There are various career opportunities within the music technology industry. Choosing a career in this industry depends on where your talent, personal skills, and interest lies.
The world will always need music, it is not only used for entertainment purposes. It is also used by well-known brands for Jingle creation, Radio Advertisements, voiceovers, and television audio.
Pause, just for a moment, and think back to when you first woke up this morning…
Since then, how many sounds have you been exposed to, from your alarm clock to your ‘get ready playlist’, the radio advertisements in the car, and the music videos on YouTube, to the welcome jingle that plays at Mcdonalds before you place your order?
There are various career opportunities within the music technology industry. Choosing a career in this industry depends on where your talent, personal skills, and interest lies.
Let’s have a look at the possible career opportunities, and the world’s most successful music producers, engineers, designers, consultants, and managers.
MUSIC PRODUCTION
The music producer understands the creative and commercial side of music production. The producer will gather music ideas for the project, help with the selection of original material that will be recorded, hire musicians, and work closely with the artists to improve their songs, lyrics, and arrangements in and out of the studio.
Who are some of the Best Music Producers?
DJ Maphorisa, Dr. Dre, Cassper Nyovest, Duck Sauce
ARTIST MANAGER
Artist Managers assist the artist with booking performances, public relations, compiling contracts on behalf of the artist, and ensuring travel arrangements have been made. The manager would also assist with negotiating recording & publishing deals, publicity, merchandising, and any other task that might need to be dealt with.
Who are the World’s Best Artist Managers?
- Scooter Braun: Justin Bieber
- Kevin Liles: Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Ludacris
- Rene Angelil: Celine Dion’s Manager
- Thuli Keupilwe: DJ Maphorisa and Kabza de Small
- Russell Redeaux: Snoop Dogg
A&R MANAGER
While the Artist Managers manage the artist day to day life and schedule. The A&R Manager is responsible for talent scouting and artistic development within a record label. World’s top 3 artist and repertoire managers: Simon Cowell, Kara DioGuardi, Jeff Levin
Who are the World’s Top A&R Managers?
- Simon Cowell
- Kara DioGuardi
- Jeff Levin
STUDIO ENGINEER
The studio engineer works closely with the music producer and the artists to create a sound unique to the artist. The engineer works on the technical aspects of recording, which include setting up the audio equipment, editing, and mixing different sounds.
Who are the World’s Best Studio Engineers?
Atticus Ross: Academy Award and Grammy Award winner. Worked on the musical scores for the films New York, I Love You, The Book of Eli, The Social Network, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Broken City, Gone Girl, Patriots Day. He also worked on TV series music scores such as Fear the Walking Dead, Outcast, Black Mirror
Who are the Award-Winning Studio Engineers?
- Vaughan Phillips
- Steven Slate
- Manny
- Marroquin
LIVE SOUND ENGINEER
Engineers can design and control sounds at sports games, theatres, and music concerts. The sound engineer is able to mix live sound by using a mixing console. A sound engineer uses their trained musical ear and knowledge of acoustics to generate the best sound quality for events.
Who is the World’s Top Sound Engineer?
Ebony Oshunrinde is a well-known sound engineer working with Jay-Z, Prince, Aphex Twin, Brian Eno, Jamie xx, Pearl Jam, Sia, and Timbaland.
RECORDING STUDIO MANAGER
These managers work closely with producers, band managers, and artists. They also negotiate prices and promote the studio to prospective clients interested in using the studio.
What are the World’s Top Recording Studios?
- Capitol Studios
- Air Studios
- Metropolis Studios
- Platinum Studios
SOUND DESIGNER
The Sound Designer carefully selects and produces everything from spot effects (such as explosions) to atmosphere effects (such as rain sounds) not only for television, commercials, and theater plays but also for animations and video games.
Who is a Famous Sound Designer?
Christopher Boyes: 4 Academy Awards, nominated for 10 Academy Awards. He has worked on more than 70 films since 1991.
AUDIO MIXING AND MASTERING ENGINEER
The mixing process ensures that all elements sound well together. The audio mixing engineer needs to create a cohesive mix as a stereo track file that the mastering engineer can use to optimize for release.
Who are the World’s Best Mixing Engineers?
Tony Maserati: Nominated for 10 Grammys. Worked with Beyoncé, Robin Thicke, Jason Mraz, k.d. Lang, Mary J Blige, David Bowie, Usher, Puff Daddy, Notorious BIG, Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, Avril Lavigne, Cher, Keith Urban, R Kelly, Destiny’s Child, Jennifer Lopez, Alicia Keys, Lil’ Kim, and the Black Eyed Peas.
Manny Marroquin: Received 10 Grammy awards for his professional audio work. Worked with Whitney Houston, 2Pac, Pink, John Mayer, Shakira, Maroon 5, Rihanna, Ludacris, Jazmine Sullivan, and Duffy.
Who are the World’s Best Mastering Engineers?
Bernie Grundman: Steely Dan’s ‘Aja’, Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’, and Dr. Dre’s ‘The Chronic’
Emily Lazar: First female producer nominated in the Grammys ‘Album of the Year’ category. Worked with Foo Fighters, Beyoncé, David Bowie, and Tiësto.
ACOUSTIC CONSULTANT
Your job as an Acoustic Consultant is to use your knowledge of sound to help people control noise. As an acoustic consultant, you need to be able to conduct acoustical analysis of venues and spaces, identify audio problems, and recommend the optimum gear and interior design that will deliver the best sound.
When you think of a career in music technology and business, you might immediately think of performers on center stage, but going behind the curtain you’ll find the ones who make performances possible. The ones who produce the music, the ones in the recording studios, the audio engineers, the music composers, and the live sound engineers.
