Becoming an Audio Engineer in a Recording Studio

Recording Studio Stuff

There is a traditional route into a commercial recording studio: start as an assistant. It is not the only route, but it is the one that audio-industry writers keep describing. This post pulls together what they say. The sources are David Mellor’s 1999 Sound On Sound series, Mike Senior’s 2001 reply to a reader, Dom Morley’s article for Production Expert, and two career pages from Berklee, a music college that sells degrees. Parts are old, and I flag where.

What the job is

Berklee’s career page says the assistant engineer supports the lead recording engineer in all studio activities, from answering phones and coiling cables to tweaking outboard gear and prepping rough mixes. Before sessions, it says, assistants select, position and test microphones, ready amplifiers, label and test cables, and prepare audio tracks. During them, they adjust mic setups, troubleshoot minor problems, keep session logs, and fetch coffee when sessions run late.

Berklee describes the work as old-style apprenticeship: duties tend to be basic and wages low, but the pay-off includes a uniquely immersive education. It says 12-hour days are possible and sessions often happen at night and on weekends.

A keyboard and a microphone with a pop guard in a small room with basses and guitars on a blue wall

Image: The keyboard and vocal corner of a home recording studio by Marcus Ilgner, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Why start in a studio at all

In 1999 Mellor argued that commercial studios would still matter because they become centres of professionalism and expertise. The best artists come, bringing the best engineers and producers, and assistants learn directly from them. He compared that with the home musician who learns by trial and error: you can get amazing results that way, he said, but it can never beat an apprenticeship with the masters of the craft. That is one writer’s opinion from the project-studio boom, but it explains why the route persists.

Skills: people first

Mellor says an engineer working in music is more of a musician than a technician, and that in a music studio the recording equipment is permanently set up, so the technical knowledge needed day to day is limited. He adds that interpersonal skills matter: if you can’t acquire them, “you’ll never become a recording engineer in a commercial studio”. He suggests that studios may prefer taking juniors off the street to applicants with considerable technical knowledge, because courses can’t simulate the working environment.

Berklee’s list for assistants is similar: recording hardware and software, broad knowledge of instruments, organization and problem solving. Its description of the personality is that assistants are rarely the centre of attention, and that being organized, observant, flexible and focused helps.

Studio etiquette

Mellor’s rules are blunt. Don’t speak until you are spoken to. Don’t walk around the room except for specific tasks. Never stand between the console and the speakers. Don’t eat in the control room unless the engineer and producer are. Don’t try to impress anyone with technical knowledge, and when a band is around, don’t mention other bands. (He also lists smoking rules from 1999 that read differently now.)

Senior gives similar advice to a reader doing a try-out: the best way to show enthusiasm is to be conscientious about the tasks you are given, not to pester people. He recommends keeping paper and a pencil in your pocket to note orders, because reliability impresses a studio, and good tea may lead to more interesting jobs.

Screenshot of recording software with rows of tracks and waveforms in the upper area and mixer channel strips below

Image: Screenshot of the free, open-source Ardour recording software showing its recorder, editor and mixer by Derwok, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Be prepared, thorough and present

Morley, a former studio assistant, offers five tips: be prepared (know what’s happening in the session before the client arrives), be thorough, be tactful, be present, and be remembered. On being present, he says you’re only moving forward when you’re in the room with clients, whether by learning or networking, and suggests politely offering “I’m happy to stick around if I can be helpful in any way”. On being remembered, he describes an assistant who aimed for every client to leave glad it was him who had assisted.

How long, and what next

Berklee says assistants typically work for a studio for one to five years, until they are promoted to engineer, have enough experience to move to another studio, or make connections that let them go freelance. Some move to A&R, mastering, mixing, or studio management. It says competition for assistant jobs can be fierce, and that interning as a runner can be a good way in.

Morley is blunter: he says most assistants will not go on to become freelance engineers or producers, and those who don’t have worked long hours on minimum wage with little to show for it. That is one engineer’s view, but it is worth knowing before you start.

What you can do now (my own suggestion)

I would practise with whatever recording software you can get, so you know the vocabulary of a session. The free program shown above is one example. Then visit local studios, ask about internships, and learn the etiquette above. The series post Careers in Audio, and When to Book a Studio Instead of Recording at Home looks at the wider picture.

Sources