As mentioned in "Composition/Arranging/Scoring", the Performance/Recording stage can be happening concurrently with Composition/Arranging/Scoring. It is here, at this stage, the preparation of your track for Mastering truly starts.

In some cases Performing and Recording are conducted by different people at the same time, but more often it is the same person doing them together. There is a lot to be said for having one person Performing while another person attends to the Recording. This allows each person to concentrate on a specific task and not be forced to multi-task. This situation, although desirable, is not always practical, for many reasons.

The results of the Performance/Recording stage is to have the raw material required by the track in preparation for the stages to follow. The desired results of this stage is to have captured the performances, either flawless or in need of editing/assembly and recorded with no signal distortion and minimal noise. Good Instrument Signal Separation is desirable, but not always obtainable.

If an instrument requires a specific "effect", sometimes it can be of benefit during the Mixing stage, to have the instrument recorded "with"and "without" the effect present.