Bobby Owsinski's Inner Circle Podcast

My guest this week is Jonathan Wyner is the chief mastering engineer and president of M Works Mastering in Cambridge, MA. Jonathan began his career as a mastering engineer in 1985 as the compact disc was becoming a reality, and he studied digital mastering with one of the pioneers in the field for 5 years prior to establishing M Works Mastering.  Like most mastering engineers, he has thousands of credits over a wide range of genres, including James Taylor, David Bowie, Aerosmith, Pink Floyd, Nirvana, and Rahsaan Roland Kirk just to name a few, and he has mastered what is believed to be the longest CD ever at 80 minutes and 32 seconds. He is currently also serving as president of the Audio Engineering Society and as Education Director at iZotope, as well as a professor at Berklee College Of Music. During the interview we spoke about the time it takes to develop mastering engineer ears, identifying audio and musical trends, his mission as president of AES, and much more. On the intro I’ll take a lo

This episode features guest Jason Brennan, who's a re-recording mixer, supervising sound editor and sound designer with numerous feature film and television credits for Warner Bros. His 10 years of experience in music production and engineering gives him a unique outlook on television audio. Jason has always been on the cutting edge of the latest technology. He uses his experiences to develop workflows that deliver the best sound experience and goes beyond the standard sound FX library for the “right sound”, even if it means traveling to record it. During the interview we spoke about what’s change in audio post in the last five years, the biggest problem that dialog editors face, aligning phase on boom and lav tracks, and much more. On the intro I’ll take a look at a return of the compilation album in a different from, and the gear that I use to create my podcast.

This week's guest is Dino Monoxelus, who is currently a senior product specialist and product planning manager for Ampeg Amplifiers. He’s affectionally known as “The Ampeg Guy” for his extensive knowledge about the company and its products, which he’s used as a working bass player for over 30 years. Dino spends a lot of time training salesman, conducting clinics and demoing Ampeg products all over the world. He also the author on four books on playing bass, and recently authored a column in Bass Player Magazine. During the interview we spoke about past Ampeg guitar amps, the speaker setup of the SVT cabinet, the most preferred vintages of bass amps, and much more. On the intro I’ll take a look at how the FTC is getting tough on social media fakers, and how free plugins might not be worth the effort.

Michelle Moog-Koussa is the daughter of the man who’s name is almost synonymous with the word synthesizer - Bob Moog. Michelle has been the executive director of the Bob Moog Foundation for the 12 years since its inception. She has guided the organization through the creation and growth of  its hallmark educational project, Dr. Bob's SoundSchool, which inspires thousands of teachers and young children every year through a 10-week experiential science of sound curriculum.  Michelle has also maintained her vision for a Moogseum, a historical and educational center that houses all of the Foundation's projects and is home to Bob Moog’s archives. It’s mission is to encourage people of all ages to embrace the process of scientific and creative discovery. During the interview we spoke about growing up with a famous father, her father’s early days pursuing a concert piano career, his relationship with Leon Theremin, the mission of the Bob Moog Foundation, and much more. Check out her excellent TED talk here

This episode's featured guest is Michael Romanowski, a Grammy nominated mastering engineer who’s the owner and chief mastering engineer at San Francisco’s Coast Mastering. He’s also the co-owner and founder of the analog tape label The Tape Project, and a Trustee of the The Recording Academy San Francisco Chapter (NARAS).  Michael has worked with a long list of clients that includes America, Third Eye Blind, G-Love, Train, and Pentatonix, among many many others. He’s also become one of the first mastering engineers to work in the immersive audio world with projects for Media Hyperium Surround and Kenny Wayne Shepard.  During the interview we spoke about making the transition from engineering to mastering, the difference between polishing a mix and real mastering, the quest for dynamic range, working in immersive audio, and much more. On the intro I’ll take a look at what record labels are doing  with back catalog, and new gear shown at AES NYC.

My guest this week is Yoad Nevo, who has credits that include over thirty #1 singles, more than fifty Top 10 albums and over sixty Top 10 singles worldwide as a producer, mixer and mastering engineer. Among the artists he’s worked with include Sia, Bryan Adams, Pet Shop boys, Sugababies, The Dandy Warhols, Moby, Morcheeba and many more. Yoad has also been inventing and developing plug-ins for Waves since 1997, and his registered patents, his book Hit Record – An Inside Track To Music Production and his popular webinars have paved the way for other producers and engineers. During the interview we spoke about the magic number of mixes before you get learn how to do it, getting into  mastering, developing plugins for Waves, and much more. On the intro I’ll take a look at CD Baby and TuneCore doing a deal with Tencent Music, the largest streaming service in China, and take a brief look at digital patchbays.

This episode features guest Bruce Houghton, who started his boutique Skyline Artists Agency more than 25 year ago. The agency now has offices in Los Angeles, Nashville, New England, Virginia, Florida and St.Louis, and serves 60 diverse artists that include Roger McGuinn, Poco, Atlanta Rhythm Section, The Motels, Freddie McGregor Zoe Keating, Darlingside, Gangstagrass and more..   Bruce is also the founder and editor of the influential music blog Hypebot, which was recently acquired by the gig recommendation service Bandsintown, where he serves as a senior advisor.  During the interview we spoke about what an agent looks for when taking on an artist, the strategy behind booking talent, the best place online to build an audience quickly, the Bandsintown Artist Toolkit, and much more. On the intro I’ll take a look at Spotify’s market value dropping, and at how many producers and engineers are working for free.

Scott Sugden started as a live systems engineer for bands like Van Halen and Steve Miller Band to theater productions like Spamalot and The Producers before specializing in large format sound system design for festivals. He initially came to L-Acoustics as application support and education engineer, which led into a product role with the company.   Scott is now a product manager for L-Acoustic’s fantastic L-ISA immersive audio system, and I was so lucky to get a first-hand listen to a system in the company’s demo room after we recorded this interview. I strongly believe that this is going to become a revolution that will change how we enjoy a concert experience, and Scott is the evangelist that teaches FOH mixers how to use it. During the interview we spoke about the role of the systems engineer, the idea behind immersive audio in a live environment, improving the concert experience for the audience, and much more. On the intro I’ll take a look at how audio and video content online is getting bot

My guest this week is engineer Craig Burbidge, who gained multi-platinum status having worked with hundreds of artists including Barry White, Steve Perry, Natalie Cole, Take 6, Teddy Pendergrass, Paul Jackson Jr., Vanessa Williams, Brian McKnight, Kirk Franklin and many more.  Craig was also one of the first American engineers to take his talents to Asia, working with Taiwanese superstar David Tao. He was also one of the first to utilize remote audio connections for mixing his Asian clients while still in Los Angeles.  During the interview we spoke about mixing while recording, getting engineering work through session musicians, owning the Air L.A. studio complex, working with Chinese clients, and much more. On the intro I’ll take a look at how CDs seem to be making a comeback, and why cheap USB hubs can be detrimental to your computer setup.

My guest this week is engineer, mixer and composer Jesse Ray Ernster, who grew up in a musical family with both his parents playing in bands and making records. Jesse’s entrance in the music business began at age of 16 touring with several artists as a lead guitarist/vocalist, but he then realized his true calling was being in the studio, creating music from the ground up.  Jesse originally paid the bills by scoring for TV shows like Ripley’s Believe It Or Not and indie films, but his big break came working for Kanye West. That lead to working on two of Nigerian star Burna Boy’s albums, including the huge global hit African Giant. During the interview we spoke about learning Pro Tools and engineering from his dad, working in Uganda with Kanye West, the unique workflow for mixing the African Giant album in different countries, and much more. On the intro I’ll take a look at how Deezer might change streaming royalties for the better of indie artists, and some interesting facts about the Shure SM58.

This week's guest is Vince Wilburn Jr., who has both toured and recorded with his uncle Miles Davis on many legendary recordings from 1984 through 1987. He is also a producer on the Grammy-winning “Miles Ahead” soundtrack for “Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media, and is co-executor of Miles Davis Properties. Vince has played with a wide variety of bands including AL7, The Dells and Cameo, among others. More recently he has been running the Miles Electric Band, and was also Executive Producer of the Don Cheadle film about his uncle Miles Ahead as well as the most recent documentary called Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool. During the interview we spoke about touring and recording with Miles, being a studio musician in Chicago, pushing the limits of jazz, the responsibility for overseeing the Miles estate, and much more. On the intro I’ll take a look at the latest music sales figures from the RIAA, and some history about the influential Sony Walkman.

Terri Winston is the executive director of Women’s Audio Mission, a San Francisco-based nonprofit organization that uses music and media to attract over 2,000 underserved women and girls every year to STEM and creative technology studies. WAM’s award-winning curriculum weaves art and music with science, technology and computer programming and works to close the critical gender gap in creative technology careers. During Terri’s long career as a recording artist, songwriter, composer, recording engineer, and producer she noticed that less than 5% of the people creating music and media were woman. That led her to create WAM in 2003 while she was a tenured Professor and Director of the Sound Recording Arts Program at City College of San Francisco. Along the way Terri has composed and produced theme music for KRON-TV's "First Cut" series, Banana Republic and films that have shown on BRAVO's Independent Film Channel, French Television's Cine Cinemas and major festivals all over the world. She has received an ASC

6 time Grammy Award-winner Fred Vogler is the principal sound designer and FOH mixer for the Hollywood Bowl and Walt Disney Concert Hall. Throughout the year, he also records the Los Angeles Philharmonic, LA Opera, Los Angeles Master Chorale, and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir for commercial and broadcast release. Fred is also one of the first live mixers to work in immersive audio using the L-Acoustics L-ISA system on high profile events for Deadmau5 and the LA Phil 100th anniversary tour show in Seoul, S. Korea. During the interview we spoke about mixing in an immersive environment, what it’s like to mix at the Hollywood Bowl, what happens if a visiting mixer gets too loud, the punishing schedule during the summer, and much more. You can learn more about Fred at Sonitus Consulting. On the intro I take a look at how music is expected to disappear from the radio in 10 years, and tips on how to hydrate your voice properly.

My guest this week is Diego Farias, who's a digital music and tech expert with experience from some of the world’s most successful tech companies. He now serves as the CEO and co-founder of record label and music distributor Amuse. Amuse has a unique business model in that it provides free distribution to all the streaming services. The company then analyzes music consumption and listening habits in order to find promising songs and rising talent. It then signs the artists to licensing deals rather than traditional recording contracts. Amuse recently introduced a new product called Fast Forward that uses machine learning to predict and pay independent artists future royalties. With Fast Forward, independent artists can collect to up to six months of their future royalties while also retaining the rights to their music During the interview we spoke about what transformed the Swedish music scene to digital, the record label of the future, using machine learning to determine future royalty payouts, and much more

Joe Solo turned a chance meeting with Macy Gray into a 17 year journey that culminated in a Grammy win, a double platinum album, and a hit MTV video. Soon afterward Joe transitioned into the world of music publishing as the head staff writer/producer for Paramount’s Famous Music Publishing division and has since had hundreds of professional collaborations and over 2,000 song placements in films, tv shows, video games, and commercials. Joe is now CEO of Joe Solo Music+Entertainment, Inc., his multi-media, record label, publishing, artist development, and record production company, and is coaching and inspiring rising music and songwriting talent worldwide through his Music Success Workshop division. During the interview we spoke about what makes a great demo, Joe’s approach to production, blending opposite song elements, his music success workshop, and much more. On the intro I’ll take a look at why Taylor Swift might not find it so easy to re-record her old songs, and how our DAW world will soon t

Kristen Agee is a classically trained violinist and started playing multiple instruments at the age of 7. She opened a studio in Silver Lake, California where she recorded punk bands and wrote music for various artists, all while touring as bassist after learning the instrument from Rolling Stone’s bass player Daryl Jones. Her writing led to work with a number of publishers and in 2012 she started 411 Music Group and launched a 200 song catalog just two years later. 411 is a one-stop shop music house that provides synchronization licensing, custom score and publishing administration. Kristen secures global partnerships for 411 and oversees the creative and strategic business. One of the most impressive things about her is that not only did she start as an artist/writer/composer, but she continues to make music and executive produces a number of the scores and custom work the company does for their clients in the film, television, and visual media space. During the interview we spoke about getting into musi

This week's guest is Steve Genewick, who's worked at Capitol Studios in Hollywood for 25 years. During that time he’s had the opportunity to work with a wide variety of legendary artists including Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, Neil Young, Queen, George Harrison, Michael Jackson and many more. Steve has also been able to work closely with some of the greatest engineers ever, including Al Schmitt and Geoff Emerick, among many others. He has also worked on the music for the Academy Awards for the last 20 years, including some huge setups that probably couldn’t be done anywhere else. After working on a number of high-profile 5.1 surround mixes in the past, Steve is now focusing much of his attention on Dolby Atmos immersive audio mixing with some spectacular results. During the interview we spoke about the wide variety of clients at Capitol Studios, what goes on behind-the-scenes while recording the music for the Academy Awards, lessons learned from legendary engineers, making the transition to immersive audio mix

Dave Audé is a producer and remixer with an astounding 133 #1’s on Billboard’s Dance Club chart. That’s more than any other producer, and what makes it even more impressive is that 14 are his own singles as an artist. He’s also won a Grammy for his remix of "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars. Dave has produced for superstar artists such as U2, KoЯn, Coldplay, One Direction, Katy Perry, Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Madonna, Britney Spears, Beyoncé and many more. Most recently, Dave produced 6 songs on Sting’s latest album. During the interview we spoke about how remixing has changed over the years, the elements he receives for a remix, producing Sting, how his personal studio has evolved, his favorite plugins, and much more. On the intro I’ll also take a look at how streaming is about to change the DJ world, and at how summer NAMM is turning into a powerhouse conference.

My guest this week is at the forefront of mixing music in Dolby Atmos. Greg Penny has produced hits with k.d. lang, Cher, and Paul Young, among others, but a meeting with Elton John while Greg was in his teens turned into an award-winning mixing journey with the legend many years down the road. Besides producing and mixing Elton’s many albums in surround, Greg is now mixing them in the latest immersive audio format, and he’ll tell us more about how it all works in just a bit. During the interview we spoke about sitting in on Elton’s Yellow Brick Road sessions, the differences between mixing in Atmos and 5.1, recording the Vatican Choir in surround, and much more. The intro takes a look at how Amazon Music is coming on strong with new subscribers, and at Aerosmith’s immersive audio Las Vegas residence.

My guest today is the CEO of Primphonic, Thomas Steffens. Primephonic is a music streaming service dedicated to keeping classical music alive and accessible through the tech revolution Most streaming networks are geared towards modern pop music and don’t serve classical well. It’s difficult to find what you want, and labels, conductors and orchestras aren’t paid much since their piece run far longer than the average pop or rock song. Primephonic uses a pay-per-second model instead of the per stream way that Spotify and most other streaming networks use. During the interview we spoke about the 3 types of classical music fans, how a recommendation algorithm doesn’t work for the classical genre, differentiating between different versions of a work, Primephonic’s unique royalty structure, and much more. The intro takes a look at how music might change in 10 years, the new Rolling Stone music charts, a new look at what causes tinnitus, and the computers that people use for Pro Tools.