About Us

We're the creators of BetterSleep, a leading wellness app helping over 60 million people around the globe sleep better.

We’re on a mission to help people around the world live a happier, healthier life, through expert-led meditations, sleep stories, brainwaves and more.

Share article
Meet the Team: 12 Questions With a Sound Designer
news
Meet the Team: 12 Questions With a Sound Designer
by BetterSleep
4 min read
Share article

What’s your name and how long have you been working for BetterSleep ?

My name is Danil and I’ve been with BetterSleep for 3 years.

What is sound design ?

Sound design is the art or practice of creating sounds for mediums like cinema or video games. In our case, it’s used to craft sounds to help people relax and sleep better. Designing sounds can be done with the use of acoustic or electronic instruments.

What does a typical day at work look like?

My weeks vary, but I’m often working on different tasks so the work is never boring.

Beginning of the week: Administrative tasks, meetings with the team as well as freelance artists, and planning the rest of the week’s tasks.

Second half the week: Doing creative stuff with sounds! This involves composing music or mixing and mastering sounds for new releases. I have to ensure that all of our audio content is well prepared and ready to go with different teams for app integration. I also communicate with freelance musicians to make sure projects are advancing well.

How do you come up with new sound ideas ?

My main goal is to satisfy our users' needs. When I come up with a sound or music, I ask myself, “Will this help a user relax or fall asleep?”

Many sounds are cool but don’t necessarily answer those needs. This is why before thinking about a sound, we directly ask the users what they want through emails, surveys, and of course social media. We also take direct requests.

In my time at BetterSleep I’ve been able to learn our users' needs very well, including what they like, and what helps them the most.

The other way to come up with new sound ideas is to stay curious and see what other artists are making, as well as what’s popular on other apps and platforms.

Which element do you prefer as a sound base: water, wind, earth or fire?

Whether it's sound or music, I like soft sounds. Soft sounds are static and continuous and pair well with other sounds. These soft sounds make great background noise, which is the real foundation of any mix.

How do you create or record sound?

I use microphones to record. We use specific microphones for different purposes like: nature recordings, 3D sounds, ASMR style recordings, and voice recording for meditations.

Particular sounds require particular microphones and environments. For example, a lake recording needs to capture all the subtle elements of the lake.

When I’m creating sounds on a computer, I use an analog synthesizer and build custom algorithms with machine learning. Machine learning helps build a big chunk of a composition before we adjust it, and the result is always a bit of a surprise. Our healing music collection was composed by machine learning.

What is the weirdest sound you recorded ?

ASMR is the weirdest, without a doubt. The recording process itself is what’s unique. ASMR requires finding the right material, room, proper ambiance and recording techniques. Capturing sounds for ASMR can be really challenging.

What is your favorite sound?

I love the sound of an analog synthesizer because it’s always warm and unpredictable.

What’s your favorite mix for sleep ?

I enjoy healing music and sci-fi sounds.

Which is your sleep animal (dolphin, bear, lion, wolf)?

I’m a Lion: I wake between 5:30am-6:00am. I’ll have a glass of water and then start working because that’s when I’m the most energized to approach big projects. My afternoons are for tasks like innovation, code adjustments, reading, and developing smart sounds. I usually go to sleep around 10pm.

Do you prefer guided meditations or bedtime stories?

I definitely prefer stories. I love following the quest and the development, and how sounds follow the storyline.

What type of sounds are harder to design?

ASMR & nature sounds are equally difficult. Creating a perfect ASMR sound means you need a specific microphone and a good space to record. This can be challenging, because the mic can pick up sounds of small movements and affect the recording.

Nature sounds all depend on location. You need to travel to places like lakes and waterfalls and you can’t control the environment once you’re there. It might be windy, or there may be people around. Recording 2 minutes of perfect nature sounds can take several hours.

The most difficult sounds are animal sounds. Aside from all the standard possible complications, the animal needs to be willing to perform. Sounds from dolphins, whales and tropical birds can’t be found in Canada so we have to work with sound designers elsewhere (like for Malaysian birds.)

Share article

Related posts

Effect of Daylight Savings Time
news
Effect of Daylight Savings Time
by BetterSleep
7 min read
Can BetterSleep Help with Snoring?
sleep / news
Can BetterSleep Help with Snoring?
by BetterSleep
8 min read
Why You Need to Start Listening to Sleep Stories
sleep / news
Why You Need to Start Listening to Sleep Stories
by BetterSleep
9 min read
Bedtime Stories About the Great Outdoors
sleep / news
Bedtime Stories About the Great Outdoors
by BetterSleep
4 min read
Bedtime Stories: Stories About Animals
sleep / news
Bedtime Stories: Stories About Animals
by BetterSleep
4 min read
Nature-Themed Meditations for Sleep
news / wellness
Nature-Themed Meditations for Sleep
by BetterSleep
4 min read
Meditations for Letting Go of Your Day
news / wellness
Meditations for Letting Go of Your Day
by BetterSleep
4 min read
Classic Bedtime Stories: Hans Christian Andersen
sleep / news
Classic Bedtime Stories: Hans Christian Andersen
by BetterSleep
4 min read
Your June Calendar for Wellness
news / wellness
Your June Calendar for Wellness
by BetterSleep
4 min read
Classic Bedtime stories: One Thousand and One Nights
sleep / news
Classic Bedtime stories: One Thousand and One Nights
by BetterSleep
4 min read

Top 10 posts

From Stress to Success: How to Manage Back-to-School Anxiety
wellness / mental health
From Stress to Success: How to Manage Back-to-School Anxiety
by BetterSleep
5 min read
Behind the Scenes: Pride 2024 at BetterSleep with Collin Martin
lifestyle / news
Behind the Scenes: Pride 2024 at BetterSleep with Collin Martin
by Scott Yim
4 min read
Waking Up to Injustice: The Intersection of Racism, Sleep Deprivation, and Black History
news / mental health
Waking Up to Injustice: The Intersection of Racism, Sleep Deprivation, and Black History
by BetterSleep
8 min read
Sleep Paralysis Explained
sleep
Sleep Paralysis Explained
by BetterSleep
10 min read
How to Cope with Holiday Depression and Stress
mental health / wellness
How to Cope with Holiday Depression and Stress
by BetterSleep
5 min read
Have a Healthy Holiday Season
news / wellness
Have a Healthy Holiday Season
by BetterSleep
5 min read
Mindful Listening
lifestyle / mental health
Mindful Listening
by BetterSleep
6 min read
Sleep Hypnosis Apps: A Guide to Self-Hypnosis
sleep
Sleep Hypnosis Apps: A Guide to Self-Hypnosis
by BetterSleep
7 min read
Calming Foods for Anxiety
wellness / mental health
Calming Foods for Anxiety
by BetterSleep
8 min read
Brown Noise
sleep / wellness
Brown Noise
by BetterSleep
4 min read