session musicians - hourly rates/royalties....

[jkhuri44]

yo gang,

i am just about to start recording a session vocalist for our album. He has just given me his hourly rate.

I was wondering whether once the vocals are recorded, and the album is mixed/mastered and distributed (hopefully) whether he is entitled any money made from the recording in the form of royalties, or whatever else...

or does this all pend on what our contractual agreement is??

A curious JK.

[Kris]

Generally speaking, your session vocalist is enetering into a "work for hire" situation and therefore has no claim to any future royalties. But, unless you iron it all out before hand, it is possible that somewhere down the line it could get messy. So, have the vocalist sign a "side player" agreement whereby he/she agrees that their services are for a once only fee.

Here is a link to a website that sells stock contracts for a decent price.

http://www.musiccontracts.com/store/cus ... oductid=34

That's the one you want. Of course, you may need to chnage it a little to reflect your specific circumstaces.

***I am not a lawyer and am not qualified to give legal advice***

Good luck.

[jkhuri44]

thanks kris!

this is a good start... : )

[jkhuri44]

ok, back to this...

do you think $100 dollars an hour is a fair rate for a session musician (vocalist)??...
or is this fee (as with other stuff) always remain up to the performer.

I doubt there is an industry standard for this kinda stuff...

also, i think I know the answer to this one before i ask it based on what others have said in another thread re. "the price of services", but if I am a student studying music production, do you think it would be fair for me to expect the person I am working with to be more "sympathetic" when giving me their rates?

[wez]

I doubt there is an industry standard for this kinda stuff...

well there kinda is.... almost every PRO session person i've worked with or known of has charged around $250 'per session'. they're usually pretty flexible about what a 'session' is, but it's usually an afternoon, or an evening, ie 3-4 hours. as far as discounts go, well most of these guys make less than i do so think about it before asking. most people are more likely to give you a bit more time (maybe even a whole day) rather than charge less.

bigger names will of course charge bigger money but rarely more than about $350. one piece of advice - sort out the money well in advance, make sure there is no confusion over the terms of the deal. musicians so often hate the business/wrangling side of things and will give you a much better service if there are no lingering problems or bad vibes over money.

oh and to answer your question, yes $100 an hour is good rate... unless you're getting marcia hines in or something.

[Kurt]

I have friends who have done the music production course at tafe, which runs alongside performance/songwriting and music business. The production students record the performance students collaborations as a matter of course. Great practical experiance for the tech guys, credits under the belts of the performers and no money changing hands at all.

Surely as a student you could find another student (maybe even one who can sing!) who'd be happy to do it for a credit in the cd cover?

[jkhuri44]

things get slightly tricky when you're doing experimental music, and need a world music singer : (.....hence the trouble i am having...

alas!

[jkhuri44]

ohh..

my first post disappeared! damnit..
thanks for the reply wez (and kurt)

greatly appreciated guys : )

[Kurt]

Hope it goes well ;)

[Linear]

Here's my take/experience on session musicians.

If you're getting a competent and experienced player in to do a specific part, it's usually $250-$350 per call. A call is usually 3 hours. The thing about these guys is they just more or less play what you tell them to play, and don't have much input in the structure, writing or arrangement (i mean, how much input could you have in 3 hours...)

If you're getting in someone who could specifically contribute to the song, then they usually charge per track. I've seen people charge anywhere from $500 up to $2000 per track. Per track means they (within reason) work until the track is complete and the producer/artist is happy.

Like everything in life, you get what you pay for. If I was paying this sort of money, then the expectation would be that they could come in and nail it 2nd or 3rd take.

Chris

[jkhuri44]

yeh, so i have come to realise these prices are the usual :( and a rude shock to my student ass!

-----

i am coming at this whole thing as a student/recording my own album at uni.

however, i understand the whole issue of "paying for things" and the "world not owing me anything".

Would you guys think it unreasonable to ask someone to work on the project pro bono, and sign a contract to share in royalties once the band, and if the band is making money...Assuming that the singer is excited and into the project...

[Martin]

for a student project, i say that could get messy....

as has been suggested, there are a TON of excellent singers out there, students, trying to make a name for themselves that would probably just love the experience of recording and working on your project

my suggestion is to dedicate a day, make up a flyer/ad explaning what you're doing and put it up on the notice boards at Uni's in your area, music schools etc etc

i'd be very suprised if you didn't get a bite