Should I (the Artist) Attend The Mastering Session

Should I Attend The Mastering Session

Having the artist attend the session can often be useful for both parties, and make for effective and fast communication. However, it is not absolutely essential that the artist attends the session and it is commonplace that mastering sessions and communications are dealt with via FTP (file transfer protocol) and email/telephone respectively.

What If I Can’t Attend?

As mentioned, it is not essential that artist attends the mastering session. There are certain things that should be provided to the mastering engineer, however:

· The sequence – This is the song order of your album. There are many possible orders and this should be decided and given to the mastering engineer before the session.

· Notes – any questions and concerns you may have. For example, perhaps you feel one song is too quiet, or the vocal is not quite bright enough, or you want a warm and darker master. Let the mastering engineer know this, as he will otherwise take lead from what he is hearing and assume that it is the creative intention of the artist and producer.