We've been recording school bands, choirs and orchestras in the Puget Sound area for over 15 years.  We bring to our school recordings the same professional attitude and attention to quality we offer our professional clients.

We can come to your school, record your live concert, and provide your students and parents with custom-made, professional-looking compact discs -- usually at little or no cost to the school. — in fact, we have several ways in which schools can actually make a small profit from recording sales.

We now also offer online digital downloads of your music, either as MP3s or .WAV files.  If you embed our online "widget" in a school web site or Facebook page, you can receive a commission on each song sold.  Prices may vary, but we try to stick close to the iTunes standard of 98 cents per song or $4.98 per album.

We can also videotape your concert, using our professional multi-camera system, and produce custom DVDs.  For more information on this exciting new service, see our Video Recording page.

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The CDs or DVDs are handsomely designed in color and professionally packaged in a shrink-wrapped jewel case. MP3s come with a downloadable JPEG cover.

We provide order forms that can be stuffed into the concert programs or handed out at the door.  You can choose to have buyers make their checks out to the school or ASB, or directly to Chinook Wind, as you prefer. If you choose to have the school as reseller, we can invoice the school under the regular purchase order process.

The CDs or DVDs will usually be delivered to the school in six to eight weeks after the concert. (For concerts at the end of the school year, discs can be mailed directly to the purchaser.) MP3s will usually be online within a week of the concert.

Recording sessions

If you would prefer a recording session to a live concert, we can do that, too. We can even work "between the bells," recording classes as they meet.  We charge $275 for a session.

Venue issues
So your auditorium isn’t Carnegie Hall. Don’t worry about it. We have become rather expert at producing good recordings in cafetoriums, atriums, foyers, gymnasiums -- even inside band and choir rooms. Wherever you perform, we can record.

Booking
It is important to book your concert date well in advance. We book up very quickly during the school year, particularly in December, March, May and June. We have enough crews and equipment to handle up to four concerts a night, but it’s first-come, first served.  To book a date, call (253) 565-9932.

Royalty issues
All copyrighted music distributed directly by Chinook Wind Recording, whether on hard copy or digital download, is licensed through an agreement with the Harry Fox Agency, Inc., an agency of the music publisher's association.  However, if your school wishes to buy CDs from us wholesale and redistribute them to the public-- as a fundraiser, for instance -- we ask that you undertake the licensing process. The cost is not onerous: 9.5 cents per song per CD, plus a small fee.  In most cases, you can do the licensing online. We can give you instructions and directions.
 
Plans and prices
We will customize or service to fit your needs and budget. But here are our two most often-used plans.

Standard Package

We will record your concert at no charge and produce a compact disc for sale to your students and parents for $15 each. We ask a 25-CD minimum, and we ask that it be guaranteed in advance, before the concert, by sign-up sheet, prepayment or similar means.

Alternative package

We charge $275 for a concert or recording session, and the compact discs are offered on a sliding scale, starting at $12 and declining all the way to $5 each, depending on the quantity ordered. This is a good plan if you intend to use your CD as a fundraiser. You can buy a fixed number at a wholesale price and resell them at a markup. (See “Royalty Issues” above.)  You can also use this plan if you prefer to pick and choose from among the pieces you have recorded during the year for a "best of" compilation, rather than issuing a CD after each concert.

Contest/Festival Recording

Chinook Wind also offers recording services for music contests and festivals.  We charge $250 for a day of recording, regardless of the number of groups.  Each group director receives a compact disc immediately after the group’s performance.  Beginning in 2012, we will also make each group's selections available online as digital downloads.