Recording engineer and producer, Dirk Fischer, chats about his career with Marie over coffee in St. Truiden, Belgium, where they have just finished recording Brahms Clarinet Sonatas and Trio with historical instruments.

Dirk talks about his role in the recording process, and how it is much more artistically crucial than most people think. The sound engineer (or 'Tonmeister', which is the revered German title - literally 'Sound Master') sits apart in an enclosed booth, but is really directing the artists, listening with highly-trained ears, and making many decisions of how the final recording is put together.

Some think that the recording process is magic - that a recording can make any musician sound good. And others think that a recording is just like a live concert, played once in real-time. The reality is more of a grey area, although as Dirk says, "if you can't play it, I can't produce it."

Dirk has a passion for recording sound - and for collaborating with artists creatively - to produce award-winning recordings. This passion has led him to work with the most prestigious labels early in his career, and eventually to found his own label, Solaire Records.

“In many respects, [Solaire Records] is going back to the early days of recording, where labels had a much stronger and all-encompassing identity. We need to have every aspect of a release work together: the artist’s intentions, a long- and short-term concept, a stimulating choice of repertoire and a deep understanding of how the recording translates all of this.”

Read more about Dirk Fischer: fischerdirk.com
And about Solaire Records: solairerecords.com