Music Business

Studio Business: Session Rates

The Music Telegraph | Text 2019/01/08 [16:05]
Music Business

Studio Business: Session Rates

The Music Telegraph| 입력 : 2019/01/08 [16:05]

▲ The Rate Card



 

Studio Business: Session Rates

 

 

The Rate Card (The Book Rate)

This is the full holy rate, as published in the brochure or rate card. New clients & corporate clients (especially advertising agencies, record labels, publishers and film companies) will be required to pay his or her full price rate. However, once a client establishes a regular work pattern and builds credibility with the owner, discount rates are feasibility.

 

 

 

The Lockout

This is the most expensive of all studio booking procedures. Under this arrangement, the client(s) reserves the studio 24 hours per day, 7 days per week over a period of several weeks or even months. You’re paying whether you are there or not and can expect exclusive usage of the facility and it’s engineers upon demand. You’re really leasing the studio for a finite period of time. Clients with a generous recording budget and in need of privacy will request a lockout. The act can leave the studio its control room and their instruments completely set-up, then return and resume recording (or mixing), without interruption. This arrangement is especially favored when a client/act/producer is involved in the creation of complex and/or delicate mixes which cannot be completed within a 10- or 12-hour period, but which might take-up several sessions. Also, a band that uses tremendously expensive and/or “classic” instruments and synthesizers will opt for this booking procedure to prevent the equipment being moved, tampered with, or possibly damaged.

 

 

 

Block Time

If you book studio time in blocks ranging from 8 hours up to weeks and months of 8- or 10-hour session/days, you’ll be offered discounts accordingly. Booking one 8- to 10-hour session/day might bring you a 5 or 10% discount, whereas a 20- to 25-hour block over the course of 2 days might bring you a 15 to 20% discount. If you book 7 8-hour days, it’s possible to get 1/3 off the regular holy rate (33 1/3% discount).

 

 

 

Off-Peak

If you’re prepared to record between Midnight and 9 AM, it’s possible to get discounts of 50% or even 75% the rate card. A studio that usually costs $200 per hour can come down as low as $50/hr. But beware. Insist that the engineers assigned to your session haven’t worked for more than 4 hours prior to your session. You do not want “burned out” ears for your session. If possible, try to bring your own engineer. Often studios give you barely trained engineers for an off-peak session. Of course, your choice of a freelance engineer to supplement the team must meet with the studio manager’s approval.

 

 

 

Demo Rate

If a producer and/or an act has had some sort of record sales success, or they have a positive reputation and seem likely to succeed, some studios will offer their facilities free of charge, except for the engineer’s hourly fee. They do this to gain record credits, encourage acts and/or producers whose music they like and believe in, and sometimes as an artistic relief from their usual day-to-day commercial recording business. Unless otherwise agreed upon, all tapes from these sessions must remain at the studio, future business generated by the artist from these recordings must be recorded at the studio, and also a share of royalties fro that future product is expected. All in all, this is a great deal with very little up front investment expected with only a payback obligation later on when, it’s hoped, you’ll have a budget from a record label or publisher from which to make good on your pledge to the studio.

 

 

 

Speculative (Spec Booking)

This deal is almost identical to the demo-rate, except that the engineer comes free too. She or he will expect some production credits and creative input, so choose carefully. Select an engineer whose music tastes and style are complimentary to yours, and one who can offer additional skills as well. Many engineers are also musicians (or they are not worthy of your attention!), singers, MIDI-programmers, music arrangers, conductors or a combination of some or all of these. If you’re prudent, patient and thorough, this can be a wonderful deal. Engineers gain good reputations fast by doing spec deals.

 

 

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