Balada Shalawat was arranged, orchestrated, and produced by Erwin Gutawa, Gita Gutawa's father. It was recorded in Aluna Studio.Recording took one year, although it was not intensive. Gita collaborated with her father in writing two songs, "Lelaki Sempurna" and "Kisah 8 Dirham". Other songs were covers or rereleases. "Ketika Tangan dan Kaki Berkata" was originally released sung by Chrisye for Kala Cinta Menggoda and "Selamat Idul Fitri" had previously been sung in duet with Hadad Alwi for a concert. The songs "Lelaki Sempurna" and "Kisah 8 Dirham" were both inspired by Muhammad.[3] "Lelaki Sempurna" is based on Muhammad's personality, "truthful, trustworthy, smart, and diligent".B"Kisah 8 Dirham tells of a trip made by Muhammad to a market, where he gladly donates all of his money to the poor and is thus unable to purchase new clothes. It was written after Gita heard Uztad Fikri's retelling of the story. Prior to recording the Arabic-language "Balada Shalawat", Gita was coached by an Ustad, a respected teacher of Islam, in the proper pronunciation. The song "Ketika Tangan dan Kaki Berkata" was based on the Islamic view of the Last Judgment and verse 65 of Surah Ya Sin,[6] which reads: "Today we shall seal the mouths of the infidels, and their hands will speak to us, and their feet will bear witness to what (evils) they used to earn." Two different orchestras provided music. The Prague Philharmonic Orchestra played on "Balada Shalawat", "Ketika Tangan dan Kaki Berkata", and "Selamat Idul Fitri". The Victorian Philharmonic Orchestra provided music for "Salam Ramadhan".