A couple of years ago – well more like nearly 40, I along with other college class members were assigned a project of illustrating a particular Bible passage at what was then Grace College of the Bible, now Grace University. I was there for my communications degree which was focusing on audio production. We could make a physical construction or drawing, use a musical instrument or most any other means to tangibly demonstrate these verses. I chose to do it in audio form in what was to be my first “recording studio”. I lived in a converted two-story house on campus and there was an area in the finished basement with a counter top where I could get away from the commotion of the other residents and set up everything I needed for this project. So equipped with a Sharp cassette deck, another borrowed cassette player, a Shure microphone, headphones and a small mixer, I hooked up all this gear and got to work. I narrated the text which was laid over various song selections and foley sound effects (ie. agitated water in the bathtub to simulate wave sounds, etc.) and mixed this all together. The Sharp cassette was a pretty decent unit and didn’t leave nasty clicks when it went in/out of pause so the finished product didn’t sound too amateur. Well it netted an “A” grade and I think I learned something (both technically and spiritually) from the work as well. The mic and mixer still exist and the final cassette tape. But alas, you can’t keep everything around and so recently the Sharp cassette machine went to a recycler (Cross Training Center) leaving behind the memories of this project and countless hours of music playback and recording (can you hear a few heart strings?). My big regret is not taking a picture of that first studio. A little late now I guess.

Another item to make the same recycling trip was the very first audio interface that Tesco Productions installed when I first went digital in 1994. At that time I was one of (if not the first) studio in Omaha to make the switch to computer-based recording as the main multi-track medium. This system was released by Digidesign and was called Session 8. It gave you 8 voices of playback and non-linear editing which was a big deal back then (still is, but of course everything’s advanced so much more) and so I was into the world of DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) recording. I have to say that the Session 8 software was still one of the most real-world-designed software releases I have ever worked with. I think real music engineers with computer savvy wrote it instead of the other way around, or could it be it just most closely matched the studio environment I was now being tranistioned out of. It was kind of sad to part with this piece since I cut my chops on that system while totally reworking my mindset on production. Since my college days were well before computers were involved in audio (at least for the average studio owner) and certainly were not in my class experience, I was now presented with the ominous task of creating the very same outcome – but with a whole new set of tools. I remember one of my earliest realizations was that another sense (sight) had been added to the recording/editing/mixing process and I caught myself being more enamored with what I was seeing on the (maybe 15″ CRT) screen than by what really mattered – what you hear. But I, and others working with me, made our way through it and I’d have to say I wouldn’t want to go back. However, there is an element of the old-school mix it “live”, make copious notes, need 5 hands, 6 ears and always just 1 more cable that I miss. Oh the end product is certainly more “perfect”, totally repeatable (forbid the client wanted to do a remix on a song even the next day pre-digital) and nearly infinitely tweakable, but there’s a certain loss of connection, adrenaline and joyous victory as you became another “player” actively outputting your best on a song mix. Now you can set all the parameters and literally go to lunch as the computer runs off the final mix – maybe giving it a listen when you return or maybe moving on. The price of advancement I guess, but here’s to change.

As summer continued to wind down the local Great Plains Bluegrass & Old-Time Music Association celebrated its 40th. Sunday the 11th a number of folks gathered at Venelyst Park off North 30th in Omaha for a great open mic hour or so, followed by a show presented by the Dirty River Ramblers. I for one didn’t even know that park was there and was pleasantly surprised to find a hidden little park with a nice building for the music events and plenty of open outdoor space for jamming.
One of the open mic groups were The Kopsas, who have recorded a couple of CDs at Tesco Productions. They were a few members short of their full family talents usually heard, but it was enjoyed anyway and I got to catch up with the family a bit as well.
The GPBOTMA is dedicated to keeping Bluegrass and Old-Time music going, and they do that by meeting the first Sunday afternoon each month (during the non-summer months) at the American Legion Hall #1, 7811 Davenport St. in Omaha at 2:00 pm. There’s a concert for an hour and then multiple jam sessions play for another 2 hours or more. The jams are open to players/singers of all skill levels and everyone that has any desire is invited to jump right in. There are sometimes jams dedicated specifically to a particular instrument for those in the earlier learning levels. You can become a member for $20.00 a year and this opens the Sunday event to you for $3.00 admission, otherwise it’s $5.00 for the general public. There’s free parking and various food/drink offerings from the Legion and certain times of the year the club brings in food as well. It’s well worth investing your time and resources into, and a great place to learn and stay in touch with other musicians and patrons of this musical genre. Here’s more info on the club. http://gpbotma.homestead.com/

Roger and Maria Petersen dropped by shortly after they had spent multiple days at the National Traditional Country Music Association annual festival in Le Mars, IA. Besides bringing me some pictures of the event we realized Maria had never signed the Tesco Productions “Wall of Fame” back when she recorded her three zither and zither/vocal CDs in 2010. I guess in the many recording and mixing sessions we never got around to having her signature added to the dozens and dozens of others that have found their way to the walls and hall of signings. Yes, there’s actually two walls being memorialized now since the first one filled up and the hall is pretty full as well. It’s quite a journey to look over those signatures – remembering projects, people, friendships, and yes the loss of some of those friends who have now passed away. Anyway, Maria has now officially joined her hand along with many others. The text is in her native language of German and she interpreted it for me afterward. My best memory is that “she wished me happy and successful trails through life”. Thank you – there’s been many of those.