You’re a great singer or musician. You might also be a great songwriter or be attempting to help a friend or family member. But none of those things individually or combined will result in you getting a great recording project or the Wide-Area Marketing that you need and desire. Beyond your talent, there are some major factors which will play a big role in determining the quality of your project.

One is the production and musical arrangement for all of your songs. Creative, appropriate, production and arranging gives your songs an authentic feel and sound and is what keeps your project from sounding like dozens of others that you’ve already heard.

Another hugely important factor is the work which is done after your part as a singer or musician is finished- the editing, mixing, and mastering process. The mixing process, especially, is what determines more than anything else, how much your recording will actually sound like a professionally produced record.

Only the basics of mixing and mastering can be taught or learned. And just as with singing, playing or songwriting, every engineer who does mixing and mastering has a different level of talent, experience, and ability with which to make your record sound its best. It’s not about equipment, software, lights or meters. Many artists who record, overlook and don’t prioritize this fact when choosing a studio.

Another critical factor is the amount of time and work that the producer or engineer is willing to dedicate to your project. In music recording, the faster the process goes, the more likely it is that your project is not of the quality that it should and could have been. And that’s the case in the large majority of recording projects.

Today there is an abundance of affordable recording equipment and recording studios and an abundance of people who do music recording. Virtually as many as there are artists. But there is not an abundance of actual producers, arrangers, recording, mixing and mastering engineers. More than anything else, the quality of your project depends on how you make those choices.