Guitar Player - Songwriter

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Currently completing and sorting through a set of 30-something rough-mixed demos for a personal project.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Both. I myself am a true analog man but there's no need to ditch great digital products, even plugins, if they sound great and help you being creative!

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

A: As mentioned above, to treat sour music with the same respect and enthusiasm as if it was my own.

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

A: That recording an instrumental part is just an aseptic and isolated addendum to a composition. It's not. As any instrument involved in a song, guitars have to speak harmoniously and coherently with the mood and the natural flow of the music. It takes cooperation.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What kind of emotions would you like your listeners to feel?

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

A: A tube amp, one of my guitars, a reverb pedal, a couple of delay pedals.

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

A: I've played the electric guitar since I was 12 but moved the first steps into music production some 5 years ago.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Imperfect. Honest. Simple. I try to say as much as I can using as few notes or chords as possible.

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

A: Any artist from any genre. This is how you learn new skills and meet interesting people.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Stay true to your sound and the message your art wants to communicate.

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

A: Alternative, Rock, Blues, Songwriter, Psychedelic Rock, Ambient and Instrumentals.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Patience.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: Patience. I try to treat any project from any artist and any genre as my own.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: It may sound strange, but listening is the most important step in this kind of creative project. I try to listen to the song or composition I will have to play on as much as I can to get its feel and mood as much as possible. Listening to the artist and constantly working on his feedback is also extremely important.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: My setup is pretty straightforward. I use Logic Pro X as a DAW, an audio interface, a set of optical compressors, and a small set of microphones to track acoustic guitars and the amps. If needed, I can rely on a fully equipment recording studio that helps me develop more complex sounds and recording techniques. My main amp is a Marshall JTM 45 and usually play Gibson Les Pauls or Fender Stratocasters but have several other options if your project requires a very specific guitar tone.

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

A: Most of the times artists ask me to develop guitar phrases or lead parts for their song or composition. Songwriters generally have very well recorded rhythm guitar or piano parts but need an extra guitar touch here and there or a solo section. Sometimes artists would like me to develop a very specific background soundscape to add a distinctive feeling to the song. I try to keep things as simple and subtle as possible, if not otherwise requested, to remain true to the original character of the composition. I was also asked to collaborate to fully develop a song or piece of music or re-arranging an existing one. Such projects are the most challenging but also the most rewarding ones, as they generate a creative bond between musicians and it's quite a great feeling.