At the beginning of summer 2009, Roger Miller acquired the funding he needed to record a full-length album of his Christian alternative acoustic music. In order to get a professional sounding product, Miller decided he would head to Nashville, TN, rent out a recording studio, hire session musicians, and put together an album that could hold its own against any major label production. But during his online search for recording studios, he came across a more convenient option that caught his attention: Studio Pros.

Unsure of whether or not Studio Pros could really deliver the top quality product he was looking for, Miller sent in just one song to test the waters. The final product convinced him to continue on with his entire album. “The final album and the songs, they exceeded my expectations quality-wise,” Miller says.

Miller sang, played guitar and even some cello on his songs, but one of his favorite parts of the process was working with the professional studio musicians that Studio Pros provided. Through this recording process, Miller had access to some of the best musicians in LA playing on his songs, while still involving him in the production of his album. “Going into it, I had pretty high standards,” Miller says. But he was impressed with the caliber of playing he received. “The drum tracks were incredible. They were a lot better than I thought they were going to be. The backing vocals were stellar.” Miller used a strategy that combined using his own very specific musical ideas in conjunction with letting the musicians improvise and do their own thing when the songs called for it.

The final album is a product that Miller feels sounds as good as any artist you’d hear on the radio today. “For the finished album, from what I’ve heard from other people, it’s pretty standard with professional productions,” he says. “The sound of it is in the realm of mainstream artists.” Because of this, Miller has been confident enough to pursue licensing opportunities, PR, and other ways of getting his songwriting out there.

Miller’s album, Crayons, is available from iTunes and other online retailers. Some of his influences include Jars of Clay, Jack Johnson, Andrew Peterson, Bebo Norman, and even a little Beach Boys.

For more information on Roger, visit www.rogermillersmusic.com

“I felt like I was working with a group of super-talented friends that I had known forever.”

Tommy Owen didn’t have a plan for his music; it was simply a hobby for the San Marcos, Texas native.  But working with Studio Pros has a way of opening doors for artists; after putting his songs on MySpace and Facebook, Owen couldn’t help but pay attention to the response he got.  “I must have gotten about 50 emails the day I put it up on MySpace,” he says.  “Half of the feedback is about the quality of the recording!”

Owen, who runs his own graphic design company, has been playing music since he was a teenager.  He soon decided that producing his own music was a lot more fun than playing someone else’s songs in a band, so he bought a 4-track and started recording.  For years, Owen never felt the quality was up to par, but after teaming up with Studio Pros he found himself suddenly being contacted by radio stations asking him for a physical CD (a friend passed on Owen’s music to a radio connection).  He attributes his newfound success to the professional product he was able to make with the help of Studio Pros.

Owen had first tried recording all of the instruments himself in his home studio.  “I worked on these recordings for almost 2 years,” he explains.  “The biggest challenge was the drums.  I spent thousands on an electric drum kit, and it still just wasn’t sounding right.”  While searching for plug-ins, drums samples, and any other options he could find online, Owen was ready to give up–until he came across a link to Studio Pros.  He sent in a recording of one of his songs and a professional studio drummer re-did all the parts.  “I thought for 125 bucks it couldn’t sound good, but I got it back and was blown away,” he remembers.  “He took my existing drum tracks, mimicked them, and did it so much better.  He’s gotta be one of the best drummers out there.”  Owen immediately sent in the rest of his music.

Originally having two of his friends to try to mix his music, an unimpressed Owen also ended up using Studio Pros for mixing and mastering services.  Once again, he tested the waters with just one song, but immediately sent the rest when he heard a final product that was of professional quality.  “I fell out of my chair,” he says.  “Everything was flawless.”  Owen recently recorded three more songs, and this time he is going straight to Studio Pros.  “I found a system that worked, and they’re half of it,” he says.  “The quality was untouchable, I can’t believe what I got for the price.”

What’s next for Owen?  While the music is still a hobby, he’s thinking of pushing it to local radio stations (particularly since San Marcos is a college town) and possibly expanding into Austin.  After that, he’ll just be waiting to see where it goes.

“This company was built for musicians by musicians, and I hope and pray they are here forever,” Owen says.  “I have plans to use them again in the very near future.”

Listen to Tommy’s music at his MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/echobirdy

And find him on iTunes by searching for “Echo Birdy.”

Barb Bechler’s path to becoming a musician is not your typical story. In fact, her creative use of Studio Pros’ services makes for one of the most unique musical journeys you’re bound to hear. While she’s been a fan and admirer of music for most of her life, Bechler never was a musician herself–until she began learning, experimenting, and expanding her musical boundaries with the help of the world-class studio musicians that Studio Pros provided. Utilizing Studio Pros’ services, Bechler found herself going from complete novice to award-winning songwriter in an astoundingly short period of time.

Not too long ago, Bechler was retired from real estate sales and writing children’s stories. Now, she is submitting her music to TAXI for publishing in film and television. “I’m probably coming from a different direction from a lot of people,” she says. “I’ve always admired musicians and listened to a great variety of music. The big thing for me was that I always wanted to be able to write songs.” Wondering how she could translate her story writing abilities to songwriting, Bechler had a breakthrough when her niece, Deanna, showed her how to use GarageBand music software.

“I had a Mac with GarageBand and just assumed it was a kid’s game, so I never opened it up,” Bechler admits. “I just went, Oh my goodness, I want to be able to do that!” She compares the process to another one of her talents: collage art. “The lightbulb went on when she showed me how to cut, rearrange, and paste music together.”

After her epiphany, Bechler went home and obsessively put together loops for hours on end. Immersing herself in her new passion, she began researching song construction and studying various musical genres. After getting some music in place, Bechler moved on to the lyrics, which presented a brand new test for her: melody. “I’m not a singer, so it was a challenge to figure out the melody,” she explains. “Studio Pros told me to talk the words into the song.” So Bechler spoke lyrics into a microphone to provide the rhythm, flow, and cadence. Studio Pros’ musicians took care of the rest, turning the music loops into real tracks played by real professionals and transforming the spoken word into melodies performed by session singers.

Bechler honed the process to write and produce music that was ideal for publishing opportunities on film and TV. Her song “For Chelsea” began as an idea comprised of jazzy music loops when it was passed over to Studio Pros. Session musicians then provided a jazz combo backing a live trumpet lead and transformed Bechler’s musical vision into a TV-ready reality. “The final version was a professional rendition of my tune,” she says.

“Although I’m just starting out as a musician, I have a very good ear for music, a good ear for timing and rhythm,” Bechler says. “Studio Pros really helped me understand how many bars it takes for a really good bridge, or to create an intro or an outro. They’ve been really helpful with arrangement and song construction.”

Not only have Bechler’s online collaborations with Studio Pros yielded songs spanning genres including pop, jazz and classical, she has been receiving rave reviews as well: she was the winner of the Song of the Year monthly award in Adult Contemporary for the month of April for her track “Beyond the Sea.” Crediting modern technology and services such as Studio Pros for making the impossible possible for her, Bechler has gone from music enthusiast to industry insider and is putting full-time hours into her latest hobby. “I was surprised that the prices were reasonable, that they were quick with the turnaround, and with how much actual hands on help I got,” she says.

Now taking piano lessons to sharpen her skills, Bechler has only begun her musical career that Studio Pros helped launch.

David Alter is an artist who knows what he wants, and he uses the resources that Studio Pros provides to get exactly that.  Though he’s been writing music for quite a while, performing was something of a new concept for the health professional-turned-musician when he decided to record an album of his own.  “The process of recording has been relatively new,” Alter says.  “I’ve been writing for many years, but it’s only been lately that I’ve done more of the recording process myself.”

So after he saw an advertisement for Studio Pros in Recording magazine, Alter decided he had nothing to lose by putting his songwriting in the hands of professional studio musicians who could ensure a top quality result for his songs.  “I thought I’d try it out and i just loved it,” he says.  “I love the process of creating the idea, then arranging it by having a vehicle that gets what I hear in my mind out quickly.”

The decision to try Studio Pros ended up being worth his while, as it turned out.  Studio Pros helped him bring the music bouncing around in his head into fruition and helped satisfy Alter’s inner musical control freak, all in a manner so efficient he believes it couldn’t have happened had he not used the service.  “I always have a demo,” he explains.  “I have a home setup, and I do the demo and get it set arrangement-wise.  Then I upload that when I’m ready, along with lyrics and instructions.”  Alter then takes the results of Studio Pro’s studio musicians and uses them as part of his creative process, adding new instruments and parts himself as he is struck by new inspiration.

And where did that inspiration come from?  Besides Alter’s musical influences of early ’70s and late ’60s music (”All the old classic rock stuff is heavily embedded in my brain,” as he explains), he also found his muse from the world-class session players he got with Studio Pros.  “The musicianship, the professional ability did catch me by surprise,” he says.  Alter was impressed by how tight everything sounded, despite the fact that his “band” he was collaborating with was internet based.  Another perk was that everything was dead on with a click track, making it simple for him to add his own instruments and extra tracks after the fact.

Alter was invigorated by the collaborative process, despite the fact that the musicians were based out of Los Angeles and he was in Ontario, Canada.  “I love the process of being able to be intimately involved in all of it, and I love that constant 48 hour turnaround,” he says.  “You’ve just gotta have some confidence.  You have to go into it saying, ‘this is what i want.’  I’ve loved it, and everyone’s been very receptive.”

Taking full advantage of Studio Pros‘ versatility, Alter was able to have several alternate mixes for his songs: a mastered version, an un-mastered version, as well as different variations of the instruments in his mixes and all of the individual tracks for each of his songs.  “That gives you a lot of flexibility, because you don’t know exactly what you’re gonna do with it,” he says.  And with all those options, the sky is the limit for Alter, who is using his music to give a little something back: he is launching a company called Vigour Records, which features music from people like himself: health professionals who are also serious musicians.  The company also explores the relationship between health and music, and will give half of its proceeds back to health charities.

Vigour Records is being launched with Alter’s first full album, which features several Studio Pros tracks and is entirely mastered by Studio Pros.  While keeping himself busy with this new, one-of-a-kind company, Alter also plans to keep spreading the word on Studio Pros.  In his own words: “I think you guys are doing a great job!”

Listen to more of David’s music at his MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/davidaltermusic

Check out the official site of Vigour Records: http://www.vigourrecords.com

Click here to learn more about Studio Pros music production package.

Over a Pink Floyd-esque bed of electric and acoustic guitars, Andy Kostek’s voice adds a distinct quality to his music that goes far in defining his signature sound. “I never really considered myself a vocalist, just a guitarist,” Andy says. “With the help of Studio Pros, I’ve become more confident with the vocals.” Living in Ireland at the time, Andy came to Studio Pros to help him craft his songs when the travel demands of his job made it nearly impossible to put together a band of his own. “Using Studio Pros was born out of frustration,” he explains. Having a “virtual band” allowed him to write lyrics while he was on the road, while professional studio musicians were laying down tracks for him thousands of miles away.

Andy came from a musical family, and by age 15 he got his hands on a discarded guitar with only three strings on it. Despite only being halfway to a complete instrument, Andy “never looked back.” By the time he was 18, he bought his first electric guitar; three months later he was making more money playing music in a band than he was from working for an aircraft manufacturing company as his day job.

But while music helped pay the bills and put food on his table, Andy was faced with choosing between a career in the corporate world and a career in music by the time he hit his late 20s. “I kinda chose the safe route,” he admits. But his love for music never left him, and eventually he decided to record an album by playing every instrument himself, including guitar, drums, keys, bass, and vocals. Realizing that the songwriting and guitar playing were the only elements of the recording he genuinely enjoyed, Andy turned to Studio Pros to give his music the professional edge his debut album was missing. Rather than trying to master each instrument on his own, it allowed him to focus on what he does best: songwriting.

The process was simple: Andy would demo his songs by playing the instruments himself, then turn it over to Studio Pros to to see what world-class session musicians could bring to his music. “I had a fairly well-written song in a complete format,” he says of the recording process. When he heard the interpretations of Studio Pros’ studio musicians, his music had been taken to the next level. “It helped the song feel more fresh to me.”

Using the results to help himself break out of his own musical mold, Andy received both inspiration and professionalism from Studio Pros‘ players. “The end result was much more polished,” he says. “There was no comparison. I absolutely love the quality and standard of musicians.” Andy also appreciated that he didn’t have to compromise anything in regard to musical ability and direction like he might have had to with his own band. “You have a far larger say in the production.”

While Andy admits to having to tackle a slight learning curve when trying to work with musicians halfway across the globe, he soon came to appreciate the new perspectives and rapid turnaround time for his tracks. “It was really refreshing to have someone else’s viewpoint,” Andy says. “It was a very pleasant and trouble-free process. Having a real keyboard player who knew his instrument, the point of view he came across with was very different from mine.”

Andy’s plan for the tracks he got from Studio Pros? Between these tracks and some that he’s been working on by himself, he has enough material to release another two CDs over the next few months to add to his 2008 release, One by One. With some industry interest brewing and one of his Studio Pros songs gracing the airwaves of BBC Radio, Andy’s revival of an old hobby is now becoming a much more serious undertaking. “I don’t see this stopping,” he predicts.

He adds, “I love Studio Pros. They’re great!”

Listen to more of Andy Kostek’s music at his Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/andykostek

Click here to learn more about Studio Pros music production package.

1. You’ll need to hide all muted, inactive, midi or any other track that you didn’t intend to play in the  final mix.  Set up the files as clearly as you can by making sure the tracks are clearly labeled.
2. If you do have midi tracks, you must record the midi sounds to an audio track.
3. If you have special effects that are part of your audio track, bounce the track to a new channel by clicking: File > Bounce To > Disk.
4. * PLEASE NOTE: We will not be able to take off any processing or effects you have applied to an audio track.   We prefer to do the effects or processing for you within the mix.  Please be sure to mention the sounds you had in mind in the description of your order.  You may also include reference tracks from similar artists to clarify the “mix sound” you had in mind.

Cleaning up your session

1. Make sure to double check all edit points throughout your song and make sure there aren’t any noticeable clicks or clips that would make your edit obvious in the final mix.
2. Remove all plug ins and automation you may have applied to your song within your own session.  This will ensure that all of the files will transfer over to us correctly, and we’ll use our own plug-ins and automation techniques in our mix.
   

   

Consolidating your tracks within your session

1. When you have all your tracks lined up and ready to send to mixing, it’s important to listen to your project from start to finish.  Double check for errors in your song before consolidating your tracks.
2. Then, select all the tracks, first by clicking on the first channel, holding the shift button and clicking the last tracks, and then by clicking Apple (or control) A, and consolidate them by clicking: Edit > Consolidate.
3. Now you should see all your tracks from the same starting point in your project from beginning to end.

Exporting your tracks as wav files

1. To finally export your tracks as wav files,select all of your tracks like in step 2, and  export your   tracks by clicking:  apple+shift+K. That should open the export pop up  window.
2. Make sure to select a destination that you’ll remember at a later point, and click the Export     button.
3. To check you got everything alright, create a new Pro-tools project, drop the exported  files to the new project and play to make sure everything sounds OK.

Zip your wav files and upload

1. Congrats!   Now you have the files exported and ready to be sent to our Studio Pros’ mix engineer.
   Zip the folder of the exported files by holding control+clicking the folder, and then > add to archive (On a PC it’s: right-click on the folder and > add to archive)
2. Upload the zip file to your order.

You are finished!

If you have any questions, call me at 888-571-6878. I’d be happy to answer any questions you may have.  We look forward to mixing your songs.

Learn more about Studio Pros Mixing and Mastering Services

You have 3 options for vocals before we mix your tracks at Studio Pros:
1. Hire one of Studio Pros’ professional vocalists to sing your song.
2. Record your vocals at your home recording studio.
3. Record your vocals at a local recording studio.


If you’re planning recording your vocals at home, or at a local recording studio, here are some tips to get the best quality recordings:

Recording Vocals at Your Home Studio:

A few things to consider when you’re recording at your home studio are the environment you are recording in and the overall acoustic sound of the room you’ve chosen for your tracking room. If the room produces a lot of reflections, you may want to consider treating your room acoustically to absorb the reflections and deaden the sound. Remember that we are always adding our own processing and effects to your vocals.

Singing your tracks dynamically is good, but only up to a certain point. If the volume of your tracks is going from piercing loud to quiet as a mouse, this will make the mixing stage very difficult for the engineer. To get the maximum sound out of your vocals, control your dynamics by paying attention to volume and stepping away from the microphone if you’re singing louder than in quiet sections.

Sound quality is determined by the overall chain of sound which is your microphone, pre-amp, convertor/soundcard, then the recording software you’re using. If any one of these links in the chain is not up to par, you might want to consider taking your tracks into a local studio and have an engineer help you get a quality vocal take.

Recording Your Vocals at a Local Recording Studio:

If you wouldn’t consider yourself a technological wiz and don’t have a home recording studio, don’t worry. Save yourself money and time on home recording equipment and take your productions to a local recording studio to track your vocals for our productions.

When you’re choosing a local studio, make sure you’ve done some background checks on the engineer and facilities you’re about to use. Don’t book studio time without checking out the studio and getting referrals from friends, listening to demos or reading reviews. Get some rates from the studio and make sure it fits in your budget while still delivering a quality result. The average rate you should expect to pay for a vocal session is $50-100/hour.

Once you’ve chosen the engineer and studio to record your vocals, bring in the keyboard preview mp3 from the production as the instrumental backing track to begin recording your vocals. Once your recording is complete, you’ll then export each individual wav file of your vocal adding the 2 bars of clicks as described below.

How Do I Send the Vocal Tracks once they’re finished?

Once you’ve completed recording your vocals, export or bounce each vocal track as an individual mono wav file at 44.1 khz, 24 bit without any processing or effects. You’ll need to copy and paste the 2 bars of clicks from the keyboards preview onto each individual vocal track. Then, archive (zip) all the vocal tracks into one zip file. Log in to view the production order within your account, and upload the file.

To read more about Studio Pros vocalists.

To read more about Studio Pros Full Music Production.

Don’t waste time struggling to knock out a midi drum track on your song when you can have our studio drummer come help you!  As many of you may have realized, getting drum tracks recorded may be the most difficult step in getting your album finished.


Aaron Frisbee, a Kentucky based songwriter, fits the above description to a tee.  He was in the process of recording his album “ReDISCOVERY” and found the drums to be the hardest part to master from his pro recording Studio640 in Louisville.  Frisbee’s songs, simple and lyrical with textures that include organic guitars, pianos, strings, anolog synthesizers and layered vocals were screaming for organic live drums to compliment the sound.

“I found the Studio Pros session drummers after working endlessly to try to sequence drums with a “human” feel. I found working with the pros studio drummer was great.  We talked about the style and approach I had in mind for the album. I sent some songs to give him an idea, a vibe (Beck’s Sea Change meets Abbey Road). Many of the drum ideas were original and the recorded sounds were great. It really made it easy to for me to bring them into the final mix.”

Aaron found the pros to be very approachable in the collaboration process of his drum recordings, “I would discuss revisions with the drummer and try different versions until we got it right.  I wanted ReDISCOVERY to have a classic analog sound but with modern touches – it just made sense to record live drums on most of the songs.”

Once Aaron had a drum track that he approved and downloaded, he had no problem importing the tracks into his Pro Tools set up from his Louisville, Kentucky home recording studio.  “It was easy. In many cases I would continue to arrange the song even after the drums were cut because we were working with a click. I would also choose my favorite fills and move them around in the song. In the case of “Believe”, I reversed some drum parts for cool transition effects.”

“Drum parts are usually really hard for singer songwriters and getting quality performances and well recorded parts can take a tremendous amount of energy if you don’t work with pros. The problem is most people can’t afford to put together a team (drummer, studio and engineer) to get their drum parts. Studio Pros makes it easy and affordable and their live drum parts definitely raise the bar of the production allowing performing producers like me to focus on one or two input recordings like vocals, guitar and keys when finishing the songs.”

So follow Aaron Frisbee’s lead and send your album’s tracks on over to the Pros.  We are here to help you finish your album with a professional touch!

To buy “reDISCOVERY” go to Aaron’s website: http://www.frisbeemusic.com/

Frisbee will be touring this year as well, so check up on tour dates and locations on his site.

Click here to order Studio Pros drum tracks.

Born in Lanikai, Hawaii and later relocating to Laguna Beach, California, you can hear the sound of the ocean in Murphy’s voice and the influences of his laid back beach lifestyle. Sean got in touch with us at Studio Pros and needed to add a more professional edge to the demo of his latest work of art “Dream To Be”.


First finding out about Studio Pros in a recording magazine, Sean took the plunge and sent out his song to the Pros. The studio musicians layed down the backing tracks to support his Jack Johnson-esque vocals which he recorded at his home studio, “I thought the musicians made very creative yet tasteful choices in keeping with the spirit of the song.”

Collaborating with the Studio Pros production team and studio musicians was Sean’s first try at producing his music online, “I actually was very surprised about how easy this was to do, and how great my music has turned out. It is very efficient in comparison to going to the studio.”

Sean didn’t stop at just letting the studio musicians come in and lay down the instrumental tracks, he also turned to our one and only Racquel Roberts to compliment his laid back melodies with her soothing backing vocals.

Sean is currently working with a New York based record label, and has continued to work with the Studio Pros on more productions. Keep your eye out for Sean in the future, as he has high hopes of hitting the road with his songs and bringing a bit of sunshine to your town.

You can check out more of Sean’s music at: www.myspace.com/seanmurphyguitar

Click here to learn more about Studio Pros music production package.

I’ve collaborated with singer/songwriters and recording artists from around the world and a universal question seems to be “Now What Do I Do?”

If this question has at one time or another crossed your mind, you are not alone. This is a common question that we deal with on a daily basis at Studio Pros.

Writing is not the only thing that goes along with being an artist, but getting a great quality recording is just as important. If you have a hit song, and a bad recording, you aren’t doing yourself any favors. Being a songwriter takes hard work, and we’re here to make it EASIER for you.


It’s important to be confident in your product before you even get to the stage of sending it off to publishing companies . Are you 100% sure your song is finished? Make sure that you are not rushing your recording process and have taken the necessary time to get your project finished. The Pros can help you get a broadcast quality demo to send out to A&R representatives, record labels, and publishing companies. We’re here to help you get your songs forwarded or meet that goal of making that debut album you’ve been putting off for too long.

You need to invest in your product and be confident that it is recorded correctly. As we all would love to record from start-finish ourselves, there comes a point in a songwriter’s life where they have to realize that there sometimes are players out there that bottom line “are just better at it”. If you write a killer song, but aren’t the best guitarist, send it to the Studio Pros session guitarist. You’ll still be involved, but just getting a higher quality sound. There is no shame in this. Even the stars do this.

Instead of being frustrated with the A&R people who aren’t biting at “your song”, think back to the source of the problem. Are the songs as well thought out as they should be? Are you keeping in mind the current market for your work? Are your recordings up to par?

At Studio Pros we keep our ears open to current sounds, and apply them to your songs to bring them an up-to-date twist. We know the songwriting market and keep our ears fresh to the current mixing sounds artists are using. Send us a song you’ve written and try it out for yourself.

Many singer/songwriters have had the satisfying feeling of getting their songs produced at a professional level after using our music production service at Studio Pros. We hope you will be our next success.

Click here to find out more about the Studio Pros music production service.