[Bob Womack]

I do it all the time, with collaborations coming from all over the world - England, Germany, Columbia, Finland, etc. You can send session files (project files) if everyone uses the same DAW software. Failing that, you can export .wav files. There are some ground rules:

1. You must establish a standard for sample and bit rates so that everyone can access the files without conversion. Funky stuff happens in conversions. It just does. I wasted two hours last week importing a file from down the hall in another control room that was recorded in the wrong format. I've got the best software and I still wasted two hours!

2. You need for the first tracks to be recorded with a drummer or with a click track. A click makes entrances and exits predictable. Without it, it is very hard to follow another player. It can be as simple as putting a mechanical metronome in front of a mic and running it the length of the song!

3. If you use a click track it is helpful to print the click track to an audio track. Give two measures of click before the song starts.

4. Transmit via an email the beats per minute of the project.

5. Export all files from the same start and finish points. Use the first click as the left-hand side export point and the last audio (including any reverb) as the right-hand export point. By this methodology, the receiving recordist merely aligns all the imported audio clips to a common location and they are in-sync!

6. Label each of the files to identify, ie. "electric piano left, electric piano right, lead guitar, tambourine on last note only." Communication reduces the amount of interpretation the receiving recordist must do.

I've been forced to do it the wrong way many times. In the end, following these little rules makes it easier for everyone. Have fun!

Bob