"The Trinity Session": Recorded to R-DAT?
March 2021
In November 1987, Canada’s Cowboy Junkies recorded the tracks for The Trinity Session, which, when released one year later, received worldwide critical acclaim. It was recorded in The Church of the Holy Trinity, located in downtown Toronto, Canada.
High-Res Recording for Musical Authenticity
December 2020
Located in Ultrecht, The Netherlands, TRPTK is a recording studio that specializes in producing multichannel, high-resolution music recordings. In our first video TRPTK video, released in May 2020, we talked to recording engineer Brendon Heinst about what attracted him to create high-resolution, multichannel productions. In this video, we talk to classical violinist Merel Vercammen and jazz musician Teis Semey about what drew them to record the TRPTK way and how they feel about the results achieved for their recordings.
Active, Powered, or Passive Speakers for the Studio?
June 2020
Founded in 1991 in the United Kingdom by Peter Thomas and Adrian Loader, The Professional Monitor Company (PMC) has gained a sterling reputation for equipping some of the world’s best-known studios with their loudspeakers. Prior to starting PMC, Thomas was employed at the BBC, the famous UK broadcaster, while Loader worked at FWO Bauch, a British audio distributor. In this video, PMC’s Chris Allen first talks about the company’s history in pro audio, and then explains the important differences between active, powered, and passive loudspeakers -- things every person setting up a studio needs to known to attain the best-possible sound.
High-Res and Multichannel for Music Playback
May 2020
Brendon Heinst is a co-owner of TRPTK, a recording studio in Utrecht, The Netherlands. In this video, Brendon talks about his love for multichannel recording using DXD, a digital recording format operating at 352.8kHz. Armed with five KEF Blade Two speakers and equipment from Hegel Music Systems, Merging Technologies, and Furutech, Brendon creates recordings that he believes bring you closer to the music than standard stereo recording can.
Combating Crosstalk, with David Chesky
February 2020
Interaural crosstalk -- what is it? It’s when the sound that’s intended for one ear is also heard in the other ear, but is delayed in time and lower in volume. It confuses the brain and makes soundstaging and imaging less precise. In this second SoundStage! Encore video featuring David Chesky, he explains how his record company is using special microphone techniques and advanced digital filters to combat crosstalk so that the listener experiences wider, deeper, and more precise soundstages when they listen to his company’s recordings.
Listening with Your Eyes, with David Chesky
December 2019
David Chesky is a musician, conductor, songwriter, and co-owner of Chesky Records, Manhattan Productions, and HDTracks. In this video, Chesky talks about how, when we listen to music in a live setting, our eyes often dictate what we end up hearing. As a result, we can be tricked into hearing something we're really not.
Recording Drums with Howard Bilerman, Part 3: The Mix
June 2019
As a drummer, recording engineer, producer, and studio co-owner, Howard Bilerman understands what it takes to music sound alive -- and real. In this third part of the “Recording Drums with Howard Bilerman” series, Bilerman lets you listen to the sounds of the individual microphones he set up to record drummer Loel Campbell (from the band Wintersleep), and he lets you hear combinations of the microphones to demonstrate how they can be used to change the sound of the drums to best suit the recording.
Recording Drums with Howard Bilerman, Part 2: Loel Campbell on Setting Up Drums
April 2019
Loel Campbell is the drummer for the Canadian band Wintersleep, which debuted with a self-titled album in 2003. To-date, the band has recorded seven albums, including In the Land Of, which was just released on March 29. In this video -- the second part in the “Recording Drums with Howard Bilmerman” series -- Campbell talks about how he sets up drums, what the tweaks are he makes to them to get better sound, and how the room itself affects the outcome of a recorded song.
Recording Drums with Howard Bilerman, Part 1: Philosophy
February 2019
Howard Bilerman is a drummer, recording engineer, and producer, as well as a co-owner of Montreal’s famous Hotel2Tango recording studio. With recording experience that spans more than 30 years, Bilerman describes his philosophy about how to make the recording of drums sound real.
Henkka Niemistö on the Role of a Mastering Engineer
December 2018
Finnish mastering engineer Henkka Niemistö is based out of the Chartmakers East studio, located in East Helsinki, Finland. In this video, Henkka discusses his role as a mastering engineer. Mastering is the final production step before the music reaches music listeners’ ears.
"The Trinity Session," Part 2: The Microphone
December 2020
The Trinity Session, by Canada’s Cowboy Junkies, was recorded in November 1987 and released the following November. Upon its released and afterwards, it was praised for its musical excellence and technical proficiency. Produced and engineered by Peter J. Moore, the album was recorded with a single Calrec microphone and a modified Beta videotape player converted into a digital audio recorder. Part 2 focuses on how the microphone was placed in the church the album was recorded in, as well as how the band was arranged around it.
Vincent Bélanger and the Hornpipe Cello
August 2018
Canadian Vincent Bélanger is a world-class cellist whose debut album, Là, was released in 2011. On Là is a haunting rendition of “Amazing Grace” in which Bélanger makes his cello sound like a hornpipe. In May 2018, we were able to meet with Vincent in Antwerp, Belgium, where he played the song for us and described how he creates this unique sound. (To contact Vincent directly, e-mail vincent.belanger@audionotemusic.co.uk.)
"The Trinity Session," Part 1: The Church
July 2018
Canada’s Cowboy Junkies recorded the groundbreaking The Trinity Session in November 1987, then released it in November 1988 to worldwide acclaim. Produced and engineered by Peter J. Moore, The Trinity Session was recorded with a single Calrec microphone and a modified Beta videotape player converted into a digital audio recorder. In Part 1 of our series exploring the making of The Trinity Session, Cowboy Junkies drummer Peter Timmins and Peter J. Moore talk about what it was like to record The Trinity Session in the Church of the Holy Trinity, which is located in downtown Toronto, and describe how the church became an instrumental part of the sound of the album.