Recording engineers -- sometimes known as recording technicians -- are
wizards of the soundboard. That means more than fiddling with the treble and
bass on your home stereo. These professionals alter the sound and clarity
of each instrument.
They can add echoes and delays. They can make acoustic instruments sound
even more natural or heavy metal sound even more metallic. They can even add
special sound effects to the music. It's like playing another instrument altogether.
Tulio Torrinello has worked with some of the latest and greatest rap and
hip hop musicians in Los Angeles. "You take each individual element and put
it on its own separate track. The tape is about two inches wide and can record
24 separate elements. That's how intense it is," he explains.
When a band comes in, Torrinello may listen to 12 or 48 different elements
on one song. Then it's his job to put together the format so we can listen
to it at home.
Recording engineers work indoors and generally put in long hours. Studio
time is expensive, so bands don't want "close," they want "perfect."
Karen Kane, a recording engineer who has worked across North America, says
it's not unusual to do 12-hour recording sessions. That's a long time for
an engineer to be perky. "There's nothing worse than an irritated engineer."
Women continue to be rare in this business. "I can count on one hand the
number of women in North America that have been doing this for a while," says
Kane, who became a recording engineer more than 20 years ago. "It's very male-dominated,
but getting better."
Rather than expect you're going to work for someone, Kane says those who
succeed will be those with the entrepreneurial spirit and some business sense.
"If you're an aggressive person who really is determined, that's the best
route," she says.
People in this field need to understand music as well as love it. That
means learning an instrument, even if you can't play it beautifully. Learning
how to read music is another lesson.
But even once you've mastered that, there's one more crucial element for
the successful recording engineer -- personality. "Personality accounts for
50 to 60 percent of repeat clientele," says Bill Seddon, an experienced recording
engineer.
Those who want to go into this field should also practice listening critically
to each sound in a recording. Pick out what you like, what you don't like
and why, suggests Kane. Go to concerts and stand near the soundboard if you
can. "Start to train your ears -- that's the most important part of this business."
Recording technicians must be able to use electronic equipment, so they
need to have good manual dexterity to work with all the switches, knobs and
dials. These people need an aptitude for working with electrical, electronic
and mechanical systems and equipment.