Mixing / Production

Production music will never be glamorous, but it can be very lucrative. As head of music production at one of the UK's largest libraries, Tim Geraghty is in the perfect position to offer advice to SOS readers with an eye on this market.

If you don't think the sampler can be a musical instrument, then you haven't been listening to the music of Amon Tobin!

A new Massive Attack album is always an event, and this year's 100th Window was perhaps the most eagerly anticipated yet. Like its predecessor Mezzanine, it was co-produced and co-written by Neil Davidge.

What exactly is a modular synth? How slow is a slow release? How can I wire my 32:8:2 analogue desk to a 16-track recorder? How can I compensate for a lack of phase-reversal and EQ bypass controls on my mixer? Why do some bass notes have more 'punch' than others? Is there a problem with inputs on the Roland VS2480? Should I buy a DI box or a channel strip? Should EQ or compression be applied first? What is the advantage of recording with a higher resolution, as opposed to a higher sampling rate? Can I run V-Producer via OMS?

Sheryl Crow's rise to the top has seen her use — and lose — the talents of a lot of people behind the glass, from world-famous producers to unknown songwriters.

One of Hollywood's most intelligent composers, Elliot Goldenthal is equally adept at writing for the big screen as the concert hall or theatre. We talk to him about his background and approach to composition, technology and orchestration.

Glen Ballard was already a first-call songwriter and producer in LA — and that was before a young, unknown singer called Alanis Morissette walked into his studio...

How can I create the fat bass sound I hear on commercial productions? What are the differences between S/PDIF and AES-EBU? Are there any problems powering UK electrical equipment with Vancouver voltages? Can you recommend some omni mics for chamber recording? How can I build a suitable enclosure to reduce the noise of my computer? Is it possible to create a fake stereo track from a mono source? How can I make my MIDI controller's knobs work? How can I mix a track on a multitimbral synth?

SOS reader Declan Flynn has been pursuing a career in the industry for a long time, since he became fascinated with electronic music as a teenager and bought his first synth and drum machine.

All of the main MIDI + Audio sequencers now have a bewildering array of compression and limiting plug-ins built in, but many home musicians are unclear about what all those controls and options do. And with so many varieties of each plug-in available, which one should you choose for the job in hand?

Twenty years after Steve Levine first produced Culture Club, he reveals how he has been using a new generation of digital tools to restore those original recordings.

Many people love the idea of laptop recording, but few have put it into practice like 1 Giant Leap. Their acclaimed album and DVD project was recorded on an Apple Powerbook during a six-month journey round the world — with a little help from some friends...

Producer and engineer Elliot Mazer is well known for his ongoing work with Neil Young, and was there at the birth of digital recording. Like Young, however, he's never been happy with the way it sounded — until now.

Jack Wall is a leading light in the video game soundtrack industry, where his credits include the latest chapter in the best-selling Myst series of computer games.

Well-known jazz musician John Scofield has spent the last five years updating his sound with the help of modern technology and new collaborators - including innovative guitarist Avi Bortnick.

Composition runs in David Newman's family, and he's become one of Hollywood's most sought-after writers of music for film.

Film tie-in Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets will be one of the most sophisticated video games ever created, and the soundtrack alone has taken the designers from Surrey to Seattle — by way of a school toilet...

Can you advise on the powering and positioning of Behringer's Truth monitors? How can I control proximity effect? Why do speaker stands have spikes? Will Steinberg's Virtual Guitarist run on my PC? Will replacing my carpet with laminate affect the acoustics? Can you recommend a second-hand sampler with a floppy drive? How can I get broadcast masters to sound louder?

Pioneering electro-pop duo Soft Cell are back with a new album, seeking to combine the best of old and new production techniques.

The Avalanches' acclaimed debut album Since I Left You is composed almost entirely of samples from other records - but there's nothing lazy or unimaginative about their approach to recording...

One of the UK's most successful instrumentalists, Mike Oldfield is now embarking on a pioneering attempt to combine music and virtual reality.