Keyboard (Organ, Piano, Synth)

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

A: I recently completed tracking on the band Ace Monroe's latest album. What I like the most about it is that I played a supporting role with very few features. I played lots of organ, clav, piano and synths, but the focus stays firmly on the driver of the band: hard rock guitars. I really enjoy working on projects where I can support the artist without jumping out of the mix.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I'm currently in the middle of several larger productions for artists, but spend most of my days in the studio working on tracks just like yours.

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

A: So many great people here, it's hard to know where to start. Jordan Perlson would be my pick for almost all projects needing drums, for mix I highly recommend Marc Frigo. There's also lots of undiscovered gems on here- don't be afraid to dig a little bit.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: It's cliche, but both. Analog does one thing, digital does another. Both have advantages and disadvantages and I use both on most projects I'm working on.

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

A: I can promise that I will always show up with my absolute best to whatever project I'm working on. That means I'll be focused on you, eager, positive, non-judgmental, and excited about getting to work on your stuff regardless of your experience level.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I love that it allows me to practice being present, and emotionally connect with amazing music. I also love that I get to help people express themselves through music.

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

A: A lot of customers aren't really sure what they want on their track, so they'll ask me "what I hear". I can usually hear a wide range of keyboard parts for most tracks, many of which the customer might not like. The solution is usually as simple as "show me a song or songs where you really like the keyboard parts", and I can quickly figure out which direction to go.

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

A: Hmm, that's hard. Maybe that it's going to be the first thing I try that will work. Usually to really lock in a great keyboard part, you kind of have to hunt for a bit for the right sound and right part. That takes time, but when it locks in it feels effortless.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: I usually ask some of these questions: 1. Tell me about your favorite music right now. 2. What's your favorite artist currently? 3. If this song could turn out like any song, what would it be? 4. What would an "over the top great" keyboard production on this track look like to you?

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

A: Maybe three things to look for: 1. How much emotional intelligence does the person you're wanting to hire have? This will have big implications for not just how enjoyable/easy the process is, but also will have a huge impact on how the person "reads" what your track(s) and understands what needs to be added. 2. Is the person you're looking for already doing work that's similar to what you want them to do? Everyone has a spot where they're especially good, and hiring people to stay in that pocket will get you better results. 3. Don't just look at the player's price tag, look at what they can do for your song. If a more expensive musician can elevate your track by 2x to 3x over what a cheaper musician can do, it might make sense to go up another $25-$50 for a vastly better product.

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

A: 1. A midi keyboard (something with a hammer action ideally) 2. A fast laptop computer loaded with plugins 3. Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro headphones 4. A really great mic that held up to the elements 5. An Apollo interface

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

A: Like I mentioned, I started touring right out of high school with an indie rock band in the midwest. After the band broke up, I spent several years playing solo piano in the St. Louis, MO area. In 2014, I followed my dream of becoming a full time musician and moved to Nashville, TN. I spent about 10 years on the road with various artists playing hundreds of shows a year before staying home to devote myself to session work.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Fluid 😂 As a session musician, I am asked to constantly switch genres, artists, and more. That's allowed me to figure out a range of styles and cover them.

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

A: I would love to work with the Killers. They write such incredible songs and have such anthemic productions.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Yes! EQ and panning is maybe the only thing you need to make your track sound amazing. Everything needs to stay out of each other's way sonically, and serving the song is the only game worth playing.

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

A: Living in Nashville I do a ton of Country and Contemporary Christian music, but I also regularly play on Americana, Pop, Indie Rock, and Acoustic tracks. For an idea of some of the stuff I've played on and what I can do, check out my Spotify playlist and audio tracks.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Emotionally understanding what a song needs, and finding a way to express that with just the right sound and playing.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I grew up touring in an indie rock group, and I feel like my heart is still there no matter the music I'm working on. I also bring my full-time session player skills to every track I play on. I work full time as a session player and music producer in one of the most competitive music industry towns on earth, and that's all I do. When you hire me, you know that you're getting someone who is honing his skills every single day in the studio with some of the world's best musicians. And most importantly, I'll treat your music with the same care and respect as anything else I'm working on.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: I start by messaging the people I'm working with, asking questions, listening to what they're looking for. That will usually include asking for reference tracks, albums they like, and more. I'll then have the artist or producer responsible for the track send it to me, and I'll chart it out and map it in my DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) Next, I'll track it in my project studio using whatever gear makes the song work. Sometimes that means everything is acoustic, other times I'm working with just vintage synths and effects pedals. Totally based on the specific track's needs. Once I'm done, I'll send you a comprehensive set of audio tracks, charts, and a walkthrough video.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I have a small(ish) 800 sq. ft. project studio near East Nashville, TN and use it as my base for working in the session scene. The studio has a main space with racks of keyboards and my production desk, and then there's a custom-built iso room with 2 feet of insulation in all directions that house my vocal mic, Leslie, and upright piano.

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

A: It's cliche, but there are so many amazingly talented people that are inspiring me on a daily basis that it's hard to narrow it down. What inspires me the most is when people who don't necessarily do this for a living make a beautiful track. That's so inspiring to me, because it feels so pure to make something for the joy of making it.

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

A: I do a ton of keys overdubs for clients. This looks like me coming into a nearly finished production, and filling in all the sonic holes with keyboard work to give it that "polished" sound. I also do a lot of ballads on piano, and of course organ tracking is another big one since I have a real tone wheel organ and Leslie.