How Do Even Become Assistant Studio Engineer?

[@theozamparo]

You are a blessing for the whole industry On top of making incredible sounding records, you’re sharing loads of crucial knowledge that most would keep for themselves Please keep being passionate with making everything better, I think I can speak in the name of all saying we’re incredibly thankfull 🙏

[@ryken_]

most important thing is knowing how to make coffee. I've been practicing this for years now, I am ready.

[@frantiseksvarc1672]

This came at the exactly right time for me! I've been thinking about this topic a lot, lately.

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

More coming. I think I’m gonna take some points and expand on them further.

[@coryhofing-drummer7441]

I almost ALWAYS watch your videos all the way through. You're great George and I appreciate all the awesome advice.

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

I appreciate that!

[@RicHollandUK]

Excellent and helpful, so many people aspire to recording for a living and your content may help them. This info isn’t easy to find for many. Well done. In my day I never cleaned toilets or made drinks, we had cleaning staff and a vending machine. Went straight in on day one, tape-opping on a prog rock mixdown (a track Yes’s first album).

[@kennethgreen3306]

Anyone who didn’t watch this to the end missed out! Thanks for the amazing content as always!

[@Weaverbrad]

Seriously George your content is A1, awesome shout out to Hoffman. He, you, and Knobs are probably my three favorite channels!

[@katiepower1570]

If you’re desparate enough you’ll get what you need for a good portfolio . I even started setting up open mics. The more you do the more people you meet and opportunities grow. Putting in effort and showing passion works. Even if you’re not as good as others .

[@evanwilliamsss]

This is so incredibly helpful. Thank you so much, George!

[@danross6517]

I appreciate this video massively

[@ryanbird109]

George, you're a hero. Thank you so much for this man

[@cillianplummer9241]

This was really insightful as I'd love to get into this line of work. Thank you, George. P.S. I think the longer videos are fantastic. I love the style and layout of them so hopefully we'll see more of them in the future

[@flowaudiouk]

Bit of a beginners question but when offering help to other studios/producers is it imperative to be fluent in their DAW of choice? Or is it best to just go for a 'fuck it' approach and offer help regardless. Great video George!

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

It took me 24 hours to learn Pro Tools after having a 'fuck it' moment. If you can survive in the deep end and not make a mess. I don't see the harm personally.

[@shannonmccarthy4000]

Nice to see a fellow coursemate here a year before me. And for asking the same question I had in mind. Coincidence.

[@bolillo5013]

I really appreciated this video, my main struggle right now is location, but I currently have a sort of production mentor and I'm networking the best I can, thanks again for the video.

[@hlrossato]

Unbelievable how much information is in this video but also unbelievable how you approached the topic. I'm really glad that you take the time to share your inside knowledge! Cheers!

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

Glad it was helpful!

[@tatepaul3947]

Dude how have I not come across your channel sooner...wow! This video and the other one on getting more work were awesome. Appreciate all the work and effort you put into your videos and records you work on! Might hit you up man

[@Aleksisguitar]

I really enjoy your vlogs George. I also enjoy your killer mixes. Thanks for showing up!

[@hlrossato]

I'm revisiting this video again (for the nth time) and one thing came to my mind. You mentioned "learning more than just mixing" and also "learning the steps before mixing". You also gave some examples, like songwriting but would you have examples on platforms that can provide that kind of content? Thanks, George!

[@ConReising]

This video is great! Couldn't have said it any better. I'm at a point where I'm split about half and half working on my own projects and assisting other engineers. One thing I would add is to remember that you are there to help the engineer however possible. It seems obvious, but I've seen so many other people do things like argue with the engineer, mess up the vibe with the client, waste time on unnecessary things, etc. Be humble and stay attentive. Also the coffee thing is no joke.

[@aaronorr2129]

Truly appreciate this George, thank you.

[@JaviPerera]

I really like this video. I have odd freelance jobs mixing and mastering remotely, and I'd really like to do this more on a regular basis. I am really passionate about this... I could spend hours and hours doing this without getting tired. And I've often thought about working as an assistant, but I've never known how to take the first step towards it. The only thing I see as a limiting factor is how to find out who is in need of an assistant, if that is by asking directly to the studios or is there a platform where they ask for applicants for such a position. Plus, I know how to make a good Greek coffee (I am not Greek though 😊)

[@Edopensa]

Thanks for sharing your experience snd opinion. I have a degree and experience but ended up working in a completely different industry due to my visa situation. It has been five years since I pressed the pause button to my dream career when I moved to Australia. Now I’m looking forward to start again and your videos are great source of inspiration. Keep up the great work!

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

Thanks for sharing! Let us all know how you get on mate.

[@Edopensa]

@@GeorgeLeverG1 Thanks for taking the time to reply, I’m almost a permanent resident here and my first step was to reconnect with my 2 best friends and musicians in Italy and I’m teaching them production through zoom. That is helping me a lot getting back into it. We are currently writing at least one song per week (for practice purpose for now) and as soon as I’m allowed I’ll try and get a job in any studio that is willing to give me a chance (I also make good coffees)

A lot of useful stuff George! Thank you, found this right in time!😁🤘🏻

[@joesmithuk5175]

This was a really helpful video man thank you for making it!

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

Glad it was helpful!

[@christophersamuelslarsson5922]

Hey George, just got a pretty big gig as an engineer in the US and need tips! I’m from Sweden and our studio culture is quite different.

[@isaklinton324]

1 minute in, I'm gonna enjoy this! Thank you

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

Your question is answered a little later in the video i think!

[@AlexSaheli]

I watch this vid instead of mixing 😊🎉

[@acrosstobear625]

Glad I found this channel. Such a great video. Trying to learn as much about the recording side as I can. Loving the podcast with Joao as well so far.

[@bajnokaron7268]

Just what I needed, George! Thank you❤️✨

[@lucasdeoliveira4056]

As a complete outsider to the industry I've always find this question really confusing, thanks for clarifying ! Great content

[@charliereeves2146]

Thanks for the inspiration, you maje this seem a bit mor accessible, if you work your ass off that is ! Great content

[@dancawar1765]

Thanks for this George. So much to learn, always find you really helpful.

[@whoisdark__]

Thank you for the advice!! this was super helpful

[@dylanmyhill1188]

Thank you for this, as someone who is at the very very start of trying to build a career in music this is super helpful! Your videos are amazing and thank you for all the advice, Keep it up!

[@DjemGuitar]

You're a hero mate, thanks for the valuable information

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

One step at a time. You can do it!

[@hottubeproductions]

Cool stuff, thanks for sharing it!

[@floriyoo1036]

I'm currently getting a degree in Audio Engineering and am recording a few artists for free to build up a portfolio. I have a friend who runs a recording/mixing studio. Just like you he's looking for someone to take a little work off of him, so atm I'm trying hard to be able to be the guy working for him

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

Go for it. The best advice I can give above all else. Be SO GOOD that working without you isn’t worth considering.

[@laszlovarga7025]

Really cool video,what do you think,can a plugin be as good as a gear or is there a gear which can’t be replaced with plugins?What’s the essential gear you must have in your studio?Thank you

[@olivernolannn]

I’m interested to know about when you first started off doing your friend’s records as you mentioned - I’m in a similar position myself at the moment, would you have taken equipment to a studio with them, a practice space, or more working on stems they had recorded? Love these vids I have become a religious viewer

[@yookalaylee2289]

I'm a registered piano technician and aural piano tuner. I also record my brothers band and my own musical endeavors. The way I got into the music business was just showing up and never leaving lol

[@henrikduende]

Being in a modern world. There are things that you won’t learn unless you run your own studio. When am i going to learn to mic a drum kit? When i got Toontrack? And got no room for a drum kit. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@primroseproductionsmusic]

"Oh I just used to do setups for some no-name called Adam 'Nolly' Getgood" 😆 in all seriousness though, awesome video

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

The industry is who your friends are. I grew up with Adam while going through education.

[@tzhong889]

I can confirm I did exactly what he said today and now I am an assistant 😊

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

Really?! that's incredible. Congrats!

[@tzhong889]

@@GeorgeLeverG1 yes it is true I also can’t believe it. But it was a similar story. I recorded a song with him and we had a good time. I always wanted to learn more but it was hard to get the chance to. I asked him and he accepted. I followed your advise and it worked out. Thank you so much love your content!!

[@matt-tomo]

Love the video man, Really helpful! Please could you put Nathan’s video/channel link in the description :)

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

Lol at me. No. Never. Nathan gets NOTHING! Yeah sure give me a moment.

[@matt-tomo]

@@GeorgeLeverG1 haha cheers mate!

[@kshitijk14]

the end was great!

[@rubbRdukz]

Great video!

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

Thanks!

[@kevinoflion]

Solid advice as always George. Although I do hate that this industry still has the whole "work for experience" shit going on. Unfortunately a lot of creative fields do. :/

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

Maybe instead of work for experience, i'll refer to it as education instead. Anything to get yourself into a room with someone that knows more than you do and has made mistakes that you want to avoid, is vital to growth. You cant put a number on that education. It's only a negative if your willingness to learn is taken advantage of and seen as cheap labour. Thats not what i'm encouraging.

[@kevinoflion]

@@GeorgeLeverG1 Oh for sure...absolutely. I'm not saying people shouldn't volunteer to shadow someone or to "intern" so to speak for a certain amount of time. There's absolutely room for that kind of thing. I've just seen (in both music and marketing/web) people take advantage of their station when they know damn well they could pay the people doing the grunt work...and they justify it as "paying dues." And I'm absolutely NOT implying that you are doing that. Sorry if it came off that way,

[@steph_nyc]

Shit...the coffee part tho 😆 I don't drink coffee how I'm supposed to make a good one 😆

[@DELTAdarke]

This is awesome, but still pretty narrow. I've got heaps of skills at foley and video game sound from uni, and now offer services in both. Not to mention music editing for films, music editors make bank and their job is just editing pre-existing songs together to work with the picture. Audio is huge. Most everything needs sound somehow, especially these days. Just remember with whatever you do, like George said: Give a fuck. I'd add to the list be yourself and be a people person.

[@chrisl8277]

A listing of employment opportunities or employers would have sufficed.

[@milanahuja5813]

Oops the title is missing something

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

How do even*

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

Fixed. Ty

[@buhimoth]

Oh and George? I love you?

[@GeorgeLeverG1]

hahaha!

[@katiepower1570]

Some people will learn the knowledge and still not be able to do sound engineering . Some people are more audio producers who have more creativity as well as organisation. Don’t get disappointed if you can’t do sound engineering after a few years. Look elsewhere, maybe music business A+R or that type of thing.

[@progmodeaudioproductions2631]

cringe