This month we interviewed in demand producer and engineer Hannes Bieger, whose Berlin studio Bieger Sound recently joined the Miloco directory. Read the interview below to learn a bit more about his philosophy!
Where did you cut your engineering teeth?
This was was natural progression, I would say. Even when I learned my first instrument, electric guitar, I was interested in how it sounded just as much as what I played.
Later on, when I was producing my own records, it was totally obvious for me to engineer them myself. It was just one part of the whole process.
When I was starting out I didn’t have great gear at all, except great instruments. I was lucky enough to buy a few analogue synths and guitars like my pre-CBS Jazzmaster at a time when this kind of gear was still fairly affordable.
So I learned early on that you don’t need much esoteric recording gear when the source material, the instruments and the playing are good to begin with. This still has a huge effect on my way of thinking today.
Also I needed to max out the capabilities of the setup I had a the the time, and this was another very important lesson. The gear doesn’t create the sound by itself, it’s always about the decisions you make and the boundaries you are trying to push. Limitations are also good at times, because they force you to think outside the box. Very early, when we were still on cassette four-tracks – totally unthinkable today – I was even recording the modulated noise output of a phaser pedal because I didn’t have a synthesiser, and that sound came closest to a synth pad between the limited options I had at hand.
So I basically got my training on the job, doing my own stuff. But I also worked as a freelancer at Calyx Mastering in Berlin for a couple years, and this was also a very important time for me. I learned a lot, and the mutual exchange of concepts and ideas is inspiring me up until today. I guess the concept of a mixing room with ‘mastering-grade’ sonics emerged from this. At Calyx they have always had an uncompromising attitude down to the last cable in the chain, and knowing what was possible I didn’t want to settle for less in my own room.
But I never planned to become a mixing engineer. It just happened because people listened to my own productions – and called me because they wanted to find out who engineered them. Well, it was me, and that’s how I got the ball rolling…
When did you move to Berlin?
This was around 15 years ago, catching the tail end of the 90s, a very important transitional decade for Berlin. Coming from Hamburg, the second largest city in Germany, it was another obvious step that felt totally natural to me.
Where else would you have wanted to move in Germany at that time? Berlin was promising a big adventure, and even though it has changed a lot since then it still remains a great place to be creative.
When did you first visit Bieger Sound? What was the studio before?
I was running the studio out of a flat in a residential building for many years – it was actually the first flat I rented when I came to Berlin, and even though I moved to another place a few years later, I kept the first place – probably for too long – because it was cheap, in a central location, and it worked. The place had a pretty casual ‘Rock’n’Roll’ atmosphere to it. And even though I often felt I would have to excuse it wasn’t a ‘proper’ studio, the clients seemed to like the vibe. It was more of a living room, but packed with great gear!
At some point gentrification pushed us out, and we were lucky to secure our current rooms in an even more central location. It was a big open space that was being used mostly as a vinyl storage by a hip-hop record label.
The whole building is a beautiful brick wall factory from the late 19th century, and at the time they were manufacturing valves, fittings and all kind of metalware on the premises.
Who designed and built Bieger Sound?
The whole thing was planned and designed by our great architects Jeong-Hoon Kim and Marc Drewes. I can’t thank them enough for their terrific job. We didn’t have an awful lot of time for the project, and the budget was somewhat limited, too, but they found a perfect solution for us. However, I planned the acoustic properties of my room myself, with the help of a few other people.
What are your Bieger Sound equipment highlights?
A difficult question, because all details contribute to the big picture. I have a holistic view on studio gear, and a good filter for the mains power may be even more important for the overall result than a shiny vintage compressor.
Also the entire studio has been conceived as a blank canvas, striving for as much transparency as possible, and this can only be achieved through almost infinite little steps.
But of course there are a few things that stand out for me! There is my Speck Electronics LiLo console, probably the most transparent desk on the market, and my Lavry Gold A/D converter, which really helps me to give my clients a digital file that sounds practically as good as the analogue mix here in the room. Any other A/D before was a frustrating experience for me, because everything ultimately has to go through this bottleneck, and I hated the feeling my mixes were better than what I was able to print back to digital. This issue has been solved with the Lavry. My bread and butter pieces during the mix are the API and Electrodyne EQs, the Curve Bender and the Pulse Techniques EQM-1S3, and for dynamics the API 2500, Pendulum OCL-2 and Rockruepel Comp.One. I also love the Ursa Major Space Station, my Quantec reverb, and I have to say that the latest generation of UAD plug-ins are really good, too. I am very fond of their reverbs, the EMTs, AKG spring etc. – that’s good stuff. Lately I have been enjoying the new Amtec 099 limiter on lead vocals a lot.
But finally, this brings me back to the first question. The best studio gear only means so much without great instruments, and I’m really glad to have a nice selection of vintage keyboards and guitars at my disposal. If my studio caught fire these would probably be the first things I would try to rescue…
What acts have you worked with recently?
This year I have worked with over 100 different clients so far, so the list is pretty long… I guess the most notable ones include Tale of Us, Tiefschwarz, Steve Bug, Alex Niggemann, DJ Tennis, Andrea Oliva, but there would be a lot more I would like to mention!
Congratulations Miloco engineers Matt Wiggins and Riley MacIntyre, two of the winners at the Pro Sound Awards last night.
Matt won studio engineer of the year and Riley was announced the winner of the rising star award.
Matt developed his skills within Miloco Studios working with a number of leading producers including Paul Epworth, Ben Hillier and Spike Stent.
Matt Wiggins
The variety of sessions enabled Matt to hone his skills using a diverse range of recording equipment from the classics to the bizarre.
In 2011 Matt began engineering full time for Paul Epworth, leading to projects in the UK and stateside including Paul McCartney’s ‘NEW’, Adele’s award-winning ‘Skyfall’ and the Foster the People LP ‘Supermodel’, to name but a few.
In 2014 Matt engineered on Coldplay and Lana Del Ray LPs and mixed for U2, Lorde and Foster The People.
Matt mixed Band Aid 30 – Do They Know It’s Christmas? (2014) – which features Ed Sheeran, Ellie Goulding, One Direction, Rita Ora, Bastille, and more – at Sarm Studios.
Riley MacIntyre
In 2015 Matt engineered on Florence + The Machine, Lianne La Havas and Nadine Shah LPs and mixed for Villagers.
Riley was nominated for his work as production assistant engineer at The Church Studios. Read an interview with Riley at Audio Media International.
Miloco facilities The Church Studios and The Pool were chosen as two of the four finalists in the best studio category, but Strongroom picked up the award. Well done Strongroom.
Posted in European Recording Studios, London Recording Studios, Miloco Clients, Mixing Studios, Neve Recording Studios, Recording Studio Engineers, Recording Studio Videos, SSL Recording Studios, Tracking Studios, UK Recording Studios, Uncategorized, Writing Studios |
New Bastille track ‘Hangin’’ was shared on 22 September 2015.
Songwriter, producer and mixer Mark Crew recorded the song at The Pool, Bermondsey, with engineer Jonathan Sagis, who is managed by Miloco.
The song features on the soundtrack for the FIFA 16 video game. Frontman Dan Smith confirmed that it will appear on the next LP, which the band recently stated is coming “soon”.
September is such a huge month of releases, many of which have just come out, so scroll down to check out the Studios 301 September releases!
The September releases below were produced, mixed or mastered at Studios 301, Australia.
There are only two days to go until Pro Sound Awards 2015, the third Pro Sound Awards at Ministry of Sound!
This Thursday, 24 September, pro-audio publication PSNEurope recognises excellence in the studio, broadcast audio, installation and live/touring sound sectors of the pro audio industry.
Miloco facilities The Church Studios and The Pool have been chosen as two of the four finalists in the best studio category.
In addition, Riley MacIntyre (production assistant engineer at The Church Studios) is vying for a chance to take home the rising star prize and Miloco engineer Matt Wiggins has been nominated in the studio engineer of the year category.
Riley MacIntyre
Matt Wiggins
Miloco received the Grand Prix trophy at the second Pro Sound Awards last year.
Ever wished you could compare our London piano recording studios in one place? Well now you can thanks to the London piano recording studios page.
The London piano recording studios in the Miloco Studios directory range from epic tracking rooms with expansive floorspace to varied recording rooms that have been recently restored.
In demand producer and engineer Hannes Bieger and his Berlin studio Bieger Sound recently joined the Miloco directory, so watch the video below to learn a bit more about his philosophy!
International music programme Electronic Beats visited Hannes in Bieger Sound, peeking over his shoulder while he worked.
Hannes has mixed down tracks by artists like Steve Bug, Ruede Hagelstein and Tale of Us.
Americana BFD Packs for Drumdrops’ 1970s Hayman Vibrasonic Kit and Vintage 1965 Ludwig Super Classic Kit have been introduced.
The Hayman Kit was mixed by Stephen Street and the Ludwig Kit was mixed by Guy Massey.
As heard on Drumdrops’ 70s Americana drum tracks album ‘Route Seventy Sticks’, both kits were played by Tim Weller and recorded at The Square.
Buy both Americana BFD Packs together with 40% off using voucher code americana40.
We’ve added a great new feature to the Miloco Studios website. Now you can send pinned studios to a friend or colleague by clicking on the pin in the top right hand corner of index photos, then clicking on ‘Pinned Studios’ in the top left hand corner of the page.
You can access search by clicking on the magnifying glass in the top right hand corner of the page. Start typing the name of a studio, location or studio type, or on studio landing pages you can use the search bar to find specific equipment. Activate Map View on the Worldwide Recording Studios page to locate over 90 studios available for booking.
UAD-2 PCIe DSP Cards have been installed in Assault & Battery 2 and The Square.
UAD-2 DSP Cards supercharge your PC or Mac with UAD Powered Plug-Ins. For a full list of the UAD Plug-Ins that are available please head over to the equipment page of The Square and the Assault & Battery 2 equipment page.
A UAD-2 OCTO with eight individual SHARC processors has been installed in Assault & Battery 2 and a UAD-2 QUAD with four individual SHARC processors has been installed in The Square.
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