Stepping Stone Sound

The first step is to send us a basic recording of your song, either as a digital audio file like a WAV or MP3 through our online dropbox, or on an audio CD through the mail (or in person, if you are nearby). This is called a worktape, and it can be as basic as you singing a melody into a digital recorder of some kind, but it is usually a rough home recording of you (or someone you know) singing the song while playing a guitar or piano. Once we receive the recording, we will listen to it and then contact you to discuss production ideas, arrangement, budget, etc. At this point, you will choose which production package suits your needs, and we will email you an invoice that can be paid online, or you can mail us a check or money order. Once we receive your payment, we will take care of everything from arranging the song to hiring the musicians, as well as mixing and mastering the final track. We will communicate directly with you at each major step to update you on the progress and to give you the opportunity to offer your input into the creative process.

On average, it takes about 3 weeks to completely finish a song once we receive a worktape, but this can vary depending on several factors such as musicians' schedules or other projects that may be in line ahead of you.

Absolutely. Each song production package includes a lead and backing vocal, or 2 hours of recording time to use as you please. If you would like to perform on the recording, just let us know early on in the production process so we can organize our other musicians around it.

Song production is a generic term that relates to the process of taking a single song from a basic, stripped down "worktape" version to a fully arranged and produced final recording suitable for pitching to publishers or A&R reps, or for offering for commercial sale. This service is primarily used by songwriters and solo artists who do not have the benefit of a full band to back them up. The various instrument (and sometimes vocal) parts are performed by session musicians hired specifically for that particular song or project, and all costs associated with recording, production, mixing and mastering are generally bundled into a single fee.

Album production refers to the process of working with an artist on developing a larger collection of their material to be recorded as an album. This process is more extensive than song production in that the producer not only works with the artist or band to fine tune the material and performances during the pre-production phase, but also coordinates all other aspects of the project, including the recording, mix and master sessions as well as album packaging development and CD duplication. The fee for this service is usually in addition to recording fees and other project expenses incurred by the client, and can be either a lump sum or an hourly fee, depending on the nature and scope of the project.

For mixing, you will need the original multi-track recordings as either a Pro Tools session folder or as WAV, OMF or AIFF files. These can usually be provided by the studio where you recorded your tracks. If your music was recorded into Pro Tools, it's as simple as burning the Pro Tools session folder to a CD, DVD, flash drive or external hard drive, or uploading it to our online drop box. If your music was recorded in a DAW other than Pro Tools, or if it was recorded to digital or analog tape, the process is a little more involved and there are additional steps that must be taken to ensure that everything lines up again correctly once the tracks are imported into Pro Tools. Please let your recording engineer know that you plan to have your tracks mixed elsewhere, or contact us for specific instructions.

For mastering, all we need are the unmastered stereo files that were created by your mix engineer, preferably as 24 bit WAV or AIFF files. PLEASE NOTE: It is very important that the files you send us to master have not been subjected to extreme compression or brick wall limiting during the mix stage, as these processes cannot be undone after the fact, and will affect the quality of the final product. Also, compressed data formats such as MP3, WMA, etc. are generally not suitable for mastering as the encoding process causes a loss of fidelity that cannot be undone. If you have any questions, please contact us.

PayPal is our preferred payment method, but we also accept cash, check* or money order.

*Payment by check may require a waiting period before masters are released.