What Is a Music Producer?

• A music producer is responsible for far more than just music. A producer has a wide ranging role overseeing all aspects of the production. The music producer has responsibilities for picking studios, finding additional musicians, what type of recording process should be used and details of a production budget including food and travel expenses. These responsibilities sit alongside creative responsibilities the producer undertakes.
  
  

Types of Music

• All types of recorded music require producers. Different genres of music require different things from a producer; for example, a producer in the classical genre is required to have a deep understanding of the genre alongside the ability to read a score of sheet music. Pop music producers require less technical skills; the ability to read music is less important than a knowledge of the positioning of instruments in the production.
  
  

Invisible Producers

• The invisible or documentary producer is prominent in classical and jazz genres. Whereas producers in pop music and TV and film music often have a say in the creative process of sculpting a production, the invisible producer has no creative input. The invisible producer works with the recording to produce an audio document of the recording session that took place.
  
  

Multitasking

• A producer is essentially attempting to create the sound a recording artist wants as the finished product of a recording session; the music producer must always have an ear turned to what is marketable for a record company or whoever is funding the session. The majority of producers also work as musicians, songwriters and arrangers, allowing them to bring ideas into recording sessions.
  
  

Liaison

• The music producer acts as a liaison for the artists; the producer acts as the buffer between the artists and the sound engineer. The sound engineer is responsible for the technical aspects of the recording process; the engineer works alongside the producer using technical skills to achieve the sound agreed upon with the artist. As the producer works for whoever is funding the recording session, he is also a liaison with a record label, with responsibilities to protect the interests of both the artist and the recording label.
  
  

Education

• Degrees are available in the form of a four-year bachelor of music program available at a number of educational institutions around the world. It is possible to study for a bachelor of music with an emphasis on music production.
  
  

Salary

• The ability of a producer to earn money is often directly correlated with the experience the producer brings to a recording session. The range of salary for a music producer varies widely ranging from under $20,000 to those at the high end of the recording industry earning over $1 million per year.