Practitioners

An engineer at one of the audio consoles of the Danish Broadcasting Corporation (Danmarks Radio). The console is an NP-elektroakustik specially made for Danmarks Radio in the eighties.An audio engineer is someone with experience and training in the production and manipulation of sound through mechanical (analog) or digital means. As a professional title, this person is sometimes designated as a sound engineer or recording engineer instead. A person with one of these titles is commonly listed in the credits of many commercial music recordings (also in other productions that include sound, such as movies).

Audio engineers are generally familiar with the design, installation, and/or operation of sound recording, sound reinforcement, or sound broadcasting equipment. In the recording studio environment, the audio engineer is a person recording, editing, manipulating, mixing, and/or mastering sound by technical means in order to realize an artist's or record producer's creative vision. While usually associated with music production, an audio engineer may be involved in dealing with sound for a wide range of applications, including post-production for video and film, live sound reinforcement, advertising, multimedia, and broadcasting.

Some well-known sound engineers include Mick Guzauski, Roger Nichols, Bill Porter, Al Schmitt, and Eberhard Sengpiel.

Audio engineers operate mixing consoles, microphones, signal processors, tape machines, digital audio workstations, sequencing software, and speaker systems. Commonly an audio engineer is responsible for the technical aspects of a sound recording or other audio production, and works together with a record producer or director, although the engineer's role may also be integrated with that of the producer.

In typical sound reinforcement applications, audio engineers often assume the role of producer, making artistic decisions along with technical ones.


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