Fine Tune

“My work with live performances differs greatly from the kind of work I do in the studio,” he says,trying to explain the difference between impromptu thinking for live shows and technical finesse required for studio recordings.

Dayal,originally from Nagpur,started his stint in the industry more than 15 years ago,when he went to Mumbai to become a musician. After playing with local bands,performing at shows and accompanying singers on his guitar,Dayal found his true calling in audio engineering after a friend asked for assistance with a few recordings. “I think it was important for me to learn the tricks of trade,or groundwork as some might call it. This is how I made my initial contacts with people in the music industry. Fortunately or unfortunately,I switched my career just when I was about to go mainstream with my music,” says Dayal.

But he believes that the technical talent behind the industry only came into limelight after sound designer and editor Resul Pookutty won the Academy Award for Slumdog Millionaire in 2009. Having won several awards for his songs in Band Baaja Baaraat and Agneepath,among others,Dayal is happy that more and more young people are now aware of the technical fields in music.

Explaining the work of a sound engineer,Dayal says,“A song is recorded in various takes. The singer’s words,the instruments and the beats are recorded at different points in time. First,my job is to make sure that the ‘takes’ are flawless,and secondly,I have to mix the different sounds together to make a proper song.”