REMOTE MIX AND/OR MASTER, ETC.

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

A: Neumann M50's, Millennia mic preamps, UAD Apollo Twin, Windows laptop with Sequoia DAW software, Audio Technica headphones.

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

A: I started my first full-time audio job in 1976, and have been very fortunate to have worked full-time ever since. 2016 marked my 40th full-time year as an audio/music professional.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Respectful of the artists and producers intentions. This is not my album, it is theirs. I have been very successful at getting inside other people's musical "heads" and then figuring out how to intensify or sharpen their vision and concept.

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

A: I already get to work with some top notch producers, artists, and engineers, but I would love to work with Dan Auerbach and/or the Black Keys. I would also love to work with T Bone Burnett. I greatly admire their musical vision and intensity.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Do not crush the dynamic range of your mixes with bus compression and limiting. Concentrate on getting musical balances and emotion. The best mixers I work with send mixes for mastering that have a wider dynamic range with only a few peaks hitting 0dBFs. Trust someone who has specialization in mastering to work the mixes into a appropriate dynamic-range presentation depending on music style and intended audience.

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

A: A very wide range from acoustic based musical styles like folk, bluegrass, jazz, and classical, all the way through more electric musical styles like rock, pop, electronic dance, and fusions of all of these.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: I seem to have a knack for mastering, though I have worked as a recording engineer, mixer, and producer.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: First and foremost, heart and emotional depth. This coupled with 40+ years of experience.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: I first listen to the entire album's songs in sequence before starting to make any adjustments. This is so I can get the feel of the complete body of music so I know in which direction it wants to go.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: The control room has excellent acoustics and is large, measuring appx. 20 ft X 22ft, with 16 foot ceiling. Two monitor systems (ATC SCM150's and Ocean Way HR4S) provide highly accurate audio that has a proven track record for translation to the outside world.

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

A: My heroes are either top notch studio players or old timers in music recording. I have great admiration and respect for Al Schmidt, Bob Ludwig, Bernie Grundman, Alan Sides, Ted Jensen, Scott Hull, Jim Scott, Mark Needham, and many others.

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

A: The bulk of my work nowadays is mastering and audio restoration. I occasionally do mixing, but mastering has been more in demand for the last several years. I do have a major mixing project that will be released to 2017: a recording I made of Jaco Pastorius and the Word Of Mouth Big Band that I did in 1982 is being released for the first time on Resonance Records. Look for it!