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Music production isn't just about expensive gear and nerding out on the latest plug-in. It’s as much, if not more, about your ability to translate emotion through sound.  But this process is often difficult to pin down or articulate and rarely gets talked about on your average music tech course or YouTube video. So inside this week’s episode, Isobel is diving into the intangible process of translating emotion into sound. You’ll also learn three emotion driven production techniques that will help your music stop listeners in their tracks and speak to their soul.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
{00:00} Intro
{04:43} What we’re defining as emotion
{06:00} What we’re defining as sound
{06:51} How are they connected?
{10:02} Why this connection is the key to great music and professionally produced music
{15:15} 3 emotion driven production techniques to try in your own music
{23:26} Episode summary

Discover your Female Producer Spirit Guide. Take the quiz NOW >>

Check out Seth Horowitz’s book, The Universal Sense: How Hearing Shapes the Mind HERE >>
Read more about Harmonic Organisation and Culture-Specific Emotional Cues HERE >>
Listen to BBC Radio 4’s The Why Factor all about why we listen to sad songs HERE >>
Watch Rachel Claudio’s Ted Talk, ‘How to Translate the Feeling Into Sound’ HERE >>
Listen to David Oyelowo on BBC Radio 4’s The Film Programme HERE >>
Read Ana Tajadura-Jimenez’s PhD thesis on Embodied Psychoacoustics HERE >>

Listen to the episode here
Listen on Spotify
Join the Female DIY Musician Tribe Community on Facebook

Ready to level up your music making with the powerful art of field recording? Download my new FREE Essential Gear Checklist to Start Field Recording With Your Smartphone >>

Love Girls Twiddling Knobs? Leave a review wherever you're listening and let me know!

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Girls Twiddling Knobs is hosted by Isobel Anderson and produced by Isobel Anderson and Jade Bailey.

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Have you ever wanted to start your own recording studio? One where you can pick all your favourite gear, get the mood just right and work with artists you truly believe in too? Well, that’s exactly what this week’s guest, Majelen, did with her fiance Courtney… during lockdown… while they already have two other businesses! #lifegoals. But, as you’ll hear when Isobel sits down with the musician and producer, Majelen has a DIY ethos that is only surpassed by her passion to make women feel more confident, safe and welcome in the studio. If you haven’t loved these spaces in the past and you’re curious about what recording in a female-centred studio would feel like, keep listening!

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
{00:00} Intro
{03:46} An overview of Majelen’s music journey
{06:55} Her personal experience of being a woman in music
{14:13} How a negative studio session inspired Majelen to become a producer
{21:38} The most important lessons learned from setting up her own recording studio, Liondance Studios
{37:20} Creating a safe and supportive space for women in her studio
{45:26} The differences between her experience of music tech spaces as a lesbian, as opposed to a woman, in general
{50:32} Top tips for getting the most out of your studio session
{56:40} Episode summary & next week’s teaser

Grab your FREE 3-Step Guide to Sound Treating your Home Recording Space now HERE >>

Find out more Liondance Studios HERE >>

Listen to Majelen’s Music HERE >>

Listen to the episode here
Listen on Spotify
Join the Female DIY Musician Tribe Community on Facebook

Ready to level up your music making with the powerful art of field recording? Download my new FREE Essential Gear Checklist to Start Field Recording With Your Smartphone >>

Love Girls Twiddling Knobs? Leave a review wherever you're listening and let me know!

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Girls Twiddling Knobs is hosted by Isobel Anderson and produced by Isobel Anderson and Jade Bailey.

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Computer coding can often feel like a totally foreign language to newbies or even just anyone who isn’t a coding wizard. But today’s podcast guest, musician, artist and coder Melody Loveless is here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be. Melody uses live coding in live performance, music composition and sound installation and teaches MAX/MSP both privately and to groups. Inside this episode, Isobel learns why Melody’s ethos is one of inclusion and openness and the exciting possibilities coding can bring to your creative practice.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
{00:00} Intro
{04:02} How did Melody get started with music tech?
{08:16} Bringing the worlds of music and tech together
{13:34} How Melody uses code to create auditory installations and live experiences
{22:32} Free tools to get started with Live Coding
{35:15} Demystifying MAX/MSP so you could use code with confidence
{52:22} Episode summary & next week’s teaser

Rate and review the podcast NOW >>

Sign up for Melody’s FREE Getting Started with MAX course on Music Hackspace HERE >>

Check out Melody’s work HERE >>

Find out more about MAX/MSP HERE >>

Find out more about Sonic Pi live coding software HERE >>

Listen to the episode here
Listen on Spotify
Join the Female DIY Musician Tribe Community on Facebook

Ready to level up your music making with the powerful art of field recording? Download my new FREE Essential Gear Checklist to Start Field Recording With Your Smartphone >>

Love Girls Twiddling Knobs? Leave a review wherever you're listening and let me know!

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Girls Twiddling Knobs is hosted by Isobel Anderson and produced by Isobel Anderson and Jade Bailey.

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Explore more episodes here.

Listen on Spotify.

Join the Girls Twiddling Knobs Podcast Community here >>

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If the thought of self-releasing your music feels a tad overwhelming, you’re not alone. It’s a daunting prospect for many DIY artists. But, as Isobel shares in this week’s episode, even veteran DIY musicians can have their own self-releasing wobbles because there are many disruptive factors that have changed the process of releasing music over the last 10 years. Isobel explores exactly what these are and, crucially, what she intends to do to shake up her own music releasing strategy and still love the process of sharing her music.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
{00:00} Intro
{01:38} Why I’m sharing this on the podcast
{06:19} What is conventional music releasing?
{08:46} Three forces that have disrupted DIY music releasing
{18:04} How personal circumstances can shape how you share your music
{22:57} The opportunities this also brings
{24:30} My plans for sharing my music in the future
{26:36} Episode summary & next week’s teaser

Download your FREE PDF GUIDE, 10 FREE Tools to Start Recording your Music, Right Now >>

Read The Local’s article on Spotify HERE >>
Read Fortune’s article on Spotify playlist pitching HERE >>
Listen to Episode 01 of the podcast about my pathway into self-producing and self-releasing HERE >>
Listen to Episode 32, our live panel discussion at Women’s Work Festival about Motherhood and Music HERE >>

Listen to the episode here
Listen on Spotify
Join the Female DIY Musician Tribe Community on Facebook

Ready to level up your music making with the powerful art of field recording? Download my new FREE Essential Gear Checklist to Start Field Recording With Your Smartphone >>

Love Girls Twiddling Knobs? Leave a review wherever you're listening and let me know!

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Girls Twiddling Knobs is hosted by Isobel Anderson and produced by Isobel Anderson and Jade Bailey.

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Explore more episodes here.

Listen on Spotify.

Join the Girls Twiddling Knobs Podcast Community here >>

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How well are mothers supported in the music industry, how does it change a woman’s music career and how can it affect your creativity? These are all questions that Isobel explored with three musician mothers, Olga Fitzroy, Ruby Colley, Abigail Smith during a Live panel discussion at Belfast’s Women’s Work Festival on June 17th, 2021 and boy was there a massive response from women of all ages. Also discussed inside this recording of the event, is the choice not to have kids, as well as making music without children when you’d desperately love to become a parent.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
{00:00} Intro
{01:15} Episode overview
{04:48} Panel introductions
{08:11} Parental Pay Equality
{14:17} How to reserve energy for your music as well as your children
{19:42} How does becoming a mother affect creativity?
{26:10} How does the public perceive a mother in music?
{32:27} Can we relate to those in the commercial world?
{34:20} Panellist tips for mothers-to-be
{42:47} Balancing work pressures and motherhood
{48:39} Touring with children
{51:24} How to keep your passion for music
{54:34} Challenges as a single parent
{58:43} Finding the time to be creative
{01:03:00} The Oh Yeah Music Centre ‘Mothers in Music’ Project
{01:07:18} What support is available for mothers in the industry?
{01:12:31} Episode summary

Tell us what you think about this topic and the podcast by leaving a rating and review HERE >>

Find out more about Olga Fitzroy HERE >>
Listen to Ruby Colley’s Work HERE >>
Check out Abigail Smith’s music HERE >>
Find out more about the work of Parental Pay Equality HERE >>
Check out the Music Producer’s Guild HERE >>
Find out about Women’s Work HERE >>
Read the article ‘18 Musical Moms Talk Motherhood’ in Paste Magazine HERE >>
Read The Guardian’s interview with Marina Abramovic HERE >>
Check out Parents In Performing Arts HERE >>
Find out more about The Musicians’ Union HERE >>
Find out

Ready to level up your music making with the powerful art of field recording? Download my new FREE Essential Gear Checklist to Start Field Recording With Your Smartphone >>

Love Girls Twiddling Knobs? Leave a review wherever you're listening and let me know!

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Girls Twiddling Knobs is hosted by Isobel Anderson and produced by Isobel Anderson and Jade Bailey.

Watch this episode on YouTube

Explore more episodes here.

Listen on Spotify.

Join the Girls Twiddling Knobs Podcast Community here >>

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Music is a blend of many things, but perhaps one of the most important elements is the ability to craft sound? Inside this week’s episode, Isobel is joined by composer, producer and performer Caro C and hears about why musicians who are truly dedicated to their craft have shaped her music so profoundly. This fascination led her to founding the Delia Derbyshire Day in 2013, which is now a yearly event that champions the work of female electronic musicians. As she shares, Caro’s new album, Electronic Mountain, embraces this dedication to sonic experimentation and meticulous absorption in both technical detail and artistic expression.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
{00:00} Intro
{03:47} How Caro got started in music
{09:04} Your music doesn’t have to be commercial to be successful
{13:24} Setting boundaries and knowing your values
{23:39} How electronics opened up a world into music production and live sound
{31:14} Honing her craft while exploring the Berlin music scene
{39:34} Launching Delia Derbyshire Day to celebrate women in electronic music
{55:06} Exploring nature in Caro’s new album ‘Electronic Mountain’
{01:06:00} Recognising female electronic producer pioneers in ‘Sisters With Transistors’
{01:11:34} Summary and next week’s teaser

Discover your Female Producer Spirit Guide NOW >>

Listen to Caro’s new album, Electronic Mountain, HERE >>
Find out more about Delia Derbyshire Day HERE >>
Register FREE for Girls Twiddling Knobs LIVE at Women’s Work Festival HERE >>

Listen to the episode here
Listen on Spotify
Join the Female DIY Musician Tribe Community on Facebook

Ready to level up your music making with the powerful art of field recording? Download my new FREE Essential Gear Checklist to Start Field Recording With Your Smartphone >>

Love Girls Twiddling Knobs? Leave a review wherever you're listening and let me know!

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Girls Twiddling Knobs is hosted by Isobel Anderson and produced by Isobel Anderson and Jade Bailey.

Watch this episode on YouTube

Explore more episodes here.

Listen on Spotify.

Join the Girls Twiddling Knobs Podcast Community here >>

Send us a text

There’s not many people, musicians included, who have had quite as varied and exciting a career as BISHI. From the age of 15, she was putting on LGBT club nights in Soho, performing in some of East London’s most influential electronic music venues, not to mention having had a classical Indian and classical Western musical training growing up. Inside this week’s episode, BISHI shares all about blazing this inspiring trail as an artist and the fabulous WITCiH festival she has coming up, celebrating women in tech, taking place from June 9-11th.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
{00:00} Intro
{04:56} WITCiH festival details
{07:27} Using  creativity to reinvent your career
{13:41} What is the ‘Life Narrative’ and how is it influencing your life?
{18:25} BISHI's expansive music career
{29:45} From technophobe to producer
{34:31} Creating your own opportunities with a DIY career 
{40:13} Structural racism and sexism in the music industry
{59:41} Owning your identity
{01:04:50} Upcoming projects and the formation of WITCiH
{01:10:05} BISHI’s top tip for musicians
{01:11:52} Summary & next week’s teaser

Download your FREE PDF guide, 10 FREE Tools to start Recording Your Music, Right Now HERE >>

Grab tickets for the WITCiH festival HERE >>

Learn more about BISHI and her work HERE >>

Listen to the episode here
Listen on Spotify
Join the Female DIY Musician Tribe Community on Facebook

Ready to level up your music making with the powerful art of field recording? Download my new FREE Essential Gear Checklist to Start Field Recording With Your Smartphone >>

Love Girls Twiddling Knobs? Leave a review wherever you're listening and let me know!

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Girls Twiddling Knobs is hosted by Isobel Anderson and produced by Isobel Anderson and Jade Bailey.

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Listen on Spotify.

Join the Girls Twiddling Knobs Podcast Community here >>

Send us a text

Have you ever been kept up at night with this aching dread that you might never reach true success as an artist? It’s a common worry and a lingering sense of failure and shame can often follow as a result. But what if reaching massive success is as rare as being hit by a bus? And, how do we square not living up to our early ambitions as musicians with the reality of making art across a whole lifetime? These are questions that journalist Rosie Millard sought to explore in a three parts series for BBC Radio 4, and that she and Isobel discussed when they sat down to record this episode too. Ooooh, it’s a juicy one!!

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
{00:00} Intro
{05:35} The life and work of Rosie Millard
{11:52} Celebrating British Art & Culture
{15:59} What happens if the story doesn’t go your way?
{34:10} The importance of exposing children to Art & Culture
{43:36} Finding joy in the process
{48:50} Letting go of expectations and embracing change
{58:44} Who else are you creating for?
{01:03:48} Summary & next week’s teaser

Rate and review the podcast here >>

Listen to Rosie’s three parts series The Dream of Success HERE >>
On BBC Radio 4’s One to One programme, HERE >>
Find out more about Rosie and her work HERE >>

Listen to the episode here
Listen on Spotify
Join the Female DIY Musician Tribe Community on Facebook

Ready to level up your music making with the powerful art of field recording? Download my new FREE Essential Gear Checklist to Start Field Recording With Your Smartphone >>

Love Girls Twiddling Knobs? Leave a review wherever you're listening and let me know!

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Girls Twiddling Knobs is hosted by Isobel Anderson and produced by Isobel Anderson and Jade Bailey.

Watch this episode on YouTube

Explore more episodes here.

Listen on Spotify.

Join the Girls Twiddling Knobs Podcast Community here >>

Send us a text

There’s never been a time in history where we have as many opportunities to really play with musical texture in such diverse and powerful ways and yet, texture isn’t often mentioned much when discussing electronic, or even popular, music. But texture is vital to making music that is truly engaging, emotive and meaningful and effectively communicating your own intention within your music. Inside this episode, Isobel not only shares how we can build a deeper understanding of musical texture but also practical tips on how to experiment with texture in your own music too.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
{00:00} Intro
{03:48} Why does texture matter in music production?
{05:44} What is texture anyway?
{14:18} 3 common texture misconceptions
{20:15} How to start experimenting with texture in your music
{22:56} Summary & next week’s teaser

Find out more and join the Female DIY Musician Tribe >> 

Texture in Film by Lucy Fife Donaldson >>
Examples of ‘The Ophony’s’ >>
‘The DAW and the End Of Time’, blog post on Brian Daly’s Harmonic Distortion blog >>

Listen to the episode here
Listen on Spotify
Join the Female DIY Musician Tribe Community on Facebook

Ready to level up your music making with the powerful art of field recording? Download my new FREE Essential Gear Checklist to Start Field Recording With Your Smartphone >>

Love Girls Twiddling Knobs? Leave a review wherever you're listening and let me know!

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Girls Twiddling Knobs is hosted by Isobel Anderson and produced by Isobel Anderson and Jade Bailey.

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Inside part 2 of 2, Isobel continues her fascinating conversation with musician and creative NikNak, AKA Nicole Raymond, this time delving into the concepts behind her album Bashi, which blends turntable improvisation with field recordings. Nicole also shares her experience as a black woman in music tech and how we can make the field more inclusive, moving forward. Ultimately, Nicole’s music and her message inspires a sense of brave experimentation and creative integrity; qualities that are so worth cultivating as musicians.

EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
{00:00} Intro
{03:44} How NikNak created her album ‘Bashi’
{07:00} Why taking time-out made her more creative
{10:50} The art of performing
{16:05} Creating your world with sound
{22:28} Tackling diversity and accessibility in music
{49:53} Summary & next week’s teaser

Download your FREE 3 Step Sound Treatment Guide here >>

Find out more about NikNak’s work HERE >>
Check out Laurain James’ music here >>
Listen to Episode 17 with Neeta Sarl on Sample Packs here >>

Listen to the episode here
Listen on Spotify
Join the Female DIY Musician Tribe Community on Facebook

Ready to level up your music making with the powerful art of field recording? Download my new FREE Essential Gear Checklist to Start Field Recording With Your Smartphone >>

Love Girls Twiddling Knobs? Leave a review wherever you're listening and let me know!

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Girls Twiddling Knobs is hosted by Isobel Anderson and produced by Isobel Anderson and Jade Bailey.

Watch this episode on YouTube

Explore more episodes here.

Listen on Spotify.

Join the Girls Twiddling Knobs Podcast Community here >>