Mixing Engineer/Film Composer

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I'm working on film scores and mixes!!!

Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

A: A Mac, Pro Tools, U87, Millennia Mic Pre, and a Lynx interface.

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: I worked at the Cleveland Institute of Music as an audio engineer, recording concerts and recitals, and I also ran my own recording business. Believe it or not, I started scoring films when I was 17 and won an Emmy Award when I was 19. I had been using Logic Pro/Pro X since I was around 10 years old- I dropped out of my high school as a senior and homeschooled myself. I only did this because I wanted to devote as much time as possible to learning audio engineering and composing.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: I bring a wide range of technical skills and creative vision to each song I work on. I approach each mix with a critical ear and a deep understanding of how to use tools such as EQ, compression, and spatial effects to shape the sound and bring out the best in each element of the mix. I also bring a keen sense of musicality and a deep appreciation for the emotional impact of music, which helps me to make artistic choices that enhance the overall impact of the song. Whether working as a mixing/mastering engineer or film score composer, my ultimate goal is to help my clients achieve their vision and create music that resonates with listeners.

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: As a mixing/mastering engineer, the most common type of work I do for my clients is taking their raw audio tracks and transforming them into polished and cohesive final mixes that are ready for release. As a film score composer, I typically work closely with directors and producers to create original music that captures the mood and emotion of the film while enhancing its overall impact.

Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?

A: Yes! My uncle Dan Konopka (member of the Grammy® Award winning band OK Go). He is an incredibly experienced engineer and session drummer.

Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?

A: Film composer for "Celebrating the Comeback of the Burning River" documentary. We won the Emmy® award for Best Topical Documentary in 2019.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Both. You need analog for certain sounds and you need digital for others.

Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

A: I will give my best effort with each project, because I care about your product and I take pride in my work. Attention to detail.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I love being involved in others' musical ambitions and help to serve their goals.

Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A: How long will it take for this to be mixed? It depends, but I normally need two days minimum for a song. I will work on it for one day for a few hours, and then I will return to it the next day to review it because every project needs that second take.

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

A: I'm not going to be able to make ANYTHING sound like an Atlantic Records release--a great mix begins with a great foundation, i.e. well recorded vocals, guitars, drums, bass, synths, and high quality samples. "You can't polish a turd."

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What are your intentions for this project? What is your message? What artist do you want this to sound like?

Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A: Make sure you give your best effort for every track you make and then allow the engineer to do his job! (you can always give mixing suggestions of course)

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: My style of mixing is more minimalistic as compared to the average mixer. My style is very flexible as it adjusts to who my client is and what my client wants.

Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

A: Bon Iver, because I consider him to be one of the most talented song-writers today and in history. His creativity amazes me and has inspired me in my productions of music and of mixes.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: "Keep it simple stupid." I think the greatest misconception in the audio industry is that you need all sort of different plugins on every single track within a mix, like compressors, limiters, reverbs, delays, effects, tone shapers, etc. For me, I mix with my ears--if I need a compressor, I'll use one. If I don't, I won't.

Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

A: I am asked to do lots of different types of jobs. Film composing is one of those things I am asked a lot to do, since I won an Emmy® award in 2019. I am also asked to do lots of classical recording for musicians at the conservatory in Cleveland, whether it be recording sessions, audition tapes, recitals, concerts, you name it. As far as mixing, I am generally asked to work with indie pop/rock, hip-hop, and electronic tracks.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Bringing out in the sonic landscape what the song wants to say musical and vocally. In other words, there is a mood, a message, an emotion which every song tries to capture--I will try to translate the technical aspects (mixing) of a song into the emotion and musical direction that the artist wants to convey. I have been a musician for almost two decades and so my primary focus is to communicate and translate the creativity of the artist and manifest it in the mix of their tracks. I am not mathematically minded, I am artistically driven.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: First, I listen to the track and proceed to organize all the files into a session. Second, I typically start a rough mix of the entire song. Third, I begin to start to treat the most important elements of the session and then mix them together. From there, every song has a different mixing process.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: My studio is acoustically treated with carpeted floors, absorption panelling, and diffusers. I own the Apollo 16, Apollo 8p, Apollo Twin, UAD DSP Processor, a maxed out Mac Mini (3.2 GHz 6-Core Intel Core i7, Ram: 64 GB 2667 MHz DDR4), KRK Rokit 6s, Neumann U87, Neumann KM184 (pair), Schoeps MK2 (pair), UAD plugins, Waves plugins, Altiverb (the best impulse response reverb in the business), iZotope plugins, and FabFilter plugins. Additionally, I have a sub37 Moog, a Juno 108 (vintage synth from 1984), a Bach C Trumpet, and a Yamaha Bflat Trumpet. The DAWs I work in are Pro Tools, Ableton Live Suite, Logic Pro X, and Sequoia.

Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

A: Almost impossible to answer this in a paragraph--but some of the key inspirations are the Bon Iver, the Avett Brothers, Kanye West, Young Thugg, J. Cole, Jack Antinoff, the Vince Guaraldi Trio, Arvo Pärt, just to name a few.