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Meet the Bakers: Jon S

How did you get started with music?

My dad played guitar in a cover band when I was growing up, so right from the start I knew I wanted to pick it up for myself. I played a few other instruments when I was in middle/high school as well, but really got into playing guitar and bass when I was starting high school. I remember the day my freshman year when I had an art class that let us play music- somebody brought in a Jimi Hendrix CD and it absolutely blew my mind. From there I spent most of my high school years listening and playing along with classic rock staples- Beatles, Zeppelin, Cream, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Creedence Clearwater Revival.

I was taking a couple courses on radio, and through that found that I had a real fascination with doing production work/recording. It was then that I bought my first recording software, Cakewalk Guitar Tracks 2. Eventually I decided that music production Continue reading “Meet the Bakers: Jon S”

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Meet the Bakers: Josh K

I began classical piano lessons at around age 9, and at age 14 after hearing Metallica for the first time I convinced my dad to get me an electric guitar for my birthday. After that I was hooked. I jammed along to Metallica, AC/DC, and Guns N Roses record for several years before attempting to write my own songs and recruit some fellow classmates to start a band. I ended up playing originals in local bands all throughout high school.

At some point I realized I was serious about music not just as a hobby but as a career as well. I subsequently applied and got into Berklee College of Music. Once there I became fascinated with electronic music, and the music technology used to create it.

I got into artists like Boards of Canada and Bonobo, and soon started making my own tunes with the software we were given for school. I eventually got into Berklee’s Electronic Production and Design program, and proceeded to get schooled in the ways of audio engineering, sound design, and electronic composition. Since then, I’ve continued to compose and produce electronic music in a number of different genres, and am currently doing so under the name Smigonaut. Somewhere in between, I spent a few months interning at Bear Creek Studio out in my home state of Washington, where artists like Foo Fighters, Soundgarden, and the Lumineers have passed through to make records.

Eventually, I graduated from Berklee and spent my time out of school doing various freelance gigs, which included composing/sound FX for several indie films, as well as helping to create some jingles for TV ads. Several months later, I landed here at Cakewalk as a Product Support Representative. I have been here for just about a year, and it has certainly been one of the most educational and gratifying experiences of my career.

Favorite Movie: Taxi Driver

Years @ Cakewalk: Just under a year

Instrument: Guitar, Bass, Piano, Vocals

Preferred Style of Music: Alternative, Rock, Electronic

Superpower (if you could have one): Flying

Favorite Bands: Radiohead, Queens of the Stone Age, Dave Tipper

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Meet the Bakers: Lance R

My love for music started at an early age singing and dancing with my sisters in our living room listening to The Beatles, Van Morrison, Bob Marley, and the Top Gun soundtrack on Vinyl. I found guitar or maybe it found me in middle school and I was immediately hooked, leaning songs from Nirvana, Bush, & Guns & Roses.

Through middle school I was grew more interested in guitar FX, computers and hi-fi stereo systems, and from there began recording my own originals & covers at a liberal arts school for grades 6-12 where I discovered Continue reading “Meet the Bakers: Lance R”

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Meet the Bakers: Dan Gonzalez

It was right about ninth grade when I first started getting into playing guitar. Before that I was all about the Clarinet until 8th grade – when I rebelled for a couple years and didn’t want anything to do with school band. It wasn’t until I entered my Junior year of highschool when I realized that there could be benefits to playing a wind instrument as well as a stringed. So, I joined a the choir, jazz, the string orchestra (upright bass), and directed the marching band during football season. Continue reading “Meet the Bakers: Dan Gonzalez”

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Meet the Bakers: Tara Z

One of the catalysts for starting guitar lessons – me in the Gibson Showroom NYC without a clue how to play!

How did you get started with music?

I’ve actually always kind of fallen into the music scene somehow, which has felt very fortunate! In college I ended up working at the local record store, “The Sound Garden”, which was such an awesome environment to be in. Then when I moved to Boston I was hired to be Cakewalk’s Event Coordinator despite having no musical background.

The Original TLZ Photography

Since Gibson bought Cakewalk I’ve actually started playing guitar! Being surrounded by so many amazing instruments and tons of talented musicians is very inspiring (and also intimidating at times). I have only been playing for a couple months at this point, but being able to generate something that is mildly musical is so satisfying and therapeutic, it has become the driving force for wanting to continue to practice and improve!

I grew up in Rochester, NY but I have lived in Boston for 8 years. I have been at Cakewalk for 6 of those years and the friends I have made through Cakewalk are pretty close to what I would consider my Boston family. Continue reading “Meet the Bakers: Tara Z”

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Highlights from April: Tips to Help You "Mix it Right"

Cakewalk presents “Mix it Right” month
We have been busy this month creating new resources to help you craft better mixes. Check out all the tips, tricks, and video from experts like Craig Anderton, Dan Gonzalez, and Jimmy Landry who have all worked professionally in studios and bring decades of mixing knowledge to the table (and console).

EQ: Carving Out The Right Sound For Your Mix
One of the most important aspects of mixing is using EQ to “carve out” a specific frequency range for instruments so they don’t conflict with each other. If instruments have their own sonic space, it’s easier to hear each instrument’s unique contribution, which increases the mix’s clarity. Learn more

When To Break The “Rules” Of Digital Mixing
Sometimes you need a mix to have a certain sound and the so-called rules of digital mixing go out the window. Recently Cakewalk’s Jimmy Landry was hired to produce a song with some “grit” and “acoustic-oriented authenticity,” so he grabbed his 5-Year Old’s harp out of a toy chest, his acoustic guitar, and got to work in SONAR X3. Learn more

“Object-Oriented” Clip Mixing in SONAR
When you need to get really detailed, object-oriented mixing is a convenient solution. Craig Anderton explains how to approach this in SONAR. Learn more

How to Use Reverb to Create Depth
Applying the proper Reverb requires more time than just scrolling through the presets of the basic Hall, Room, and Plate algorithms. Cakewalk’s Dan Gonzalez covers the dos-and-don’ts of Reverb for guitars, vocals, drums, and more. Learn more

Video: How to Use Compression
Mixing with Compression is an essential part to shaping and creating a great sounding track. In this video series Dan Gonzalez shows you how to use compression on various types of instruments in SONAR X3 with the CA-2A T-Type Leveling Amplifier. Learn more Continue reading “Highlights from April: Tips to Help You "Mix it Right"”

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Free SONAR X3 Clinic by Berklee Online [March 31st 2014]

Innovative Music Production Techniques with Cakewalk SONAR X3

When: Monday, March 31 at 4:00pm ET
Length: 30 minutes

Next Monday, join Berklee Online for an in-depth online clinic with Craig Anderton, a renowned music technologist and producer, and Chief Magic Officer for Gibson Brands.

Learn how to create, edit, master, and more using SONAR X3 Producer.

 

Topics for this Open House will include:

  • The MIDI advantage for songwriting
  • Using loops for both songwriting and EDM
  • Speeding up workflow to prevent “inspiration atrophy” (effects chains, track templates, browser techniques, etc.)
  • Creating your own mixer architecture
  • Using “spot” timing correction to tighten timing without destroying feel
  • How to make amp sims sound great (e.g. effects chains)
  • Mastering in SONAR

Sign-up here

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SONAR X3 earns Keyboard magazine's Key Buy award

Key Buy Award

SONAR X3 earns Keyboard magazine’s Key Buy award
What happens when a former Pro Tools and Cubase user puts SONAR X3 to the test? Well that’s exactly what Keyboard magazine reviewer Brian Hardgroove (Public Enemy, Bootsy Collins) did, and the result was a Key Buy award for SONAR X3. In the review he concludes that “SONAR X3 is a mature, vibrant program that’s a pleasure to use. As far as I am concerned, there’s no looking back.”

Ease of use: “After working with SONAR X3 Producer since its release, I’ve become a convert. DAWs are always subjective and personal choice, but SONAR made complete sense to me — sort of like trying on shoes that don’t need breaking in.”

Workflow: “Beyond the ease of use, SONAR X3 puts the fun back into recording for me. Part of that is the stability and freedom from freezes — I didn’t have to fight the program or my computer, which helps. The workflow is painless, so the experience became all about making music.”

Comping: “What makes this special is how fast and smooth the whole process is.”

Melodyne Essential and ARA integration: “SONAR blew my mind when I found out I could drag an audio bass part into Melodyne and convert it into MIDI, creating instant doubling of bass guitar lines with synth bass Continue reading “SONAR X3 earns Keyboard magazine's Key Buy award”

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Cakewalk at CES 2014 Update

This is my first time at CES, and I can confirm that it is an enormous conglomeration of amazing technical craziness.  Quite larger than NAMM, CES brings out all the largest companies in the world who want to put their best foot forward by impressing show-goers with their latest and greatest; and it doesn’t disappoint.  As we stated a few days ago, we have been fortunate enough to obtain a booth at CES this year through our new Gibson affiliation and things so far have been nothing short of amazing.

Cakewalk Product Specialist Dan Gonzalez and myself have been in the in the Gibson tent demonstrating the new SONAR X3 along with Z3TA+ 2 and all the ProChannels modules since Tuesday.  It always fun turning heads with folks that have never seen SONAR in action and that is surely the case here.  There have been many new artists stopping by who are blown away when we show them features such as Track Templates and FX Chain Presets combines with the ProChannel.  I am happy to say that we are making some new friends for sure.

The Gibson Tent has “proven” to be a vibrant spot to be to say the least.  After spending some time with Gibson Social Media expert Sean Dooley, he showed me some twitter reports that displayed Gibson trending on four different spots in the top 10 by day 2 of the CES Convention.   The Gibson Tent is positioned perfectly outside of the main halls of CES, so it’s very visible and surely an eye-catching specimen when leaving the main location – especially when the Back to the Future DeLorean is  sitting smack-dab in front
Continue reading “Cakewalk at CES 2014 Update”

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Cakewalk and SONAR X3 at 2014 International CES Convention

Things are moving fast and in a very positive direction here at Cakewalk.  It’s an exciting time with our new Gibson brand alliance, and we are excited and honored to announce that for the first time we have a presence at the 2014 CES Convention in Las Vegas.  CES is known as one of the premier conferences in the world where the top-tiered technology companies come together to show off new products, discuss the current and future climates of the industry, and of course… NETWORK.

 

 

Cakewalk’s Head of Artist and Public Relations Jimmy Landry along with Product Specialist Dan Gonzalez will be on location at CES and will be sharing their experiences through our Instagram account as well as our other social media outlets.  They will be in the heart of CES at the Gibson tent showing off the power of SONAR X3 along with other Cakewalk products.

 

Follow Cakewalk on Instagram and Twitter to get real-time updates on all the CES/Cakewalk interaction.