Alyssa Martyn - Vocalist and Actress

Alyssa came to Flipside to record a professional demo that would help her catch the attention of producers and directors looking for something special...

Helen Makin - Singer Songwriter (Gift Recording package)

We were contacted before christmas by a friend of Helens who was enquiring about gift packages, we sorted a nice little package comprising of two 4 hour slots which was a little different to our standard packages...

Recording to a backing track : 2) The Accompanist

Sometimes you want the vibe and feel of your takes to sound natural, without all that over production. In this case you might use an accompanying musician (usually a pianist). It helps the listener to focus in on the voice without distraction. This is an approach typical for any kind of Voice demo for drama schools and vocal work.

If you're thinking about this approach it is preferable for you to find someone you know, have an existing working relationship with and can vibe off. This will all help for you to feel comfortable when in comes to laying your tracks down. An alternative is to let us find you an accompaniest. This will obviously cost you more, but we can assure quality and professionalism.

We reccomend you do the following :

1. Make sure you make time for a  few practises with the accompaniest so that you are both familiar and comfortable with the pieces, and so that you can communicate how you wish to individualise them.
2. Don't be afraid to speak your mind. You must instruct the accompaniest to perform the song as you hear it. It's your money, it's your time and everybody wants you to make the most of it.
3. Be prepared for "setup time" when you get to the studio. It's important that both the accompaniest and yourself are comfortable and have the right sound and volume. If not, the takes won't happen.
4. Consider a very basic demo recording (a phone is sufficient) from the practises so that you can both agree and remember anything that you decide. Or make copious notes! It will enable you to improve your recording technique and make sure you're happy with the format before you hit the record button!

The Pros & Cons

Pros - 

• Individual & Unique
• Can be freeform/looser timing
• Sounds natural and is great for Vocal demoes.

Cons -

• Slightly more expensive
• Need to have a good instrumentalist that you trust
• Setup time in the studio

move on to Recording to a backing track : 3) creating an instrumental