iieiiei1eWrkers - Leicester Research Archive - University of Leicester

from either the songwriter or the producer. Rehearsal begins once the musical
arrangement is ready.
The actual recording takes a maximum of three days and is done either in a
company studio or a hired one. This is possible because of the division of
labour involved. Recording sessions are arranged according to the various parts
of the music, the instruments, and the availability of the musicians. Singing is
recorded without live accompaniment although on special productions, the
producer may ask for well-known musicians or soloists. This however, must he
agreed on during the planning stage since it raises costs.
All recordings are then mixed and edited by the sound engineer under close
supervision from the producer. The post-production stage takes no more than a
week. The finished product is a dummy tape that must be approved by the
administrators and the production team. This is to ensure that the original
concept is properly realised and to make final selections from the several
recorded versions. The order of the songs on the cassette, the promotional
gramophone record as well as the cassette sleeve are matched to the overall
image. The master tape produced after the post-production meeting concludes
the work of the publisher.
As will be evident from this description, the key person in music production is
the producer whose creativity and technical skill transforms 'conccpls' into
successful hits. As a result, the earlier notion of songwriter-as-auteur has given
way to elevation of the producer. However, the first generation of successful
producers such as Raywat Bhutinan of Grammy or Lop Burirat previously with
Azona, are also songwriters. The difference is that the new auIeu, are contract
members of the company whereas most songwriters are free-lance artists.
A similar trend has also occured with the singers. Independent perforniers
especially if they are new must now seek contracts with music companies. The
star singers, whose live performances are their livelihood, are also affected by
the new mode of music production as Cholati Tarnthong explained: 12
"Sin t'ers nowadays inns! be institutiotialised. They nuts! belong to one
camp or the other. There are only 4-5 large companies who
monopohise the Lukioong industry... If a singer is successful. he or she
does no! have to belong to any company. When you are popular the
company comes to you. -
12 Interview in Changyai's "CliolatiTarnihong: Nakiang Pleng Luktoong
Luednonikc,n", Ban Mai Ru Roei, 2:6. p.61.
103