I was lucky enough to start my career wrapping cables at a world-class recording studio, surrounded by the best engineers, mixers, and producers in the business. I learned so much just by being “under the roof” and working with those incredibly talented people.
Working by yourself pretty much limits you to learning from KZread videos. But, that’s not nearly as good as having TWO real-deal, hit-making, multi-Grammy-winning, multi-platinum engineers/mixers answer your specific questions in real time.
That’s EXACTLY what you’re going to do when you join Rob Chiarelli, Michael Havens, and me on this very special episode of TAXI TV, live! Michael engineers Gospel superstar Kirk Franklin’s records and Rob mixes them.
⏱️⏱️VIDEO CHAPTERS⏱️⏱️
0:39 - TAXI CEO Michael Laskow welcomes the audience and introduces his guests Rob Chiarelli and Michael Havens, who work with acclaimed artist Kirk Franklin.
2:42 - How did Michael Havens get into mastering?
3:20 - How did Michael Havens learn his craft? Which instrument?
5:58 - Did MH work under a roof with other people?
6:59 - ML reads a list of Artists MH and Rob Chiarelli have worked with.
7:31 - RC shares a story of how his musical career started.
10:04 - RC talks about how everybody learns to develop their style and sound.
11:26 - When MH works with Kirk Franklin does he get involved with pre-production?
12:29 - How much is done with live musicians instead of programmed instruments?
13:19 - Do they cut tracks with a full band or orchestra?
15:00 - MH explains that if there is something that really matters, he sends it to RC.
16:39 - How does MH approach recording a choir?
18:39 - How much EQ and compression does MH use?
19:42 - Does MH have a favorite instrument to record? How about on each drum?
21:15 - What mic does MH use on the tom-toms and overheads?
23:10 - What is MH's favorite mic for an acoustic guitar?
23:43 - What is RC's favorite acoustic mic? Which mic on a snare drum?
27:19 - Do they tune drums based on the key of the track?
29:53 - How much reverb does MH use?
30:54 - What is MH's favorite reverb device and his typical starting point?
31:59 - What is RC's favorite reverb device and his typical starting point?
34:26 - Does Kirk Franklin work with both guys because he trusts that they know what he likes?
37:14 - When MH gets music from RC, does he clean it up?
42:07 - Can you discuss using outboard gear vs. plugins?
45:18 - How important is sidechaining in your productions and what tracks or instrumentation do you tend to sidechain?
46:52 - Can you share a sample of a vocal chain MH used for Tori Kelly or Andra Day?
47:43 - MH shares the consoles he works on.
48:59 - What is a typical Kirk Franklin session like?
52:27 - How many takes does it take for Kirk Franklin to lay down his vocals?
53:33 - How does MH tackle his static mix?
54:02 - Does RC or MH choose the session musicians or does the record label or the artist?
56:20 - How important is shaping transients to get your sounds to pop more?
1:00:52 - Do RC and MH use Pro Tools?
1:01:04 - When Spotify applies its normalization, I find that my tracks are quieter, how do I address this?
1:03:08 - Do I need to get my music mastered for TV and Film?
1:04:56 - Am I wrong to hear the LA2A compressor from Waves introduced to the low end on vocals? How do I take care of it?
1:07:10 - Is anyone using analog tape for tracking or for mix-down?
1:08:08 - What about clipping transients to create more headroom?
1:09:18 - Do they use UAD plugins?
1:10:11 - When mixing choirs or multiple vocals, do you pan the vocals like they would sound if live?
1:13:34 - What amp sims do they like and do they make the mix?
1:16:54 - Do RC or MH use HEAT when mixing on Pro Tools?
1:18:47 - Are there times from an audio standpoint, that an instrument has been added and it's not working.
1:23:49 - What are their favorite delays?
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