Alwin van der Knijff on SoundBetter

My biggest production i've worked on so far is a French Hip-Hop act called VSO. I wrote/co-produced and played guitar on their title EP track called 'Southcoaster'. It has more then 1 million views on spotify.

My name is Alwin van der Knijff and I record/mix my productions in Mailmen Studio at Utrecht. I'm a record producer and session guitarist.
I've been guitarist and producer of a band called 'The press and The President'. It's a poppunk band mixed with synthesizers. In this band I learned that for me the main priority for getting a good mix is arranging the song with much care and already having the right sounds.
I can make from a simple acoustic song with just one piano and vocals a good sounding mix. I can also just mix your songs or play guitar, you name it.
The only thing i can't do is singing and mastering.
Don't hesitate to get in contact with me if you have questions about my workflow or if you just need feedback on your song. I'm very interested in new projects all time! :)

My Email: alwinvanderknijff@hotmail.com
Website: www.alwinvanderknijff.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alwinvanderknijff/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alwinvanderknijff/

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Interview with Alwin van der Knijff

Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?
A: My latest project was with Redeemed - I could see it all. It is just sounding the way I wanted it to. My role was producing his Single and I recorded/mixed/mastered it!
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
A: Writing for Jason Waterfalls, Mixing an EP for Bony Macaroni. Preparing 2 pre production sessions for 2 new clients. Finishing an EP for Paper Branches.
Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?
A: My brother, Ardie van der Knijff. He plays very good cello!
Q: Analog or digital and why?
A: Analog if I hear a difference or if it improves creativity but I prefer digital because it's way faster.
Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?
A: That I will do everything I can to make it sound as good as possible.
Q: What do you like most about your job?
A: Every project is different, refreshing and challenging.
Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?
A: How much money it will cost. My answer is that it totally depends on the music and work.
Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?
A: Is that we (producers/mixers) can fix things in our computers. But the golden rule: shit in is shit out.
Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?
A: What their vision is about their music and what i can do for them. I also always ask to what music they are listening because that gives me a clear vision about their taste in terms of Music Production.
Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?
A: Let's talk so we know what i can do for you!
Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?
A: Just something to record and edit with. I can find music in nature but a computer with speakers and one mic is all i need.
Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?
A: I started when I was 8 with saxophone, and later guitar and piano. When I was 12 I started messing around with garageband. When I was 14 I wanted to be a very good guitarist and be a session musician. The time between 14 and 18/19 years old I mostly played live guitar and from 18 till 22 I started focussing more and more on music production. So I've been doing this for 4/5 years I think.
Q: How would you describe your style?
A: Direct, fast (no long intro's or outro's). Poppy. Very clear.
Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?
A: Any artist who writes good songs and plays well.
Q: Can you share one music production tip?
A: Have a clear vision on your project.
Q: What type of music do you usually work on?
A: Pop/Rock, Folk and electronic music from RnB to SynthPop.
Q: What's your strongest skill?
A: Arrangement.
Q: What do you bring to a song?
A: LIFE. Kidding haha. It totally depends on the song, sometimes i don't bring anything to a song because I only want to recreate the goodness of the demo. I think what i can add to a song is making it more logical and easy to listen to, sometimes artists like to implement weird notes or sounds on a very strange position in a song. I'm also very good with harmonie because I used to play classical piano for a long time. This is very useful when arranging songs.
Q: What's your typical work process?
A: For a band or act I always check what kind of genre they are looking for and then I ask some reference tracks. I start with pre-production. Pre-production is for me checking harmonies combined with melody and trying to make the song better with for example some different notes or harmonies. I look at the structure, instruments, bpm, etc. When preproduction is finished i'd like to start with drums, bass, guitars, synths, and then vocals. After the recording proces i start mixing.
Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.
A: The most common type of work is preproduction->recording->mixing. I can also just do pre production or just the recording. It totally depends on the client!