What does an Audio Producer do again?

As I approach my final term that is Studio III, the final term before my final project it is best I talk about the role of a music producer. Any newcomer who has had the opportunity to graduate from an Audio Engineering/Production university should have an idea what an audio producer does if one wants to aspire to a standard of professionalism.

A producer does a lot of things, he or she is around clients or artists, interacting within their studio, helping studio assistants, being present in the creative process with musicians, marketing, working on promotions and raising audiences and other many various tasks. We shall look at a few important ones that can help anyone understand the basic work-management or flow of an audio producer.

(Studio B Control Room, n.d.)

A general and more popular role of a record or audio producer is to be around artists. Merge with them in the creativity and advice, influence them in their songs. During practice sessions noting down ideas and potential demos and songs. A producerʼs role exceeds this by having a firm understanding and confident interpersonal skills, the assimilation of contracts and reviewing prospective musicians or artists (Harrington, 2018).

In this day and age, a musician can also be a producer themselves, producing their own tracks and albums. It is not uncommon, however, it is also important for producers to have a firm comprehension of music, the equipment that is being used, the signal flow and the engineering aspects of creating a song with the artistsʼ vision (Harrington, 2018).

(Tom’s studio - Spank Studios, 2018)

Another expressive role that a producer can or must take up is the role of management, or in this case, developing managerial skills to enhance the quality of the recordings and the distribution. Audio producers worked and still work closely to record labels, but there have been independent producers who market their own music or the recorded musicians/clients (Recording Arts Industry, 2014).

The quality of the recording is of the utmost importance but so is the financial feasibility, advertisement, structure of documents, copyright and legal procedures. It is a rewarding task with challenging variability in different countries around the world (Recording Arts Industry, 2014).

Over the years, the role of a record producer or an audio producer has changed. In some ways, it has grown and in other ways, it has diminished. Such as, the relationship with the A&R, the arrangement of songs or picking the songs for the band/artists, the connection within the studio that he or she has set up has evolved further and beyond (Dupont, 2014). It has become easier and yet challenging in some ways. With a lot of technology at our fingertips, the cultural life of growing within a studio has changed. However, the traditional pathways of re-amping instruments, micing the drum-kit, choosing the best vocal microphone for the vocalist, finding the right acoustic space and understanding music theory while writing is still of fundamental importance to be a well-rounded producer.

To name a few producers that anyone can aspire towards are as follows:

• Quincy Jones (Michael Jackson, Frank Sinatra),

• Rick Rubin (Metallica, Slayer, System of A Down, Rage Against The Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers),

• George Martin (The Beatles, Paul McCartney),

• Timbaland (Justin Timberlake, Rihanna, OneRepublic),

• Brian Wilson (Beach Boys)

(Afterword-George Martin, 2016)

It is important to note while some producers today are modernized with technology, there have been older producers in the industry who have a certain method of achieving a certain type of goal. Things have changed, and so has the music industry. There is no right or wrong answer, however, the best answer provides the best outcome in one way or another (Dupont, 2014).

REFERENCES:

Dupont, F. (2014). The Role of the Producer in Music Creation. Retrieved from http://www.avidblogs.com/the-role-of-the-producer-in-music-creation/

Harrington, J. (2018). Duties of a Music Producer. Retrieved from https://work.chron.com/duties-music-producer-14558.html

Recording Arts Industry. (2014). What do music producers do? The duties of an audio producer. Retrieved from https://www.first.edu/what-do-music-producersdo-the-duties-of-an-audio-producer/

Studio B Control Room [Image]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.esaudio.com/

Tom’s studio - Spank Studios [Image]. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.youraudiosolutions.com/interview-articles/tom-lord-alge

Verhorst, R. (2016). Afterword-George Martin [Image]. Retrieved from https://pitchfork.com/features/afterword/9831-afterword-george-martin/

APPENDIX:

Marshall, M. (2014). 3 Common Roles of a Music Producer. Retrieved from https:// theproaudiofiles.com/roles-of-a-music-producer/

Petulla, J. (2019). Who is a Music Producer? Retrieved from https:// www.recordingconnection.com/reference-library/recording-entrepreneurs/whatdoes-a-music-producer-do/