Livin’ the Muse production life…

Livin’ the Muse production life…

The way of manufacturing quality sound-Sachi Ruaya

The term ‘music producer’ has been shoved and tossed around the music industry. Not all music producers do the same thing. In fact, there are many roles involved in the production of music. Music producers are like a director of a movie. In charge of directing a song the way he or she thinks it should sound like. This involves sitting in the musicians’ rehearsals, planning how to record the song and suggesting changes to the track.

  

Music producing as a career is an interesting one indeed. Your job for the ultimate goal, producing a song or part of a song for the clients, is grouped into many different roles such as a recording, engineering, composing, arranging, being the musician, beat making (producing original sounds, beats and loops), remixing and being the project manager (making sure deadlines are met and hires the right qualified people for the music production). “Surprisingly”, that is a lot of roles to master! So ---usually�" many types music producers gather together for the project so that the clients, such as record companies and artists, get the best possible quality sound. But not always a music producer works for a client. Some music producers work more independently and produce their own projects making a profit by marketing.

 

So…what is it like to be a music producer? I interviewed an audio engineer who focuses on electronic music and runs a label, Pheek. Foremost during the interview, Pheek states four common myths about producing music;

“You can only work on one song at a time” and that “once you start a new song, you have to work from the beginning until it is done” As a musician myself, I can relate. Doing so will not only bore you to death but also begin to extract your creative output as some days, a certain aspect of your creativity �"that is suited for the song-- is the main output. This is also why the next myth, “you can work on music for hours (you can, but you’ll be unproductive)” is in existence.

   Also, by working on more than one song can bring more inspiration.

   Remember that usually different types of music producers gather for a project? Don’t forget about them! Once you think you cannot contribute any more to the project, you can either give the job to another music producer to help finish it and improve it or sell your unfinished work elsewhere. This also proves the last myth, that “every song should be finished”.

 

Inclosure, Pheek states that �" after all those years of his career �" “it’s better to devote your time to other things on those creative days because of the space between session for essential for creative rejuvenation”.

- 1 Pheek (rightmost with glasses) discussing a song with a co-worker

    I also asked Pheek about his daily work life. He reveals that his day only consists of 2-3 hour of actual music production despite arriving at the studio at 9 am and leaving at 5 pm. So, where do the rest of the hours fly by? “A lot of my time will be spent on tweaking, searching, checking references, checking emails, and taking many breaks that might appear as procrastination…mostly because I want to be at the top of my game, and I know that my peak attention is condensed into short spurts. Of course, sometimes I will spend a good 5 hours on a track because there’s a lot of cleaning up and tweaking to do, but it’s mostly micro-editing.” Forbye, he signifies his time at the studio by stating that he enjoys having the people he coaches over and having his friends visit once in a while. “The time I spend with others in the studio is extremely valuable because I’m nourished by the ideas we exchange and the music they share…Being able to do this full time is a privilege and I embrace every single day with full dedication. It is possible to do it but it demands a lot of discipline too.”

 

Next I interview Jaron Luksa (who once partook as a manager for multiple acts such as Grammy Award Winner Angelique Kidjo, Rock the Bells Festival, The Secret Machines, Amanda Palmer, Margaret Cho, Zoe Keating, Devotchka and Collective Soul and also served clients such as John Legend, Foster the People, The Gitas, Amanda Palmer, and many more) for his daily work life and for more information about this job. “A typical day for me starts with checking my Producer notes, prepping the studio and checking gear functionality. If something is broken, I’d rather have a fix or workaround figured out before anyone is in the space. Once the client shows up, I want my attention 100% on the artist and the music creation process. Nothing else comes first. I usually work for about 10-12 hours with lots of ear and mental breaks worked in throughout the day. While on a break, I am usually attending to phone calls, emails, texts, social media and even accounting. There is a lot of work that goes into being a Producer outside of the studio such as attending rehearsals, meetings, writing sessions, and going out to shows. Social media has given me the ability to connect with more artists than ever, but in-person interaction will never be replaced. Half of producing is the music; the rest is sales…and I am the product I push.”

    

 I would agree with you if you say that these two unique producers live their work life similarly. Checking the equipment, checking emails and attending the musicians’ rehearsals along with not much time actually sitting down by themselves producing the song.

   Do you have what it takes to become a music producer? It is said to be a very competitive field since it is a popular career choice and obviously, has a very limited client pool in relation to a number of music producers. The competition is crazy! And the high demand for free content and high demand for producers with ‘the’ reputation does not help! Moreover, even post-formal education, your music will take time to get to a level where it can be released. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t get your hands dirty! Some suggest giving free content to start with to get your name out there! But then again, making a profit comes a problem since you will have to buy most of your equipment. “The game has changed and you have to be more than just a Producer nowadays. So many of my peers not only produce but play on records, write, engineer, DJ, program tracks or function as artists themselves to pay the bills.” But ultimately, despite the frustrating financial struggles, music production is one of the most rewarding careers out there and is definitely worth the challenge.