The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music has a new high-end recording studio,
complete with a 1400 square-foot live rom and a new 72 channel SSL Duality δelta
hybrid console. The facility, located in the school’s new Mo & Evelyn Ostin Music
Centre, is available to all of the school’s faculty and students to produce creative
and academic projects.
Vanessa Parr, formerly of The Village recording studio, recently joined the school as
Studio Recording Engineer: “The range of experience of those who come into the
studio varies quite a bit, from those who are very studio-savvy to those who have
never been in a recording facility before. I help out as necessary – just recording, or
giving guidance on how to work in a studio, or production advice.’
The dual SuperAnalogueTM and VHD (Variable Harmonic Drive) pre-amps on each
channel are also a useful feature, given the wide variety of material and
instruments that come into the studio. “My background is mostly rock and roll,”
says Parr. “So once we got the first rock group in I gave it a go… It was awesome.
I’ve been throwing it into the mix a lot more since then.”
The new recording studio has been thoroughly booked since it opened in April. “Use
of the studio is free to students and faculty – they just need to apply to the
Recording Committee with details of the project,” said Luis F. Henao, Director of
Music and Instructional Technology at the school, and Director of the Recording
Studios.
“Because we have three academic departments—Music, Ethnomusicology, and
Musicology—the variety of projects is huge,’ said Henao. “We have faculty and
students who focus on western classical music, some on very contemporary and
experimental music, and others on popular, folk, or electronic music. We have
expert musicians from a broad range of musical traditions, from different historical
periods and geographical locations. For example, we have an early music ensemble,
and ensembles specializing in music from Latin America, the Middle East, Africa,
and Asia.’
Copyright to anything produced in the studio is not held by UCLA – it belongs to the
originators. This means that productions can be ‘commercialised’ where it is
appropriate or desirable. “This is important for our faculty,” says Henao. “We have
many experienced, accomplished musicians at the school that already record a lot.
For musicians, playing and recording is not only part of their artistic work, but also
part of their research process.’
The SSL Duality δelta is an integral part of that experience and a necessity when it
comes to doing justice to the talent that will be relying on it in the years to come.
“It’s a really functional, comfortable console,” says Parr. “Given a few moments just
to orient myself I felt like I could do most things.”
