1. Pray... prayer is the foundation of your session. As soon as you find out your session day and time, begin praying for the studio engineer and musicians. Please pray that the Lord would help us to be faithful with the gifts and talents that He gave us and that He would give you grace and peace to do your very best for His glory.
2. Calm your nerves... Come ready to have fun! Without a doubt the number one problem most singers have when they do a session is overcoming their anxiety. Let us do the worrying for you. We have been professionally recording all types and styles of Gospel Music since 1981, and with that much experience you can trust us to get you through virtually any problem you should encounter during your session. You can rest assured that we are going to do everything we can to make sure your new recording turns out excellent! Relax, and if anyone has to pull out their hair ... let it be us ...... (Mark don't have much hair anyway!)
3. Memorize Your Songs... We have found that almost every singer we work with sings with more feeling when they don't have to read the lyrics. Try to know your songs by heart. This will no doubt give you more confidence once you're in the studio.
4. Demo Tape... When you are going to be using a studio band, we will need a recording of the songs you would like us to do for you at least 4 to 6 weeks before your session. Preparing your demo is really quite simple. If you normally sing with prerecorded soundtracks, simply make us a copy of the DEMO recording of your soundtrack (the cut with the lead or DEMO vocal already recorded in it) either on a CD, Cassette or Mini-Disc. If you do not have a soundtrack for a particular song you would like to record, but you do have it on a CD, cassette or something else, just transfer that recording to your demo. If you do not have a copy of the song you want to record, you will either need to have someone play it for you while you sing it or just sing it acapella!
   
   Don't worry to much about how it sounds because if you could make a great tape in your living room, all of us here at Harvest Gospel Studio would be without a job! We do suggest that if you are recording the songs live that you make the music as loud or louder than the singing on your demo. The reason for this is so your producer can hear all the chord changes in your music. For demo purposes your singing is just to help him know where he is in the song.
   
   It is also helpful if your demo is laid out in the order you would like to record the songs the day of your session. This does not have to be the order they will appear on your CD's, but it should be in a good order for singing. You may want to start with an easy song to sing, then work from your vocally hardest to your easiest songs.
5. Song Order... Make a tentative list of the order you would like to see your songs appear on your CD.
6. Lyric sheets... If you will be using our back up vocalists on your session, please bring at least 3 lyric sheets of each song you will be needing them on. This will save a substantial amount of time in the studio.
7. Recording with prerecorded soundtracks... The only way Harvest Gospel Studio will ever do a recording with prerecorded soundtracks is if the rights to use the tracks have been properly leased from the soundtrack company. For anyone to record a session without doing this is not only highly unethical, but it is also very illegal. We have business relationships with some of the nations top soundtrack companies, and we will be happy to assist you in obtaining the rights to use soundtracks for your session. Please call for details.
8. Photography... Go ahead and plan to have the pictures ready for your new CD. If you have a professional photographer do the work for you, our graphic artist will need a release from that particular photography studio before he can proceed with your project. We prefer to have digital photos in the very highest resolution possible. The average CD project has two or three photos on it so you have our permission to get creative!
9. Royalties... Harvest Gospel Studio does not take care of obtaining the mechanical license for you to record a song written by someone else. It is the responsibility of you, the artist, to do this. We do not pay the royalties for you. Continue reading if you would like more information on how to go about obtaining the licensing for the songs you would like to record.
   
   **Even if this isn't your first project this page can help.

How And Why Should I Pay Royalties?

By all means, one of the most misunderstood aspects of recording is how and why to pay royalties, and how to obtain the mechanical license to legally record someone else's song. In a nutshell, we will try to help clarify some of the most frequently asked questions.

When you record someone else's song, you have a legal obligation to secure a license to use their material. The theory is that you are making money from their song, so why shouldn't they make some money too? After a song has been written, most writers will assign their song to a publishing company. It is the publishing companies job is to promote the song, get it recorded, and consequently, through payment of royalties to the publisher, make money for themselves and the writer. They are sort of the middle man.

When you choose a song to record, you need to then find out who the publisher of the song is. There are several ways to track down the publisher, all of witch require some time and a little effort on your part. If you sing with pre-recorded soundtracks, a call to the soundtrack company can usually help you find the publisher of that particular song. (They are supposed to be paying royalties on that song too!) If the song you want to record is on an old album or tape, the publisher's name is supposed to be on the recording somewhere, usually followed by the name of the performing rights society the publisher is affiliated with. (ASCAP, SESAC, or BMI) Usually a call to one of these organizations can help you find the publisher. If the publishers name is not readily available, sometimes a call to one of these three places with the song title can help.

If you are recording a very old song, the copyright may be expired, as in the case of"Amazing Grace". You can record this song and sell as many copies as you can and never have to pay a dime. The song is considered "public domain" (PD). However, just because a song is old, doesn't mean the copyright is expired. Many have been renewed throughout the years and are still in effect. You will still need to check each song.

Once the publisher has been found, in your initial contact with them, you should explain that you intend to record X number of copies of their song, and you need to secure a Mechanical License on the song for your recording. The publisher or their agent will then issue this license and send it to you along with a bill at the current royalty rate (roughly $.09 cents per copy) times the number of pieces you will be selling. So you see, it really don't cost you that much money, and though it is not always an easy task to accomplish, certainly the peace of mind in knowing you have done the right thing will make all this effort worth while. Here are a few links that may help you in your quest to find that illusive publisher.

• ASCAP
• SESAC
• BMI
• Integrated Copyright Group Inc.
• The Harry Fox Agency
• Church Copyright Administration

• Mike Blanton and Evidence
Columbus, OH

• Jesse Humphreys
Charleston,WV

• Grace Baptist College Teen Choir
Gaylord, MI

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