Recording - October 2017 - 24

THIRTY YEARS-
ONE WORD

Getting philosophical

Bruce Kaphan, recording artist and
engineer: As I near my 40th anniversary as
a professional sculptor of air, with increasing
clarity I realize why my passion for my art
just grows stronger over time. Especially in
a world that so often dwells on polarization
and polemic, my mantra, and description
of that which I spend every day aspiring
to, is "friendly creative collaboration." I
figure that if a room full of artists can work
agreeably and productively together, in
times when such behavior seems like a
bridge too far in most human interaction,
it's at least proof that such cooperation is
still possible for our species.
Greg Curtis, owner/engineer, The
Bridge Recording: Do not be afraid to
stick your neck out and push a boundary
or two. Figure out a way to be more
creative on every session or gig. Be open
to new experiences. There is lazy comfort
in competence, and it's ultimately a bore.
There is real excitement in creativity, and
genius can sometimes be found during
a floundering moment of discovery. This
can be related to gear or performance.
Human beings seek out creativity and
excitement, either directly as performers,
or vicariously as an audience. Fulfill the
needs of your audience by pushing your
personal creative boundaries.

Derek Bargaehr, Vanguard Audio Labs:
"Audio engineering" is a bit of a misnomer.
We take so seriously the science of
"engineering"; while it is indeed important,
it must necessarily be balanced by the
artistic facet of the profession. Some of the
most successful and cherished tracks of all
time have been recorded and mixed using
"improper technique", a "bad room", or
the "wrong gear". Always remember that
it's okay to color outside the lines!

Stephen Marsh, mastering engineer: I
once spent 5 days straight with guitarist
Pat Smear (Foo Fighters, Germs) mastering, from scratch, a complete new version
of the exact same 12-song album each
day. His theory was this: Never be afraid
to spend a little extra time trying things.
Even if you find out you ultimately didn't
like the result, at least you've checked
that possibility off the list.
In the world of limitless possibilities, the
reality is that only a few options are ever
really worthwhile in most cases. You only
need remove a few-maybe one or two-
for the correct option to reveal itself in glaring relief. Put another way: sometimes you
have to drive all the way down one road
to realize it doesn't go where you want
to go. However, by the time you get to
the end, you'll have a much better idea of
where you do want to go.

David Royer, Royer Labs/Mojave Audio: Twenty years ago, my mother gave me
one very good bit of advice. At that time, I was intimidated by audio transformers,
and transformers for ribbon microphones were as scarce as hen's teeth. I figured
that if I was going to make ribbon microphones, I would eventually need to get
transformers from somewhere, but
where and how?
David Royer
catching
Her advice was to find out as much
Thanksgiving
as I could about them, by ripping
dinner, 2012
them apart if it came to that.... and that
very day, my mother and I sat down at
the kitchen table and dissected a transformer. Since then, I have figured out
that the information to solve a problem
is usually right there at your fingertips, if you can define the problem
and define the steps that need to be taken to solve the problem.

24

RECORDING October 2017
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