Producer, Pianist, Director

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

A: I am super proud of the project I did with Rick Steele on the song Figure it Out with French Montana featuring Kanye West and Nas. I am truly proud of it because I had a lot of creative input and also It's French Montana, Kanye and Nas... C'mon now lol :-) . I am also proud of the work I did with Bruno Mars. Although the project did not come out, I truly love the work that we did. I got to work with an amazing human being and super talented team. Great times!.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: At the moment I am working for A+E Networks/Lifetime Channel and History channel producing music for various programs. I am also working on sample packs for Splice . Lastly, establishing the International Salsa Museum :-) .

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

A: YES!!!! If you are looking for an amazing songwriter and vocalist hit up Natalis. She's truly amazing. Her and I have done some great work before. I hired her to write some lyrics for a series of projects for A+E Networks and she did great. I have also worked on her own productions and the response has been amazing.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: 1. What sound are you trying to achieve? 2. Who do you listen to? 3. What is your end goal as an artists?

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

A: Don't just work with any producer. Find a producer that understands you and that is willing to really work with you and take your song to the next level. Just because a producer creates music, he or she might not be a good fit for you. It's all about the vibe, energy and communication. Trust your gut...

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

A: 1. Laptop/with removable hard drive 2. Mobile HotSpot 3. Midi Keyboard 4. Interface 5. Headphones

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

A: I became a professional musician at the age of 15. But I have been playing the piano since I was 3 years old. I am a classically trained pianist. I use to do National Piano competitions at Carnegie Hall at a really young age. At 15, I joined a group of young talented teenagers that were hungry to play music. In that group I learned everything from production, musical directing, setting up speakers, stage management, band management etc. I was able to perform for multiple presidents from various countries. At the age of 19 I became the musical director for 2 groups. The groups are La Excelencia and musical director for Tito Puente Jr and his orchestra. With La Excelencia and Tito Puente jr I was able to travel all over the world while in college. The world traveling truly opened up my eyes and ears to so many cultures and people. It was the greatest life experience I have ever had. From that experience in my late 20's I started a company called The Valens Agency. The Valens Agency is a boutique entertainment company that focuses on booking and music production. I was able to develop relationships with the NY Yankees, SOB's , ESPN, A+E Networks, 300 entertainment and other great companies out there. Fast forward at this current moment I started another non-for-profit organization and that is the International Salsa Museum. Through this museum my team and I will be able to preserve the history, educate the present and prepare the future salsa artists for a prosperous career in the latin industry.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: It all depends on the genre of music that we are working on. But I would describe my style as a blend of who I am which is a New Yorker from Washington Heights with American and Latin influences. From Hip Hop to Salsa to Afro beat. I am not afraid to take risks when it comes to music.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Always have someone that you trust in the music industry give your music a listen and their honest opinion. From the mix to the lyrics, it's important to get peoples feedback on your production.

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

A: Because I am involved on various projects for TV, Film, advertisements and various artists, I am constantly working on all types of music.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: What I bring to a song is a unique fresh sound. I like to design sounds and play with various percussive elements that give a song a bit more life. With over 20 years of playing the piano and being classically trained along with a musical director in the salsa scene, I create various rhythmic patterns that groove very well when blended right.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: It all depends on the mood and the inspiration. Most of the time before I sit and produce I take a few minutes to walk around my neighborhood and get inspired listening to various genres of music on my headphones. From there I go to studio, set bpm and sometimes I'll start with a drum pattern or with a melody on the piano. It really does vary on a day to day basis.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: As for my studio setup here is a list: DAW: Logic and Maschine Monitors: Pair of Adam a7x Sounds/Plugins: Native Instruments Komplete Ultimate 11, Serum, Roland Cloud, Slate, Izotope, Output and original sounds that I designed. Headphones: Senheisser HD 660 and Slate VSX Microphone: Slate Mic Interface: Apogee Duet Pre-Sonus: Pre-amp Laptop: Macbook Pro

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

A: Living in New York has truly been an inspiration. I am constantly surrounded by by amazing musicians in the industry. From musicians that work with Trey Songz, H.E.R,Demi Levato, French Montana and many others these are musicians that constantly inspire me and some I actually use in my productions.

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

A: The most common type of work I do for my clients are 3 things. One is music production from scratch. Regardless of the style, from hip hop to reggaeton I would start something from scratch . The second thing would be to re-vamp a track that they already had and give it a new spin. The last thing is some of my clients just want some straight up piano playing with no other instrumentation.