Hi friends, I just uploaded a new video! In this one I talk about a question I get asked a lot. "How to deal with clients?" This is an extremely important lesson I have learned and being able to successfully and appropriately deal with clients is necessary to build a career in the music industry. In my opinion the most important thing in dealing with clients is communication. Being able to communicate with an artist is a great skill and very important to ensure everyone is happy with the final product. I hope you enjoy the video and please leave lots of questions and comments! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I needed and advice to deal with a client (lead guitar of a band im recording) so i googled ''produce like a pro difficult client'' wondering if you have ever touched this topic. Now i feel im back on the road, thanx a lot for share such important advices! Super assertive as always
That's exactly what I do, listening to the clients, and make them feel, that their opinion is important. At the other hand, I always questioning myself, is it really something I didn't hear or didn't pay attention, or may I try his way an will find something special and unusual. I love to listen to amateurs, they hear music in different way than educated people and this is very important, because we make our music for their ears. Thank you again Warren for the great video and advice. Respect.
Hi +zmey20 Fantastic!! You are definitely doing the right thing! I agree 'amateurs' drive our business!! They are the true creators! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Maybe is the most important video content I have ever seen. We sometimes forgot that, we mixers and sound engineers, are dealing with the same product: people! Nothing happens without a good communication, there is no good mixes, or good production, or good tracking session without a professional ''listening posture'', ...''we need to be open to hear what they want...'' excellent Warren! Keep doing your marvelous job! Thank you very much!
You're Welcome Warren! I really appreciate your videos. I'm mixer/sound engineer here in Brazil and you have a lot of fans here...hehe Your videos keep inspiring me every day to improve my mixes and do a better job! =] By the way, I've heard that you do mixing contests, is there any mixing contest coming for now? I'm interesting to try some competition, I would love if you could hear my mix =]
Hi +Pedro Rievers Great stuff! I love Brazil! Beautiful country and of course amazing Football players! Pele! If you can join the Academy, we have a new multitrack you can mix every month! Thanks very much for your great comment I really appreciate it! Have a marvellous time recording, many thanks Warren
As always, great advice Warren! I'd like to add in something that has worked for me: reference material. Whenever I start a new project, whether I'm recording everything or getting stems to mix, I always ask my client to give me 2 or 3 songs that they like the sound of and detailing what they like (and don't like) of those mixes. It makes envisioning their idea just that much easier and gives you something tangible to work with. Thanks and keep up the great work!
Just wanted to say thanks for the video mate. I have some sessions coming up next week so thought id refresh on these kinda videos that you post. Thanks for helping me understand as yes it can be hard to separate yourself emotionally sometimes
Top notch and something anyone getting involved with this wonderful difficult business should have to watch.Communication and understanding your role in the process is key. Kudos Warren cheers!
Great one Warren! I agree with everything you said in this video. I always ask my clients how they feel or what they think about a mix or even an individual track we've recorded. When all is said and done, everybody has to be happy. Thanks! Stu
Hi Warren, thanks very much for this great video! One thing worth mentioning, though: Respectful and solution-oriented communication does not only work with clients. It works in almost any situation. For many people out there, this video could not just be some professional advice, but even a life lesson. Thanks again!
Aloha, Warren! When I interned @ Seattle studio, '92-'95, the Head Engineer once said, 'To have your artist relaxed & capture their best, remember; If you chase people, they run. Corner them, & they'll fight. Cage them, they die.' Not the end all, but it's sadly easy to cause a artist to get stiff & stressed. Important vid chat here!
Very usefull info, thanks! Also for communication within a band; interpret things bandmates say instead of getting emotionally 'attacked' by comments, tips or discussion.
An interesting point about samples and compression there. Indeed, compression is, in a way, relative, sometimes instead of compressing everything, you might as well not compress anything at all. Ore just dial it back a few dB on everything.
Hi Warren. Thank you for your great pointers, I find them positively enlightening. Ok, I'm not sure whether you have already done it before because I'm still fairly new here but, can you possibly offer some guidance on the pros and cons of the SSL Sigma and the AMS Neve 8816 Analog summers? I'm saving towards getting a decent Analog summing mixer that has a ''Punchy'' name and a good old warm vintage and punchy sound to augment my home studio and the two mentioned above are what I'm really being haunted by. Thank you.
Hi +Bliss Buddy kayuni I'm not the right person to ask for summing, I would suggest spending your money on the front end! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
excelent insight, as alway. i love this kind of videos from the production side, i belive that everyone can do a decent mix or a decent recording but record or mix a great performance that has nothing to do qith your technical skills its more from your interpersonal skills. PS: you look a little tired lately hope your a doing marvelous well! and i noticed that the ns10 are gone! :o
Hi +sebastian aranda Haha yes I've been working a lot finishing up a couple of albums, mixing and generally being extremely busy! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Agree!! Always I disagree a creative thing from the client(in de production more than the mixing) I just give him some arguments. If they do not agree, I answer 'Are you sure?' Like a couple of times, and then I go on with their idea. And it's funny that sometimes you recognize they were right, instead of falling or something. At the end, producing is like you are cooking with someone, he has the recipe, you got the tools, but you two are gonna eat that pie :P and without communication that pie will not be good!!
Hi +Mark Richmans (Kittus) Completely agree! It's ok to push and pull! I'm doing it at the moment with a band I'm working with, but the results are amazing! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
In theory if you are more than just a mixer or producer, for example can play an instrument or sing. You have a better chance at understanding musicians then someone who just mixes or produces. Just a theory i have, never worked with any clients. I mostly do everything myself and found that in doing so i can relate to many musicians and know a great performance when i hear one.
Hi +blood lord (Chaotic Sonics) Yes agreed 100%! You are correct, the ability to play instruments, write songs, engineer, produce and mix can really help to speak to musicians/artist. However some of the greatest Producers who have lived were one or two or these things, but they were amazing communicators with incredible ideas!
The only clients i would call problem clients are the ones that don't know what they want and then blame that on you. Ex. client asks for a specific sound with some given references, then gets unhappy beacause it doesn't sound like a totally different reference. Luckily this rearly happens.
Hi +Pascal Clerotte Yes I'm really enjoying them! I'm a Genelec guy and these really compliment them extremely well! The detail on the Super Rocks is great, the low mids are fantastic! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I've been wondering for a while, i saw a video where you talked about payment and not giving them the final until you got payment but how do you show a client the final mix for them to say they like it if you you wait for payment to show them the final?
+Kieran.Twids You can give them even the high resolution mix.There is a great free plugin by Voxengo: www.voxengo.com/product/beeper/ You can add some noise (you decide after how many seconds), so they can hear the whole mix but not release it, as there is some noise time by time. soundbetter.com/profiles/3581-online-guitar-tracks
Hi +Kieran.Twids I personally send mp3's, I think the idea +SoulGuitar has is interesting but speaking from experience it doesn't go down very well with clients. It's important to have a simple one page agreement/invoice in place that's signed by the artist. Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Looks like you have another new set of monitors. Are you just trying them or are they going to be permanent? What are they? Thanks again for the video.
Hi +Jed Wunderli Good spot! I'm trying them out! They are Unity Super Rocks, I am trying them! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Question.... How does one get clients? Maybe you can discuss at some point. I do this as a hobby....very serious hobby outside my day job.... and in my humble opinion , I think I do it well.lol. BUT I would love to produce, engineer or mix a band.. Thanks Warren
So let me see if I understand. When a client sends me a laundry list of suggestions/complaints about my mix, I shouldn't reply with "Bugger off you know-nothing wankers?" Now wonder my business isn't taking off. Seriously though, the only way I can ever see being successful in a job like this is if you have really good inter-personal skills and a lot of patience and understanding. Otherwise, you might as well switch to a profession that doesn't fall within a "service" industry, much less the music industry, where egos often run wild. ;)
Hi +Phil Sackett Haha no I think you have it all figured out! Agreed patience is definitely a huge part of this! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Fun fact: The right-margin with suggested videos doesn't suggest the normal sound stuff..... As per your title, it's all conflict resolution and PR. :)
You mentioned that You never went to any audio school, but You seem to have a lot of knowledge on music theory. You learnt it by Yourself or You had a teacher? Also, can You read/score music? I wonder if that's something that producer should be able to do.
Hi +Maciej Owczarzak No I didn't go to School for Music, but I did read everything I could and beg borrow and steal info from everyone I could! Yes I can read music, out of necessity! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
for me, it is easiest to draw a line between being a recording engineer and a producer, can not produce without the consent of the artist, this is my primary rule
Seems to me it's an artist working with artists thing which can be amazingly synergistic, a dance, or even get competitive or explosive. Only, one artist has to be more business savvy than the other. Mixing and recording is certainly it's own art. I didn't know that for a long time until I started down that road myself. ---And what might you do if the artist begins to rely on you too much? What if an artist says, "You show me how I should sound." That's kind of a lot of responsibility isn't it?
Hi friends, I just uploaded a new video! In this one I talk about a question I get asked a lot. "How to deal with clients?" This is an extremely important lesson I have learned and being able to successfully and appropriately deal with clients is necessary to build a career in the music industry. In my opinion the most important thing in dealing with clients is communication. Being able to communicate with an artist is a great skill and very important to ensure everyone is happy with the final product. I hope you enjoy the video and please leave lots of questions and comments! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I needed and advice to deal with a client (lead guitar of a band im recording) so i googled ''produce like a pro difficult client'' wondering if you have ever touched this topic.
Now i feel im back on the road, thanx a lot for share such important advices!
Super assertive as always
That's exactly what I do, listening to the clients, and make them feel, that their opinion is important. At the other hand, I always questioning myself, is it really something I didn't hear or didn't pay attention, or may I try his way an will find something special and unusual. I love to listen to amateurs, they hear music in different way than educated people and this is very important, because we make our music for their ears. Thank you again Warren for the great video and advice. Respect.
Hi +zmey20 Fantastic!! You are definitely doing the right thing! I agree 'amateurs' drive our business!! They are the true creators! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Maybe is the most important video content I have ever seen. We sometimes forgot that, we mixers and sound engineers, are dealing with the same product: people! Nothing happens without a good communication, there is no good mixes, or good production, or good tracking session without a professional ''listening posture'', ...''we need to be open to hear what they want...'' excellent Warren! Keep doing your marvelous job! Thank you very much!
Hi +Pedro Rievers Wonderful analogy!! I really appreciate your great comment! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
You're Welcome Warren! I really appreciate your videos. I'm mixer/sound engineer here in Brazil and you have a lot of fans here...hehe
Your videos keep inspiring me every day to improve my mixes and do a better job! =]
By the way, I've heard that you do mixing contests, is there any mixing contest coming for now? I'm interesting to try some competition, I would love if you could hear my mix =]
Hi +Pedro Rievers Great stuff! I love Brazil! Beautiful country and of course amazing Football players! Pele! If you can join the Academy, we have a new multitrack you can mix every month! Thanks very much for your great comment I really appreciate it! Have a marvellous time recording, many thanks Warren
Great video! I just subscribed yesterday and I really love your way of explaining! Such a jolly mood in your videos! Thanks a lot!
Hi +Fallen Virus Thanks very much for subscribing! I really appreciate your support! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
As always, great advice Warren! I'd like to add in something that has worked for me: reference material. Whenever I start a new project, whether I'm recording everything or getting stems to mix, I always ask my client to give me 2 or 3 songs that they like the sound of and detailing what they like (and don't like) of those mixes. It makes envisioning their idea just that much easier and gives you something tangible to work with.
Thanks and keep up the great work!
Hi +TheBiggerKid I agree 100%! I believe in reference material 100%!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Just wanted to say thanks for the video mate. I have some sessions coming up next week so thought id refresh on these kinda videos that you post.
Thanks for helping me understand as yes it can be hard to separate yourself emotionally sometimes
Top notch and something anyone getting involved with this wonderful difficult business should have to watch.Communication and understanding your role in the process is key. Kudos Warren cheers!
Hi +Str8Jaket3d Thanks very much! I really appreciate it! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Great one Warren!
I agree with everything you said in this video. I always ask my clients how they feel or what they think about a mix or even an individual track we've recorded. When all is said and done, everybody has to be happy.
Thanks!
Stu
Hi +67Stu Great stuff! Excellent communication skills Stu! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
beautiful advice here...Really clarifies a lot of things that I've been thinking about in regards to my own clients. Thanks Warren!
As it happens, I am doing marvellously well, thank you!
I almost look forward to the intros as much I do the content!
Hi +Rob Kelly Sound Engineering Haha thanks vey much!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren!
Hi Warren, thanks very much for this great video! One thing worth mentioning, though: Respectful and solution-oriented communication does not only work with clients. It works in almost any situation.
For many people out there, this video could not just be some professional advice, but even a life lesson. Thanks again!
Hi +Philipp Turri I agree 100%!! Great communication is great life advice! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
As always, great stuff! This is absolutely key! Thanks Warren!
Hi +noisesoundtonevibe Wonderful!! So glad to be able to help! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Aloha, Warren!
When I interned @ Seattle studio,
'92-'95, the Head Engineer once said,
'To have your artist relaxed & capture their best, remember;
If you chase people, they run.
Corner them, & they'll fight.
Cage them, they die.'
Not the end all, but it's sadly easy to cause a artist to get stiff & stressed.
Important vid chat here!
Hi +SLAMSTERDAMN Wow fantastic advice!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
This is great Warren - very helpful. Thanks!
Hi +Jay Pinto Fantastic! So glad to be able to help! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Great video. And have a wonderful time mixing you too!
Hi +Emmanuel “Nolo” Bortolin Thanks very much!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Great advice. This literally happened to me a few hours ago with a band I'm mixing for. Thanks mate!
Hi +David Iliyn Haha I hear you!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Warren you are amazing, thanks for your Video's.
Hi +SuperPasquale76 Aw shucks! Thanks very much!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Great ideas. All I need now are some clients! :-)
Hi +Terry Doyle That's coming up very soon! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Great post!!....a topic that presents it's self in many areas of life, a very nice way to deal
with the elephant in the room...Thank you!!
Hi +Cary Potts Agreed! The Elephant in the room is a great way to put it! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Great video yet again. :)
Hi +Brent Tauro Thank you very much!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thank you for the advices! I really take them.
Hi +Telmo Monteiro Wonderful! So glad to be able to help!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Very usefull info, thanks! Also for communication within a band; interpret things bandmates say instead of getting emotionally 'attacked' by comments, tips or discussion.
Hi +kasthebass Thanks for the great comment! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
great video as always! also, there are 0 dislikes!
Hi +MrGamegast Haha thanks very much!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Excellent stuff....as always ;-)
Hi +Artichoke Productions Thanks very much!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
An interesting point about samples and compression there. Indeed, compression is, in a way, relative, sometimes instead of compressing everything, you might as well not compress anything at all. Ore just dial it back a few dB on everything.
Hi +BoilingJD Thanks for your great insight! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
This is good advice I any industry
Hi +Abir Tarafdar Thanks very much for your kind words! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
So very true the Gut feeling is first..
Hi +Simone white Agreed 100%!! I always go with my gut! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Hi Warren. Thank you for your great pointers, I find them positively enlightening. Ok, I'm not sure whether you have already done it before because I'm still fairly new here but, can you possibly offer some guidance on the pros and cons of the SSL Sigma and the AMS Neve 8816 Analog summers? I'm saving towards getting a decent Analog summing mixer that has a ''Punchy'' name and a good old warm vintage and punchy sound to augment my home studio and the two mentioned above are what I'm really being haunted by. Thank you.
Hi +Bliss Buddy kayuni I'm not the right person to ask for summing, I would suggest spending your money on the front end! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Ok, many thanks.
Great Video, agree with you on everything.
Hi +Rodrigo Oliva Fantastic!! I really appreciate it! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Haha, great video! I find dealing with the word "but" is the hardest. e.g. "I really like your mix, but..." Arggghhhhh ;-)
Hi +Martin Winterstein-Smith Haha I hear you!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
excelent insight, as alway. i love this kind of videos from the production side, i belive that everyone can do a decent mix or a decent recording but record or mix a great performance that has nothing to do qith your technical skills its more from your interpersonal skills. PS: you look a little tired lately hope your a doing marvelous well! and i noticed that the ns10 are gone! :o
Hi +sebastian aranda Haha yes I've been working a lot finishing up a couple of albums, mixing and generally being extremely busy! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Agree!! Always I disagree a creative thing from the client(in de production more than the mixing) I just give him some arguments. If they do not agree, I answer 'Are you sure?' Like a couple of times, and then I go on with their idea. And it's funny that sometimes you recognize they were right, instead of falling or something.
At the end, producing is like you are cooking with someone, he has the recipe, you got the tools, but you two are gonna eat that pie :P and without communication that pie will not be good!!
Hi +Mark Richmans (Kittus) Completely agree! It's ok to push and pull! I'm doing it at the moment with a band I'm working with, but the results are amazing! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
In theory if you are more than just a mixer or producer, for example can play an instrument or sing. You have a better chance at understanding musicians then someone who just mixes or produces. Just a theory i have, never worked with any clients. I mostly do everything myself and found that in doing so i can relate to many musicians and know a great performance when i hear one.
Hi +blood lord (Chaotic Sonics) Yes agreed 100%! You are correct, the ability to play instruments, write songs, engineer, produce and mix can really help to speak to musicians/artist. However some of the greatest Producers who have lived were one or two or these things, but they were amazing communicators with incredible ideas!
The only clients i would call problem clients are the ones that don't know what they want and then blame that on you. Ex. client asks for a specific sound with some given references, then gets unhappy beacause it doesn't sound like a totally different reference.
Luckily this rearly happens.
Hi +HoboRec Thanks very much for sharing your experiences! I really appreciate it! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
gracias!!!!!
What are these new speakers that are replacing your NS10?
Hi +Pascal Clerotte They are Unity Super Rocks I'm trying out! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
That's what I thought! Your opinion? do they sound good?
Hi +Pascal Clerotte Yes I'm really enjoying them! I'm a Genelec guy and these really compliment them extremely well! The detail on the Super Rocks is great, the low mids are fantastic! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Thx Warren. I'll try them then!
Hi +Pascal Clerotte fantastic! Let me know how you get on! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
I've been wondering for a while, i saw a video where you talked about payment and not giving them the final until you got payment but how do you show a client the final mix for them to say they like it if you you wait for payment to show them the final?
+Kieran.Twids You don't give them the hi res file, you send them an MP3.
+Kieran.Twids You can give them even the high resolution mix.There is a great free plugin by Voxengo: www.voxengo.com/product/beeper/
You can add some noise (you decide after how many seconds), so they can hear the whole mix but not release it, as there is some noise time by time.
soundbetter.com/profiles/3581-online-guitar-tracks
Hi +Rob Burgess Yes agreed that's what I usually do, I send an mp3 for approval. Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Hi +Kieran.Twids I personally send mp3's, I think the idea +SoulGuitar has is interesting but speaking from experience it doesn't go down very well with clients. It's important to have a simple one page agreement/invoice in place that's signed by the artist. Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Looks like you have another new set of monitors. Are you just trying them or are they going to be permanent? What are they? Thanks again for the video.
Hi +Jed Wunderli Good spot! I'm trying them out! They are Unity Super Rocks, I am trying them! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
+Jed Wunderli
Unity monitors are f'n fantastic!
Hi +67Stu I'm really enjoying them! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Question.... How does one get clients? Maybe you can discuss at some point. I do this as a hobby....very serious hobby outside my day job.... and in my humble opinion , I think I do it well.lol. BUT I would love to produce, engineer or mix a band.. Thanks Warren
Hi +Tavares Project Great question! Will be addressing that very soon! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
So let me see if I understand. When a client sends me a laundry list of suggestions/complaints about my mix, I shouldn't reply with "Bugger off you know-nothing wankers?" Now wonder my business isn't taking off.
Seriously though, the only way I can ever see being successful in a job like this is if you have really good inter-personal skills and a lot of patience and understanding. Otherwise, you might as well switch to a profession that doesn't fall within a "service" industry, much less the music industry, where egos often run wild. ;)
Hi +Phil Sackett Haha no I think you have it all figured out! Agreed patience is definitely a huge part of this! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
No NS 10's?? :)
Hi +Darko Vasilijic They are in hiding while I try the Unity Super Rocks! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Fun fact: The right-margin with suggested videos doesn't suggest the normal sound stuff..... As per your title, it's all conflict resolution and PR. :)
Hi +Sven Sandberg I noticed that!! That's fantastic!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
You mentioned that You never went to any audio school, but You seem to have a lot of knowledge on music theory. You learnt it by Yourself or You had a teacher? Also, can You read/score music? I wonder if that's something that producer should be able to do.
Hi +Maciej Owczarzak No I didn't go to School for Music, but I did read everything I could and beg borrow and steal info from everyone I could! Yes I can read music, out of necessity! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
and let us know what the Unity Rocks sound like!!!
Hi +Bliss Buddy kayuni Really enjoy them!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
for me, it is easiest to draw a line between being a recording engineer and a producer, can not produce without the consent of the artist, this is my primary rule
Hi +Jaime Estevez That's a great way to put it! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren
Seems to me it's an artist working with artists thing which can be amazingly synergistic, a dance, or even get competitive or explosive. Only, one artist has to be more business savvy than the other. Mixing and recording is certainly it's own art. I didn't know that for a long time until I started down that road myself. ---And what might you do if the artist begins to rely on you too much? What if an artist says, "You show me how I should sound." That's kind of a lot of responsibility isn't it?
Hi +L. Scott Music That's a great point! That's when they truly trust you!! Have a marvellous time reaching and mixing, many thanks Warren