Josh Plotner

Pro Saxes, Flutes, Clarinets +

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71 Reviews (63 Verified)
Josh Plotner on SoundBetter

From Hollywood to Bollywood, cabarets to Carnegie Hall, shows like Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and Madam Secretary, Red Dead Redemption 2, Broadway, and much more, I've accumulated a pretty diverse resume. Through these opportunities I have mastered dozens of woodwinds and musical genres. And I'm excited to bring all that to your next project!

Hi there! I'm a New York-based professional woodwind specialist. I play just about every woodwind, including woodwinds from around the world. I'm equally comfortable as an orchestral woodwind section as I am playing a screaming rock sax solo, and much more!

Every project is different, so don't hesitate to shoot me a message and we'll discuss everything I can bring to your track!

I'm also able to help create parts (riffing over a tune, full arrangements, etc.).

For multiple tracks/layers prices vary. All jobs are priced on a case-by-case basis.

DAW: Logic Pro X
Mics: Neumann U87 AI (close); Matched Pair AKG 214's (room)
Interface: UA Apollo 8 QUAD

Full instrument list: Soprano/Alto/Tenor/Bari/Bass Saxophone, Piccolo/Flute/Alto/Bass Flute, Eb/Bb Clarinet, Alto Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Oboe/English Horn, Bassoon, Garklein/Sopranino/Soprano/Alto/Tenor/Bass/Contrabass Recorder, EWI, Anasazi Flute, Arghul, Atenteben, Bansuri, Bawu, Danso, Dizi (Xiaodi, Bangdi, Qudi, Xindi/Dadi), Duduk, Friscaletto, Fujara, Gaita, Harmonica, Hichiriki, Hulusi, Jaw Harp, Kaval, Kawala, Khaen, Koudi, Mijwiz, Native American Flute, Ney (Turkish/Arabic), Nose Flute, Ocarina (various types), Pan Flute (Nai/Siku), Quena/Quenacho, Ryuteki, Sáo Trúc, Seljefløyte, Shakuhachi, Sheng, Shinobue, Sopilka, Suling, Tambin (Fula Flute), Tussefløyte, Tin Whistle/Low Whistle, Xiao, Xun, Whistling

Send me an email through 'Contact' button above and I'll get back to you asap.

Credits

AllMusic verified credits for Josh Plotner
  • AJR
  • AJR
  • Joe Iconis
  • Joe Iconis
  • Joe Iconis
  • Yumi Zouma
  • George Streicher
  • Chad Lb Virtual Big Band
  • Jacinta Clusellas
  • Jacinta Clusellas
  • Billy Recce
  • Jay Armstrong Johnson
  • Will Roland
  • Will Roland
  • Will Roland
  • Chad Lb Virtual Big Band
  • David Ullmann
  • David Ullmann
  • David Ullmann
  • Mackenzie Shivers
  • Mackenzie Shivers
  • The Luis D'Elias Ensemble
  • The Luis D'Elias Ensemble
  • The Luis D'Elias Ensemble
  • The Luis D'Elias Ensemble
  • The Luis D'Elias Ensemble
  • The Luis D'Elias Ensemble
  • The Luis D'Elias Ensemble
  • Jordan Rudess
Discogs verified credits for Josh Plotner
  • The Pop Ups (2)
  • Akuna Art
  • Beach Fossils
  • Yumi Zouma
  • Orghanon
  • Jhelisa
  • ILUITEQ
  • The Earthly Frames
  • Christian Welde
  • Mackenzie Shivers
  • Joe Iconis
  • Jordan Rudess
  • Autumn Tears
  • Paul Shapera
  • Whitney Tai
  • Jed Davis
  • Rozen (3)
  • Randy Rainbow
  • Rozen (3)
  • Theophany, I Dewa Putu Berata*, Rozen (3)
  • Kennebec
  • Clark Aboud
  • Fire-Toolz
  • Justin Hurwitz
  • Jeremy Zuckerman
  • Fire-Toolz
  • Various

71 Reviews - 14 Repeat Clients

Endorse Josh Plotner
  1. Review by Maarten R.
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    Josh provided some bassoon tracks for my project.
    Very professional musician and very fast delivery!

  2. Review by Steve L.
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    Josh is a master of his craft. Brilliant player, and a great engineer and recordist. Top notch!

  3. Review by Brice Davoli
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    I asked Josh to play a flute part for a commercial, not so easy part, and he made it perfectly, he's such a good musician!

  4. Review by Brice D.
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    As usual Josh delivered an amazing work, barytone and tenor sax on one of my song, everything is perfect!!!

  5. Review by 森 優.
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    Professional and fantastic player!
    I asked him Tin whistle, he gave me real Irish performance and high quality recording sound with nice and quick communications. All things helped me a lot!
    Thank you Josh, see you in the next project soon!

  6. Review by OL!
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    by OL!
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    Amazing sax player, very quick with nice and clean recordings.

  7. Review by Steve L.
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    Josh is incredible. My favourite woodwind/brass player. Absolute master of his craft!

  8. Review by Si Clancy
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    Perfect, thanks again Josh!

  9. Review by Steve L.
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    Josh is a master of his craft, utterly brilliant. Can't wait to work with him again.

  10. Review by Matthew J Ross
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    Josh was not only super easy to work with and quick with the turnaround, he provided the most beautiful bassoon and clarinet tracks I could have hoped for. Hire him! You won't regret it.

  11. Review by frogi
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    by frogi
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    Josh was fantastic to work with! He is extremely talented and gave me exactly what I was looking for. He was very fast and good with communication. Definitely recommend working with him!

  12. Review by Joshua H.
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    I keep coming back because Josh is that good! Had him play duduk on an original song and it just made the piece! Thank you so much for your excellent playing!

  13. Review by Jed D.
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    by Jed D.
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    Another masterful woodwind track from Josh! He turned this one around in a few hours and it sounds amazing! Always happy to have the opportunity to work with him. :-)

  14. Review by Jerzy P.
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    Really sensitive and beautiful interpretation. Very precise timing even though the part had a lot of tempo changes. No revisions were necessary.

  15. Review by Will B.
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    Josh is amazing :) such a versatile and imaginative player. He nailed our charts and also improv'd for us in a very intuitive way. Recordings always sound top notch, and was able to meet a quick turnaround for us. Highly recommend working with Josh!

  16. Review by David G.
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    Very efficient and committed!
    He learned a new instrument very quickly and delivered a high quality track!
    I highly recommend!!

  17. Review by Rohit S.
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    I was looking for a live instrument for my track. Mr Josh is a expert in many types of different instruments and helped me choose the right instrument for my track. Made great recommendations on where to put the flute. Moreover, he was genuinely caring and super easy to work with.

  18. Review by Talking People
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    Wonderful and so easy working with Josh!

  19. Review by earlrobbins
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    Josh was great and delivered a perfect recorder track for our song in a very short time frame. I will certainly call on Josh for more work in the future and I recommend him highly.

  20. Review by Talking People
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    Im super happy! Josh is quick, no nonsense, professional and above all a great player with amazing sounding recordings. Perfect for what I needed!

Interview with Josh Plotner

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

  2. A: There's a quote I hear from time to time thrown at me: "Jack of all trades, master of none". Fun fact, that line was originally a couplet: "Jack of all trades, master of none, though oftentimes better than master of one." But in a more serious way, I have found that my serious interest in many instruments and musics has allowed me to become a far better artist than I would otherwise be. I can solve problems from a variety of perspectives, and I've become a very fast learner. I'm confident in just about any situation, because my wide array of experiences has prepared me for just about anything that might be thrown at me.

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

  4. A: I recently recorded "The Flag Song", which is a previously unheard song that was cut from Stephen Sondheim's musical Assassins. It was a great honor to be able to be a part of bringing that song to life.

  5. Q: Analog or digital and why?

  6. A: Both. I believe in whatever serves the purpose best in each situation.

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

  8. A: That they'll be more than satisfied with what I send them. And if somehow they're not, I'll do it again until it's right.

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

  10. A: Click the button. You have my guarantee I'll take good care of you.

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

  12. A: Flutes! Not sure which ones but all my other instruments require reeds, so they wouldn't last nearly as long.

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

  14. A: I'd love to work with Maria Schneider. I know some of the people in her band, and it's an amazing collection of artists making amazing music. And also everyone's nice. It's great to work with people who are not only ridiculously talented, but great people as well.

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

  16. A: It's a lot easier to say what I don't usually work on—every day it's something completely different. I haven't done a lot of metal. And not that much country either. But I'll bet I could figure it out!

  17. Q: What's your strongest skill?

  18. A: My flexibility. I've found that through learning all these instruments and styles, my clients can throw anything at me (and trust me, they do) at I'll be fine. I have a passion for learning and growing, and very high standards for what I create.

  19. Q: What do you bring to a song?

  20. A: Woodwinds really give song their character and bring it to the next level. On a rock/pop song, a saxophone solo can be the thing that pushes the energy even higher. On a ballad, a flute solo can add to the emotion and make it even deeper (or it could scream like the sax on that rock song). And for world music, it's always the flute that truly transports the listener. As soon as you hear that characteristic sound, you know you've been transported.

  21. Q: What's your typical work process?

  22. A: Once I get a track, I listen to it a couple times and then dive right in. I then listen closely to the takes I've done to make sure I'm satisfied, and if not I fix it! It's a pretty simple process, but I've found it to be very effective.

  23. Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

  24. A: DAW: Logic Pro X Mics*: Golden Age Ribbon, MXL V67G, matched pair AKG214's Interface: MBox Pro, ART TPSII Preamp I use the Golden Age Ribbon as a close mic, and the AKG's as room mics. Upon request I can use the MXL as an alternate close mic or an additional close mic.

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

  26. A: Right now I've been really into Darcy James Argue's Secret Society. It's an amazing modern big band out of Brooklyn. But I'm always listening to all kinds of music to attempt to broaden my horizons. One day I'll listen to Yamaguchi Goro to really dig into the shakuhachi, the next day I'll blast some Dave Mathews and steal some ideas from Jeff Coffin on sax or flute. I've learned to appreciate music at a high level in all of its forms.

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

  28. A: The most common thread in all my work is that the quality is extremely high, and the contexts are always completely different. I've had days where in the morning I recorded classical liturgical flute for one of New York's biggest churches, and then that night played with a Frank Zappa big band. Or recorded Balkan saxophone lines for a client in Israel, and then recorded Bansuri (traditional Indian flute) for a friend from India. I have very high standards for all the work I do, and I'm never satisfied until my clients are.

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Hedwig's Theme

I was the performer on all instruments/engineer in this production

Terms Of Service

I usually finish tracks within 2 days (usually less), and I'm not satisfied until you are! You can find more testimonials of my studio work on Airgigs as well as SessionExchange.

GenresSounds Like
  • Jeff Coffin
  • Benny Goodman
  • Ian Anderson
Gear Highlights
  • DAW: Logic Pro X; Mics--Golden Age Ribbon
  • MXL V67G
  • matched pair AKG214's; Interface--UA Apollo 8 QUAD
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