5.1 mixing and sound design

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

A: John Barry, Howard Blake, Howard Shore, Henry Mancini, David Arnold, Thomas Newman, Angelo Badalamenti, John Powell, John Williams, Craig Amstrong, Hans Zimmer, Heitor Pereira, Dario Marianelli, Peter Cobbin, Alan Meyerson, Spike Stent, Trevor Horn...

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: My ability to solve any problems, come up with innovative ideas and deliver a great surround mix that elevates the film.

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

A: Film scores, mostly a mix of orchestral and electronic music, but it varies.

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

A: I started in the late 1970's as a musician playing in bands and mixing FOH for other bands. Then I bought a 4-track (Yamaha MT44) and later studied sound at Gateway and North London Polytechnic before starting as a recording engineer in an 8-track studio, then a 24-track, later a 48-track... which cost the same as a small house! Then in the late 1980s digital took off and completely revolutionised everything. In the early 90s I set up my own digital studio in Barcelona and in 2012 I built a new studio in Brazil, which is where I am now.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: I talk with the client about they want, then do everything to give it to them. When I'm happy with the mix, I listen with the client in the studio, or stream it over Source-Live Pro for remote approval.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Emotion, excitement and great sound.

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

A: Have a chat and make sure that you are on the same page regarding what you want. Use your demos and also films and music to help explain your references and your goals.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: The continual creativity. No two projects are the same, you always need to do something different.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: If you're recording acoustic instruments, go and listen to them before placing the mics, then you'll know where to put the instruments and the mics.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: Anything that can help me understand what they want to achieve. Also asking what they don't want can prove to be very valuable..

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: Cool Tunes studio is a Non-Environment studio, designed by Philip Newell. We have 3 rooms: control, recording and editing. Our 5.1 Monitoring is Miller and Kreisel with amps by Rauch, cabling is Mogami and we have a Screen Excellence 4K projection screen. Gear highlights are shown in another section.

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

A: 5.1 re-recording and score mixing for films.