The Studio Notes #8 "Why Mastering Chris?..."
Working with music, makes my life richer.
Your questions heavily influence the TSN’s series, so I always appreciate them! So an article all about one from just a few weeks ago - “Why did you choose mastering?”
Why Master?
I love music and I will never stop searching for new music that changes how I feel. How music can affect me is something so valuable to me, that I can’t imagine my life where music isn’t a major part of it. It will never be for the money (but I do need a little of that to live!), or fame or recognition (can’t live on those!) - but for the fact that I feel better when I’m a part of it. For me mastering can connect you so deeply to the music, due to the detail and precision to which you engage with the audio. But also the fact that every day there is something new. I get to listen to freshly mixed music every single day. But what tops it all is actually a selfish thing: Hearing a track in its finished form for the first time, and you alone being the only person that has - it is such a privilege. It truly is.
I worked on an album a few years ago, which revolved around the death of a loved one for the artist. An album of pain, love, frustration, hurt, acceptance and progress. It was all there, and it hit me like a train the first time I heard it. I’m now working on a deluxe version of that album with the artist, and listening to it again, it hit me just as hard as it did before. The emotional impact hasn’t softened or tamed, the music is so well written and the lyrics cut through you so sharply - it demands your attention and you can’t help be affected by it. This is just one example of a project that has changed me and will stay with me forever - each time I listen to it, I’m right back in the studio experiencing it for the first time.
But again - there was that moment, when I finished the album, put it on my phone and went for a walk. Through that walk I heard the album as the first ever ‘listener’, and that experience is unmatched for me for any other role in this industry. It happens on every project, and it never ever gets old for me. When you love what music can do, and what it can be and mean for people - you realise just how important it is to individuals as well as society as a whole. Being part of the process that brings music to people, for me, will never feel like a job - but just as the purpose of my life.
That’s my answer really, it’s the purpose for my life. Ok that sounds a bit intense I know, and maybe a little deep for a Substack. But it’s the truth, I can’t imagine doing anything else. If I won the lottery tomorrow, I’d still be in the studio.
I’d love to know how some of you feel about the roles you do, and if any of this connects with you as well? Do you get a buzz every morning when you load up your studio? Can you not wait to hit play the second a new projects downloaded?
If you work with music, I know it makes your life richer. Fact.
Message back! Always up for a reply or a question, so do reach out!