's whole vision. Remember though, |
| A good microphone doesn't have to be expensive but | | | | A&R people are far more interested in the song's |
| it is best to buy the best one you can afford. For | | | | potential, and the artist's appeal than they are about |
| recording the human voice a "condenser" microphone | | | | the quality of the recording. Nearly every act signed to |
| is generally recommended and they're easy to find at | | | | a major label will be recording their entire album over |
| any audio store. | | | | again with a pro engineer and producer. The demo is |
| Then you will need some audio recording software. | | | | only a demo! |
| There are a number of free, simple audio recording | | | | How do I share my songs online? |
| applications that allow you to record sound and | | | | If you want to upload and share your music online |
| convert it to a popular audio format like MP3 or WAV | | | | (MySpace, boomp3.com, Broadjam or to your own |
| (such as Audacity). You can download free software | | | | website) you can simply upload the mp3 files you have |
| from Audacity by following the simple download | | | | saved. |
| instructions. | | | | |