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Hayden Goodzinski
Can't believe it's been 18 weeks already! Only 2 more weeks and I'm basically certified as an Audio Engineer/Music Producer.
I know it's been weeks since I've posted on my blog but there's a lot that has been happening at the studio, school, and life itself. I'll mostly be focusing on what's been going on at the studio and how my mentor has been helping me through my journey.
There has been so much going on at the studio, I don't even know where to start. I believe last time I posted in my blog, I was in a mixing session with a very talented pianist who, in the past, has performed with the great Duke Ellington. For those who don't know Duke, I highly suggest you look him up if you like listening to jazz. Other people I got to work with during recording sessions were Christian vocalists from time to time, a new country artist who, I believe, will turn out to be something big, and recently a clarinetist who was recording a solo for an orchestra audition. Most of the time during the recording sessions, everything is already setup and tested by the time I get to the studio but I have had the opportunity to help with the setups every now and then.
The country recording session was really amazing and, by far, the most fun I had during a session. Most of the people being recorded were just hired musicians to help out the country artist. The 3 musicians were my mentor, Hollis, on bass, George played drums, and Dan on lead guitar. All of the people recording were so much fun to watch and listen to. Dan's guitar solos were just breath taking and George's talent on the drums made me wish I could play the drums like him. George was probably the biggest celebrity musician in the studio. The reason why I say that was because during break, I got the chance to talk to him and get to know more about him. Turns out that George was the drummer for the show "Full House". A lot of people around my generation, or younger, may not know that show, but back then, it was a very popular show and I thought it was such a great honor to be in the same room with the man who played drums for Full House.
As you can tell, ever since my last blog, there hasn't been that much recording going on at the studio. Most of the sessions I go to are usually mixing sessions; which are my favorite sessions to go to. The reason why is because, during high school, I was trained, as a musician, to be a perfectionist. So, when it comes to performing or editing music, everything has to be perfect to my ears. For me being a perfectionist, watching Hollis take raw recorded tracks and making them sound better than they were before just amazes me every time! Not only was he capable to make these recordings sound amazing; he was able to do it very quickly which is important in the recording business. No matter what genre it was (country, rock, jazz, contemporary christian, etc.), Hollis was able to mix the music into something completely amazing. The moment I get home after having a mixing session with Hollis, I hop straight onto my computer and start my own mixing sessions. It takes up a lot of time but it's something I really enjoy to do.
Every week I learn more and more from my mentor. He really has helped me improve my skills when listening to the very small details in music and also how to work Pro Tools. Even though I only spend 10 hours a week at the studio, I still enjoy every second of it wishing I could stay even longer. Still hard to believe that I'll be finishing school in less than 3 weeks. Seems like yesterday was when I started my journey in the studio world. The truth is, even though I'm close to the end of my education doesn't mean it's the end of my dreams. This is only the beginning of what's in store for me in the future. I may not know where I'm going next, but I won't know until I decide to jump.
