Michael Stern Interview [Part 1]

Producer/engineer Michael Stern shares his path from Berklee’s first music production and engineering graduating class and an unpaid, hard-labor internship at Boston’s Downtown Recorders to a 40+ year career recording and mixing roughly 260 film scores, working across major studios including five sessions at Abbey Road. He discusses learning on analog tape, the resurgence of cassettes and vinyl, and how passion and “nerd” attention to detail shape audio work, from Foley to immersive formats. Stern explains that success is largely relationship-driven and requires being calm, collaborative, and supportive during long projects, citing his early LA break with composer John Debney. He emphasizes “context” in recording and mixing (e.g., fiddle vs. violin), prioritizing microphone placement over EQ, and advises beginners to focus on clean capture, good mics/interfaces, and practical experience. He also describes teaching Pro Tools at CSUN, writing gear reviews for Music Connection, and selecting microphones like Neumann and Pearlman based on subjective fit.