AOR Artist and Producer

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

A: I worked on a very personal song that was auto-biographical in nature, and describes the events of the past 25+ years of my life. I had started on the music around 1999, but wrote the lyrics in 2018. Even though it's release-able, I'm still working on it. Every time I listen to it, I end up re-shaping it, somehow. Like the real story of my life, the project hasn't ended, yet.

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

A: I highly recommend the legendary Robert Margouleff. He's the man who gave Stevie Wonder the best albums of his career, including Music of My Mind, Talking Book, Inner Visions, etc. Mr. Margouleff is the co-creator of the super-synth known as TONTO, which was used on Stevie's best albums.

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

A: I promise to give every aspect of your project the human touch. Even if it's your song, I put my artistic spin on it. Not only am I an experienced producer, I'm also a seasoned conductor and music director. I make sure your song gets not just the technical accuracy, but the artistic expressiveness that sets your song apart from the others.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: It's not a job to me; it's what I was born to do, just like breathing and eating. I've always been musical, even before I played my first note on an instrument.

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

A: Q: Can I call you or Zoom you? A: Sure, but it's gonna cost you a minimum of $100.00 per half-hour.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Can you name a song, an album, or an artist you're using as a baseline for the sound you're looking for?

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

A: Don't be a bot or a spammer.

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

A: A satellite phone, a fishing pole, a tent, a firestarter kit, and a ukelele.

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

A: I started off in my local school band program from 6th grade onward, started teaching myself guitar in the 7th grade, marched in my high school and college bands, majored in trumpet, minored in classical guitar. I got my Bachelor's Degree and Master's Degree in music, and worked as a music educator for well over 20 years. I've also worked as a live musician, playing trumpet, guitar, bass guitar, and vocals. I took up music production in the 1990's, and started writing, recording, producing, mixing, and mastering my own music during the early days of hard-disk recording. I switched from PC to Mac around 2014, and since then, I've been using Logic Pro X as my primary means of music production.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: If I could describe it in a number: 1985. That's the year that pretty much encompasses my style. My style is pretty much late 70's/early 80's hard rock, 50's and 60's rock & roll; 60's Motown, 70's progressive rock, and late 70's/early 80's New Wave, with a little bit of 40's big band jazz, and Common Practice Period composition from 1750-1899.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I'm currently working on a Beach Boys cover ballad, and writing some 60's-flavored Surf Rock, heavy on the vocals and harmonies.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Is it too much to ask for both?

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

A: I would need a time machine to work with the artists I would want to work with, especially in their prime. I would've loved to have been in the studio when Brian Wilson was working on those early to mid 60s Beach Boys albums.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Don't worry about what everybody else is doing. Come up with a sound that sounds like YOU.

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

A: I prefer music that at least sounds like it was performed by humans, recorded by humans, mixed and mastered by humans. Sometimes we have to use samples, synths, and sequencers to finish a project, but in the end, I prefer not to use things such as loops or AI.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring me to a song; my ear, my experience, my expertise, and my aesthetic edge.

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

A: In terms of studio production, Brian Wilson is my favorite influence. My goal is to make an album as timeless as Pet Sounds, and as mysterious as SMILE. Ted Templeman has also been a big influence on my production style, particularly during his Van Halen days. I'm also a huge fan of what Hugh Padgham did for drums with both the Police and Phil Collins.

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

A: That vintage sound requires vintage gear. It doesn't—it requires understanding how those records were arranged, mixed, and produced. I get that sound with modern tools because I know what made it work musically, not just technically.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: I believe my strongest skill is creating music that sounds fresh and listenable in any era, not just now. I want to create music that people will still be listening to 50 years from now. That is always my goal.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: I listen, first. I study the client's references and rough tracks to understand the emotional intent. Then I build or mix with period-appropriate sounds—Rhodes, Wurlitzer, analog-style compression, plate reverbs. I check my work against classic records of the era. Revisions refine, but the goal is always that warm, expensive studio sheen.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: I use Logic Pro X as my primary software. I also use plug-ins from IK multimedia for instrument samples, mixing, and mastering. I've been using Event 30/30 monitoring speakers since 1999. The "gear" is less important than the ears—I've studied how those classic records were made and apply that knowledge regardless of tools.

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

A: I write, arrange, record, mix, and master original songs. I also do vintage-style mixing and mastering, or full production from scratch—taking client demos to broadcast-ready tracks with a timeless studio sound.