José´s seemingly paradoxical passion for both electronic abstraction and acoustic purity has helped him to establish a unique position in the music scene today. The stylistic diversity of his discography and his ability to combine acoustic and electronic elements is a testament to his fluency across genres.
Listen on –
From Porto, Portugal and based in Tallinn, Estonia - Multi-award winning recording, mixing & mastering engineer José Diogo Neves has successfully transcended genres through working with a diverse array of artists, including Grammy & Latin Grammy award winning and nominated artists. José is officially endorsed by Universal Audio, Flock Audio, Vanguard Audio Labs, msonic Baltic & Retrosonic Pro Audio.
Awards, honors, charts & recognitions, including multiple nr. 1 albums and nr. 1 singles in different countries: Icelandic Music Awards, Danish Music Awards, Estonian Music Awards, Etnokulp (Estonian Ethno Music Awards), Europe Jazz Media Chart, Spotify Top 50 - Estonia, Spain, Lithuania & Worldwide Charts, Spotify Viral Top 50 - Estonia, Lithuania & Worldwide Charts, Spotify Music Friday - Worldwide, several main Spotify playlists with over a 40 million playlist reach worldwide, Apple Music Album Charts - Estonia & Worldwide, Estonian Jazz Music Awards, UK Top Charts, AGATA (Lithuanian Neighbouring Rights Association) Singles & Albums Top 10 Charts, Estonia Top Charts, Estonia Radio Top Charts, Estonian Music Industry Awards, Raadio 2 Awards, Raadio 2 Top 20 Monthly Charts, Raadio 2 Top 15 Weekly Charts, Downbeat Magazine and numerous Film Festival awards.
According to MUSO.AI, José is in the top 1% worldwide of mixing engineers and mastering engineers and top 2% worldwide of recording engineers.
Since 2021 José has been nominated in different engineering categories at the Estonian Music Industry Awards (Eesti Muusikaettevõtluse Auhinnad EMEA), becoming the first foreigner to ever be nominated in these categories and remaining, to this day, the only foreigner to be nominated. Nominations:
2024: Nominated for Best Recording & Best Mastering Engineer
2023: Nominated for Best Recording & Best Mixing Engineer
2021: Nominated for Best Recording, Best Mixing & Best Mastering Engineer
Process:
José believes that the correct process, mixing, mastering & recording, can help to convey the artistic intent and statement of the artist. José uses a lot of analog equipment as well as digital tools to achieve depth, textures, dynamic, power and musicality. In the end, his process can be described as hybrid, using the best from both analog & digital worlds. His approach can be aggressive and extreme when needed, or completely transparent and soft when appropriate.
Some of José’s values are:
· Professionalism · Consistency · Dedication · Transparency · Honesty · Family · Community
Teaching Experience:
Currently José is a Lecturer at the Eesti Muusika – Ja Teatriakadeemia ( Estonian Academy of Music & Theatre), in Tallinn, Estonia, where he also designed and Coordinates the first advanced Music Production & Songwriting Micro-Degree in Estonia. He is also a Lecturer, for the past 11 years, at the Tartu Ülikooli Viljandi kultuuriakadeemia - University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy, in Viljandi, Estonia.
José has given numerous workshops & masterclasses in different Universities and institutions around the world. Most recently José was a Guest Lecturer at Tweed Recording Audio Production School in Athens, Atlanta, USA, and at Colorado State University Pueblo, Pueblo, Colorado, USA. José has also been an Adjunct Lecturer in the School of Communication at The University of Southern Mississippi, in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, USA, in 2020.
José has also been a Guest Lecturer at other institutions such as: CPM – Music Institute, Milan, Italy, TAI Escuela Universitaria de Artes (TAI University of Arts), Madrid, Spain, MUBA - Tallinn Music & Ballet School, in Tallinn, Estonia, Georg Ots Tallinn Music School, in Tallinn, Estonia; Tampere University of Applied Sciences (Tamk), Tampere, Finland; Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy Of Music (Jvlma), Riga, Latvia, Lithuanian Academy Of Music And Theater, Vilnius, Lithuania, Escola Superior de Música e das Artes do Espectáculo (School of Music and Performing Arts) in Porto, Portugal.
José also participated as a Lecturer in Recording Arts at the ERASMUS+ Blended Intensive Programme: Soundtrack Europe Project, during the academic year of 2022-2023, with students from the Bachelors & Masters of Composition, Music Technology and Sound Design, from the Estonian Academy of Music & Theatre, Estonia, from the Conservatorio Statale Di Musica Fransceco Venezze, Rovigo, Italy, from the Conservatorio Superior de Musica Manuel Castillo, Sevilla, Spain and from the Louis Lumière École Nationale Supérieure, Paris, France.
In January of 2020, José was present at The NAMM Show, in Anaheim, Los Angeles, as an artist, doing presentations for Vanguard Audio Labs. In 2020, José wrote an article for the Recording Magazine about some of his methods to record snares and some fun room miking techniques: Creative Miking Techniques “Stereo Snares and Fun Room Miking Tips”, Recording Magazine, May 2020, Issue Vol. Thirty-three, number 8.
