Burbank, CA… Royer Labs, a leading manufacturer of high quality ribbon microphones, is pleased to have been a co-sponsor of the first ever Critical Listening Workshop featuring legendary and 5-time Grammy®Award winning audio engineer/music producer Bruce Swedien. The workshop, which began January 26th, 2009 and ran for seven consecutive days, was geared toward enhancing the attendees’ ability to critically analyze musical sounds on a continuing basis to further their skills in the technical aspects, the performing, and the production of high-quality recorded music.
Held at Swedien’s Florida-based West Viking Studios, logistics for the Critical Listening Workshop were coordinated by Keith Henderson, owner/operator of Ocala, Florida’s Rust Productions, who routinely assists Swedien in the studio. The seven-day workshop featured a look at the design and other pertinent criteria for recording studios and rooms, two days of hands-on microphone training, multitrack multiplexing, plus three days of intensive mixing with Swedien. Structured for the accomplished studio professional as a means of furthering one’s skill set, the workshop had a number of guest speakers, including John Jennings of Royer Labs, Art Noxon of Acoustic Sciences Corp, Martin Kantola of Nordic Audio Labs, and vocalist Brent Carter.
“Based upon the feedback we received from our attendees,� said Henderson, “the workshop was extremely successful. This was the first time ever that Bruce opened his personal home studio for a workshop of this nature. Aside from giving the twelve attendees an up-close and personal look at the room where some of the industry’s hottest recordings were engineered, this was also a great opportunity to learn the fine points of the art and science of recording and mixing. Unlike the engineering programs at the college or university level, the Critical Listening Workshop tapped Bruce’s vast experience—gleaned from spending many years engineering some of the most critically-acclaimed recordings of all time.�
In addition to the opportunity to further one’s skills and learn some of the tricks of the trade first-hand from one of pro audio’s finest engineers, Bruce Swedien’s Critical Listening Workshop included a formal certificate of completion, hotel accommodations, transportation to and from the sessions, books and binders for class materials, breakfast and lunch each day, plus an assortment of t-shirts and related “swag� from the various sponsors of the event.
John Jennings, VP of Sales and Marketing at Royer Labs, commented on the Critical Listening Workshop. “We are honored that Bruce would include us as one of the sponsors for this workshop,� said Jennings. “Bruce has used our microphones for years on many of his projects, and the inclusion of our equipment at this seminar further validates the value of ribbon microphones in today’s digital recording environment. I’ve heard nothing but raves from those who attended the workshop. It was truly an opportunity to learn from a master. On a personal note, Bruce and his wife Bea are two of the finest people I know, two of my dearest friends, and as busy as the workshop was, it was great to spend time with them.�
“There are a multitude of considerations that go into any great recording,� says Swedien, “and I feel this training session benefitted everyone in attendance—myself included. It gave me an opportunity to listen to and respond to the concerns of other industry professionals. During the seven days, we took a good, hard look at the entire recording and engineering process and examined how the various parts of the puzzle all come together. Equally important to the exchange of ideas and information, we had a great time and, let’s face it, music is supposed to be fun. I look forward to doing this again.�
For additional information about Bruce Swedien’s Critical Listening Workshop, including the upcoming workshop on March 23rd 2009, visit the program’s website at www.criticallistening.net.
About Royer Labs
Located in Burbank, California, Royer Labs’ microphones are a staple of leading recording and broadcast facilities. Additional information on the entire line of Royer Labs microphones can be found at www.royerlabs.com.
###
