Mix & Master Producer Engineer

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

A: I could name so many. I love "small unknown" projects, when the artist really dreams of making it. Aside from that, having worked with Ray Charles will always be the biggest blessing and gratitude in my career. Also, I truly LOVE my MIX SECRETS project, where I teach Music Engineering thru seminars and workshops. Having been a columnist for a music magazine for over two decades is a very happy acomplishment too.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I'm producing a girl who's a great singer/songwriter from San Francisco. Her name is Zee. And another girl, also a singer/songwriter from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Her name is Thuany.

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

A: I'm so new here, I've only seen two people I've worked with: Prista, who actually introduced me to this website, and Paul Pesco, who I've also worked with on a few albums.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Both. It's not only about "how close are they souding these days". But equipment is about workflow and inspiration. Different pieces of gear will steer you to different paths, and therefor different results.

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

A: I will work on your album as if I my picture was on the cover of it.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: It's always been my dream. And still is.

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

A: Q: Can you give me a discount? A: I am!

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

A: That I will make mediocre music sound amazing. Well, I almost can... lol... but the artist must love what they hear way before the mixing and mastering stage.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: May I listen to the three songs you've been listening most in the past month or two?

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

A: Love your music! Don't spend all the budget before you finish the process. Finish right! You did't come this far, to only come this far. And please: backup your hard-drives.

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

A: My matched pair of AMEK 9098 pre/eq. I've been using them since 1996 and they are super musical, fat without being muffled, crystal clear without being thin. My Manley stereo opto compressor. My pair of vintage Neve 1099. My super vintage 11- module sorted API rack. And my matched pair of Distressors. But if you let me, I'd love to take a few more things too... my Drawmer 1960, my Focusrite ISAs, my SSL AlphaChannels and the X-Desk too. Ah, I need monitors, right? Genelec 1031s with the 7070 sub.. please?

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

A: I started helping older friends renting hi-fi audio for parties when I was just 10. And I started playing the keyboards. Since then my life was always split between audio and music, which happen to be the same thing :)

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I don't want to sound repetitive, but... contrasts! lol I love modern, I love vintage. I love perfeccionism, as much as I love stepping back and seeing the full picture.

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

A: After having worked with Ray Charles, it's pretty hard to answer that question. Nowadays I just enjoy working with good people, who love what they're doing, who are great to deal with, and who are greatful and who practice mutual admiration. That's where the magic happens.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: As I mentioned above, create contrasts. Surprise your listener. Present the lows so the highs can be appreciated. Present the dry so the wet can be felt. Present the silence so the notes can have impact.

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

A: I don't like to be selective by genres. Every genre may sound amazing and that's my goal.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Making music sound great.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I highly believe we must work FOR the song, and FOR the artist. Ego must not exist! Mixing is pretty much the art of conducting pre-recorded instruments (and vocals). I love playing with contrasts, creating a sonic experience to the listener. Somewhat like going to a great restaurant, where the chef really knows how to combine senses creating a palette of tastes and their contrasts on us. This is mixing! Mastering is making sure the mix will sound as great as possible, everywhere it's played, on every media and platform.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Although I mentioned all the analog pieces above, due to logistics, I've been mixing in the box, exploring a great deal of amazing plugins. Once the mix is finished, I run analog stems from it to my baby SSL console, and I further process my signal using the all the vintage EQs and Compressors above. Thru the SSL I do analog parallel processing and summing. And finally the stereo signal goes back to the DAW. It's a pretty amazing system and setup in my opinion!

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I've been collecting gear for that past 30 years... so I can pretty much say I am blessed to have a dream studio at my place. Classic vintage analog pieces by Neve, Api, Manley, Focusrite, Amek, Aphex, Tube-Tech, Drawmer, Empirical Labs, SSL, dbx, Ati, Apogee, Klark Teknik, Yamaha, Lexicon, TC Electronic, Roland, etc... my synth collection is too long to list too.. pretty much all classic modules from the 80s and 90s are here. Said that, I also love modern DAWs and plug-ins. And I've been using the same monitoring system for almost 30 years too, aside from my classic NS10s powered by my vintage Carver amp.

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

A: I've always liked hit songs, and music that has great sound. Not necessarily from one style of music only. I've been a fan of bands and artists like Queen, Iron Maiden, Whitesnake, but I've always loved pop music and great remixes too. Madonna, Pet Shop Boys, Phil Collins, A-Ha... in the 80s I was a big fan of Patrick Leonard's and his work with Madonna, in the 90's I got into soul and modern R&B and I listened to a lot of the stuff Babyface did producing all the "Divas", Mariah, TLC, Whitney, etc... and I became a fan of Mick Guzauski and his dimensional mixes. Nowadays I've been listening to all that, plus Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Lana Del Rey. etc...

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

A: Having started early in the mainstream business, I've worked in about every possible stage of music producing and engineering. These days I am mostly working for clients online, mixing, mastering or producing.