Matt's CV includes credits for production, composition, engineering, orchestration, musical direction and programming, working alongside artists such as Björk, The Prodigy, Dido, Lamb and Phronesis.
Matt Robertson is a multi-talented musician based in Brighton UK. His skills are as diverse as the artists he works for, with credits for production, composition, engineering, orchestration, musical direction and programming on his CV, and working with artists such as Björk, The Prodigy, Dido, Lamb and Phronesis.
However it is a passion for synthesizers that runs through all of these projects, and a fascination with sound that started at an early age.
“I started to learn piano at about 7” Matt says, “and although I love that, and still do, my music teachers back then really inspired me to look into electronic music. I got my first synth when I was about 14 from a music shop that I was working weekends in, and one shortly after that, which I found in the trash at school, and that was the beginning of my fascination with electronic sounds!”
In the studio, Matt relies on the quality, reliability and functionality of RME products.
“The hub of my studio is the RME HDSPe MADI. That is my main soundcard and I use SSL converters with it. I have several different routings in the TotalMix software that allow me to recall pretty complex routing setups very quickly. I used to have several patch bays but RME’s TotalMix software has made them redundant. A lot of the features are controlled via MIDI from my main controller, so it still feels very hands on. I also have an RME Fireface UFX, which I use as additional inputs in my studio, and again use the TotalMix software extensively to route everything around. All my synths are always on input and I can route anything to any effects chains really easily.
The (RME Fireface) UFX comes into its own though for live recording. I have a mobile studio setup that I use for recording live gigs. Recently I recorded the Phronesis album ‘Life to Everything’ for the Danish bass virtuoso Jasper Hoiby. The quality of the converters is stunning, and the ability to make a complete backup recording straight onto the USB drive in the front means I no longer have to take a second laptop around with me…. It’s pretty life changing!”
Matt spent most of 2012-13 touring with Björk as her Musical Director and keyboard player:
“It was an amazing experience, so many challenges and so many really talented people working on it. You really have to know your gear, and know that your gear wont let you down.”
Matt’s film work has included programming for the recent Nick Frost / Simon Pegg film The World’s End, and the Schwarzenegger / Stallone film Escape Plan.
“The RME HDSPe MADI and RME Fireface UFX are the central points that all the audio in my studio meet at."
Matt's links