Production, Mixing, Mastering

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: They are both great. If I had the choice to work on exclusively analog all the time I would. It's intuitive and the physical act of turning a knob is satisfying and quick. Digital is great too though. Living in a major city I just don't always have the space to have 60 channel mixing desk and a Studer tape machine. Digital is a great tool if you know how to use it. Currently working in a hybrid setup that gets the best of both worlds!

Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

A: Low stress, fast turnaround, and quality work.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: The creative process and being a part of someone's livelihood and hard work.

Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A: Ask a lot of questions, have good file management and if you find someone that you like to work with, stay with them.

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: I went to the Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences in 2005. This is what got my foot in the door of a major studio in Chicago and where I was a staff engineer before transitioning into a technician touring around for a few years. Once I settled down in New York and with the audio technology what it is I started building up my home studio to hone my craft. I am currently working doing commercial work and remixing/arranging songs for advertisements. 15+ years.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Mix to the song and what the client wants.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: Universal Audio Apollo with an assortment of UAD plug-ins, Waves Gold, Softube, and Arturia. My DAWs are Pro Tools, Logic Pro X, Luna, and Ableton Live. Analog Neve summing and Heritage Audio EQ and compression.

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: Most often I mix and master recordings that have been tracked by others. I do on occasion track myself at various recording studios and sound stages.

Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?

A: I recorded a punk rock band recently with all analog gear over two weekends. It's tough to be a full time musician and most of us have day jobs so we booked the studio from Friday night through Sunday. The first Friday we setup, got basic levels. Saturday and Sunday we tracked the EP and enough time to record a bunch of other ideas that hadn't been fully hashed out. The next Friday we did overdubs. Saturday we did vocals and final overdubs and on Sunday we mixed. Two weekends and the bands EP was ready for mastering. The band was great, the studio was great and we all left very happy.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I am currently working on a mix for a movie trailer pitch. The artist has great music and songs but need a little extra for it to be "broadcast ready". I really like working on projects like this.

Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?

A: Not yet!

Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A: Q: Will you mix my record? A: Yes.

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

A: That this work is easy. Though anyone can get recording studio put together these days, it is an evolution of experience and skill. Finding the right person isn't always easy.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What is mood is the music? What style? What records do you love? How can I help?

Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

A: Haha. Ok. P-bass, Ludwig drum kit, Stratocaster, stereo pair of AKG 414s and an Apollo interface. Have to make music to record music.

Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

A: So many! Do they have to be alive? If I could go back in time I would like to have been a part of a Ray Charles session. All those great musicians playing great tunes.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Trust your ears. A lot of times we go to what eq or compression style works for a different type of music. It really comes down to your taste and preference. Oh, and if sounds good, then it is good.

Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

A: Mostly rock, punk, and heavy music but have worked on jazz, country and R&B. If it's music, then I like it to work on it!

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Mixing. That is the part of the process that I have always been drawn to. I do love tracking though!

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Fresh ears! I know i've been caught up in my own projects and started making less than ideal decisions from fatigue and know the material so well. Sometimes it's best to let someone break through to that next step.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Have a conversation with the client about what they are looking for and how we can best accomplish it is the first step. From there I will listen to the song(s) multiple times and determine what work needs to be done. Then will look at levels, eq and dynamics.

Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

A: Having worked at Electrical Audio in Chicago(http://www.electricalaudio.com), i'd say all of the engineers working there have inspired me. That studio makes great records and does their best to capture the sound of the musician/band as they picture it.