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

/ 453 Articles

Creating Realistic Drum Sounds With Logic Pro's Drum Kit Designer

In five simple steps, Logic maestro, Matt Vanacoro, shows how to create a realistic sounding drum kit and pattern using Logic Pro X's Drum Kit Designer.

Review: M-Audio M-Track Eight

An 8-in, 8-out audio interface for under $400? M-Audio's new M-Track Eight comes bundled with Cubase LE, has XLR combos for all channels with Octane preamps. But does it make the grade? We find out.

Review: JamHub TourBus

JamHub TourBus helps you practice, rehearse, record and reflect on your musical performance. Matt Vanacoro put the JamHub to the test in a music school for a month and shares his findings here.

Review: Native Instruments Kontour

Every synth plug-in claims to be different from the rest. But how many actually deliver? Matt Vanacoro puts Native Instruments' Kontour Reaktor ensemble to the test and has lots of fun!

Video Review: Universal Audio UAD-2 Satellite Thunderbolt

How can Universal Audio improve upon their successful UAD-2 Satellite? Does adding a Thunderbolt connection, making it smaller, lighter and faster equate to better? We find out in our video review.

Review: Audiofile Engineering Loop Editor 2

Since Apple pulled their Apple Loops Utility, there's been a void in the area of easy custom loop creation for Logic and all other DAWs. Does Audiofile Engineering's Loop Editor fill the gap?

Review: Perc+

Looking for a library of unique, well-sampled, leftfield percussive sounds? Chriss Ons' new Perc+ looks to fill that niche as Matt Vanacoro discovers in this review.

Getting Started With Odd Meters in Maschine

Electronic Music doesn't need to obey a 4/4 time signature. And the same can be said of music hardware controllers too. Here's how to use non-standard meters with Native Instruments' Maschine.

Review: UAD 7.11 Software Update

With the UAD 7.11 software update, Universal Audio plug-in users were treated to 4 new plug-ins that are quite unique. I ran them through the gauntlet on my latest project and here's what I found.

Review: Editors Keys SL600 USB Microphone

USB microphones often get bad press for being... well USB. So Matt Vanacoro was pleased to discover how the SL6000 USB proved to be versatile and good-sounding for voice over applications.

Review: Zoom iQ6 iOS Mic

Looking for a highly portable microphone to chuck on to your iPhone and transform it into an excellent field recorder? Zoom's iQ6 could be just what you're looking for. Matt Vanacoro gets recording.

Creating Default Templates For Your DAW for Maximum Awesomeness

No matter how quick you are with shortcuts, setting up your DAW with a custom default template is bound to quicken your creative workflow. Matt Vanacoro shows you how in Ableton, Logic & Pro Tools.

Review: Waves Codex

Waves new synth, Codex, promises a new paradigm of sound generation, wavetable and subtractive synthesis elements, and a very clean sound. Does it deliver? Matt Vanacoro digs deep and finds out.

Review: Kurzweil Forte

The Kurzweil Forte features well-designed sounds, an easy to use interface and a useful LCD screen. But does this make it the king of electronic pianos? Matt Vanacoro finds out in this video review.

Review: Fostex PX-6 Monitors

The sub $1,000 per pair monitor category is heating up, and that's great for the consumer. Matt Vanacoro investigates how the Fostex PX-6 monitors stack up in this full review.