AUDIO ENGINEER | PRODUCER

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

A: That would be an album by a swiss classic rock band. I was only assisting at the time, but it was the first production I had a role in, which got into the CHARTS. Seven weeks in the swiss album charts and #6 on iTunes.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Right now I'm mastering an album by a PROGRESSIVE ROCK band I recorded and mixed earlier this year. But at the time you read this, I'll probably have been done with that for a while. And I am not going to update this with every new project that comes along.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: ANALOG! Both worlds do have their charms. Digital recallability and mobility are nice to have, especially since the world seems to be turning in fast-forward these days. Working on a digital basis is a necessity to even be able to satisfy many clients needs. Analog however is where all the love and the music happens. Those little imperfections which make every single moment of the song unique and irreproducable. ANALOG IS WHAT MAKES MUSIC REAL!

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

A: I will do my best to make your music SOUND LIKE YOU!

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: There are NO RULES in music and it is universal.

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

A: Is it going to or can you make it sound like "insert artist here"? No! Music is mirroring a persons character and I'm 100% sure your character differs from whoever you want to sound like. If you really want to sound like someone else, I can probably get you close, but I don't belive that's the way. I'd much rather make you SOUND LIKE YOU.

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

A: Not everything can be fixed in the mix. First rule of mixing still is "SHIT IN, SHIT OUT". Even with the most amazing tools at hand and the knowledge how to use them. If the recorded performance is bad, the mix is most likely going to suck.

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

A: As always when dealing with music, LISTEN TO YOUR GUT. Also, don't base your decision on the price. Your music deserves better than the cheapest.

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

A: What would I do with some gear on a desert island? I'd rather take my girl and my DOG and have a peaceful life.

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

A: I've been doing this for a while now. I started out as a live engineer in a small venue in the town I grew up in. Once I realized that beeing an audio professional is what i wanted to do, I got an AUDIO ENGINEERING DIPLOMA and a BACHELOR OF ARTS (Hons.) in Audio Production. Then I went to work in the Schoeps studio and got my first gig as an assistant afterwards. I've been working myself up from there eversince, doing live gigs and touring on the side. By now I have my own studio.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: REAL, with an attraction to drama and a hint of exaggeration.

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

A: There are so many of them... KARNIVOOL or Steven Wilson for instance. They seem to not only be thinking outside the box, but on top of that also manage to infect their listeners with that way of thinking. Maybe because you have to throw everything over board feel their music before you understand it. I wonder what I would come up with.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Don't give a shit about what the others do! DO EXACTLY WHAT SOUNDS AND ESPECIALLY FEELS RIGHT, even if it's the crappiest guitar with the weirdest tone.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What's the song about? What do you want to accomplish with the production or in other words, are your goals realistic?

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Emphasis on the FEEL AND EMOTION of the song. I will feature whatever beautiful imperfection there is to make the song sound like you.

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

A: I like to work with any kind of good music as long as it has real instruments played by real people in it. Preferably ROCK with a progressive touch, but also Jazz, Blues, Singer/Songwriter, Pop, Funk, ...

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: This is the part in the job interview where I draw a blank, because I don't like to brag about myself. However, I belive I can get into the mindset of different people when listening to music. I have the handy ability to switch ears so to say. Sounds funny, I know...

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: I try not to have a typical work process or routine. I think every song needs different thinking and a new approach. Nevertheless, when mixing, I usually do a sort of pre-mix which I will leave alone for a day or two. I'll listen to that mix in different situations and environments. This usually allows me to get a good picture of what needs to be done to emphasize the songs feel and emotion. Once I feel like I know what the song needs, I will do another version which ends up in my clients inbox most of the time. From there we move forward together.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I mix and master most of my work on a HYBRID SETUP, using Pro Tools and some decent outboard gear. Stuff like ANALOG SUMMING, analog 2-Bus processing, etc... AD/DA conversion is done by an Apogee Symphony IO Mk2 and I monitor through a pair of Neumann KH-310s.

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

A: First name that comes to mind is STEVEN WILSON. I admire how he manages to constantly have success with his arty and progressive music and keep it up over the years.

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

A: I mostly do RECORDING, MIXING and MASTERING. Whenever I meet or track artists whose music I like, I offer to produce or co-produce them. Besides that I am involved in a small independent label. Recently I also got into video editing for simple music videos we do at the label.