THE OBSERVATION BOOTH
OP-ED By Andrea Dialect
EXPERTISE APPETIZER
What is black noise? Black noise is a type of noise where the dominant energy level is zero throughout all frequencies, with occasional sudden rises; it is also defined as silence. Silence has a sound, and with it, a measurable, transformable power…
It takes a very keen ear to hear noise beneath the silence, and it takes even more so developed ears to decipher that noise weather, baring tones of white or void of its color. I thought, what better way to enhance the experience of being entertained no matter which guise it’s shadowing under than to aid in the art of listening.
Television or radio static, a whirring fan, the hum of an air conditioner, or the hiss of a radiator combined with the right maestro can be the perfect ingredients to conjure up tasteful melodies. Although when isolated, some might be clever enough to distinguish tonal frequencies on cue.
But, when combined, those techy sounds become a recipe for disaster as they clash, becoming bare of identifying markings. But not for this guy.
Daniel Laporte
DML Studios – Producer, Engineer, Mixer
Recording Studio Designer/Construction
An audio engineer helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing, and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, and reinforcement of sound. (Wikipedia)
“Thirty-five years and counting. As a Producer, I oversee everything in terms of the music and, in my case, the record. It is my job to guarantee that everything is perfect before going out. In this day and age, the producer is whoever is creating the music. So the person who is producing doesn’t have to touch the music at all. They oversee the project. The Engineer component is the hands-on part of the art of recording itself, recording, sequencing on the computer, and so forth. Mixing is when I get files, and I balance them to radio standards.
“I have been a musician for most of my life. Both my parents were Musicians. When we moved to the Bahamas, we moved into a house, and there was a piano there, and I just started playing. I had a sense of music notes naturally. I was around seven years old then.
“Now, I am a Pianist by trade. But, if I were really to consider myself one, I’d do it every day. I don’t use the piano as much now. I have a few things that I have to sit and play and arrange but mainly, I engineer every day. I only play when I have to, so I’m not!
“I still master and mix for the industry. Most of the plaques I own, the platinum and the gold, are for engineering and production. The first high-profile type that I worked with on a project, I believe, was Raven-Symone. I worked on her rap album back when she was a little girl. She had just started The Cosby Show. I did Cuba Gooding; hopefully, I’m not skipping anyone. I believe both of them were brought in by Eddie Saunders. Around that time, I also did work with Kurtis Blow. Those were the earlier ones. When I work with celebrities, I never get hyped up.
“We just chill ‘cause they are regular humans, and it’s about the work, ya know. You learn from them because they all have something good to say. You learn so much. I learned a lot from George Benson. That’s a real cool cat right there. I got credit from his album as well. As far as the big acts of today, you learn a lot from them too. Like the way they are as far as trends are concerned, how to prepare for something that may show up, so you’ll know what to expect, especially if you’re about to groom an artist. You get that insider information. They tell you a story about this or that executive.
“But, the thing that sticks with me the most is that the people you think are not going to make it, make it, and the ones you think are going to make it didn’t make it. What that did was it made me more chill. In other words, you don’t know. When I first worked with Chris Brown, I thought it was going to be a waste of time. Shay was the one that brought him in. I didn’t think he was going to make it. I didn’t like his voice. I was like, ‘Yeah that’s wack.’ I also felt the same way about Lauryn Hill. I was telling ‘Clef, ‘Yo, I don’t know about this chick right here. Her voice is crazy.’
“That little part you learn a lot from is prejudging something because there’s a template in your head on how things are supposed to sound, but you don’t know how it will turn out, and that’s when you learn more about an artist. It is not just about their talent, but they have magic. Once you see that magic, that’s the main thing that will come up front. If they can convey that, they have a better chance at becoming a superstar.
“I think that’s what you should look for before you look for talent or say this person can sing. Because if it were about great singers, the industry would be all Gospel. We all know it’s not about that; it’s about the magic, and that’s what we have to pay attention to more. Look, but it is more like the way it feels. If you’re a person that can actually sense something.
“You feel that magic from somebody; now your job is to help them convey that to an audience because they might not know how to; they naturally have it. You know how some people have it, and before they open their mouths, it’s something you feel. That’s that thing.
“For instance, Bob Marley when he got on stage, he wasn’t the greatest singer, and James Brown wasn’t, but there was something about them that worked. Michael Jackson would give you the Holy Spirit, and you’d say, ‘Dag, is this the Holy Spirit or something else?’
“I started the studio work in the eighties. I decided to buy some recording equipment to put my ideas down to sell a few songs. In that process, I had a few friends and colleagues that would ask me to record them as a favor. Then after that, I started charging them a small fee for working, and that’s what did it. For the most part, I am a Sound Engineer. That’s what I do the most. But I am a Producer and a full bloom Musician.
“When it comes to listening, I think of notes and how comfortable the notes are in the ear or how comfortably the notes vibrate because notes are vibrations. That’s one thing. In other words, you can sing a song, and I’d listen to the notes, and I’d say this is the foundation that should go with it. As for mixing, I always look for something in the way; many times, someone might say, ‘Hey, what happened to that sound?’ and the engineer has hidden it because it was bothering them. It was a snag, and they were uncomfortable with it and removed it so that the mix could go through.
“The next thing with me is that I was blessed to come up at a time when they were making great records; when you listen to Earth Wind & Fire, Chicago that kinda music leaves a template in your ears, and you know what a good record is supposed to sound like when you listen to these greats. I always try to match that greatness.
“I always think that Deejays can make great producers because they have something that they have been listening to for years and years on a lot of different records. So they can sit down and make some good stuff. Outside of the studio, my ears are pretty sharp as far as music goes. I do not listen to music outside of the workplace. The only thing that I really enjoy, believe it or not, is when I drive to hear the wind hit the car. I get a kick out of that. It’s like a melody; it’s constant.
“I like to hear when things break up and when the area the sound of the air changes. When its buildings, it sounds different. I feel like it’s a bat would listen to because they’re blind and they know when things are open or close according to. You can talk to someone on the phone, and they’ll ask you in the bathroom because they notice that the area is different; the sound sounds different; it’s a slight echo or ambiance.
“As far as today’s music is concerned, I had to train my ear understand Hip-Hop to understand distorted sounds, because at one time we tried to stay away from distortion. Once you had distortion, or you saturated the recording you had a bad recording. This is what I think. One day someone made a bad recording and burned something one day. Burnt means it was distorted one day. If that distortion becomes a hit that distortion becomes a style. So they try to duplicate that distortion.
“Like right now, I get a lot of tracks with distorted vocals or distorted bass. It is like the basser when it breaks up. It seems like the kids like that more. I had to learn how to add that into that comfortable setting that I have in my ear. I taught myself to let it be distorted but don’t let it kill you! So they get the flavor of that distortion. Yes, I do have a sound library in my head but for both musical and technical sounds I also have virtual instruments. Like drum sounds or you can look for one shot drum sounds or loops, pianos or etc.
“Sometimes people have a difficult time relaying what they’re after. Other times a person will say something useful or paint a picture, and I know what they’re talking about. But sometimes I don’t know where to go with it. I have to hunt around and see what hit them or I ask for a reference, like a sound from a movie or a record they would have had to hear.
“But I’m almost always ready to try anything someone else hears. Because they often show you something that you didn’t know or something you don’t usually think about, and in the end, it works. To naturally have patience, which I didn’t realize I had, but I hear that a lot. But I’m really into hearing what somebody else is saying so that I can satisfy them. So we can agree about what this thing is supposed to be. It’s important because I know engineers that have thrown people out of their place because of the pressure or if someone’s idea is too crazy for them to try.
“There are a lot of different aspects of listening. Any scenario can teach a person listening skills, so I’ll continue with producing. When I listen to a mix I listen for comfort. Let nothing bother you; listen to what sticks out. So learn to listen to what sticks out. If the sound kinda hits me wrong, it’s the EQ or I back off the levels. If something feels good, it needs to come. I need to bring up that volume, and then I bring it up. Lots of time if I’m working with an artist and they have a heavy breathing tendency that kinda disengages the record. I hear that, and I either cut it or turn down the breaths.
“Because that regular listener will hear that and feel something ain’t right, and they won’t like the record. Another type of listening is trying to listen to something that fits what the artist has in their head already. In terms of Engineering, you look for sounds and something that fits in. In general, outside of the recording facility I believe it is more about being aware. Like hearing the birds chirping or squirrels chasing each other, all these things have a sound.
“I suggest that you practice listening. If you take the time and say today, I’m going to listen. You’re going to hear so many things you never paid attention to. After a while, you’re going to hear it again and know exactly what you are hearing. Take note go into the environment. Go into your backyard and just chill. Listen to the leaves and different things. As far as silence goes, when you listen to space, you start to hear other things. The sounds of silence. There was a song made like that before.
“Producers and Engineers, for the most part, now are doing things in a fast way; everything’s a little faster, one shot. Some of it is great, and some of it is horrible! But I do believe that if these kids follow the art of engineering and producing they really can put some good work behind what they’re already doing. For those interested in getting into the craft, you must listen to great records; there are records like Chicago, Journey, and even some of the Funk records; some of these works were so well recorded.
“You don’t have that today because the budget is not the same, so you’re gonna get something here and there. There’s a lot of recording but not a lot of great record every day. Listen to old records like Steely Dan’s album Aja, the best-engineered mix of all times. It’s the ultimate go to template for developing your ears. Although mimicking or mastering it for some may be impossible. I’m still trying to myself. It’s Great stuff like that because subconsciously, you’ll have it in your head when you are doing it the next time without thinking about it. You’ll know sounds, and you’re going to look for good blends. If you listen to noise all day long, you’re going to reproduce noise!”
