Composer, producer, and engineer Rafael Anton Irisarri’s sonic fingerprints are audible in much of the past decade’s most vital ambient music and beyond. Alongside his own influential records, he’s collaborated with dozens of artists, including Julianna Barwick, Leandro Fresco, Steve Hauschildt, Benoît Pioulard. And his New York mastering facility, Black Knoll Studio, is credited on releases from a veritable who’s who of left-field electronica and ambient-adjacent music – from Ryuichi Sakamoto, Telefon Tel Aviv, and Loscil to William Basinski, Eluvium, and Grouper. Ambient music emphasizes mood and texture over the traditional melodies and rhythms found in pop music or classical music. In this masterclass, Irisarri will explore different composing techniques, sound design tips, and the tools you can use if you are to make what he deems “memorable” ambient music.
