LeeRosario
New member
To my fellow threadsters! I hope it's alright to type this. I just want to share an experience with you all that I'm pretty excited about!
By: Lee Rosario
I've never been the type of person to become dazzled by any particular experience, but I suppose there comes a moment when I have to realize the importance of a situation.
In this case, a visit and a consultation with one of the top mastering engineers in the world, Mr. Bob Katz. Keep in mind that at 22, I'm considered a "boy" in the field.
It started the week of the 18th, December 2005. I had currently been working on a latin jazz project, of which some members had already established a personal relationship with Bob a long time before the conception of this project.
As fate would of have it, one of musicians had met up with Bob at a social function of some type and landed some time to listen to the album I was engineering. They explained a little bit of my history, how I am just a young kid who is really holding an amazingly complex album together very well. So they sat with Bob in at the Digital Domain mastering room and gave the album a listen. Keep in mind, I had no idea this ever happened.
The day after, I received a call from the producer of the project. I would later find out that he had met up with Bob and that Bob Katz was interested in meeting me. The man George Massenburg, inventor of the parameteric EQ, hails with tremendous respect in a digital era. Veteran engineers would kill for the opportunity. I almost didn't feel worthy.
That was the first shock. A professional, who's time is very valuable, requesting me. As if that wasn't breath taking enough, I later found out that he graded me a very generous B on the entire project. And comming from Bob, thats a huge deal and a tremendous honor.
So in the next few days, I set out to make the appointment with him to meet him at his request. And let me tell you, I was a wreck!
Speaking with him on the phone was nothing short of a great introduction to his genious. He calmly advised that I review his notes on prepping files.
December 28, 2005-
I was scheduled to come in at 12 in the afternoon. I made it at 11:30 with the sax player of the group. Digital Domain, Bob's private mastering facility, proved the rumors true. The room reflected a minimalist and audiophile's purist style.
With nothing more than a couch sitting in front of prestine Weiss eq's and compression units, along with Bob's personally designed Digital Domain's "K Box", you could already tell simplicty was extremely important.. In the back, I glimpshed a reel to reel machine of some type , Dorrough metering as well as some high end A/D converstion stuff. I felt it rude to stare at the computer screen. So I couldn't be too sure what he was working with. Sadie and Wavelab was all that I could read for the moment. All in all, it was a very simple set up. You could tell the room was optimized for the single purpose of prestine mastering.
The set up was something to be admired. You could almost compare it to a space ship's command deck. In the middle of the room layed a leather green "listening couch" with a flat screen in front of it. I call it the captains chair. Behind the couch is another desk equipped with another flat screen. This is where one of Bob's assistants will make session additons during a mastering session (entering serial numbers for songs, typing in an applicatable information for the album, etc). This can be done in conjunction with the mastering. So in essence, one person is editing while the other masters the song.
We took our shoes off, in Bob's eccentric manner and stepped into his "world". A simplistic white room with a steeply angled high ceiling was our environment. Absorption material was stratigically placed throughout the room. I managed to sit down next to Bob as he carefully listened to historic latin salsa material that I assume he was hired to preserve. "Those are real strings", he said. I nodded and replied with a comment on one of the brass arrangments that stood out in my head. I noticed he was sorta fighting his wireless keyboard, in which he then added, "I'm always having problems with this thing". It reminded me of all the times I had to fight with my shitty wireless keyboard.
In that moment, you could feel a vibe of deep of concentration. Having arrived half an hour early, it was a treat to simply be sitting next to a master and watching him "do his thing". He listened and lightly grooved with the music, and then afterwards perhaps made a minor adjustment here and there.
He has a very subtle nature to him. Very straight foward and well spoken. When you speak with Bob, you realize you are speaking to a true fanatic of music in its completeness. You realize he is not simply just a mastering engineer, but a protector of intellectual and musical communication. A very opiniated man that gives it to you straight and clear.
In the next 2 and a half hours (when originally I was scheduled for 1), we look at my material and I was proud to receive very uplifting comments. We worked on my weaknesses and how I can improve myself, not just technically, but spiritually. The ability to approach a mix with a global and individualistic mind. "Seeing the forest and the trees" as he puts it.
The material I presented him would be along the lines of a Herbie Hancock meets Paquito D' Rivera with a touch of something completely different. Bob was able to pick up on that and explain his views on how he would approach the mix and how I can get it sounding even better. "But that's just me, now I'm just knit picking" he explained. I replied very energectically, "But thats exactly what I want! Pick away!"
His explinations are what you might expect, insightful and holistic. "Too much of that and it turns to shit, too little of that and it turns to shit. So always just trust your judgement", striving to make his point subtle and crystal clear.
We talked about eq technique, reverb calibration, the importance of predelays in finding "that spot" for an instrument and so much more. Context was a big part of our talk. "Logically, no one instrument should be as loud as your mix, so remember that for your intros", he said.
How to treat digitally recorded instruments and putting life back into them. That was a great experience for me. The differences between treating a mix in a digital vs natural sense. And probably most importantly, the dangers of comb filtering. Proper tracking will always set up a good mix.
"Of course, I might just be full of shit...just remember to ride with the mix and listen to whats going on", he adds. If that came from any other engineer, it probably would never set in.
On the technical front, Bob is just as quick. The man is not the father of the analog to digital front for nothing. He was quick to explain the short commings of programs like Pro Tools LE and M-Powered stuff and how the conception of cheap and afordable gear can fool many. Although he was not completely denouncing them, either. When I asked what he thought of the Motu stuff, he replied, "The Digital Performer stuff is for masocists, too many limitations". Not that I was particularly interested in Motu stuff, but it had been itching me for a long time, so what better way than to ask a professional. He did, however, mention Nuendo and Logic. "Nuendo is good, but expensive. Logic seems to be a very good program these days, just very weird", he explained. I having had some background in Logic, could understand him perfectly. Logic, at least I beleive, is powerful in the MIDI front and extremely flexible. Not exactly to the level that I care for.
At the end of our consultation, I did manage to spring up one last question as I put my shoes back on. "So what are your thoughts on the 192khz revolution with all thats comming out, like the Focusrite Sapphire?", I asked. Now something you have to understand about the guy is that he is a man of his beliefs. His reply was simple and very heartfelt, as if he already knew I was going to ask. "It's all bullshit, that's entirely too much for tracking and even mixing. Anything more than 96khz is probably unnessessary. And that might even be too much. Save the high samplerate stuff for the mastering engineer", he casually put it. You could say I'm a bit sold on the answer.
I think an important and admirable characteristic to Bob is his humble persona. As busy as he is, he was able to go out of his way to sit with me and guide "a young talent" as he put it. Yet, he stresses that the world is a big place, and to not take his teachings as a rule of thumb. He reminds me of what it is to be excited to work in a field such as this one and that proper timing and hard work do pay off in the long run. "So if it takes you 6 hours to mix a section, then let it take 6 hours. Next time it may take 3 and so on...".
Although 2 and a half hours felt like 5 minutes, the memory is forever. The experience will mark a very important part in my development. It feels comforting to know that skillful and kind people, like Bob, are still out there making music happen for the world to enjoy. I look forward to the future! @
A Day with a Legend
By: Lee Rosario
I've never been the type of person to become dazzled by any particular experience, but I suppose there comes a moment when I have to realize the importance of a situation.
In this case, a visit and a consultation with one of the top mastering engineers in the world, Mr. Bob Katz. Keep in mind that at 22, I'm considered a "boy" in the field.
It started the week of the 18th, December 2005. I had currently been working on a latin jazz project, of which some members had already established a personal relationship with Bob a long time before the conception of this project.
As fate would of have it, one of musicians had met up with Bob at a social function of some type and landed some time to listen to the album I was engineering. They explained a little bit of my history, how I am just a young kid who is really holding an amazingly complex album together very well. So they sat with Bob in at the Digital Domain mastering room and gave the album a listen. Keep in mind, I had no idea this ever happened.
The day after, I received a call from the producer of the project. I would later find out that he had met up with Bob and that Bob Katz was interested in meeting me. The man George Massenburg, inventor of the parameteric EQ, hails with tremendous respect in a digital era. Veteran engineers would kill for the opportunity. I almost didn't feel worthy.
That was the first shock. A professional, who's time is very valuable, requesting me. As if that wasn't breath taking enough, I later found out that he graded me a very generous B on the entire project. And comming from Bob, thats a huge deal and a tremendous honor.
So in the next few days, I set out to make the appointment with him to meet him at his request. And let me tell you, I was a wreck!
Speaking with him on the phone was nothing short of a great introduction to his genious. He calmly advised that I review his notes on prepping files.
December 28, 2005-
I was scheduled to come in at 12 in the afternoon. I made it at 11:30 with the sax player of the group. Digital Domain, Bob's private mastering facility, proved the rumors true. The room reflected a minimalist and audiophile's purist style.
With nothing more than a couch sitting in front of prestine Weiss eq's and compression units, along with Bob's personally designed Digital Domain's "K Box", you could already tell simplicty was extremely important.. In the back, I glimpshed a reel to reel machine of some type , Dorrough metering as well as some high end A/D converstion stuff. I felt it rude to stare at the computer screen. So I couldn't be too sure what he was working with. Sadie and Wavelab was all that I could read for the moment. All in all, it was a very simple set up. You could tell the room was optimized for the single purpose of prestine mastering.
The set up was something to be admired. You could almost compare it to a space ship's command deck. In the middle of the room layed a leather green "listening couch" with a flat screen in front of it. I call it the captains chair. Behind the couch is another desk equipped with another flat screen. This is where one of Bob's assistants will make session additons during a mastering session (entering serial numbers for songs, typing in an applicatable information for the album, etc). This can be done in conjunction with the mastering. So in essence, one person is editing while the other masters the song.
We took our shoes off, in Bob's eccentric manner and stepped into his "world". A simplistic white room with a steeply angled high ceiling was our environment. Absorption material was stratigically placed throughout the room. I managed to sit down next to Bob as he carefully listened to historic latin salsa material that I assume he was hired to preserve. "Those are real strings", he said. I nodded and replied with a comment on one of the brass arrangments that stood out in my head. I noticed he was sorta fighting his wireless keyboard, in which he then added, "I'm always having problems with this thing". It reminded me of all the times I had to fight with my shitty wireless keyboard.
In that moment, you could feel a vibe of deep of concentration. Having arrived half an hour early, it was a treat to simply be sitting next to a master and watching him "do his thing". He listened and lightly grooved with the music, and then afterwards perhaps made a minor adjustment here and there.
He has a very subtle nature to him. Very straight foward and well spoken. When you speak with Bob, you realize you are speaking to a true fanatic of music in its completeness. You realize he is not simply just a mastering engineer, but a protector of intellectual and musical communication. A very opiniated man that gives it to you straight and clear.
In the next 2 and a half hours (when originally I was scheduled for 1), we look at my material and I was proud to receive very uplifting comments. We worked on my weaknesses and how I can improve myself, not just technically, but spiritually. The ability to approach a mix with a global and individualistic mind. "Seeing the forest and the trees" as he puts it.
The material I presented him would be along the lines of a Herbie Hancock meets Paquito D' Rivera with a touch of something completely different. Bob was able to pick up on that and explain his views on how he would approach the mix and how I can get it sounding even better. "But that's just me, now I'm just knit picking" he explained. I replied very energectically, "But thats exactly what I want! Pick away!"
His explinations are what you might expect, insightful and holistic. "Too much of that and it turns to shit, too little of that and it turns to shit. So always just trust your judgement", striving to make his point subtle and crystal clear.
We talked about eq technique, reverb calibration, the importance of predelays in finding "that spot" for an instrument and so much more. Context was a big part of our talk. "Logically, no one instrument should be as loud as your mix, so remember that for your intros", he said.
How to treat digitally recorded instruments and putting life back into them. That was a great experience for me. The differences between treating a mix in a digital vs natural sense. And probably most importantly, the dangers of comb filtering. Proper tracking will always set up a good mix.
"Of course, I might just be full of shit...just remember to ride with the mix and listen to whats going on", he adds. If that came from any other engineer, it probably would never set in.
On the technical front, Bob is just as quick. The man is not the father of the analog to digital front for nothing. He was quick to explain the short commings of programs like Pro Tools LE and M-Powered stuff and how the conception of cheap and afordable gear can fool many. Although he was not completely denouncing them, either. When I asked what he thought of the Motu stuff, he replied, "The Digital Performer stuff is for masocists, too many limitations". Not that I was particularly interested in Motu stuff, but it had been itching me for a long time, so what better way than to ask a professional. He did, however, mention Nuendo and Logic. "Nuendo is good, but expensive. Logic seems to be a very good program these days, just very weird", he explained. I having had some background in Logic, could understand him perfectly. Logic, at least I beleive, is powerful in the MIDI front and extremely flexible. Not exactly to the level that I care for.
At the end of our consultation, I did manage to spring up one last question as I put my shoes back on. "So what are your thoughts on the 192khz revolution with all thats comming out, like the Focusrite Sapphire?", I asked. Now something you have to understand about the guy is that he is a man of his beliefs. His reply was simple and very heartfelt, as if he already knew I was going to ask. "It's all bullshit, that's entirely too much for tracking and even mixing. Anything more than 96khz is probably unnessessary. And that might even be too much. Save the high samplerate stuff for the mastering engineer", he casually put it. You could say I'm a bit sold on the answer.
I think an important and admirable characteristic to Bob is his humble persona. As busy as he is, he was able to go out of his way to sit with me and guide "a young talent" as he put it. Yet, he stresses that the world is a big place, and to not take his teachings as a rule of thumb. He reminds me of what it is to be excited to work in a field such as this one and that proper timing and hard work do pay off in the long run. "So if it takes you 6 hours to mix a section, then let it take 6 hours. Next time it may take 3 and so on...".
Although 2 and a half hours felt like 5 minutes, the memory is forever. The experience will mark a very important part in my development. It feels comforting to know that skillful and kind people, like Bob, are still out there making music happen for the world to enjoy. I look forward to the future! @
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