First
I would like to give you a brief history
on how this page came about. I invested in
a recording studio just for the sake of
recording my music and express my
creativity. I was not intending to make a
business out of it.
Then one day my friend Doug
Halper,
flute,
hammered-dulcimer, guitarist, pianist,
music teacher extraordinary, came to my
studio to see if we could do a session for
a song he had created for a non-profit
organization entitled Songs Of Love.
Long story short, we had a great time
creating it and that was it. Then one day,
out of the blue I received this email from
an artist by the name of Armand, whom have
spoken with Doug and asked if I was
willing to help him and his partner
Angelina record an album they have in the
works.
Here is the thing, I have never been
financially compensated for recording
anybody's music because as I said, my
studio was only for my own recordings. And
what I did with Doug was not for hire
either, it was only a favor to a friend.
And to be honest, I didn't feel
confident enough to charge them for studio
time because I didn't know if I could live
up to their standards. So they asked how
much do I charged, and I had to come up
with a figure so I said, $25 per hour. He
sends me an email back saying; "we have
never paid anything less than $50 an hour
so we would be willing to pay you that
much." I agreed.
So the first project I was presented
with was an album they wanted to call,
Follow Your Dreams. Angelina
happens to be a gifted souls with an
angelic opera voice that will blow your
mind. If you don't believe me, wait till
you hear the most amazing rendition of
Ave Maria in a second.
Their idea was to make a simple album
with just some flutes, percussion,
acoustic guitar and some vocals. The first
song he wanted to work with was called
Let Down Your Guard. That song was
supposed to be a simple keyboard and
vocals.
So they came to the studio and recorded
it. Once they left, my creativity began to
express so I mixed that song, and created
another version of the same song adding
electric guitars, bass, guitar solo, etc.,
When they came back to the studio I said
to them, "Look, I know you did not ask
me to add any instruments and extra
mixing, specially since you are paying me
by the hour. So what I did is, I created
this other version of that same song. If
you like it better, then you can pay me
for the time I put into it. If you prefer
to keep your version, that's fine with
me."
Once they
heard that new version they could not
believe their ears. Long story short, that
album was recorded with all kinds of
instruments, and it became #1 in the
New Age charts. If you want to listen
to the version of Let Down Your
Guard, simply click on the link below.
However, underneath that clip, as
promised, I invite you to listen to the
most amazing rendition of Ave Maria
sung by Angelina.
From
that point on a great relationship
developed to the point where they would
give me assignments and trusted my
creativity so much that I would record all
the instruments and arrangements in some
of the songs, in others, they already have
the idea, I simply mix it and they gave me
the freedom to add any instruments if I
felt guided to. 99% of the time they would
love it. The other 1%, they would say,
let's try this instead and the magic was
done.
I would like to share two more tracks
as an example of ideas they had and simply
presented them to me with just an acoustic
guitar. And by the way, make sure to visit
their site at:
www.ArmandAndAngelina.com
and get a copy of their CDs. And while you
are there, make sure you say hi to them
for me!
And
you haven't heard the guitar solos on
those two songs! At this point, something
happened. I developed a reputation.
Something I wasn't counting on. But the
word spread and other local artists from
the Orlando area wanted to work with me.
Then I ended up having
the privilege to work with one who's a
very gifted singer/songwriter/pianist by
the name of Lisa Firestone. I
remixed, recorded and even added
instruments to her album Be The
Hope. Make sure to visit her site at
www.LisaFirestone.com
and say hi to her.
If you wonder what am I doing now?
Continuing expanding on my creativity
through my books, speaking engagements,
online ministry and so much more. I still
play but I am not lead to do much with
that as of this moment, June, 11, 2007.
Although I do have some auditions pending
so let's see where my heart leads me next.
