In the studio, where do the technical tasks end and the creative work begin? In this episode of Doing Music, Ebonie Smith talks to Craig Schuftan about her work as an engineer and producer for Atlantic Records. Ebonie's varied career covers a lot of ground, and she describes the influence she draws from cinema soundtracks and celebrates the ingenuity of contemporary hip-hop and trap producers. From the unique challenges of working with spoken word performers to amplifying the voices of Black women, poets and political figures, Ebonie offers unique insight into the top tier of major label production and the artistry you can bring to the most technical jobs.

Explore further:

Danny Elfman - The Nightmare Before Christmas OST

101 Dalmatians OST

Alice Randall

Phillis Wheatley - On Imagination

Kris Bowers - Bridgerton OST

Kesha Lee & Lil Uzi Vert

Recording Unhinged Book About Unconventional Techniques By Sylvia Massy And Chris Johnson

Keep up with Ebonie Smith on Instagram, on YouTube and via her website.

Tell us what you think of this episode: doingmusic@ableton.com

Doing Music is brought to you by Ableton. Follow us on TikTok and Instagram.

When does a technical challenge become an artistic act? In this episode of Doing Music, producer and educator Chuck Sutton talks to Craig Schuftan about the musical results he gets from creative problem solving. As a teacher with a busy YouTube channel, Chuck has lots to say about bridging the gap between accessible information for beginners and compelling insights for experienced Live users. His enthusiasm for the hidden character in the most universal tools made him the perfect choice to make the demo song for Live 12, bringing the newest features to life and squeezing surprises out of familiar devices.

Explore further:

Susan Sontag - Reborn: Journals and Notebooks 1947-1963

La Roux - In For The Kill (Skrillex Remix)

Art FX - Chopping vocals like the pros!

TroyBoi - Medusa Dayz

Chuck Sutton - Transform Your Mic into ANY Instrument

Keep up with Chuck Sutton on Instagram and YouTube.

Tell us what you think of this episode: doingmusic@ableton.com

Doing Music is brought to you by Ableton. Follow us on TikTok and Instagram.

How hard is it to break the cultural coding around an instrument and realize its true potential? In this episode of Doing Music, Emily Hopkins talks to Craig Schuftan about her life-long relationship with the harp and her exploration of the instrument's experimental possibilities. Joined by her partner and sound engineer Russ, Emily details the various electro-acoustic methods she uses, the deep well of sound that comes from running her harps through pedals and her desire to inspire with her successful YouTube channel. As a classically-trained player now scoring high-profile soundtracks on her own terms, Emily's story is a relatable quest to maintain her own identity with an instrument everyone thinks they know.

Explore further:

Edmar Castaneda

The Emotron - Life Without Horses

Wah Pedal on Harp is Ridiculous

Addi & Jacq

Zeena Parkins

Keep up with Emily Hopkins on YouTube, Instagram and via her website.

Tell us what you think of this episode: doingmusic@ableton.com

Doing Music is brought to you by Ableton. Follow us on TikTok and Instagram.

How hard is it to retain the irreverent spark that started a musical partnership nearly 20 years ago? In this episode of Doing Music, MGMT's Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser talk to Craig Schuftan and Christa Belle about their instinct for the absurd throughout the course of their career. We learn about their roots in musical academia and their love of strange, disgusting music, and their learned experience that the weirdest sound you make might be the best one. From relishing the plasticity of early virtual-analog synths to avoiding over-thinking the creative process, Andrew and Ben take us into what makes MGMT such a psychedelic force in the field of pop-rock.

Explore further:

Alvin Lucier

Anthony Braxton

Situationist International

Chrome - Half Machine Lip Moves

Royal Trux - Accelerator

Seeburg 1000

Keep up with MGMT on their website, Instagram and YouTube. Their latest album, Loss Of Life, is out now.

Tell us what you think of this episode: doingmusic@ableton.com

Doing Music is brought to you by Ableton. Follow us on TikTok and Instagram.

When does self-doubt overtake the creative process? On this episode of Doing Music, L'Rain's Taja Cheek tells Craig Schuftan and co-host Christa Belle about the doubt she faces down when committing her musical ideas to a recording, especially when she’s working with others. A New York-based multi-instrumentalist with a mercurial twist on electronic soul, Cheek tells us about the various stages of her music making, from quick-fire voice notes and being alone in busy places to her love of lo-fi sound. It's a fascinating insight into the inner workings of a musician who prizes the patient art of the album to convey her ideas more deeply.

Explore further:

National Sawdust Artists in Residence Program

Terry Riley - Poppy Nogood and the Phantom Band

Everybody Shut Up by DJ Pacman

Keep up with L’Rain on Instagram and via her website — and check out her music on Bandcamp.

Tell us what you think of this episode: doingmusic@ableton.com

Doing Music is brought to you by Ableton. Follow us on TikTok and Instagram.

When you flip a sample for a Hot 100 hit, are you trading on nostalgia or breaking an iconic sound to the next generation? In this episode of Doing Music, Malibu Babie tells Craig Schuftan how she approached the big samples that turned into big hits for artists like Nicki Minaj and Megan Thee Stallion. As a producer toying with the space between pop, rap and club music, she explains the exciting results that come from crossing over styles and shopping them out to unlikely artists, and the ways she'll try to get a collaborator in the right headspace before getting into the beats.

Explore further:

I’ll Never Write My Memoirs by Grace Jones and Paul Morley

Elizabeth Gilbert - Big Magic and her Ted Talk

Lil Jon feat. E-40 and Sean Paul - Snap Yo Fingers

WhoSampled: Missy Elliott feat. Ciara and Fatman Scoop - Lose Control

Keep up with Malibu Babie on Instagram, TikTok and Twitter.

Tell us what you think of this episode: doingmusic@ableton.com

Doing Music is brought to you by Ableton. Follow us on TikTok and Instagram.

For Lukid, bouncing out unfinished sketches is an essential part of the music-making process. In this episode of Doing Music, host Craig Shuftan finds out how Luke Blair drew on a well-stocked archive of ideas to revive a past project after a 10-year hiatus. Along with his untrained melodic process and many-sided approach to sampling, Blair opens up about the existential dread that pushed him towards finishing new music, the art of forgetting and the strange allure of working within constraints.

Explore further:

Philip Guston - Paint What I Want to See

The KLF - The Manual

Keep up with Lukid on Twitter, Instagram and Bandcamp — and check out his latest album TILT.

Tell us what you think of this episode: doingmusic@ableton.com

Doing Music is brought to you by Ableton. Follow us on TikTok and Instagram.

How do you go about teaching a history of electronic music which fairly credits Black innovators? In this episode of Doing Music, King Britt talks to Craig Schuftan and Christa Belle about his groundbreaking Blacktronika course at University of California San Diego. In the process of educating students about seminal music movements pioneered by Black communities—from funk and disco through Chicago house and Detroit techno on to drum & bass and beyond—the acclaimed US producer reveals the positive impact being an educator and instigator has had on his own music making. Learn about the importance of nurturing community and hear illuminating stories from a lifelong devotee to the culture.

Explore further:

Blacktronika on Instagram

Lynnée Denise

Juan Atkins

Alvin Toffler - Future Shock

Kodwo Eshun - More Brilliant than The Sun

DeForrest Brown Jr. - Assembling A Black Counter Culture

Bob Gluck - You’ll Know When You Get There: Herbie Hancock and the Mwandishi Band

Keep up with King Britt on Instagram, Twitter and via his website.

Tell us what you think of this episode: doingmusic@ableton.com

Doing Music is brought to you by Ableton. Follow us on TikTok and Instagram.