138 - Anna Sharifi

Author

Giannis Kampiotis
December 15, 2023

Artist Interviews 🎶 Studio Tours 🎛

Hello music people đź‘‹

Today in the spotlight, Anna Sharifi

Currently in Berlin, she got into singing from an early age but progressively found ways to fully express herself by producing and playing live 🎶

Interview & Studio Tour

Who are you and what is your relationship with music?

Hi, I’m Anna Sharifi, I’m a musician and electronic music producer based in Berlin.

I started playing music when I was a kid and got quite good at singing so I was admitted to a pre-conservatory training for youngsters in Denmark, where I grew up. During those years, it got clear to me that I was actually more hooked on songwriting than I was on singing.

Then when a friend from high school introduced me to the DAW Logic Pro, it clicked for me; Working in a DAW would allow me to produce music as I’d hear it in my head with beats and bass and harmonies and all that and no longer be limited to one track tape recordings of me playing piano and singing. It opened up a new exciting world to me.

I started to produce music in Logic myself; It was learning by doing but I’ve also taken quite a few courses in production and mixing over the years. At first I did electronic pop but with time, the music got more and more technoesque.

Then about 3-4 years ago, I decided to develop a live-set using hardware only. I am out playing live shows with that setup but I still need a part time job to make ends meet. I studied cultural and social sciences and was able to find a relevant job in qualitative market research with two bosses that are very flexible, meaning I can more or less arrange my working hours according to my other projects and my family life.

Which piece of equipment in your studio is essential to your production process?

It still is my DAW, Logic Pro X.

I've tried to switch to Ableton, but keep coming back to Logic. Especially for recording audio (which is all I do when recording - skipped midi altogether for now), the process is familiar and faster for me to execute than in Ableton. It’s all about the flow; When I struggle with DAWs or instruments, I get extremely frustrated and angry, you know - when you feel your ideas are slipping away just because of technical difficulties, it’s really the worst!

What is the least expensive piece of gear that gave you the most results?

I bought this Indian bell construction in a souvenir shop at New Delhi airport some years ago. Recorded it, reversed the sound, layered it, transposed it and panned it. The song is still not out (lyrics missing), but those bells have become the most intriguing element on any of my tracks so far.

I also quite often use the vocoder setting on my Novation Mininova, it gives the songs a specific vibe that I like a lot. Thereby it’s just one preset of 200 on a relatively inexpensive synthesiser.

Walk us through your process for creating and producing music.

It always starts with an idea of a pattern that pops into my head: a melodic theme, bass run, vocal melody or a beat.

Before I switched to my hardware setup, the creative part of songwriting / producing happened directly on the laptop. I would record the one element that initiated the process and then try/jam different layers on top of it until finding sounds and elements that would fit.

Now I go with that one idea to my live set-up and develop the rough idea there before I even start recording.

It sometimes takes months where I try out the piece at shows, then adjust, rearrange, change bits again before I record the piece track by track.

I always do some light mixing while recording, just pan, volume and some EQ and reverb. That gives me a better feel of the song and where I want to take it.

After the recording phase, I dive into effects and mixing and when I decide I am almost done, I usually record the vocals again so they are relevant to how the production turned out.

When I’m done with the mixing, I book a time slot in a rental studio to hear how the production sounds on other monitor speakers. I’ve found out that mine (Adam Audio A8X) are quite heavy on the bass so I am trying to polish the mix on more neutral ones.

Then finally, I send off the song to mastering!

What is a production technique that you always come back to?

I love bass sounds around 200-300 Hz so I always give the EQ a little nudge up somewhere around those frequencies on my synth bass tracks.

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How would you describe your style?

Melodic, minimal, dramatic, driven, more rough than polished, I like when some sounds pop out and scratch the bobble of sound once in a while.

I blend different styles and musical traditions into my works inspired by my Danish and Iranian roots and my chosen home Berlin. I usually describe my sound as a mix of “Scandinavian clarity, Oriental longing, Berlin techno, and raw emotions”.

Elements I use a lot; vocals (vocal layers, different effects also vocoder), synthesiser themes / arp. / soundscapes, I also use synthesisers for the bass. My beats are samples of morphed field sounds and analogue drum-machine beats.

What is a big challenge you have as an artist?

Self doubt. I can get really self conscious. Especially with tracks that I am releasing, so I often end up not really promoting them enough once they are out.

Has building a hardware setup changed your perspective on music or life in general?

The production possibilities are more limited, but that’s good in a way - limitations sometimes spark creativity. And my music has become more loop based. I develop the tracks on my live setup, where I’m working more with layering than with distinguished song sections.

One tip on how to spark creativity?

Take a walk, or wash the dishes - anything you can do on autopilot, and then DON’T listen to any music or podcast, just wash the dishes or take the walk and thoughts and ideas will come by themselves.

It works for me most of the time, still I often feel some resistance towards this method because it can be strenuous spending time with one’s own thoughts, and listening to podcasts feels like the perfect entertainment when doing chores, but when I do find the discipline to NOT listen to anything, that’s when my brain is free enough to actually be creative and get new ideas.

When I have longer periods with low creativity or energy, I find collabs really fruitful, just to embark on a new project with someone else with a different mindset and different style and see where it takes us.

A book, movie, article, or album that has inspired you?

I rediscovered my fascination for M.I.A. and Banksy who use their art and platforms in non-apologetic, political ways forcing us to self-reflection, advocating for humanity. For me that is the absolute highest purpose of art and a reminder to myself to aim for authenticity and be standing for something, even when it means angry messages and losing some followers on social media (which I am spending too much time on anyway). I do get affected by negative responses and still have to learn to navigate them. Here M.I.A. inspires me a lot just speaking up.

Anything else you'd like to say?

A shout out and much love to the community of hardware producers and live-acts for the positivity and support.

I’ve previously felt reduced in the field of music production/ being a musician because of my gender but since I switched to this hardware setup and became part of this specific community, it’s been all good vibes. No demeaning comments or attitudes, only encouragement and genuine interest and am really grateful for that experience.

Where can people find more of your music and connect with you online?

Gear List

Essential to my live setup:

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