electric BASS & upright BASS

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

A: i have a project that is a rock band called "los Eddies" with only 2 basses and drums, i really enjoy it because it is my creation and it forced me to become very comfortable with my sing and play and it also forced me to step up and be a "lead singer" it is a role that really scares me

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I recently recorded 3 songs of Pilar Cabrera´s new album, a live album with La Ramona that should be coming out on March and playing live with Esteman and La Ramona.

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

A: Phillip Bynoe who was my rock teacher at LAMA and Rodrigo Tenjo one of the best players in Colombia Tim Lefebvre who i met during the time i was in LA on a clinic, he is an amazing bass player and when it comes to effects and expanding the tonal range of the bass and getting freaky and musical sounds he is the man

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: in bass effects i prefer analog, i just feel those effects track really nice and i feel a more natural response, in recording i think digital sounds amazing and with a different character than analog, also like analog recording

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

A: that they will be satisfied with the end product

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: getting to know different people and different approaches in music, i also really enjoy playing with lots of different players

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

A: if i can record at home and the answer is yes if i teach lessons and the answer is yes and if i know how to slap or play with a pick or with effects

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

A: well for non musician friends it is really hard to know exactly what part of the sound am i making, but as soon as i shut up or show them a song with no bass they know

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: who are your 3 favorite bass players? what reference do you have in mind for your song? (if i have it ) can i make a suggestion?

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

A: first you have to really know what you want so you can narrow your search and know exactly what can of player you want and need

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

A: avalon U5, my lakland 55-02, a big amp, a big computer and a big generator so i can power up all that stuff

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

A: Professional bass player based in Colombia, been playing for 15 years and got my bass performance degree in Los Angeles Music Academy in /08. i started playing with friends in high school and then started working with a Queen tribute band around the city and that when i started doing it professionally, after that i went to LA to study and then came back and right away started making a path that has been evolving ever since, right now i play live with some of the biggest pop acts in the country and record for several artists around

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: i really like trying to create a groove and creating a solid ground for the rest of the instruments to lay on i like hitting the bass hard but not make it clank but do make it punchy, when i started i really tried to emulate the tone of the players i enjoyed so that made me very versatile because i got to know my hands really well and my instruments really well

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

A: i would love to work with Dua Lipa, i feel her pop is really well produced and the bass lines seem really fun to play

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: send your tracks with as little make up as you can so you let the mixing engineer do his job and try to open your ears to all that is happening within the song, sometimes you can get good ideas for your own part.

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

A: mostly pop and rock all of them with latin and folky tints

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: i feel like i am more of a groove and base bass player, i´ve had the chance to play with a lot of drummers ranging from not so good to remarkable and i feel that made me stretch my bass skills so that i can easily lock with the rhythm section. i am very consistent with my sound

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: i like to know what kind of reference they would like on the song just so i can "visualize" what i can use for it (what kind of bass, what technique, etc) i like knowing but i do not like listening to the references that much because i feel they "corrupt" my mind and it is harder for my to come with an original bass line, i like to look for a strong bass line that serves the song well

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: i like trying to learn the song by heart and try to run it on complete takes and then check if anything needs dubbing, i usually send 1 track on electric bass or 2 if it has an effect (1 clean 1 effect), and 2 if it is upright bass. i usually spend some time trying to learn it and then some time trying to come up with a part that suits the music and enhances it, then i try to make the fullest takes i can and keep checking if anything needs correcting, then send crearly labeled .mp3 and . wav

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: -Recording Gear: -Amp: Markbass little mark III head, Aguilar Gs112 cabinet. -Avalon U5 preamp/DI -Aguilar tonehammer preamp/DI -Presonus firestudio project. -I record on LOGIC

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

A: Pino Palladino for sure, and i love also the work of Quincy Jones and John Williams

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

A: i work with a couple of producers from Bogota, Colombia so depending on what the job is they usually ask me to bring 2 or 3 basses depending on what they have in mind, we´ve been working for a while now so they know what i have and have a notion of what i should bring, when i get there they either give me a chord chart, a demo in advance or we sit and track it by sections (depending on the producer) lately i´ve been asked to do a lot of pick work with the bass