Matt Vanacoro

Matt Vanacoro

Matt Vanacoro is one of New York's premier musicans. Matt has collaborated as a keyboardist in studio and on stage with artists such as Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater), Mark Wood (Trans-Siberian Orchestra), Mark Rivera (Billy Joel Band), Aaron Carter, Amy Regan, Jay Azzolina, Marcus Ratzenboeck (Tantric), KeKe Palmer, C-Note, Jordan Knight and many others. He has appeared on many a recording with a variety of artists, as well as had his own music featured in films by Lionsgate Studios.

Articles by Matt Vanacoro

/ 450 Articles

Review: Heavyocity Gravity

The new big cinematic instrument from Heavyocity adds a staggering array of inspiring sounds to your setup. Matt Vanacoro finds out if this instrument, with its unique motion engine, will pull you in.

Review: Akai Pro Advance 49 Controller Keyboard

What do you call a MIDI controller keyboard that can maps seamlessly with 3rd-party plug-ins and makes controlling them more intuitive and easier? Intelligent? Smart? Or simply the Akai Advance?

Review: The Lowdown, a Truly Eclectic Kontakt Instrument

If you're looking for great quality sounds in an easy to use and wonderfully creative and versatile Kontakt instrument at a very low price, Modwheel's The Lowdown is going to appeal!

Electricity in Your Home Studio: Safety, Sound, and Troubleshooting

Whether building or converting a room into a music studio it's critical to consider the safety and sonic aspects of electricity. Here's how to prevent hums, buzzes and electric shocks!

How to Play Your Rehearsals Live Online

It's all well and good being able to collaborate your DAW sessions remotely (online). What about if you want to play with band members across the internet. Matt Vanacoro looks at the possibilities.

3 Universal Audio Channel Strips to Love and Cherish (When Mixing)

When it comes to mixing, rather than choosing one plug-in at a time, why not go for a channel strip which includes multiple plug-ins! Matt Vanacoro shares his 3 favorite UAD channel strips to date.

Review: Waves Butch Vig Vocals

One of the most influential producers ever, Butch Vig, has teamed up with Waves Audio to create one of the most interesting plug-ins designed to bring his signature vocal sounds to your mixes.

Review: SONiVOX Tony Coleman Drums

If you're looking for an easy to use, high-quality sampled drum instrument, then SONiVOX's new Tony Coleman Drums begs for you attention. Matt Vanacoro puts it to the test to see if it's a hit.

The Top 4 DAWs for iPad Today

It's not hot news anymore when we realize that Apple's iPad is now powerful enough to run a dedicated DAW. So, which DAW iOS app is the best around? Here are our top four choices...

Review: IK Multimedia iRig 2

When iRig was released it became the standard for recording guitar into your iOS device. And now there's iRig 2. Matt Vanacoro finds out what improvements have been made to this second edition.

Akai Pro Advance Keyboards In-Depth Preview (Video)

At an exclusive Akai Advance event in New York City, Matt Vanacoro and Steve H, representing AskAudio Mag, were invited to get hands-on with the upcoming Akai Advance smart MIDI controller keyboards.

How to Sample EXS24 Instruments Using Autosampler (MainStage and Logic Pro)

When Apple bought Redmatica we wondered when the EXS24 would include AutoSampler in Logic Pro. Instead, AutoSampler is included with MainStage 3.1. Creating sampler instruments just got a lot easier!

Apple Watch: 5 Useful Apps for Musicians

It's only been on Matt Vanacoro's wrist a matter of two days, but he's already discovered a potentially promising Apple Watch app ecosystem for musicians. Here's his top 5 Apple Watch Apps out now.

Review: Focusrite ISA Two Preamp

Hot on the heels of the hugely popular ISA One, Focusrite has now released the two-channel ISA Two. I used it for a week in my studio and was not surprised at all that I loved the results.

Review: Output Signal Synth

Fresh of the back of their unique and successful REV Kontakt instrument, Output have released Signal, an incredible "pulse" synth with an equally impressive GUI and sound palette.