Review the sound recording and music industry - Essay Example

A REVIEW OF THE SOUND RECORDING AND MUSIC INDUSTRY 15th December, 2009 Roles within the music/audio industry that require music technology and audio recording skills Anyone who works in the music/audio industry must have good listening skills, as the ability to listen very well is of great essence in the composing and order to performing of any type of music. One role in the music/audio industry that requires music technology and audio recording skills is the role of the Disc Jockey (DJ), either with live sound, as in live bands or in a recording studio.

Managers, Producers and other personnel involved in the making of decisions for record companies within the music/audio industry must have music technology and audio recording skills, as well as being able to listen effectively in the process of making decisions. Another important role in the music/audio industry that requires music technology and audio recording skills is the role of the Sound engineers. They must also possess the ability to recognise and describe the quality of musical sounds and other sounds, in order to be able to adjust and balance these sounds creatively.

“Sound engineers also need to listen for different types of distortion. Music producers need to listen for intonation and timing problems, and DJs need to refine their listening skills in order to match speeds and keys and to recognise points at which to mix.” (http://www.wolvcoll.ac.uk/international/courses/music_tech.html) The organisational process when planning and completing a music project When working in the audio/music industry, whether as a recording or creative artist, or even in a managerial or supporting role, it is vital to plan and work towards the production of effective final studio products, so that these products can be marketed to the right target audience.

Thus, during the planning of a recording session, or any music project, “effective teamwork is essential and is only possible when everyone involved understands the process.” (http://www.ehow.com/way_5471252_effective-teamwork-care-settings.html). The success of a music project depends on the way in which the project is organized. Usually, the producer, director, creative head and composer starts their session thinking about the theme and when they are clear about their goal, real work starts.

In some projects, lyrics work begins after the tunes are composed and in some projects composition of tunes follows lyrics. It is the work of producer to select studio that best fits the needs. The composer builds up his team, and prepares track sheets by taking lyrics from the writers. These track sheets will then be distributed to musicians, key board player and other team members. It is the duty of sound engineer to operate and synchronize equipments like mixing console, multi-track recorder, and microphones to get the desired acoustic effects.

The microphones are to be fixed to every desk and it is to be checked that everything works fine and are connected to the mixer. From recent years, a new role called programmer is created in the industry. Programmers design music by programming different devices which are used in rock, pop music and other music genres. Nowadays, Mixers, synthesizers and similar equipments are now being replaced with large computers named Digital work stations that makes work easy, where all the work done by musicians and his team is unified and recorded.

The composer of the project listens to it and if he presents the same to director and producer. If they are too satisfied with it, the recording can be finalised otherwise, revision of work is done with suggested changes. The keeping of clear and accurate financial records for the project The keeping of clear and accurate financial records for music projects is a very essential part of accountability and the management of the project finances. Those who are responsible for keeping the financial records in any organisation within the music industry must understand enough about accounting and bookkeeping to make sure that the financial management for music/recording projects are based on accurate and relevant financial and accounting information.

This is what makes it possible for organisations in the music industry to monitor their financial strategy and remain financially viable, because keeping accurate financial records for projects will determine if project finances are being well spent in pursuing the achievement of set objectives. References http://www.ehow.com/way_5471252_effective-teamwork-care-settings.html . http://www.wolvcoll.ac.uk/international/courses/music_tech.html