Notes on Recording Two
CDs
The Unexpected Party
Notes on Recording Two
CDs
We recorded our first CD "By The River" in Bucyrus, Ohio, at Bob Bellemy's Windridge Studio. Bob is a great hammered dulcimer player who records his own music. His studio is the second floor of a converted barn. Bob lives on a farm and when we looked out of the window of the studio through the trees we saw the Upper Sandusky River. What a fantastic place to record.
We would pick several songs to record and travel to his studio and travel on a Saturday or Sunday to record. Usually we left with several songs down on tape. Bob had his studio soundproofed and he used baffles throughout the space to separate the instruments so there wouldn't be feedback on the individual tracks. Bob had a lot of homemade quilts which he put on the baffles and hung on the walls.
We would record a tune several times until we got a take that each of us was happy with. Then the fine tuning would take place. Bob was so good that if anyone made a mistake, he could go back to the tape and then which ever one of us it was would play along with the tape and Bob would then punch in and out over the bad spot.
If any of us wanted to play more than one instrument on a song, we would play the song with everyone else the way we usually did. Then that individual would put on the headphones and play along with the tape on a second instrument. With so many tracks, you could do more than what you do playing live.
We had to travel quite a distance to record at Bob's studio so we decided to record one whole weekend. We got there early on a Saturday and set up our instruments and recorded all day. Then instead of packing up and going home, we left out instruments there and spent the night in a local motel. We then got up early Sunday morning, had breakfast, and were ready to record again. This made for a long two days, but we really accomplished a lot. Because of the long hours, it was nice to take a break when we could.
This project stretched over several months. Not only did we have to practice long hours, we also had to spend long hours in the studio. The time actually seemed to go quickly because of our surroundings and Bob's laid back nature. With the kind of music we play, traveling to the country was the perfect atmosphere for our first CD. You couldn't ask for anything better than being surrounded by nature outside, and family heirloom quilts inside. It made what could have been a very harrowing experience very relaxed.
After the initial recording was done, we still had a lot to do. The tracks all had to be mixed to get the right sound that we wanted. Once this was done we then took the final digital tape to another recording studio where the mastering was done. Here they make sure there are no highs and lows that jump around and put the tracks in the right order and put in the pauses between the tracks. The result of this was a glass master which we sent to a reproduction company that actually burned the CDs, printed the artwork, put them in the plastic cases and finally shrink wrapped them as the final product.
Fortunately for us, Jeff Boddy, Jim and Joyce's son, was an expert in the field of computer art. He did all the artwork for both CDs. What a great job! Thanks Jeff!
Our second CD we recorded with Scott Taylor, who was the first bass player in our group. Because of time issues he had to leave the group, but was still very interested in recording us. He had all the professional equipment we needed. This time we went to record at his house which was in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
This gives you a little idea of what we went through to make our CDs. It was a great deal of work, but it was well worth it. We have two recordings that we are very proud of.
For playing dates, bookings and information about the group contact: Greg or Joanne at 440-235-1327, Jim or Joyce at 440-235-2499, or Jean at 440-323-3442.
