Studio Mixing Engineers, Future Job in Demand?

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 6:41 am

What do you guys think? Will there be more or less demand for Mixing engineers in 5, 10, 20 years?

I really enjoy recording and mixing, but if this is something I want to do for the future, I want to make sure there is a future for it:)

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 7:54 am

There's very little demand at the moment for anyone who is just a "mixing engineer". You need a wide range of skills, and you need the opportunity to show that you are good at them. If you are set on a studio career, do your internship at a reputable studio. After all that, you need a bit of luck, but if you are good, you can make it.

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 10:20 am

hondacrxdude13 wrote:

What do you guys think? Will there be more or less demand for Mixing engineers in 5, 10, 20 years?

I really enjoy recording and mixing, but if this is something I want to do for the future, I want to make sure there is a future for it:)

There Will be more or less a demand for Mixing engineers in 5, 10, 20 years.

I'm willing to venture that it will be less than more but only before there is more and less.

But lemme ask you this?

Why do you only want to learn half the gig... or less??

(and a mixer's gig at that?) sheeshe...

kick up your standards a little bit at least!

Recordists and Mixer's are not quite worlds apart, but damned close.

As a mixer, especially a commercial mixer, you gotta take whatever comes in front of you and try to polish it up. If you get nasty trax... deal wid it... and deal with the fact that your paycheck depends on it.

As a recordist, if you are good at knowing exactly how to capture the best sound of whatever it is that might step up to the microphone... now your talkin'. But I'll tell ya' what... it takes YEARS... if ever... to deliver consistent solid tracks that have little hiss, woof or other trash. Delivering everything from bagpipes in a vale, to capturing dialog on a beach ain't zackly what I'd call easy stuff to just "run and do".

Granted a mixer's job is fun... (snork) but again, there's a huge difference between doing it for fun, and doing it for a career.

Your entire career can be made on one song... but it can be just as easily be ruined by one song too. Like pressure? Be a mixer...

This whole industry has been killed by the advent of digital. Everyone wanted it so bad, now we've got it. There goes all the profit out of the artists hands, because they can't control distribution. Now that the big profit is gone, the major's are dying.

Don't look now, but the only way to make a good living amongst the some 15-20 million musicians, pahdoosah's, wankers with a coupla' grand and stars in their eyes, poser's, has beens and washouts, is to either be lucky enough to have an uncle with connections at some network, or you starve for the craft.

The industry is currently in a bad spiral... and we haven't seen bottom yet. When it finally collapses, the only folks that are gonna come out with their shirt are the guys who will do this because they hafta'. Not because there's money in it. (cause there ain't) They do it because it's something that you can't wash off, turn off, or leave it swirling in a punch bowl in the morning.

Most folks think this is some glorious business. If only it was.

It's brutal in it's own hellish ways. You get stiffed on pay, poor pay, lousy gear when you can least afford it, pressure from the artist, producer, A&R, label rep, bank, utility company and your wife.

20 hour days followed by no income for maybe 6-12 weeks, never having insurance, an empty fridge and empty gut are real glorious.

C'mon in! Join the fun!

The water's just fine!

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 10:35 am

I would say don't put all your eggs in one basket. Go to school and get a decent day job, mix all you want at night.

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 4:29 pm

Link555 wrote:

I would say don't put all your eggs in one basket. Go to school and get a decent day job, mix all you want at night.

+1

maybe your day job can be something else in music too

Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 5:52 am

My crystal ball is out for cleaning and upgrades so I can't use it to give you a real answer but...

If things keep going the way they are in the not too distant future there may not be many bigger recording studios. Most of the recording done today is done in smaller studios or basements/bedrooms. Smaller studios mean less specialization which means they don't need a separate mixing engineer and the one engineer does everything will probably be the way most studios work. As others have suggested get your self a good broad based education with a specialization in music technology and intern (if you can find a studio) and see how things go.

If the music industry keeps spiraling down in the future as they have in the past 10 years then maybe the music business as we know it will be no longer and most people will go directly from their bedroom studios to the internet.

But things could change and change is a big way. Look at the impact American Idol has had on music and television. Maybe in the future everyone that wants to get to be famous will have to be vetted on national television and only the ones that are VERY popular with the nationwide audience will get a chance at a recording contract with one of the two record conglomerates that are left.

Only time will tell...

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