Nathan Zimmerman finds his path at The Abstract

The truth of it is that the journey for most creative people just isn’t a straight line. Finding one’s way in and the best path to follow can be like walking through a maze of sorts, never sure about what lay ahead or just around the corner, not knowing whether the course you’re on is one that’ll lead you where you want to go or not.

Nathan Zimmerman, originally from the Bay Area and an L.A. transplant was in a maze of sorts. After moving out to L.A., Nathan, did the “dilligent thing” and started taking courses at the college, namely Santa Monica College. “Then,” he says, “I realized that I wasn’t learning all the stuff that I wanted to learn.”

Seeing that SMC just couldn’t offer him the audio engineering and music production knowhow he was seeking, nor get him on a more concrete path towards working in music, Nathan started researching various audio engineering schools. “I looked into Full Sail, Icon and SAE, and they all seemed really good,” he says, “However, Recording Connection was the best, budget-wise. Also, I really liked the idea of being one-on-one with me and my mentor, in a professional studio, hands-on, not in a classroom.”

Nathan chose Recording Connection because it would allow him to learn in a real studio environment, under close personal supervision with a working professional. He’s someone who likes the idea of being in the thick of it, and that’s exactly what Recording Connection helped him do. He’s able to fully maximize his time in the Recording Connection by building lasting connections with the staff and freelancers at The Abstract LA, where Nathan apprentices, and with the clients who frequent the busy recording studio.

Now, Nathan’s been offered an entry level position at The Abstract and he’s making the most of it to recruit new talent and produce his own EP, due for release later in the year. When asked about the project, Nathan tell us:

It’s going to be in the style of future bass, but kind of the weird future bass, not the mainstream kind. There’s…this really weird, experimental type future bass that just has a lot of crazy stuff going on at once. That’s the stuff that I like listening to and making.”

When asked how his skills have improved since joining Recording Connection Nathan spells it out for us:

My production has improved a lot since I’ve started the program. My mixing skills have gotten way, way better…Also learning about EQ’ing and compressing. Those were two things that I really didn’t know anything about when I started the program, and now I feel very comfortable with EQ’ing and way more comfortable than I did with compression.”

All Nathan has ever wanted is to be a self-sustaining artist who can dedicate his time, talent, and energy to bringing great music to the world. Now, that dream is clearly within his sights. And although the young artist and aspiring producer/engineer may sound a bit like the lone wolf type, he’s the first to say relationships i.e. friendships mean a lot to him and help keep him going when it comes to making his music.

When I make a new song, and my friends come in and hear it for the first time, and they tell me that they really like it, and I can see in their eyes that they actually do, you know, that feeling is unlike anything else. The feeling that other people like my music and would play it on their own is crazy. My friends definitely support me and do all that. So I’m very thankful for them.”

When asked if he hesitated about taking the position at The Abstract, Nathan says, he didn’t even have to think twice about it:

Of course I accepted, because I really love being at that studio and I love all the people there. They’re all really great people and I’ve learned a lot from all of them.”

From fumbling to a surefire path ahead, Nathan’s building his future day by day, track by track.