I still don't feel comfortable calling it an "industry"...

Anyway recently I've been in contact with some people in LA who claim that right now is a bad time to be getting into recording and studio work as everything is going tits because of internet piracy etc. Personally I'm still going to do it because it makes me happy and I'd do it for free. I'm not interested in making my fortune doing it. If I wanted to be rich I'd go back to the electronics industry.
I just wondered what everyone thinks about the change and how we should adapt to keep our jobs. Also if anyone has heard anything else related about the industry I'd be interested to read.

I think what those people were telling you was that they were afraid of what might happen to their jobs. Loving recording, and doing whatever you can to facilitate the process of providing quality service to bands you respect...well, that is something that has come of age, and not a moment too soon. Despite the reams of substandard fare that have been recorded as a result...

I heard they got robots that can do this stuff now.

Mangwisto wrote:I still don't feel comfortable calling it an "industry"...

Anyway recently I've been in contact with some people in LA who claim that right now is a bad time to be getting into recording and studio work as everything is going tits because of internet piracy etc. Personally I'm still going to do it because it makes me happy and I'd do it for free. I'm not interested in making my fortune doing it. If I wanted to be rich I'd go back to the electronics industry.
I just wondered what everyone thinks about the change and how we should adapt to keep our jobs. Also if anyone has heard anything else related about the industry I'd be interested to read.

I could be wrong but it seems like now is a bad time to be anything.

Every week I read about tens of thousands of people being let go and jobs opening up overseas. There are a million mediocre rock bands, why start another one? Even if you wanted to be a doctor, malpractice insurance is insane right now. And graduate level tuition for English majors is apparently putting these folks in the poorhouse.

That being said, I am in no way a pessimist. I'm trying to do some engineering work at a facility that is apparently doing away with their music department. (Yikes!) This belief, that one should do what one wants to do, is probably one of the biggest reasons that I am so completely in debt right now. But despite everything I am an optimist. I feel the need to push on despite the current status of our "industry" and the economical climate.

If you're doing music because it makes you happy, then you have nothing to worry about. It's easier now than ever before to distribute and showcase your music (via the Interwebs). Besides, it could be argued that MP3 piracy hurts big labels more than anyone--I think it can help artists by getting their music heard, and you don't even have to pay a program director.

Of course there are zillions of band and there's the needle in the haystack phenomenon. But I don't necessarily agree that it's a bad time to be in a band.

I think there will be a leveling effect.
More people will record at home. First demos are getting done that way. Those people will appreciate how much a good studio matters when they go to do a better product. In a sense, it is self vetting.

More people are playing music, so more people will need to record their record that has no chance of selling.

Also, even the people who are doing their indie releases in their houses need to do bed tracks in a studio. As long as drums are ornery, there will be a need for studios, even for just demos of the more polished variety.

What people *do* at studios will change, but I'm optimistic that the good studios run by good people will survive if they get creative - assuming they actually want to.

-A

Also, since recording resources are much more accessible now, you have more of an opportunity to build a reputation for yourself as someone who knows how to do certain things well, as opposed to the classic 'well, he's a dick, but he has the 24-track deck and the Pultecs'...

We do mostly "acoustic" music, classical, jazz, folk, bluegrass, etc.

Business here has increased considerably over the past year, as most of the better musicians who play these sorts of instruments understand the value of good-sounding rooms and the skill of an engineer who understands their style of music and instrumentation.

And a lot of these musicians are half my age, the kids seem to be getting into things other than guitar, bass, drum variations. I think it would be wise to study recording techniques for various acoustic instruments, I hear all the time from clients who have gone to more or less "rock" oriented studios where the engineers have no clue on how to properly mic things like mandolins, banjos, basses.

Mangwisto wrote: Personally I'm still going to do it because it makes me happy and I'd do it for free. I'm not interested in making my fortune doing it.

If you're just starting out, usually the best way to learn is to record your friends for free or record your own material.

If you're at a skill level in which you're being asked to work, are being sought out because you have something to offer, or you're just the only guy around with a studio, I urge you not to do it for free.

You don't even have to charge alot, and you could even work out something to trade with the band for your work. Just don't go around doing it for free. Recording for free devalues the role that a studio or an engineer plays in making records.

Of course, you can't get "rich" as an engineer these days, but if there is absolutely NO perceived value to the profession from the point of view of bands and artists, it just contributes to a worse climate for recording music.

Has this ever been a "good industry"? Was there ever a time where recording engineers and producers outside of radio stations and media companies were a good bet, like plumbers or glaziers?