Horn section arrange & record

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

A: My quartet called «Wolkenpark» is a fine work in progres, check out our stuff at http://www.wolkenpark.com. Our first album will appear in September 2022.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Currently I'm working on a completely analog mixdown of a recording by my band Wolkenpark. I mixed in the box for years and so it feels a bit like getting back to the roots. It makes fun and sounds different, but takes much more time. Besides that I work on various projects by different producers, mainly in the soul/funk/dancefloor/jazz area. The latest project featured Tim Lefevbre on bass and Keith Carlock on drums among others.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Playing music gives so much peace and happyness to the world - and to me, I don't know a better way for myself.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Equipment is completely overestimated. A fine player and a good track will sound even if recorded with a simple stage microphone (which doesn't mean it wouldn't sound better if recorded and mixed professionally ;-)), but a weak song or a weak performance will stay weak even with the best equipment, so concentrate on your songwriting, arranging and performance skills rather than on the latest plugins.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Depends on the sound, the budget and your personal desires; for good music this doesn't really matter...

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

A: You'll come back :-)

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

A: How much does it cost - that depends very much on what I have to provide. If I get a preproduction and the ideas of the client, I usually can make a pretty precise estimation. If I don't think I'm the right one for the job, I'm honest enough to give a feedback without taking money. My range on the trumpet goes to high C, so I'm not a lead player but I've got good friends to do that job if really needed.

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

A: I can't make sound a bad track good. Neither with my horn nor with my mixing skills.

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

A: He/she should have either a clear idea of what he/she wants or be very open to what I deliver.

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

A: My trumpet for shure :-), my laptop, good headphones, lots of fine food, a good knife

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

A: I started playing the trumpet when I was 9, my professional career started late with 25 when I visited Swiss Jazz School (after a master degree in computer sciences). This is more than 25 years ago, where I played as touring musician, in musicals and shows, with my own bands, with arts projects, various party and cover bands, as leader, sideman, musical director and since 15 years in my own commercial studio.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I've got a good feeling for strong melodies and harmonies; although I'm very flexible stilistically, I try to bring some of my own personality into the tracks I play to.

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

A: Cory Henry, he's got the best and most natural stage presence I've seen for years (besides his breathtaking keyboard skills ;-)).

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

A: Electronic, jazz, soul, funk, singer/songwriter, reggae.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Jazzy, highly melodic trumpet solo lines in many differrent styles. Funky tuba bass lines - funkier than you probably ever have heard a tuba been played...

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Real acoustical feel, which can't be provided by samples. It makes feel a track honest and expensive.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Concerning brass tracks the easiest way is if I get a playback and a some kind of guideline or charts. If I have to provide my own ideas, I usually play some propositions from where the producer selects on which we should go further.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I use a mixed setup with a Studer 963 analog recording console, Apogee converters and lots of nice analog outboard equipment (Manley VoxBox, Amek CIB by Neve, True Systems). Over the years a huge selection of the finest microphones come together (Neumann U87, KM84 from the seventies, Schoeps, DPA...). But to be honest most of my work is done in the box using Logic X and hundreds of plugins by UAD, Sonnox, Waves, Native Instruments, Eventide, Izotope, IK Mutimedia, Flux, Fab Filter, Sound Radix and many more.

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

A: I play trumpet or section tracks for comercials, music productions and tv & movie soundtracks. Besides that I produce, record & mix entire productions in my own recording studio Klangfaktur. As musician I still play as many live gigs as I can get...