Recording Your Music: 'Why Record?'

By Eric Tunison, Owner of Groove Tunes Studios - GrooveTunes.com

This is the first of five articles in the series 'Recording YourMusic!'. Inthis installment we will discuss some reasons why you should considerrecordingyour music. - ET

Demonstrate!

Every performing musician looks for effective ways to marketthemselves. If youare actively seeking gigging venues around town you need a callingcard. Youneed to sell yourself to club owners and show them how great you are.They'regoing to want to meet you, but they're not going to ask you for a liveaudition.They're going to ask you for a demo CD. Yep, your best chance to landthat gigis to have a killer sounding demo CD ready to give out the instantsomeone asksfor it. And if you've recorded your demo at a professional recordingstudioyou'll have a huge competitive edge over 95% of the competition whobring inamateurish mixes created in their cousin's bedroom. If you're seriousaboutselling yourself, you will need a professionally recorded demo.

If it wasn't recorded, it never existed.

Even if you don't plan to gig out there are other reasons why youshould recordyour music. For one, your music and your sound is your legacy. Hey,you're notgoing to live forever. A recording is a 'record' of your talent. It's alivingand timeless document of who you are and what you did. Consider if JimMorrisonor Jimi Hendrix hadn't recorded their works when they were in theirearlytwenties. Nobody except their family and a few friends would rememberthemtoday. What if a would-be author never bothered to write down histhoughts? Whatif a visually creative artist never purchased a camera, or a paintbrush andeasel? Recorded sound is the legacy of all musicians. Without arecording yourmusical existence is only hearsay. It's like it never existed.

You owe it to yourself!

Recordings that are produced professionally can make you sound amazing,as goodas you've ever sounded. Your professional recording is something to beproud of,something that you will want to show off and give to loved ones. And ifyou'rereally good, your recordings can lead to financial gain. The onlydownsides torecording are the time and cost it takes to do it. But compared to allthe timeand treasure you expend during your lifetime perfecting your craft andbuyingyour instruments, the cost of a professional recording is a very, verysmallinvestment, and one that can reap emotional - if notfinancial  -rewards.

In the next article we will examine how to prepare for your recording session. -ET