An elusive art form, mastering is a very important final step in any recording project. Think of it as the final polish before a recording is released. I have an acoustically treated room and multiple speaker and headphone options to test masters and make sure they will sound great on any system. My friend and talented drummer Jeff Davis had me remaster a CD of his that he was going to abandon because he didn't like the first master (done elsewhere.) After I had mastered it, he released it and it was called one of 2010's best by allaboutjazz.com.

My philosophy in mastering is to stay rather subtle. Unless there are specific problems or errors in the mix, I generally try to trust the sound of the mixing engineer, and simply apply techniques to achieve proper levels and cohesion without squashing the life out of the music. As a mastering engineer, I have no choice but to be a soldier in the loudness war.