Have you ever heard that saying, jack of all trades, master of none?
Well, it’s something to always keep in mind because each stage of audio production requires different skillsets.
And what do we know about different skillsets? They take time to learn.
However, the more you know about each stage, whether that be recording, making the beat, mixing, arranging, or mastering, the more powerful of a producer you can be.
Here’s an analogy about the audio industry; I can compare creating a song similar to construction where each trade has their own important role.
One may be an electrician, another a carpenter, another may work with sheet metal, but in the end, the building gets built.
And very commonly, these trades don’t know too much about each others duties. But the more each trade communicates and works together, being aware of each trades next step, the better product will result.
Each part is just as important, because without anyone of them, your building suffers.
No electrical? No lights.
No plumbing? No water.
No insulation? A noisier atmosphere, plus colder!
And if anyone of these trades do not do their job properly, your whole home can suffer. And do you know what, this happens more than you think.
Because your walls get covered up with drywall, and you’ll never know what’s going on inside those walls until you have a problem, or you renovate at a later date.
So, sometimes you can get away with things inside your song which the average person would not notice, just you as the producer it sticks out to.
In the same way with a song, there are different parts which build to that finished product.
Now there are contractors that are able to do “all jobs”, sometimes they may not be as skilled in one area, but they know enough to get the job done.
With that said, comparing Mixing and Mastering together, they are two different jobs.
Now there’s people who just want to get the job done with a loud professional master, and sure you can achieve that. Watch this video, follow my mastering chain, and boost up that limiter.
But then there’s those who strive for the most professional results possible. These are usually the one’s who specialize in a certain area of the greater picture.
These skillsets do not take a day to learn, not a week, not even a year. This is why people specialize in certain areas, because they either find that area most enjoyable to them, or it’s the area where they excelled at the most!
So the idea behind this post is if you dip your feet into different aspects of the audio production world, it will only make you more knowledgeable to the next step in the song production process.
Depending on the route you want to take, you can specialize in a certain field like mastering, or just being the producer. Each has it’s pros and cons, but if you learn all fields, you become a contractor in the audio production world.
This will make you be aware of the up-coming steps, appreciate those steps, and also have respect for those who may have to work on your project. If you’re already aware of what’s needed to be done, you can prepare it in a way which makes the job easier for everyone; usually resulting in the best possible productx.