So I got a call from my publicist…. She was not happy with me!
If you follow me on social media you may have noticed that I have been selling off a lot of studio stuff: studio racks, gear, instruments, acoustic treatments, etc…. So I get a call from my publicist with a stern warning: “you need to stop selling gear on Facebook! Everyone is going to think your business is failing and you are closing up shop. Sell that stuff on Craigslist!!” Since several people did write me directly asking if I was shutting down the business, I guess she was right.
I am not shutting down the business at all! On the contrary, things are going really well. 2016 was one of the best years ever for my business. I worked on projects for clients all over the world. I got to travel to work on projects in six different countries including two on my bucket list (Cuba and The Faroe Islands). I was lucky enough to record, mix and master the music for one of the biggest video games of the year (Mafia III). I hosted great 6-day Recording Boot Camps in Italy and LA, and I hosted the first Mountain Recording Retreat in West Virginia (which most of the attendees liked enough to sign up for this year’s Retreat). After just landing a production gig with a band I have wanted to work with for 20 years, 2017 is on course to be even better. I am really grateful for all of this. The only downside with being so busy with all of my professional work is that I have not had enough time to do as much video making and educational outreach as I would like. I hope I can do more of that for you all in the coming year.
So I am not closing up shop. The good state of the business is actually letting me put into action a dream I have had for a while that involves bouncing between the city, the mountains, and Italy in addition to all the other travel:
I have bought a big cabin in a small mountain town in the National Forrest just north of Los Angeles to move my studio to. I still have a place in Marina del Rey (as well as a lot of business in the city), but I am traveling so much for work these days that I decided that it will be a lot nicer and less stressful to hang out in the mountains when i am working in the LA area. So much of the business at my own studio these days is clients sending me tracks from around the world for mixing and mastering, that I did not really need to stay in the city. And for my LA clients, the cabin is only a few miles north of LA county (but about an hour from the north end of the LA valley). Being equipped with a studio, the cabin is also going to be a great place to do Recording Boot Camps as well. The mountain town is really cool and I think I am going to be able to do Boot Camp programs that include accommodations, saving my out of town students a bunch of money. I sold off lots of studio stuff because I am getting many of the racks and acoustic treatments, etc. for the new studio custom made. Even without all the acoustic treatment done, the new place is already the best sounding mixing and mastering room I have ever built. I am going to wait until the studio is finished in a few weeks before I share photos, but here is a photo of the ceiling in the studio to give you a taste of the vibe of the new studio
Here is a photo I took a couple blocks up the hill from the cabin.
I am also going to be spending a lot more time at the little “barchessa” I rent in Italy and do more work out of Prosdocimi Recording Studio outside of Venice, Italy.
I am currently juggling scheduling logistics for two major production jobs, but when that is settled (hopefully in a couple weeks) I will be announcing dates for upcoming Recording Boot Camps. We will most likely have a 6-day Recording Boot Camp at the new cabin in early June and a 6-day Recording Boot Camp in North Italy at the end of September. The Mountain Recording Retreat in West Virginia is confirmed for May 7-12 and is open for registration.
NAMM is coming up in a couple days. I hope to be there at least 3 of the days. I will be spending a lot of time at booth 6280 with my friends from A Designs Audio. Say hello if you will be at the show.
Here is wishing everyone a great new year.