University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Pop music production

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Pop music production

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POP MUSIC PRODUCTION

by

Nicole Jeanelle Banner

A Thesis Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
MASTER OF ARTS
(BROADCAST JOURNALISM)

May 2012

Copyright 2012 Nicole Jeanelle Banner

ii

Table of Contents

Abstract…………………………………………………………...….………………...... iii
“Pop Music Production” Script…………………..………………………………………. 1
Bibliography………………………………………………..……………………..……..12

iii

Abstract

The use of live instrument recordings in modern day studios is becoming an archaic
form of pop music production. With the advancement of digital technology, pop songs
are being produced using different digital sound banks and plug ins that have been
developed over time. Today nearly anyone can make music even if they do not know how
to play an instrument.
Instead of paying various musicians to record live sounds for a record, now one
person can compile digital sounds within a computer program and create an instrumental
track without ever having to pick up a physical instrument, making their ability to play
instruments obsolete. Instead of hosting recording sessions in million dollar studios,
everything can now virtually be done from a small studio apartment. The use of digital
sound also sounds aesthetically different from a live instrument.
The purpose of this story is to discuss the impact of digital technology on the music
industry by exploring the opinions and thoughts of various working music industry
professionals who are striving to keep the use of live instruments in their work. The story
will explain how advances in technology have affected jobs in the music industry as well
as examine the quality and difference between digitally produced songs and songs that
were made by recording live instrument players.
Dominic Messinger, Joshua Gudwin, Jonathon “JM Beatz” Malone, Adam
Messinger, Nasri Atweh, Vic De Leon and Mark Cole, are all music industry
professionals who have worked as either an engineer, producer, writer or composer.
Through their work, thoughts and experiences the importance and definition of
musicianship is explored.

1

“Pop Music Production” Script

VO MARK COLE

CG: Mark Cole, DJ/Producer

Mark Cole working with a guitar
player to record live sound.
Mark is seen in a studio, giving
feedback to a guitar player in the
booth

1 Nowadays if you have a computer you’re a
musician.

Growing up I was an athlete so I never took the
time to learn how to play anything or master
any instruments.

VO MARK COLE

Mark Cole recording and editing
the digital outcome.

(Music plays)

2 I like to consider myself a musician because I
feel like music is not only what you play.
Musicians just don’t play, musicians also write,
musicians also have good ears.

Even though I don’t play any instruments I use
live instruments all the time.

VO MARK COLE

The guitar player comes out the
booth

VO MARK COLE
Mark explaining what chords for
the guitar to play. They go over
his original composition made up
of guitar samples.

3 I love the sound and the realism of certain
instruments, like guitars, bases, strings even
sometimes drums depending on the track and the
sound I am going for
SOT MARK COLE 4 Digital instruments are used in pop music all
the time, because pop music is more
manufactured. Its get it in get it out… its less
time when you’re not using live instruments.

SOT MARK COLE

5 There
is
a
lost
of
jobs
but
anytime
you
are

dealing
with
people
and
technology…
and

people
they
come
up
with
something
new.

(Music
is
heard)

Establishing shot

6

2

Josh Gudwin’s Apartment
building in Hollywood, CA

VO NARRATOR

Josh Gudwin is on the phone
talking to one of his clients as he
mixes a track.

7 FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS JOSH
GUDWIN HAS BEEN WORKING AS A
MUSIC ENGINEER, MIXER AND
PRODUCER. HE RECEIVED HIS TRAINING
IN MUSIC AT FULL SAIL COLLEGE IN
FLORIDA.
VO JOSH GUDWIN

The camera zooms out to reveal
a wall of gold and platinum
records.

Nats: A song is being mixed,
Josh adjust the volume of
different instruments through out
the song is according to his
clients preference.

8 After I graduated from Full Sail I packed up all
my belongings in a 1997 Altima, and
everything I could fit came with me, everything
that didn’t fit I gave away. Moved out to
California, I slept on a couch for a year. When I
first moved out here my buddies were in film
production so I PA’d on commercials, I got
$200 A day…. so I paid my rent with that.

VOICE OVER: JOSH GUDWIN

Josh continues to work, a close
up the various record places are
shown revealing the artists which
Josh has worked with including,
Rhianna, T Pain, T.I. Mary J.
Bilge etc.

9 Once I got a job in a studio, I moved from
intern to assistant to engineer pretty quickly. In
about a year or so and then I got my own room
in a four bedroom apartment. And then I moved
to Record Plant Studios and really at record
plant they gave me the shot to really start
working and meeting the people I work with
today. Record plant gave me my shot, I didn’t
sink, I swam. And the clients that I am with
now are the clients I met when I was at Record
Plant.

SOT JOSH GUDWIN

10 I work with Kuk Kurell on a daily basis. We’ve
cut so many records together. The first person I
ever cut with Kuk was Jamie Foxx… Lionel
Richie, Jessica Simpson, Rhianna, Justin
Beiber, Jennfier Lopez, Ciara, Usher, the list
kind of goes on.

3

(SONG THAT JOSH IS MIXING
PLAYS)

Josh on the computer working in
Pro Tools
11
VOICE OVER NARRATOR

Josh continues to work on editing
a musical track through his digital
computer program.

12 ALTHOUGH JOSHUA GUDWIN CAN PLAY
THE GUITAR, BASS AND PIANO, HE FINDS
HIMSELF SPENDING MORE TIME
WORKING WITH DIGITAL SOUNDS AS
OPPOSED TO LIVE INSTRUMENTS. THE
ABSENCE OF LIVE INSTRUMENTS HAS
BECOME INCREASINGLY POPULAR
AMONGST PRODUCERS OF POP MUSIC, A
LOT OF ARTISTS TODAY EXPECT
PRODUCERS TO USE DIGITAL
TECHNOLOGY AND SOUNDS. THROUGH
USE OF THESE PROGRAMS JOSH HAS
BEEN ABLE TO MAKE A LIVING
THROUGH HIS WORK IN DIGITAL MUSIC.
SOT JOSH GUDWIN
Josh picks up an action figure that
he keeps on the desk at his
workstation.
13 When people don’t pay me I send this guy out
and he start bashing people.

SOT JOSH GUDWIN

14 Everyone can make music with Garage Band,
Polo made ‘Love in this Club” with Garage Band
and it was on the radio and made millions of
dollars off it. So people have recreated that song
on garage band and have been like what’s up
polo, I did it on garage band too and Polo’s
response was, well you didn’t collect a check, so
anyone can make music off of anything but you
still have to have the intuition to make the music

4

right.
NATS
(Drums beating)

Its 1:29 am on a computer screen.
The room is dark as the camera
zooms out an electronic drum set
is reveal.
15
VO NARRATOR

The camera zooms out more and
hands are revealed playing the
piano that is controlling the midi
connection to the electronic
drum set. JM Beatz is revealed
and introduced to the audience.
He is working on creating a
digital music record.

16 JONATHON JM BEATZ MALONE STUDIED
ENGINEERING AT THE MUSICIANS
INSTITUTE IN HOLLYWOOD. ASIDE FROM
THE KEYBOARD HE DOES NOT KNOW
HOW TO PLAY ANY OTHER INSTRUMENT.
JM HOWEVER IS ABLE TO FIND WORK IN
THE MUSIC INDUSTRY, PRODUCING
DIGITAL TRACKS FOR VARIOUS TV
SHOWS, COMMERCIALS AND
RECORDING ARTISTS.
NATS
Drums strings and other
electronic sounds are heard.

JM continues to build his record.

17

SOT JOSH GUDWIN

18 Song production back in the day right, you had
a producer, an engineer sitting behind a desk
and you had five players in a room.

Drum player, bass player, two guitar players and
a singer right. So they sit in a room working out
arrangements working out parts for days and
days and days. So they’d spend weeks getting
the song ready right, then they’d spend week
recording the song and then they’d spend week
mixing the song. So the process went from
spending a lot of time on the music - and it was a

5

good thing they did that – at the time they had
the budget too and they were all bouncing ideas
off each other and in turn created a better project.

VO NARRATOR

JM working.
Viewer will see how digital
sound is generated and recorded
into the computer

19 THE USE OF DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY IN
RECORDING STUDIOS HAS HAD A HUGE
EFFECT ON THE SOUND OF MUSIC FROM
THE 21
ST
CENTURY. WHILE THIS
TECHNOLOGY HAS LEAD TO GREAT
ADVANCES IN PRODUCTION, SAVING
TIME AND MONEY, GUDWIN SAYS SOME
ARTISTS QUESTION WHETHER THIS
TECHNOLOGY HAS COMPROMISED
MUSICAL SOUND QUALITY AND THE
ART OF COMPOSING MUSIC.

Split edit from last frame
SOT JOSH GUDWIN

20 Now you just have a producer in a room
making a beat with a keyboard and it’s just his
idea. So it quicker, you can make a song in an
hour and if you have Chris Brown write to it, he
write to it in an half an hour and you can have a
radio song done in an half hour.
VO DOMINIC MESSINGER

Cut back to JM in the studio
working on his digital beat.

21 Technology has made creating and recording
music easier, faster... cheaper.
SOT DOMINIC MESSINGER

Dominic is seen sitting in his
home studio.

22 One of the things that I like as a composer and
one of the things that attracted me originally in
my career, most of what I did was soap opera
music, and I loved the immediacy of writing
music and then a week later hearing it on the
air.

6

Dominic working on his
soundboard.
23
VO NARRATOR

Dominic working continues
operating soundboard.

24 DOMINIC MESSINGER HAS BEEN MAKING
MUSIC SINCE HIGH SCHOOL. THROUGH
OUT HIS CAREER HE WON 14 EMMYS. HE
SAYS HE PREFERS TO RECORD WITH
LIVE INSTRUMENTS AS MUCH AS
POSSIBLE. HE HAS DONE A LOT OF WORK
PRODUCING MUSICAL SCORES FOR FILM
AND IS CURRENTLY WORKING WITH THE
A&E SHOW, INTERVENTION.
SOT DOMINIC MESSINGER

VO DOMINIC MESSINGER

Mark Cole in studio working on
his music in Abelton Live.

25 There are a lot of instruments that have been
replaced, a lot of musicians who have been
replaced temporarily and or semi-permanently

because of technology because of the tools
being cheaper and easier for everybody.

VO DOMINIC MESSINGER

MARK COLE editing his music
continues.
26 I
can’t
say
that
there
are
less
job
opportunities

I
think
the
job
opportunities
in
music
have

changed.
You
know
there
are
less
job

opportunities
for
a
viola
player
and
a

trombone
player
but
there
are
more

opportunities
for
a
Pro
Tools
editors
and

computer
music
techs.
SOT MARK COLE

Cut back to Mark editing, he
refers back to his guitarist for
help.
27 You
save
a
lot
of
money
by
using
electronic

or
computer
based
music
but
on
the
other

hand
you
know
live
music
is
just
live
music

there
is
a
certain
harmonica
that
live

instruments
have
that
you
don’t
get
in

samples
you
know.
It’s
just
a
feel.
It’s
the

human
part
of
playing
that
gives
it
the
feel.

Cut to:
SOT DOMINIC MESSINGER

Dominic demonstrates the
28 Let me just do that again with the computer
cello by itself, so computer cello and piano,
here it is again… All right now here is the same
piece with a real cello and the piano and you

7

difference in sound between a
computer generated cello and a
recording of live cello instrument.

could just here just more warmth. I don’t if it
will pick it up on the camera but… you hear
that emotion and the dynamics… that’s real and
then fake… See to me there is no comparison.

VO NARRATOR 29 HOWEVER DOMINIC MESSINGER ALONG
WITH MANY OTHER COMPOSERS
RECOGNIZE THE GROWING MARKET FOR
DIGITAL SOUNDING RECORDS.
VO DOMINIC MESSINGER

Dominic I seen working in his
studio.

30 With guitarist I work with, I’ll hear something
on a record and I’ll say can you give me that
sound and they’ll say well no because that was
– they took the guitar they recorded it and then
they sampled it and they threw it in pro tools,
chopped it up, then they reversed it and they did
this, this and this and it took them hours to get
that sound, you know. So aesthetically, people
are liking that sound.

SOT JONATHON MALONE 31 The program I’m talking about is like a $5,000
program. That’s like better than live shit when
it come to pop to be real, because it just has that
clean digital sound and that basically what pop
is now.
NATS
Computerized strings.

JM demonstrates the use of
digital strings and how you can
bring that up in a computer.
32
SOT JOSH GUDWIN 33 So now with technology one person has access
to all the instruments, so I don’t need a guitar
player if I can play it on a keyboard, I don’t
need a bass player if I can play it on the
keyboard or a drummer, so that give a lot of
people a lot of control in the outcome of a
record. The person is now musically inclined to
be a guitar player a drummer, if he can not play
all those instrument without a computer, the
quality will completely different if you had
brought five creative musicians into a room all
adding their very best to a song. There are very

8

few producers that do that.

SOT DOMINIC MESSINGER

34 The smart producers know that even if it is just
one or two or three live players it makes a
difference to bring in something live because it
makes then more unique. There’s also
something that happens in a studio when there
is collaboration that does not happen when
there is not collaboration and you’re sitting all
by yourself doing it.
JM is in his studio working with a
live musician, Vic De Leon.
Together they decide what chords
to use in a record they are
working on together.
35 Vic: Is that the B?

JM: yeah that’s right try to six eight it too….
bah bah bah bah bah bah bah bah bah ..

Vic: I could just stay right here on this one.

JM: So go… bah bah bah bah bah bah… nen
nen nen nen nen nen -

Vic: (plays some more)

JM: No that’s wrong. That B is wrong.

Vic: No that B is right.

JM: Oh ya it is right, why does it sound
different?

Vic: It’s the E at the end.

VO DOMINIC MESSINGER

Scene with JM and musician Vic
De Leon continues.. they work
through the chords and JM refers
back to the computer to confirm
the notes.

36 If you are trying to deliver pop music you don’t
need to know as much music theory or be able
to play and instrument that well to still do great
pop productions. I think knowing how to play
an instrument and being familiar with different
instruments definitely gives you an edge that
you wouldn’t have. But that doesn’t mean that
the person who only knows how to use logic
and garage band might not make a lot more
money or be a lot more successful
commercially then the person who doesn’t play
an instrument.

9

Cut to JM back in the studio
finishing up the song he was
working on earlier in the story.
37

JM searches through his sound
bank to add more interesting
sounds to his creation.

Sound under
VO JM BEATZ

38 I wish music would be the way it use to be and
have more feeling. Because at the end of the
day its an art. I believe the way that music is
going now, its just a science more than art. I
believe this software kind of did that because
it’s more scientifically then art. But you know I
try to put feeling into everything I do, well I do
actually I do not try I do.

VO JM BEATZ 39 I
think
its
hurt
music
as
an
art
because
it

gives
it
a
sense
of
urgency
that
it
doesn’t

need
but
it
helps
music
as
a
business
because

it
keeps
things
moving
its
keep
products

moving
in
and
out.

SOT JOSH GUDWIN 40 The fact that I have access to all these sounds to
my computer… at the end of the day its kind of
created this instant gratification of skitzo music
that always changing and always… I think the
quality of music has declined slightly but there
is still quality music out there so I can’t say that
destroyed the music, its only a tool to make it
better.

JM is in the studio and is seen
finishing the song he is working
on with a triumphant end as he
clutches his fist in the air for a job
well done.
41

SOT MARK COLE

42 I think with the growth of technology that the
importance of live instruments isn’t on the high
scale. A lot of pianos are really good sampled; a
lot of the bases and articulation have really good
samples. I don’t think that a lot of live
instruments are as important but they are
definitely not dead.

10

VO NARRATOR

The Messengers,
Adam Messinger and Nasri
Atweh are seen on stage
performing, both playing the
guitar.

43 THERE ARE A LOT OF MUSICIANS WHO
STILL CARE ABOUT THE USE OF LIVE
INSTRUMENTS IN POP MUSIC AND
THEY’VE MADE IT A POINT TO
CONTINUE ITS RELEVANCE. ADAM
MESSINGER AND NASARI ATWEH FOR
INSTANCE, A DUO, BOTH MUSICIANS
AND SONGWRITERS – WHO ARE MOST
NOTABLE FOR THEIR WORK WITH
JUSTIN BEIBER PUT ON A MUSICAL TOY
DRIVE THIS PAST CHRISTMAS.
SOT ADAM MESSINGER

CG: Adam Messinger and Nasri
Atweh
Platinum Selling Songwriters.
44 Being musical people, like Nasari said we’re
able to draw attention to live instruments and the
idea of encouraging kids to continue to pick up
live instruments and actually embed that into
their lives. And keep this tradition of making
music going amongst all the electronics and
everything else that do help our lives as well but
music itself is irreplaceable.

SOT NASARI ATWEH

VO NASARI ATWEH

Footage of Nasari and Adam
performing at their charity event.
45 (Nasari talks about his struggles learning to
play the guitar but why it is relevant and
important to his work as a songwriter. He
discusses how playing an instrument has only
encouraged and helped his musical growth)

VO ADAM MESSINGER
Sequence of Adam and Nasari in
the studio working with a guitar
and writing songs.

46 We had the fortunate opportunity to work with
Justin Beiber…. One of the reasons why he is
so successful is because he can play and he has
knowledge of all these instruments.

(Adam continues to discuss how utilizing live
instruments for the most part always makes a
song better)

11

SOT MARK COLE

VO MARK COLE
Sequence of The Messengers
charity event.

Adam, Nasari and their contest
winners are seen signing a guitar,
something they are giving as gift
to encourage musicianship in the
younger music community.
47 With the wave I see of music, I think things are
going back to more real music, more of a live
feel. More of a feel that I can go to a concert
and still get the same feel from your production.

I think there was a time where instruments kind
of fell off a little bit, within certain genres of
music of course but I feel like they are definitely
making a come back.

12

Bibliography

Atweh, Nasari. Interview by Nicole Banner. December 2011.

Cole, Mark. Interview by Nicole Banner. March 2012.

De Leon, Victor. Interview by Nicole Banner. November 2011.

Gudwin, Josh. Interview by Nicole Banner and Arika Sato. October 2011.

Hartley, Matt. “Music alive and well... business needs work.” Web. Financial Post.
http://www.lexisnexis.com.libproxy.usc.edu/hottopics/lnacademic/? Last accessed Nov.
2011.

Kusek, David. “Making A Living as an Artists.” Web.
http://www.futureofmusicbook.com/2011/02/17/making-a-living-as-an-artist-in-the-
future/ Last accessed Nov. 2011.

Kusek, David. “Future Digital Infrastructure Creative Economy.” Web.
http://futureofmusic.org/article/article/future-digital-infrastructure-creative-economy Last
accessed Nov. 2011.

Malone, Jonathon “JM Beatz”. Interview by Nicole Banner. November 2011.

Messinger, Adam. Interview by Nicole Banner. December 2011.

Messinger, Dominic. Interview by Nicole Banner. November 2011.

Phillips, William J. “Making Tracks: Digital Recording Technology and the
Democratization of Cultural Production.”

Theberge, Paul. “Consumers of technology: Musical instrument innovations and the
musicians' market.” Web. Concordia University (Canada), 1993. 1993. NN87289. Last
accessed Nov. 2011.
http://search.proquest.com.libproxy.usc.edu/docview/304087034/132C21266574D729EB
6/8?accountid=14749

“The Role of Music Producers Today” Web.
http://www.eusound.org/submissions/annex/04.asp Last accessed Nov. 2011.

Abstract (if available)

Abstract The use of live instrument recordings in modern day studios is becoming an archaic form of pop music production. With the advancement of digital technology, pop songs are being produced using different digital sound banks and plug ins that have been developed over time. Today nearly anyone can make music even if they do not know how to play an instrument. ❧ Instead of paying various musicians to record live sounds for a record, now one person can compile digital sounds within a computer program and create an instrumental track without ever having to pick up a physical instrument, making their ability to play instruments obsolete. Instead of hosting recording sessions in million dollar studios, everything can now virtually be done from a small studio apartment. The use of digital sound also sounds aesthetically different from a live instrument. ❧ The purpose of this story is to discuss the impact of digital technology on the music industry by exploring the opinions and thoughts of various working music industry professionals who are striving to keep the use of live instruments in their work. The story will explain how advances in technology have affected jobs in the music industry as well as examine the quality and difference between digitally produced songs and songs that were made by recording live instrument players. ❧ Dominic Messinger, Joshua Gudwin, Jonathon “JM Beatz” Malone, Adam Messinger, Nasri Atweh, Vic De Leon and Mark Cole, are all music industry professionals who have worked as either an engineer, producer, writer or composer. Through their work, thoughts and experiences the importance and definition of musicianship is explored.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Banner, Nicole Jeanelle (author)

Core Title Pop music production

School Annenberg School for Communication

Degree Master of Arts

Degree Program Journalism (Broadcast Journalism)

Publication Date 05/09/2012

Defense Date 05/09/2012

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag digital technology,Music,music engineer,Music Industry,music producer,music production,music studio,Musicians,OAI-PMH Harvest

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Birman, Daniel H. (committee chair), Cunningham, Steve (committee member), Saltzman, Joseph (committee member)

Creator Email banner@usc.edu,nicolejbanner@yahoo.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c3-37565

Unique identifier UC11289288

Identifier usctheses-c3-37565 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-BannerNico-830.pdf

Dmrecord 37565

Document Type Thesis

Rights Banner, Nicole Jeanelle

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA