Man with a Mission

Man with a Mission
Published on Jul 29, 2003
Meet Saravuth ‘Woody’ Pornpitaksuk, a talented Thai mastering engineer with nothing less than a Grammy under his belt, Saravuth Pornpitaksuk, or Woody as he prefers to be called, works as a master engineer for Sony Music Studios in New York. Today, he is temporarily back in Thailand and all smiles. But then who wouldn’t be after walking off with the prestigious Grammy Award for Best Historical Album 2000, “Louis Armstrong: the Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings.”

“Here’s proof of my highest goal,” says the 31-year-old Thai mastering engineer proudly clutching the Grammy Award trophy that’s on the table in front of him. “This has true worth. It isn’t just a trophy. Funny, isn’t it? I never thought that way until I won this!”

Saravuth, like many other mastering engineers, missed the chance to come onstage and to receive the award himself at the presentation ceremony. He was just too busy in the studio. As a result, no Thais, with the exception of Toon Boonchai, the product manager of Sony Music BEC-Tero, knew that a Thai had won a Grammy award.

“It was a quiet occasion, We didn’t arrange anything for him,” admits the product manager during a phone interview. “I guess it was because he works in New York, not here. I knew him through e-mail before he received the award. I remember asking him to buy an autographed version of Pat Matheny’s ‘song note’ book. Actually, he has made several visits to Thailand to see his parents. On his latest trip, we met with him after learning he had mixed the soundtrack album of the Thai movie, ‘Province 77’, for which we own the distribution rights,” says Toon.

If the Thai Grammy winner is not known to most people in his own country, how come he was picked to come up with the soundtrack album, which is produced by Khan, a popular Thai hip-hop artist?

“I usually try to search for the new generation of Thai immigrants who have with different abilities when my albums are being produced abroad. I met Woody and worked together for the first time on my ‘Thaitanium’ album,” says Khan, who is sitting opposite Saravuth in the meeting room. “It took me six months and a whole lot of energy to search for new technology and experiment with strange sounds,” retorts Savavuth looking at Khan and laughing. “The difference between this soundtrack and ‘Thaitanium’ is based on more modern technology and a better quality of sound.”

Known as Woody by his American friends, Saravuth who is married to a Thai and is a proud father, flew from his home in Queens, New York, to his birthplace in the Kingdom. The reasons, he says, were “personal”. But despite these “personal reasons” explanation, Sony Music Bec-Tero didn’t hesitate to draw up a schedule of interviews for him at Q House Ploenchit Building.

Saravuth was just 14 when his parents moved to America and settled in Queens, one of the five boroughs in New York City. The date, he recalls clearly, was July 14, 1985. When Saravuth finished high school, he didn’t go on to college, but instead learned how to repair air-conditioners and heaters. A few months later, he decided what he really wanted to do and applied for a sound engineering course at the Institute of Audio Research in Manhattan and was accepted. “At first, I thought that being a repairman was a good job that paid good money,” says Saravuth, who used to drive daily between Queens and Manhattan. “But I decided to follow my heart. I knew I wanted to be a sound engineer. I’ve always been interested in listening to music. In the US, there are more music styles to learn about.”

Saravuth first listened to pop and rock. When he went to America, however, he quickly developed a fascination for jazz and classical music. “Jazz and classical music are very much part of the American culture and lifestyle, and aren’t as boring as other [musical] genres. I began looking at the history of these two music styles,” he says.

A couple of months before the Thai youngster finished the sound engineering course, he asked an instructor about the possibilities of an internship. He was sent to Sony Music Studios in New York. For the first month, he worked a general assistant, and not long after was promoted to production co-ordinator. “The general assistant helped the sound engineer to set up several music instruments and equipment, including the microphone, for each session. Before I was promoted to the rank of a production co-ordinator, a production company sounded me out about doing technical support work for a video engineer. The money was great, but my boss wouldn’t let me leave.”

A few months later, Woody was asked to do dance remixes of albums and started this part of his career with Marc Anthony’s debut “I Need To Know”.

How would he describe his re-mixing?

“Much depends on my way of working, the equipment I have at my disposal and the sound required,” he says. “Some mixing engineers, especially on New York’s hip-hop scene, have a distinctive character when it comes to mixing, sound and equipment. By just listening to a tune, you can tell who mixed it.”

In 2000, Woody joined up with mastering engineers Michael Brooks, Seth Foster, Ken Robertson, Tom “Curly” Ruff, Phil Schaap and Mark Wilder, as well as producers Steve Berkowitz, Seth Rothstein and Phil Schaap to put out a four-CD box set titled “Louis Armstrong: the Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings.” The box set won a Grammy award for Best Historic Album.

Did it take long before the American sound engineers acknowledged his ability as a Thai?

“It was a long and very hard process,” admits Woody with a smile. “I didn’t always follow the standards principles that came with the track but jumped the line looking for other experiences.”

Kitchana Lersakvanitchakul