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Background

Brian Coombes is an award-winning producer, engineer, musician, and songwriter who works with performers in a variety of musical genres, but tends to focus on singer/songwriter projects, modern folk, alt-country/Americana, and indie-pop/rock. With influences ranging from Americana to progressive rock, Brian combines his love of interesting instrumentation, quirky keyboards, melodic hooks, and lush vocal harmonies with an extensive technical knowledge of the recording process to create releases that are both artistically and sonically rewarding. Please visit the Discography page for a listed of projects Brian has produced.

Brian has been a touring and recording musician and songwriter since the 1980’s. He was a founding member of Tristan Park, a progressive rock band that was signed to the British record label, GFT Ltd. The band recorded four albums and toured extensively in Europe and North America before going into hiatus in 1998.

Following his time with Tristan Park, Brian wrote, recorded, and mixed a collection of songs with his wife, Michelle, and a group of musicians that included future Rocking Horse Studio partner, David Pierog. The resulting album, Waking in the Blue’s “Isn’t It Pretty to Think So?,” was released by Griffin Music in 2003. The disc featured guest appearances by Squeeze vocalist Chris Difford and King Crimson multi-instrumentalist Ian McDonald.

In 2014, Brian was nominated for a “Producer of the Year” award at the New England Music Awards, received two Emmy Award nominations for his work with WMUR-TV Channel 9 in Manchester, NH, and received a “Best Producer” award from the Best of NH Awards. He received the “Producer of the Year” award from the New England Music Awards in 2015.

Brian is a voting member of both the Audio Engineering Society (AES) and the Producers & Engineers Wing of the Recording Academy (NARAS) and a member of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

Background

If you look up the phrase “Renaissance Man,” you’ll probably end up with millions of results for Leonardo da Vinci. Painter of the Mona Lisa, an expert in anatomy and physiology, and noted engineer and inventor, da Vinci would investigate an idea or notion until he became the foremost expert in the field.

But he died more than 450 years before the first digital audio workstations were even conceptualized. So instead, we’ll turn our gaze to our resident Ableton Live expert and one of the most accomplished Recording Connection mentors: G.W. Childs. He literally wrote the book i.e. co-authored our curriculum on the software, as well as the Reason and Creator curricula.  From how to get music from your imagination into your DAW, to making music for video games, to building your own electronic instruments, G.W. Childs knows and has done all of it.

He was a sound designer on Reason as well as a sound designer, composer, and voice editor for video games such as Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic: The Sith Lords; Star Wars: Battlefront; and LucasArts’ The Force Unleashed. He was also enlisted in the U.S. Army, where he co-founded the band Soil & Eclipse. He was a songwriter, keyboardist, and producer for the electro-industrial group that found extensive airplay throughout North America and Europe in the late 90s.

He even led a recent talk about working and learning during the time of a pandemic, leading a Q&A session with noted audio engineers. The session brought in people from around the country hoping to find out how Covid-19 changed the way we look at remote learning.

If you’re looking for one of the most direct ways of starting a career in the music business, Recording Connection will place you in a one-on-one situation with Childs or other industry insiders. You’ll learn how to work with a DAW, how to run a studio, how to work with artists, and even the business side of being an audio engineer or music producer.

“Really take advantage of the lessons,” Childs says. “The more time you put into the course, the more content it’s possible for you to create. That really is building your own brand. So that’s the first thing: the more you put into it, the more that you’ll get back from it.

“I’m not just talking about the education you get,” Childs added. “Literally, what you walk away with is part of your discography now. That’s huge. It’s something that goes on the resume now. So if you have the opportunity to make five song sketches that week that you could use for the entirety of the course, do the five sketches.”

And it will take time, drive, and determination. However, when you enroll in the Recording Connection Audio Engineering and Music Production Program, you’ll have the guidance of experienced mentors like Childs.

“There are certain things that you have to have within a song,” Childs says. “Just the same way there’s certain things you have to have in a haiku, or in a poem, or even in a paragraph, or even in an essay. You got to have an intro, you got to have the meat of it, and you have to have the ending. And that’s just the basic form of it. And everybody wants those parts of it, but how do you do it well?”

Want to find out? Amplify Your Life by applying today.

Background

Shane Anderson is a seasoned music industry veteran. With over 20+ years in the music industry Shane has vast experience in production, recording, mixing and mastering as well as the ins and outs of the music business. Shane began his musical career in his early teens as a demo vocalist for labels and also as a sound engineer for the MUZAK corporation. At age 18 he opened his first studio location in Honolulu, HI called “Unique Studios” and oversaw the daily operations of the recording studio as well as landing several indie label deals and distribution agreements while in Hawaii working with local talent. In 2009 Shane released a solo album titled “Dangerous”. This album took off online primarily on MYSPACE and gained much success with over 2.5 Million plays worldwide landing him on BILLBOARD NEWSWIRE and ultimately landing him several placements on TV shows to include “The Kardashians” “MTV” “E- Networks” and Oxygen to name a few.

Shane moved down to Los Angeles 2010 where he formed with his long-time high school friend a production company called “The Go Gettas” where he continued to build on his credits and catalog working with artist who have been on American Idol, X Factor, Dancing with The Stars and Disney to name a few. After landing multiple placements in Film/TV Shane relocated to the Sacramento area in 2016 to build on Unique Recording Studios and help bridge the gap between artist and the industry.

Shane runs Unique Recording Studios as a production label, distribution company and recording studio for artist to create and focus on their art. Unique Recording Studios has also newly launched an exciting new venture at URS called “The Collective” which will allow producers, engineers, songwriters and artist to collaborate in house at Unique Recording Studios to work together to create music and promote building a large collaborative catalog of music to submit to labels, publishers, music supervisors and overall decision makers in the music industry. This will provide a great opportunity for students who complete their coursework at the recording connection.

Articles

Unique Recording Studios

Background

The manager and chief engineer at Miller Street Studios, Joe “Dante” Delfino has established himself as one of the top audio engineers in Chicago. Working with established mega-groups like Wu-Tang Clan as well as up-and-comers like Ta’Rhonda Jones, Delfino sees the benefits of the Recording Connection mentor programs.

“Out here in Chicago, we have Columbia College which is a big music school,” Delfino said. “I’ve had interns that have gone four years there, and they came in here and didn’t even know how to basically run a Pro Tools session.

“It’s a big difference when you’re learning with somebody who is actually doing this for a living and in the industry right now versus in a classroom where it may be somebody that doesn’t have that much real-world experience or has been out of it for a number of years. Definitely more beneficial that you’re learning with somebody that’s actually doing it.”

Learn More Than The Gear

While some classes may teach you how to work with Ableton Live or Logic Pro, how to place your monitors for optimal performance, or even the differences in mics, the Recording Connection Audio Engineering and Music Production Program give you something no book can: Opportunities.

You won’t be working with every act that comes into the Miller Street Studios. But when your chance to sit in on a session finally arrives, this is the time to shine. An impressive performance by you may make a connection with the artists, who may pass your name on to other artists. In the music industry, if you don’t get your name out there, no one will.

“One of the most important things I try and teach (is) you can’t rely on anybody to give you clients,” Delfino says. “There are tons of engineers graduating from all sorts of programs all the time. There are thousands of guys that are not going to be doing this full time for that simple fact.”

Impress your mentor during your time with Recording Connection and you could get more opportunities to work with clients. The more people that know your name—and your talent— the easier it will be to bring people into the studio. That will really impress the studio chiefs.

“You got to get out there, hit the pavement and shake hands, hand out business cards, and get people talking about you,” Delfino said. “That’s one of the things I really kind of push these guys on is, don’t just rely on me to give you sessions; do some of the footwork yourself too. That’ll speed up the process. That is how I really was able to start my own business because I had gone out, done the footwork, promoted myself, and gotten clients that wanted to work with me.”

Learn from The Inside

Recording Connection programs are designed to give you access to the industry and learn it from the inside. In fact, many mentors hire externs after they finish the program – or even during the program! Delfino likes having potential hires under his tutelage because he knows they’ll be taught the right way.

“I think having the ability to be able to teach these guys exactly the way you run your business and the tools that you’re using in the studio is really key,” Delfino says. “Because that’s not really something you can teach in a classroom. I’ve already hired a couple of people, students that have gone through the Recording Connection.”

We can’t guarantee you’ll be hired right off the bat. But what we can guarantee is you’ll learn how to work in a studio, how to interact with acts, and learn the gear used in the music production business. What you do with that knowledge is up to you. Ready to Amplify your life? Apply today.

Background

Donny Baker of ES Audio in Los Angeles, CA has decades of experience in the music industry, both in studio and behind the console. He spent 13 years working as a touring engineer for some of music’s most influential and dynamic artists including: Madonna, Chick Corea, Aerosmith, Herbie Hancock, and more. Donny then moved his talents into the sphere of recording and audio engineering production at ES Audio alongside CEO and studio owner Jo Ann Bush.

As a Recording Connection mentor for more than 16 years, Donny’s passionate about helping tomorrow’s audio engineers, music producers, and music industry professionals discover the very thing that sets them on fire, and use their passion along with the insight Donny’s able to provide to create a solid game plan for building their careers.

As a result of their hard work and the expert training and experience they’ve been able to receive through our mentor-led programs, a great number of Donny’s former Recording Connection students have gone on build amazing careers for themselves:

Taylor Crommie recently recorded and mixed for DJ Paul (of Three 6 Mafia). Other artists include: Kembe X, Jay Rock, Wifi Funeral, YelaWolf, Lance Skiiwalker, Eric Hudson, Rob Vicious, and Reddish Blu.

Uriel Soto Jr. aka “Junior” got hired full-time at ES Audio (DJ Paul, Yelawolf, Yung Gravy). Now, Uriel is also a Recording Connection mentor.

Skyler Felix went on to work with Disney and VH1. Credits also include a top-10 record on the UK dance charts.

Morning Estrada has recently engineered for Aminé, Rosalía, Brandy, Trinidad James, Tech N9NE, Jessie J, and more.

Articles

Video: What to expect with Donny Baker
Helping students find their place
NUGGETS OF TRUTH: Recording Connection mentor Donny Baker on what it takes to make it in recording
JoAnn Bush, owner of ES Audio in Los Angeles

Background

Everything from the blues to certain genres of electronic house music call Chicago home. And the 35th Street Studios has seen an equally eclectic group of musicians come through their doors. The Who and Crunchy Black, The Rolling Stones and Yolanda Adams, Cheap Trick and Kanye West.

Their ability to work with a wide variety of acts over the years, and housing several studios, a live sound stage, and more. It is the premier rehearsal venue in Chicago because of its size and has all of the gear to record podcasts, film, and video work. And, as one of Recording Connections mentoring studios, it’s grooming the next generation of audio engineers and music producers.

“One of the things I appreciate every day is that I am surrounded by like-minded people,” former extern Robert Avila said. “Those who have the expertise and patience to listen to a mix repetitively, and for as long as it takes, to accomplish what needs to be done. The qualities I see in my peers at the studio are great. Everyone at 35th Street Studios has their unique background, style, and personality type; nevertheless, they work together seamlessly- true teamwork- and I’m more than happy to be involved.”

Work with Professionals

With our ability to place externs inside real-world studios, we feel our programs have a little something more to offer those looking to make it in the music marketplace. Using the latest hardware and software, our mentors will show you how to set up a studio, get the most out of an act’s material, and how to use the most up to date recording software.

But it goes beyond knowing how to operate a digital audio workstation or knowing which mic to use. The Recording Connection gives you something very few universities or trade schools can: connections. Other schools may bring in guest speakers for an hour or two. The Recording Connection will give you the opportunity to work alongside those already in the industry.

With these opportunities, you can start to build your brand from within the business. Many of our externs find work immediately after completion of the program, often at the very recording studios they learned in. How many schools can say that? Not many. After all, they aren’t looking for beat-makers, audio engineers, or music producers.

Many Recording Connection mentors are, however. We have helped hundreds of externs find work after completing their program. Some stay with their mentors, others are referred to other studios, and a few have even opened their own studios. They create music, beats, or samples that are used in video games, television, and film.

The one thing they all had in common when they walked through the 35th Street Studio doors, or any of our more than 250 locations in the United State, was pure passion. Learning how to engineer music isn’t a hobby at Recording Connection, it’s a way of life. Are you ready to Amplify Your Life? Apply today.

Background

Learn from Recording Connection mentor Zack Phillips or one of our mentors in the Bay Area.

Discovering his love of music while growing up in New York City in the ‘80s, Zack Phillips’ approach to music is “part science, part mysticism.” Gaining experience as a DJ and live sound engineer, Phillips received a formal education in audio engineering.

From there, Phillips honed his craft working at several studios before finally establishing his own studio: FreqLab Recording. In addition to recording, editing, mixing, and production, Phillips also works on developing the artists he works with, exploring innovative and inventive ways of engineering audio. Phillips has worked with a wide range of artists, including Talib Kweli, The Kooks, and Blue Hawaii.

You’ll be working in a state-of-the-art facility renovated by Phillips himself. While he made sure to design the studio to get the most out of the space, he also wanted to make it as comfortable as possible for engineers and artists alike.

If you study at the San Francisco Recording Connection, you’ll be working with people as passionate about music as you are. Up and comers, established stars, and other entertainment entities such as Comedy Central or Electronic Arts. But you won’t be watching TV or playing video games – you’ll be coming to work hard every day.

Background

For Andy Shoemaker, Grammy-nominated audio engineer at Rax Trax Recording and Recording Connection mentor, it takes more than being a superstar with the gear. The best audio engineers and music producers also know how to take care of their clients.

“The way young engineers get early opportunities often comes from a situation where they can fill in at a time of need,” he said. “But before I start saying, ‘Hey man, can you do this session?,’ I need to see, technically, they know enough of what they’re doing to trust them enough not to screw up and also that I don’t fear that they’ll conduct themselves in a negative way with a client.”

A bad demeanor on one side of the glass will lead to very little action on the other side of the glass. At the start of your career, musicians don’t come to you – you have to bring them in. Think of it as being a salesperson. You may have the best product, but if you’re lacking in the personality department, you’re not going to be very successful.

“There are people that I think of very highly, like, ‘Man, this guy is great. He knows what he’s talking about,’” Shoemaker said. “But I just don’t know that I can hand him a session because his people skills are a bit lacking. If someone can’t read the artist and interact with them based on what the artist needs, then it isn’t a good fit between engineer and artist.”

It’s About More Than The Gear

With the Recording Connection Audio Engineering & Music Production Program, you’ll learn what you need to know about digital audio workstations (DAW) like Ableton Live or Logic Pro. As Shoemaker explains, however, it’s just one tool. There’s only so much that can be done with sub-par performances.

“So much of the tone comes from the player,” Shoemaker said. “Artists themselves contribute so much more of the tone than we want to give them credit for a lot of times. I think as engineers, it’s easy for us to idolize equipment. It’s easy for us to idolize microphones and preamps and compressors, and those are all really important parts of the chain, but it comes down to the source.

“All those tools are going to help you capture the source in a more interesting or more pleasing way, but they themselves won’t change the source. If you don’t have that sorted out, then you’re going to be struggling with it regardless.”

Get What You Need From A Pro

At a traditional four-year university or trade school, you may get enough experience on a DAW, learn about music theory, or even work with other students to create music. But we feel it just can’t compare with the immersive experience you get when working one-on-one with an industry insider in a real-world setting.

“I went through a traditional four-year style school,” Shoemaker said. “In my final semester, I started an internship and I found that I was learning a lot of things that I’d never learned about in school. I was three semesters in at my school before I was doing some of the stuff that I might have my students do in their first week of the Recording Connection program.

“There are a lot of different audio programs out there. How effective any program is going to be for you personally really depends on what you put into it. You could really dive into any program and get something out of it, but I think Recording Connection provides an opportunity to do that in a different and more efficient way because it isn’t isolated from reality.”

Are you ready to get what you need to Amplify Your Life? Apply to Recording Connection today.

Background

Learn from Recording Connection mentor Steve Catizone or one of our mentors in the greater Boston area.

From Aerosmith to Wyclef Jean, Steve Catizone knows the ABC’s about working with international superstars. Catizone ran Sanctum Sound in Boston for more than a decade before moving across the country to give the West Coast and Los Angeles a try. Now he’s back on the East Coast with Infinite Recording in the Boston Metro area.

No matter where he is, Catizone looks forward to working with the next generation of audio engineers and music producers. He knows what to look for in a Recording Connection extern and doesn’t take long for him to spot those that have what it takes to make a career in the music industry.

And it has nothing to do with their previous musical experience or technical mastery of a digital audio workstation. A previous student, Scott Johnson, impressed Catizone enough to hire him to work at his state-of-the-art second studio, even have him run a tracking session with British pop-dance superstar Charli XCX.

“He just made himself available for things whenever and wherever he needed to be,” Catizone says. “Luck is preparedness meets opportunity, and anytime I’d ask him to come in to shadow or assist, he was there. I told him, ‘It’s like anything else, she’s like anybody else. She wants to come in, she wants to do her thing; just do your thing.’”

For Catizone, the Recording Connection Audio Engineering and Music Production Program offers an advanced way to teach those up-and-comers who want to make a name for themselves in the industry. Although major audio schools may have a “name,” they don’t always graduate students who have the conceptual side of things down, or know their way around a professional recording studio.

“He said he wasn’t really getting much experience with them at all,” Catizone says, speaking of former student Melvin Perdomo. “And it’s funny because I went through some simple concepts with him, and it was obviously stuff that they didn’t hit with him.”

Besides, it isn’t always what you know, but who you are. Like Johnson, Catizone could tell right away that investing in Perdomo would pay instant dividends.

“His temperament is perfect,” Catizone says. “He’s a go-to guy. I kind of knew that he was going to work out from the start, and I was pretty much right. So three sessions in, I was like, you know, ‘We need somebody to help out.’ And he’s very chill and laid back. He’s perfect.”

Making Connections

A third extern, Shardinee Fort, was brought in to help with an audio recording of author/columnist David Savage. She had the right temperament for the job, so Catizone knew she’d be perfect.

“I needed someone who could help out and just be, you know, have a pleasant disposition and be in the studio as well,” Catizone says. “She sat in and made herself available for whatever technical stuff needed to be done.”

All of that is to say: when you apply to Recording Connection, you get more than a one-on-one education from an industry insider, you get the chance to prove your worth to a potential employer or reference. Those opportunities just aren’t available at most universities or trade schools.

Former Catizone extern Jordan Schuh took advantage of the connections he made. Now he runs his own studio. The exposure he received with Catizone and Recording Connection was invaluable.

“I guess the best thing I can say about Recording Connection is that it proves its name,” Schuh says. “In other words, what I valued most about the experience was the connections with real people in the recording industry.”

Are you ready to amplify your life? Apply Today.

Articles

Recording Connection mentor Steve Catizone on creating opportunities for his students
Recording Connection mentor Steve Catizone talks studio etiquette

Background

After starting his career in New Jersey and New York, Sheldon Ellerby moved South to hip-hop hub Atlanta. First with The Writer’s Room and now with Private Sound Studios, Ellerby provides externs with a little of the old and a little of the new.

As an audio engineer or music producer, you need to have the right combination of both. Technology is constantly changing how we make music, making it more accessible for everyone instead of a select few. Digital Audio Workstations allow you to make music in the studio, in your home, or on a bus.

But it won’t change the theory of music, how soundwaves travel, and the overall fundamentals of audio engineering.

“My approach is really to give them an understanding of the principles of recording,” Ellerby said. “I like to go back to not just the start, but to even eras where you had The Beatles, James Brown, the Motown era. Everybody has the same principles of recording, and we still use those principles to this day.”

While Ableton Live or Logic Pro has made it easier for the masses to make music, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s good music. So many new music makers want to run before they can walk, with no foundation or understanding of the music in place. Digital audio workstations are great – but there’s a lot of work to be done to get the most out of the software.

“I try to get people to understand that it’s more than just running a program,” Ellerby said. “Anyone can push a couple of buttons and say they’re engineers. But if you don’t know how to identify distortion, ‘Am I getting a good signal?’ or ‘What mic should I use?’ ‘Does this mic complement his vocal tone?’ I get into helping them build a real foundation and understand the how’s and why’s of what they’re doing.”

Love What You Do

You’ve come to Recording Connection because you want to make a career in the music business. But it takes more than “want.” There’s a determination that comes with establishing yourself in the industry and even more dedication to stay there.

“What drives me more than anything is passion,” Ellerby said. “The passion to learn, always wanting to know more. One thing I really pass onto a lot of the students is never stop learning. You have to continue to learn because everything is always like a constant evolution with the technology.”

The Recording Connection will give you the tools and the education you need to build a solid base. You will build your brand while expanding your portfolio. Learn how to move around the studio, interact with the talent, and how to market yourself. But what will you do with this opportunity you’ve given yourself? Are you ready to Amplify Your Life? Apply today.

Background

Learn from Recording Connection mentor Bernard Johnson or one of our mentors in the greater San Diego area.

Bernard Johnson didn’t follow the usual path to becoming a Recording Connection mentor in El Cajon, Ca. He discovered a love of mass media as a 14-year-old, entering a certification program to find out how it all came together.

After finishing the program, he began co-producing a top-ten music show in Detroit and received an award for exemplary airwave checks from the Michigan Broadcast Association. Then his career took a turn: Johnson entered the military.

After a 20-year career in the military, often leading departments with 90 people, Johnson returned to what he loved as a teenager, earning a masters in audio production. While the military can be quite regimented, Johnson was attracted to the freeform method of instruction that Recording Connection offered students. As he knows better than most, the standard course isn’t always the best course.

“When I saw (Recording Connection) model, I was like, ‘Wow, this is it. I love it.’” Johnson said. “And it allows students to have the opportunity not to feel cemented to something like, ‘This is what you need to do, this is the direction and the route you need to do it.’”

The Recording Connection Program gives you access to a professional engineer, fully-functioning studio, and hands-on education, it could also earn you a career. The Noize Factory is a perfect example of that: Johnson hired one of his former students (Efrain Matias) as a staff engineer.

But you have to work for it. Recording Connection students must be willing to put in the time, effort, and focus to get the most out of it. Johnson expects nothing less.

“I do want to say commitment, passion, perseverance, and finishing until the end,” Johnson said. “They’re not just doing something for money or just doing it ‘just because.’ They’re literally passionate about it.”

Articles

Recording Connection mentor Bernard ‘IQue’ Johnson Shares His Smarts & Hires from Within!
Recording Connection grad Goes to NAMM, Gets Hired, Gets Going in Audio!