1. Pre-production. That means being very, very well-prepared. Know your material as well as you possibly can.

2. Be well-rested and do not eat or consume any dairy products before your session.

3. Be well-hydrated. Drink lots of water in the preceding 6-8 hours. This hydrates your vocal folds.

4. Prepare your sound. Prepare by recording yourself ahead of time and listening back. By now you probably understand that your voice sounds strangely like some other person when you hear it played back from an outside source. This is normal but understandably odd to you.

You are hearing yourself with, of course, your own ears. They are located inches away from, and directly connected to, the source of the sound,  your lungs and mouth and so on. You are the only person who hears the sound that you hear when you sing - through the bones and tissue of your own physiology.

The rest of the world hears what you hear when you hear a recording of yourself played back on a good
          system. So use this as a tool. If you don’t like
             what you hear on playback, make a change
                your voice to try to achieve the sound you
                 were aiming for. Then record again
                   immediately then listen back to see if the
                    physical changes you made to your
                    voice made a difference. This is a
                     tremendous tool for your toolkit.

5. Leave the ego at the door. (along with any and all emotional baggage) We are here to preserve a slice of time that represents the very best that you can do on this day in your life. So just do the best you can. Come into the room excited, but not afraid of the process. We will make sure you are very comfortable.

6. Listen carefully to your takes to decide if you are happy with your performance.  We will be listening too, making sure your intonation, breathing, timing and so on are the best you can do.

7. Breathe! Breath is important for any instrument. Your teacher has taught you how to breathe. Remember what they have taught you. This is a day you put your fine breath control to good use.

8. If you make a mistake, don’t say “Sorry.” We know you are trying. Don't worry about it. Just get your head ready for the next take.

9. At the beginning and end of each take, be very quiet to allow for a clean edit, in and out.

Above all, be sure you are having FUN! We love to record and we will being having fun too.

When students find out they are going to create a professional recording of themselves every year, they will be excited and engaged.

It will be the highlight of their year!

            A great recording:

            • motivates your student

            • provides a high-quality admission demo for college

            • is a powerful demo for student jobs

            • is content for a website

            • the ultimate personal gift for family members

            • documents your fine work

Recordings are made in your regular teaching environment or at the location of your choice.

If you have any questions at all before your session, please feel free to call us: (248) 561-5176

SemperMediaGroup

helping people love music since 1971