as you know, everyone has their off-days. well today is mine. scheduled to record today, my breath support, tone quality, and ability to control dynamics seems to have gone down the tubes completely. so my recording, which must be in tomorrow (today was the only day the studio was available), will sound like poop. i have another 45 minutes in here until i need to eat, but does anyone have any ideas for a quick fix? im practically desperate!

maybe you are just nervous?
i would tell you to just relax a litle. think about something else than the recording and maybe when you come back to whats really happeing you'll feel better
when this happens to me, i say to myself that i have done it well before and that there is not a single reason why i can't do it today.

Probably nothing you haven't heard before. Try relaxing, changing to a piece you know you play well, or play your fast or diffucult pieces slowly. Do things that build confidence. I wouldn't try to work out too many problems right before my recording session. It could cause you to doubt yourself.

Good luck!

This comment's probably too late to help, but there's no fast fix that I know of for days like that....They happen to the best of us on occasion, and we just have to work past them. Maybe this audition tape won't be the best you could have made, but given the circumstances, it doesn't sound like there's a lot you can do. For next time, you might try to find a studio with more flexible hours so that you don't get stuck trying to make a recording the day before it's due...That way, if anything goes wrong, you'll have another chance to fix it. I hope the rest of the recording session went well for you!

i have those days sometimes. but when i do i listen to some nice recordings of james galway and I think to myself, he must have off days to. It really makes me do better. but maybe it is just in my mind that makes me do better?

don't sweat this, sometimes, even with a slight head cold, the ears get slightly plugged and one can't hear properly, everything sounds flat, step away and come back to it..but if you are scheduled to do something, then do it, that's the way it is in the real world..

yeah, it sounded horrible. honestly. i listened to it today and went "holy crap, was that me?"

even though its out of my hands now, i made a phone call and was given the opportunity to redeem myself by sending in an additional recording. however i must do it on my laptop (ew).

all I can add is to be as prepared as you can be, I have been on 17 hr plane trips, had jet lag, and had to perform and lecture after 4 hrs sleep, not to mention different water, food, etc...it can be horrible, but we all do our best...

don't worry about your laptop souns just play to the best of your ability, also try and get a external microphone (creative labs ,or something identicle) it will make quite a bit of differance

Don't worry, we all have bad days.

I don't have them that often anymore but I still have them. Even the "machine" gets a little rusty once in a while.

Make sure for the next time around that you practice the rep daily for a month or so before the taping session. That will make all the difference in the world.

Good luck,
Phil