When I began recording music, I learned quickly that my ears were the greatest asset in the studio. Therefore, I had to prepare for the journey of developing them for the studio environment.

Just as you should train your voice to sing correctly, you must train your ears to hear correctly. A developed ear takes time and practice, and hands-on is the most effective training. You have to know what to hear in order to know how to hear it. One of the hardest developments for me at first was hearing the differences in compression and limiting/gating. Different parameters produce different results, and as an engineer recording my product, it was essential I understand these settings and how they produce sound. This same ear applies to microphone placement.

A developed ear will hear a dry room versus a wet room and know what type of room works best for the project. A developed ear will hear whether a certain type of microphone is the best match for a particular vocal. As many of us don’t have the luxury of having 10 mics on hand to choose from, it’s important to understand in many cases, a single mic can cover many vocal opportunities by knowing how to tweak it to get the best result from it.

A developed ear understands the dynamics of mixing. As a mix goes through several critical stages such as tracking, editing, volume changes, mixing/blending, equalization, effects and processing; not hearing how to blend these elements can cause dreadful results. Ever listened to a mix and can tell right off what makes it a good or bad mix? Not by speculation, but by knowing? And keep in mind, I’m not talking about mastering. These are two separate entities whereas mastering involves a different type of ear.

Artists, it doesn’t hurt for you to begin this developmental process as well. The more you know, the more diverse you become in this industry. Know what makes your music sound good and hear what doesn’t.

How to care for your ears:

Don’t mix when you are ill or congested with cold/sinus issues.

Listening to loud music continuously can permanently damage the ears. (Did you know you don’t have to mix at loud levels to get good results?)

Protect your ears in extreme temperatures.

Ear fatigue

is common and you should rest when your ears tell you.