path , but maybe a genre or a mix approach that is not your usual bag . I really dig http :// radio . garden /, a collection of internet radio stations from around the world that boasts a bit of every style under the sun . I ’ m currently listening to Audio Noir Radio from Chicago , a 1940 ’ s radio thriller with some insane organ ( and cigarette commercials ). One quick click … and now it is El Mandara , North African grooves from Ras Jebel , Tunisia . I ’ m digging the reverb on the female vocals and how they are juxtaposed with a string section mix that is much drier than I would hear in most pop music tracks here in the US .
Here is where the exercise gets fun . Pop over to something random on Radio Garden ( or click on an Apple Music genre or Spotify playlist that you ’ d never otherwise choose ) and quickly ponder the following questions :
If I walked into the sanctuary and this exact musical selection was playing as part of the service , what instrument or channel in the mix would I treat as the ‘ money channel ’? What instruments do I hear ? How does it sound like the instruments are mic-ed ? Are the drums close-mic-ed or is there a ‘ room ’ sound along with it or it all room ( assuming there are drums )? How would this musical selection work in the physical space you normally mix in ? Can you pick out particular instruments or frequencies that might be troublesome if this was the band you ’ d have in place of your usual praise team ?
In short , begin to listen to these new tracks just as a trained jazz musician might listen - focused , intentional listening . Don ’ t get hung up on trying to decide whether you think the music is ‘ good ’ ( or imagining the reaction of the congregation if the worship team was suddenly switched out with a polka band ), but think about how you ’ d mix and where you ’ d start on the console and how you ’ d put your skills into action from the first beat .
This sort of approach is very familiar to engineers who regularly mix festivals , but may be a new way of listening and thinking about mixing for folks who mix the same basic instruments in the same space on the same console week to week . Hopefully with this active listening expansion exercise , we can build a more fully formed sonic vocabulary and bring some freshness to the gig even if the elements on stage from week to week don ’ t necessarily push us to grow those ‘ big ears ’ that we all should strive to acquire . Happy listening !
Jeff Hawley A 20-year music industry veteran — equally at ease behind the console , playing bass guitar , leading marketing teams or designing award-winning audio products . He currently heads up the marketing for Allen & Heath in the US .