Instrument Tracks

If you already have basic tracks that lack one or more instruments, I can deliver individual or component instrument tracks, custom-tailored to mix seamlessly and perfectly into the stylistic and sonic parameters of your project.

• Drums, percussion, and complete rhythm sections
• Acoustic & electric guitars
• Electric, acoustic, & upright bass
• Acoustic & electric piano (Rhodes, Wurlitzer, etc.)
• Accordion
• Organ (B3, Farfisa, etc.)
• Strings & orchestral / symphonic arrangements
• Harmonica
• Caribbean Steel drums & other tropical instruments
• Synthesizer pads, fills, & effects
• Unique & distinctive specialty & world instruments
• Tacoma Papoose

A drumset is the most difficult and expensive musical instrument to capture in the recording studio. Factors such as effective miking, mic proximities, room acoustics, and proper drum tuning for the song—all lead to setup times and ongoing adjustments that are often cost-prohibitive, intrusive, and discouraging to musicians trying to capture the spontaneity of a relaxed, yet confident perfect take.

As the sonic quality of sampled instruments has approached and surpassed that of miked instruments in the studio, the major production facilities in New York, Los Angeles, and Nashville have continued using renowned session drummers for the groove and nuance they provide to the song. But they now typically replace the often inferior sounds of the recorded drums with drum samples that have been meticulously captured in painstaking detail in dedicated, multi-million dollar acoustic rooms.

Drum triggering, or drum replacement, has become the norm for avoiding the immense time, trouble, and expense of recording drums in a state-of-the-art recording room. One unfortunate side-effect of this practice is that today, acoustic drums (or even acoustic drum samples) are rarely heard in popular music—they have given way to electronic drum sounds in the form of "loops", which require virtually no skill, musicianship, or specialized equipment to implement.

My first professional performances as a musician were on a drum kit and I continue to be a huge fan of, and advocate for, the art of acoustic drums. I have a deep understanding of the mechanics of drumming and I apply that knowledge and skill to every drum or rhythm track I produce.

Other instruments that were once considered irreplaceable by digitally sampled equivalents are now available in such rich detail that they are shipped on multi-gigabyte hard drives and require huge amounts of RAM to be implemented on a recording workstation. But they sound phenomenal.

Whether you need bass, drums, guitars, strings, or something completely unique, I can help you take your sonic vision from concept to fully-mastered perfection, as high and wide as the Texas sky.