Recording - November 2014 - 63

and organic? Do they need it to sound intimate, or more over-the-top and grandiose?
When the client's not present, these
questions are vital! I need to understand
the direction they want, because they're
not here to steer me in that direction. I listen to the recordings they supply me, but
I also communicate directly, connecting
what they supply me to work with and
what they want to achieve.
In a lot of cases, I have to go with my
intuition and feel free to make changes,
but I can't just put my ego out there and
say, "This is what I've done-take it!" I
must understand what's there and be
open to the possibility that they are looking for something else, and that it's me
who has to rearrange ideas based on
what they want and need.
So, is the client always right?
It's a balancing act. Sometimes bands
want certain things that just don't fit them.
If that's how they want it, I have to accommodate them, but sometimes they're actually asking me to find what fits them, they
want my input.
Do you consider that part of your job
as a mastering engineer, to help guide
a stylistic direction for the final sound
of a record? Some engineers feel that
clients are waiting too long to make
decisions that should have been made
in mixing or even in tracking...
You know, I think that today, because
so many people record at home or in
small studios, they don't have the guidance they might get at a big studio. I
have to kind of decipher what they want
and where they're going. In a lot of these
cases, I don't think that they're so much
"relying on the mastering engineer to fix
it" as simply being in a position where
they were the tracking engineer, and
maybe the mixing engineer as well.
They may have thought they'd gotten
their mixes to the right place, but they'd
never listened to it anywhere except in
their own little room. I often get projects
where there's a need to go back to the
mix and retweak things, simply because
they didn't hear the mix anywhere but in
the room where they mixed. If the room is
weak in the bass, they boost the low end
a lot. If the high end in the room is dull,
there is too much high end in the mix.
So you would say that the mastering
engineer's role as an objective pair of
ears in a different room is more important than ever?
Yes! Today you have the ability to
record and release music independently,
with little or no need for big money or
companies behind you. The low cost of
technology, the bandwidth, the growth of
distribution channels... there's more
recorded music than ever, all over the

world. Mastering was always important,
but today, with more products coming out
and with people doing all their work in the
same environment, the same room with
the same gear and the same speakers, the
mastering engineer is somebody who
brings that perspective you need.
Not only that, but he can bring something
fresh and new to the table, actually help to
shape the music, give it extended range,
enhance the vibe. He's not only a fresh and
objective listener, but he has a set of tools
that the original producer/mixer won't have.
Do you prefer ongoing communication
during the process?
It's about how the client wants to work.
Some clients say, "Here it is, work on it," and
I'll send them the final product for approval.
Other clients want to be part of the process,
so I'll work on it, send it to them, ask for feedback, and if they ask for changes I'll make
changes. Sometimes I'll be told beforehand
if a track needs to be kept low in level, with
dynamic range, organic and nice, or if it
needs to sound very vintage, or current, or
even "We want it slammed and loud!"
How do you feel about that?
Most of my discography is not
squashed. It's about getting the best sound
I can. I always advise not to go super-loud,
but if the band or the record label or the
producer insists, if that's the aesthetic they
want, we will go there. Some like it loud,
and some like the slammed, edgy tone that
results. But you can create an abrasive,
edgy tone that is not loud, so it doesn't
attack the ears like an overly loud record
can. I try to find the sweet spot, where you
can crank the level up and it will still give
you an enjoyable experience.
How do you like to receive your material, both in terms of product at your
door and in terms of what is sent?
Physical media are giving way to online
delivery systems, web-based systems like
WeTransfer and Hightail, or specific websites. I get stuff from all over the world at all
hours! In terms of what I ask for and get, I
really prefer not to work with stems. I like
to get the mix as the mix is, and work with
that. Some folks are successful mastering
from stems, but that's not just mastering, it's
also mixing; if the mixing engineer was
happy with the mix, go from there!
I recommend leaving at least 3 to 6 dB
of headroom in your mixes, and to try to
not put tons of plug-ins on the master bus;
leave me room to work. If it's easy to recall
a mix on the client's end, he doesn't have
to send extra mixes with the vocal 1 or 2
dB up or down, he can get them to me if
I ask for them. But if it's difficult, something
like that can save time at my end if he supplies it ahead of time.
When needed, I recommend going back
and remixing, sometimes even re-tracking.

It is often easier to fix the problem at the
start than try to fix it here. That's part of the
communication process, it's so important!
Is there anything else a client can do
to help you make your job easier?
File management is critical. Proper track
names, track numbers in the ordering you
think you'll want, version numbers for final
mixes if there's more than one... and
please don't name your final mix a "master". A master is what I give back to you,
you don't want to get it mixed up on your
hard drive with your own "masters" that
are actually mixes, and send the wrong
files to the duplicator!
Do you have a preferred workflow?
I load the tracks in order, listen through
them and get a feel for the energy flow of the
record, what I call the energy distribution.
Some records are consistent, some are not. I
listen for particular sweet spots and try to
bring things together and make them fit; that
is harder with an inconsistent record.
Sometimes I'll hear a problem, and fixing it
causes other problems; then I have to decide
which is worse, the problem or the solution!
I work in the analog domain and in
digital, as the sound of the project seems
to demand. I like to have many options
and to choose what works best for a particular album or song; as a rule, I use only
what gear a song needs and no more. If
I can take it out and the song doesn't suffer, I leave it out.
Some pieces of gear play well together
and that enhances the result; I listen for
those connections as I work. Some engineers have one particular signal chain for
everything; I prefer multiple options. I'm a
person who always likes to make changes;
I add gear all the time and for me it keeps
things fresh and exciting. Having a big
box of tools gives me flexibility... but I have
to be honest with myself-I may think, "I
love this piece of gear, it's so creamy," but
what if the song doesn't want that creamy
tone? It doesn't matter how much the gear
costs if it's wrong.
Any final thoughts for our readers?
Remember that you've worked very hard
to achieve what you've done; I think it's
very important to have a fresh and objective ear that is unbiased, to hear what still
needs to be done and to bring a fresh perspective. Even if you're on a budget, try to
find the right person to work with, someone
with whom you feel comfortable communicating; it can end up with your listeners
enjoying your work more than they would
if you hadn't done it.
Above all-communicate! Mastering
engineers will be better at delivering what
you hope for if you talk to them about it.
Learn more about Maor Appelbaum and
his studio at www.maorappelbaum.com.
RECORDING November 2014

http://www.maorappelbaum.com

Recording - November 2014

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - November 2014