Where is the music being recorded today?

So where’s the Beef?

More like where is the music, or more accurately. Where is the music being recorded today?

Well for a lot of us I don’t have to answer that question. You already know the answer. And these first home recording studios appeared somewhere around the 1970s. The time had finally come where musicians and engineers were beginning to record their performances on tape machines which spun on reel to reels in their living rooms, bed rooms and basements.

The Teac 4 track reel machines, like the A-3340s (introduced in 1971) and the A-40-4 were popular and indeed very nice machines, to which could be added the Teac 2-A mixer and a Stereo or two track reel to reel for Mixdown. In the early days of the home studio, the recording combo was a dream come true. Add a powerful amp and some passive speakers like a pair of those snazzy NS10’s and you were all set. However , you did need more then a little bit of cash, try about $10,000 for one of these home rigs, just to get started. No midi ,virtual instruments, EZ Drummer, or Reason.

Just you a mixer, your idea and some tape. As years passed we saw home studio capabilities expand with the advent of midi and analog synthesizers. Also diminishing equipment costs brought a variety of new technologies like digital tape machines , black face ADATs and the very affordable 4 track cassette recorders. But these machines were still inferior to their professional counterparts which could cost in the excess of millions once you added in the lava lamps and all. Then somewhere around 2001 something big happens. Digidesign launches it’s first series of home studio grade hardware , hence the infamous 001 which seemed to give an adrenalin shot to the already thriving home studio revolution. I don’t think anyone really grasped what was happening then, and where this business of making music would end up in just eight short years. Who would have ever thought we would be where we are today in the areas of technique and technology and just imagine where we’ll be in just eight more.

The home studio has never looked back since. The quality of some home records are often un discernable from their professional rivals. Amateur musicians and hobbyists finally had the creative power to capture their ideas that they would have never even dreamed possible less then ten years ago. Need a Hammond, pull up a patch. Need a drummer, press the key and let Strike do it. Need to tighten up your performance well Beat Detective can do that. And how about we tune your vocal with Antares. You get the picture. " No talent, no problem " With all these countless stunning DAWs, Virtual Instruments, and applications . Sonic creativity is only seems to be limited by the users skill, experience, knowledge and creativity. And what is scary is that software applications are becoming so flexible and easy to use that the mass markets have jumped on board.

Don’t believe me, check out Apple’s earnings last year, and ask their customers what kid of stuff there into doing in their spare time. So where are we going? Well nothing but time could really tell that . But what we can look at is what has happened, the new recording trends and the momentum behind them. One observation is the decreasing number of commercial facilities, and the consistent uprising of more home studios. It seems the days of the experienced engineer passing on his vital skills and techniques to the hungry intern are disappearing. One thing is for sure though, equipment and software manufactures have never been more profitable. They are not even slightly disappointed with the industry trends and are very hungry for your business. Wanna sound like a pro, they'll be happy to sell you the tools to do it. If everyone is a do it yourself, have my own studio kind of model where will the art form of recording and making music go? Well just have to see. How will we discern true talent from a plug and play novice?

The truth is it doesn't really matter in the scheme of things. And where will people learn the engineering essentials like soldering, signal flow, electronics and mic placement ? Well maybe that too is a thing of the past, So cheers, to all of you creative folks. Whether your a seasoned pro, or a hobbyist with a Mac keep recording and making music and be sure to embrace whatever comes next, otherwise you may be the next one to be left behind.