Eric Harper on SoundBetter

I'm an Emmy winning guitarist who can provide professional Nylon Guitar, Ukulele, Portuguese Guitar, or Charango tracks to your project. My approach is to always serve the client. I have over 33 years of experience playing in all kinds of musical genres. I have my own fully equipped Home Studio where I do all my recordings.

I can play pre-written parts or help you create unique parts for your song.

All I need is your song (mp3, WAVE, project file), the tempo, the key, (sheet music if you have it) and your vision for the song. Once I receive your notes I can get started right away! Every song is different and needs its own creative approach. Upon agreeing to do the session, the amount of tracks will be finalized through messaging on AirGigs. Up to 2 revisions are included and more can be negotiated. Tracks are recorded as a mic'd signal into a preamp in my studio.

About me:
I have over 32 years of experience playing guitar as well as recording, producing and film scoring. I've worked with a wide range of artists from Grammy and Oscar winning artists to local artists.

Gear:
For nylon I use a custom one of a kind made Candelas Classical/Flamenco guitar. My ukulele is a Martin. I have a beautifully handmade Portuguese Guitar from Lisbon made in the 1960s. And my Charango is also hand carved from Bolivia.

For recording instruments I use a Beesneez Lulu Tube SDC KM54 mic going into a Sonic Farm Creamer Plus preamp. I use Logic Pro X for all my DAW needs. Plugins from UA, WAVES and Brainworx.

Tell me about your project and how I can help, through the 'Contact' button above.

Credits

5 Reviews - 1 Repeat Client

Endorse Eric Harper

by Operà Music Productions
Verified
Great musician, versatile. High quality sounding tracks. Fast delivery.
by Marco P.
Verified
Wonderful guitar sound. Eric delivers high quality tracks with a fast turnaround. Highly recommended.
by Shelley H
Verified (Client)
Eric was a total pro to work with. Super friendly, great communication and a really beautiful song to sing. I hope we get to work on more projects in the future!
by Mohamad Fityan
Verified (Client)
Eric is very clear what he want's to do with his project and very kind person and fast with communicating. It was a pleasure for me to record my Arabic flutes into his orchestration project :) and looking forward for more cooperation in the future :)
by Esteban Vázquez
Verified (Client)
It was great to work with Eric, we did an amazing team job building his song together, definitively looking forward to work with him on the future & also listen to the end result of this collaboration. My pleasure amigo.

Interview with Eric Harper

Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?
A: I currently worked on a short PSA about the Abdu'l-Bahá, the son of the Prophet-founder of the Baha'i Faith. I was incredibly proud on how the music and the whole project came together. It was a good team to be a part of.
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
A: A concept album about a clock who doesn't want to tell the time but wants to tell the truth.
Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?
A: I know Esteban Vasquez. He's a fantastic drummer and a hard worker. He goes above and beyond for your drum needs.
Q: Analog or digital and why?
A: Both. I feel analog still brings that 1% to the table that digital doesn't quite get. That's the only reason I bought my preamp. So, I could get that last 1% sound.
Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?
A: If they don't like my work then they have a 100% return guarantee.
Q: What do you like most about your job?
A: Helping bring the client's vision to life.
Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?
A: How quickly can you get this project to me. My answer is usually "between one to two days".
Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?
A: That I'm rich and famous.
Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?
A: What is your vision? How do you see your song affecting people's hearts?
Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?
A: Be very clear on what you want. If you're not sure what it is that you want then you might end up spending more money than you'd like to.
Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?
A: My guitar, my computer, my preamp, my interface and my mic.
Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?
A: I've been doing music since I was 8. I'm currently 44. As a film composer I'd like to score more movies. As a singer-songwriter I'd love to work with other like-minded artists from around the world and travel to their locations to work with them.
Q: How would you describe your style?
A: The Gipsy Kings meet Dave Matthews Band.
Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?
A: I'd love to work with Dave Matthews because he also blends a lot of styles and thinks in a similar fashion to myself.
Q: Can you share one music production tip?
A: Don't let technology be your sound. Let the sound be in your hands first.
Q: What type of music do you usually work on?
A: I usually score movies or work on Singer-Songwriter, Rock, Pop, Fado, Flamenco, and Latin styles. I sometimes work on Jazz and Classical as well.
Q: What's your strongest skill?
A: I'm a very fast worker.
Q: What do you bring to a song?
A: I was born in the US and raised in Portugal. So I bring a unique fusion of American style with a Portuguese classical sensibility to the table which can really bring a song to a level that hasn't been heard before.
Q: What's your typical work process?
A: Listen first is always my first rule. I'll listen to the project and then get an idea of what it needs or what the client is looking for. Then I'll turn on my mics and preamp to warm them up. And within 2-4 hours I can have a song fully recorded and mixed for the client. If the session is really complicated I'll have it done in 48 hours.
Q: Tell us about your studio setup.
A: I have a professional home studio that's fully sound treated. I use my two Neumann KH 310 A's for monitoring. A pair of Beyer-Dynamic DT 990 Pros for headphone mixing when the occasion requires. I use my Sennheiser HD 280 Pros for recording. I have a 2-of-a-kind Beesneez ELAM 251 mic that was custom made for myself. I also use two Beesneez Lulu Tube KH54 mics for all my guitar recording needs. For electric guitar I use either my American Fender Strat or my Jericho guitar (for a Les Paul sound). I have a 5-string Fender Jazz Bass and a Nektar Keyboard controller. I work with 3 TV monitors for scoring and easy editing. I have over 300 plugins from UA, Waves, Plugin Alliance, Leapwing, DDMF, Izotope, and more. I use my Sonic Farms Creamer Plus preamp for my mics and recording electric guitar through. I have an Apollo 8 Duo Interface. All together I have just over 50,000 dollars in gear for my recording needs.
Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?
A: On a film scoring level, I'm particularly inspired by Thomas Newman, Yann Tiersen, Luis Bacalov and Danny Elfman. To me, these composers have that innate ability to create a universe just by using notes. As a guitarist, I'm most inspired by Vicente Amigo and David Gilmour. Both of these guitarist have this quality of always just the right note for the situation.
Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.
A: The most common work I do for clients is a mix between session guitarist and film composer.