Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Tommy Finke Talks Theater, EDM and Studio One!

06/12/2019

Tommy Finke, also known as T.D. Finck von Finckenstein, is a singer-songwriter as well as a composer of electronic computer music, theatre music, and modern dance based in Bochum, Germany. He accomplishes all this alongside a Faderport 8, a Studio 1810 and, of course, Studio One 4.5! Take a few minutes and read all about his career and workflow and what his Studio One favorites are.

Please give us some basic background info on your career and current projects.

I am what you might call a jack of all trades. When I started making music I was writing songs for myself and for different punk-music bands I was a member of at that time those were the typical middle-class-kids-pretending-to-be-punks punk bands, but we were honest and had a lot of fun.

My love for pseudonyms originates from that punk-milieu: I am known as Tommy Finke, T.D. Finck von Finckenstein, sometimes just Finck von Finckenstein, but Thomas David Finke is my given name.

Since someone also had to record and mix the trashy demos, I got into recording and serious music-making during that process. Later I studied Electronic Composition / Modern Music at Folkwang University of Arts in Essen, Germany to improve my skills as a composer, since I thought there should be more than INTRO/VERSE/REFRAIN in my musical repertoire and I really liked the work of Karlheinz Stockhausen or John Cage, to name a few.

I collaborated with German artists on their video installations and composed music for contemporary dance as well as film music and was touring as a singer/songwriter with my own songs, which I still do.

In 2013, I got a call from Theatre Dortmund and they asked me if I wanted to be part of a theatre project with live-sampling and looping on stage. Of course, I wanted it! I programmed a system in Max/MSP for the performance and was live on stage. This lead to more theatre projects and in 2015, I became musical director of Schauspiel Dortmund, the acting department of Theatre Dortmund. In this position, I use all my skills from composing for a piece, recording the music, songwriting, rehearsing with the actors, mastering for the theatre sound system. Every theatre piece has to have a special and unique approach and this keeps my brain and ears busy. I like that a lot.

And as if that was not enough, I founded the record label Retter des Rock Records in 2008 to release my first singer/songwriter album but soon released other people's music as well.

And this year I established Finck von Finckenstein Music and Sound Art Publishing in cooperation with Schacht Musikverlage in Hamburg, Germany because I wanted to keep all royalties of my work in good hands: mine.

Stream Finke's music on Spotify here:

What PreSonus products have you used and which do you currently use?

I remember having used a PreSonus Firepod in 2009 alongside my MOTU 828 MkII at that time but I really don't know where I have left it. It s just gone and I am sad about that. Right now I am using a Faderport 8, a Studio 1810 and, of course, Studio One 4, the software that made me a complete PreSonus fanboy. Furthermore, I am looking forward to buying either a StudioLive console or one of the rack mixers. And if I hadn't bought a UAD Apollo 8 just before you released the Quantum 4848 I'd also be a proud owner of that great interface.

For what applications are you using Studio One Professional?

Studio One is my main DAW. I use it for composing, songwriting, mixing, recording, sound design, mastering, basically everything except for live performances. Might do that, too in the future

What Studio One feature has proven particularly useful and why?

Pipeline is my favorite feature in Studio One right now! I have always been trapped between the two worlds of analog accidents and the ability to recall a project 100% and work later from the same point where I left it. Pipeline helps you with that. Let me tell you what I recently managed to do with Pipeline XT: I built myself a Neve rack mixer out of a Neve 8816 summing mixer and a 8804 fader expansion. Of course, I was able to send every output to the mixer and record the sum into Studio One. But what I really wanted was a way to get the analog and digital world play nicely together, because sometimes you don't want your kick drum or another signal with a huge impact to mess up your sum compressor or whatever you apply. So I thought to myself Since Pipeline XT should be able to calculate all the latency I'd get, I should be able to route just SOME of my tracks into the 8816 and feed the sum back into another instance of Pipeline XT And guess what? It works. I can have a beat in my DAW while I send the guitars and synths out into the analog domain and both are combined in perfect sync in the main bus of Studio One.

Naturally, I had to tweak some stuff here and there until it really worked. For example, the sum-return could not be a bus track in StudioOne but a normal track (because busses work differently with latency and the return-bus had no reference for calculating the input latency when just fed with an input via Pipeline XT ) while the sends had to be bus tracks for routing reasons. But that was just some trial and error work until I felt like I finally got the one thing I was searching for for years now. It took me 2 days but I am sure with Pro Tools it would have taken weeks and a lot of hair loss or even erectile dysfunction.

How does Studio One compare to other DAW's you have used? What's better, what's not as good, what does it give you that other DAW's don't?

When I started recording and writing music at the age of 16, I had a Yamaha MD-8 minidisc recorder which was paired with a Steinberg Midi Sequencer on an Atari ST computer. Then I had Steinberg Cubase on my PC when I was 20. With 25, I bought a Mac and was introduced to Logic which was like a dif
LINK: https://blog.presonus.com/index.php/2019/12/05/tommy-finke-talks-theat...
See more stories from presonus

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

01/06/2026

Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026

January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026 Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...

01/05/2026

NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to Integrate Dolby's Full Suite of Premium Picture and Sound Innovations

January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...

01/04/2026

DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION

January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...

27/01/2026

Akamai and Yospace Deliver Seamless, Personalised Ad Experiences to Tens of Millions of ABEMA Users

Click for Japanese version Tokyo, Japan - January 27, 2026 - Akamai Technolo...

27/01/2026

Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and Sundance Institute Name Winners of Science-In-Film Initiative's Feature Film Prize and Artist Grants

L-R: Jonathan Cuchacovich, Sonia Kennebeck, Alan Fischer, Daeil Kim, Andrew Sta...

27/01/2026

B-LINE Is Here to Help: Backline Launches 24/7 Music Industry Mental Health & Crisis Support Line in Partnership with Spotify

Today, Spotify is proud to support our partner Backline, an industry-leading men...

27/01/2026

Netn Vega's Genre-Bending Sound Hits a Crossover Moment on Spotify's RADAR

With nearly 29 million monthly listeners and clear momentum on Spotify, Net n Ve...

27/01/2026

25 Ontario Named One of Torontos Best New Buildings

January 14, 2026 We are proud to share that 25 Ontario, First Gulf's commercial project located just two minutes from our head office, has been recognized ...

27/01/2026

Full-Building Lease Secured at Speers Road

January 22, 2026 First Gulf is excited to share that a full-building lease has been secured at 625 Bronte Rd in Oakville, part of Bronte Station Business Park,...

27/01/2026

Another Gold for First Gulf and 351 King Street East

January 23, 2026 First Gulf continues to demonstrate its commitment to high-performance, sustainable real estate with 351 King Street East achieving BOMA BEST ...

27/01/2026

Clear-Com Empowers Reykjavik City Theatre with New Upgrades

eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......

27/01/2026

Hubbard Broadcasting Renews Partnership With Nielsen in Albany and Albuquerque-Santa Fe Markets

Nielsen will continue to drive growth and provide local audience measurement in...

27/01/2026

Pebble Adds Paul Nagle-Smith as VP of Customer Fulfillment

Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Pinterest Bluesky Email...

27/01/2026

Study: Top Reason for Cancelling Streaming Service Is Programming

Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Pinterest Bluesky Email...

27/01/2026

U.K.'s Digital TV Group Taps Leslie Mackenzie as Chair

Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Pinterest Bluesky Email...

27/01/2026

Amagi becomes the first cloud-native SaaS company offerin...

Amagi Media Labs Limited, the only cloud-native SaaS provider offering end-to-end solutions across live production, content preparation, distribution, and monet...

27/01/2026

Miri Technologies Launches V410 Live 4K Video Encoder-Dec...

Miri Technologies Inc. today unveiled its V410 live 4K video encoder/decoder for streaming, IP-based production workflows and AV-over-IP distribution. Designed ...

27/01/2026

UML Tsongas Center Upgrades with Ikegami UHK-X600 Cameras

The Paul E. Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell in Massachusetts has chosen Ikegami cameras for incorporation into its broadcast-quality television production facili...

27/01/2026

SipRadius provides simplicity and security for AV content...

SipRadius, specialists in secure, low latency media transport, will show the pro AV community its end-to-end solution for high quality content distribution and ...

27/01/2026

Hiltron to Showcase its Full Range of Satcom Solutions at...

Hiltron will highlight the fruits of its 45-plus years of experience in satellite communications system integration and product development at the annual GovSat...

27/01/2026

Broadcast and pro AV professionals cut costs and single-u...

Klvr will demonstrate how its Charger Pro solution is delivering cost reduction and performance benefits for live entertainment and pro AV markets at ISE 2026 (...

27/01/2026

Amino Showcases Single Player Digital Signage and Enterpr...

Amino, a global media technology leader in enterprise video and digital signage, today announced that its Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) 2026 booth (4N700) wil...

27/01/2026

ANI Expands Strategic Partnership with LiveU

ANI, India's leading news agency and a major content provider across the Asia Pacific region, today announced a significant expansion of its long standing p...

27/01/2026

VisualOn and The Channel Store Demonstrate Up to 65 Perce...

Independent analysis confirms faster encoding, lower CPU usage, and improved perceptual quality compared to CBR and CRF VisualOn, a leader in multimedia playba...

27/01/2026

EVS Officially Launches eShop

Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Pinterest Bluesky Email...

27/01/2026

Miri to Showcase New V410 Video Encoder/Decoder at ISE 2026

Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Pinterest Bluesky Email...

27/01/2026

FCC Settles Two Investigations, Renews Three TV Station Licenses

Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Pinterest Bluesky Email...

27/01/2026

UML Tsongas Center Upgrades to Ikegami UHK-X600 Cameras

Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Pinterest Bluesky Email...

27/01/2026

Australian Defence Force Secures Satellite Communications on SES IS-22

New agreement for uninterrupted UHF connectivity for Australian Defence Force through 2033, With Options Extending to 2041 Luxembourg, January 13, 2026 - Satel...

27/01/2026

SNL UK creative team expands as Pauli Lovejoy, Annie Hardinge and Kevin Fortune join series

Tuesday 27 January 2026 SNL UK creative team expands as Pauli Lovejoy, Annie Ha...

27/01/2026

When It Feels Real, Is It Still a Lie? The Art of Sarah' Premieres February 13

Back to All News When It Feels Real, Is It Still a Lie? The Art of Sarah' ...

27/01/2026

That Night premiering on Netflix March 13

Back to All News That Night premiering on Netflix March 13 Entertainment 27 January 2026 GlobalSpain Link copied to clipboard DOWNLOAD THE KEY ART DOWNLO...

27/01/2026

Netflix Revealed the Future of Mexican Stories Coming in 2026

Back to All News Netflix Revealed the Future of Mexican Stories Coming in 2026 Entertainment 27 January 2026 GlobalMexico Link copied to clipboard Among t...

27/01/2026

What's Next on Netflix from Japan: Expanding the Possibilities of Storytelling in 2026

Back to All News What's Next on Netflix from Japan: Expanding the Possibili...

27/01/2026

FOR-A to show cutting edge technology at FOMEX 2026

AI, graphics and virtual software power new production capabilities...

27/01/2026

RT is Supporting 20 Arts and Cultural Events all over Ireland this February

RT Supporting the Arts is delighted to support a dynamic programme of cultural events taking place across Ireland this February. From visual art, film, music, ...

26/01/2026

New Directed By' Series Explores the Making of Music Videos and Kicks Off With Maisie Peters

Music videos play a huge part in how fans connect with their favorite songs, but...

26/01/2026

NAIDOC launches 2026 theme 50 Years of Deadly, marks major milestone

NAIDOC launches 2026 theme 50 Years of Deadly , marks major milestone 25 January, 2026 Media releases The National NAIDOC Committee has today unveiled its...

26/01/2026

Amagi Lists on Indian Stock Exchanges

Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Pinterest Bluesky Email...

26/01/2026

FCC Releases Tentative Agenda for Jan. 29 Open Meeting

Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Pinterest Bluesky Email...

26/01/2026

Dante Turns 20

Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Pinterest Bluesky Email...

26/01/2026

APTS, PBS Tell FCC Not to Set a Firm Date for ATSC 1.0 Sunset

Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Pinterest Bluesky Email...

26/01/2026

Advanced Systems Group and Nu Studio Announce Exclusive P...

Advanced Systems Group (ASG) today announced an exclusive partnership with Nu Studio, the company behind the first modular, portable studio designed for immersi...

26/01/2026

OpenDrives Announces New Funding Led by IAG Capital Partn...

OpenDrives, the leader in high-end video data management and workflow solutions, today announced an add-on investment to its previous funding rounds, led by IAG...

26/01/2026

SmallHD Releases Major PageOS Update - Featuring Portrait...

SmallHD today announced a major update to its award-winning PageOS software, introducing Fleet Control, Portrait Mode, expanded Camera Control features, and Dow...

26/01/2026

Capturing the Chaos - Filipic Uses MSE Grip to Go Live a...

Whether rigging a PTZ on a truss, sliding a Blackmagic camera across a mezzanine railing, or capturing the mayhem from inside a drum, Filipic delivers visuals t...

26/01/2026

Riedel and Media Tailor Deliver Unified Broadcast and AV Infrastructure Aboard Royal Caribbean's Star of the Seas Cruise Ship

Wuppertal January 26, 2026 Riedel and Media Tailor Deliver Unified Broadcast a...