Used for Recording Project with 9-Year-Old, Up-and-Coming Artist

ALBANY, NY, MAY 11, 2009 — Already garnering national notoriety with performances on the “Ellen Degeneres Show” and the CBS “Early Show,” up-and-coming child artist Anthony Gargiula is currently working with Cotton Hill Studios to record a demo CD. According to Ray Rettig, president of Cotton Hill, the studio’s Aviom Personal Mixers, which it has been using as part of its cue system for a little over five years, simplified these studio sessions. Gargiula took to using the Aviom system right away. more

App brings over 7,800 guitar chords to iPhone and iTouch Users

FARMINGDALE, NY – The Planet Waves Chordmaster, a comprehensive and accurate library of over 7,800 guitar chords for the iPhone and iTouch, has become a hit with guitar players of all levels having held the #1 position on the Apple App Store’s Top Paid Music category in recent weeks.

“Chordmaster has become so successful because of its accessibility,� said Jim D’Addario, CEO of D’Addario & Co., Inc., the parent company of the Planet Waves brand. “Players have thousands of chords at their fingertips at home, at rehearsal, in the studio, or wherever they may be. And when inspiration hits, finding the right chord or fingering is a matter of seconds.�

A perfect learning tool or songwriting companion, Chordmaster displays notes and fingerings on a virtual fret board and allows users to view each chord in every position up and down the guitar neck. Guitar players can even strum the virtual strings to play and hear each chord in pristine audio. The library, separated into root, chord type and chord variants, allows users to navigate to any chord easily and quickly and even comes complete with a “lefty mode� for the often-ignored left-hand guitarist.

Available now, users can simply log into their Apple App Store account and search Planet Waves to download the Chordmaster App for $1.99.

For more product information, please visit www.planetwaves.com/iphonechordmaster.

Pictured (L-R) are Elliot Scheiner; Janice Norton, Prism U.S. Operations Mgr.; Ed Cherney; Frank Oglethorpe, Prism U.S. Sales and Technical Specialist, and George Massenburg.

Prism Sound, manufacturer of premium-quality interfaces and converters for the recording and broadcast markets, has been granted Music Engineering & Technology Alliance certification for two of its products, the ADA-8XR multi-channel AD/DA converter and the Orpheus multi-channel FireWire computer interface.

Established in 2005 by renowned music producers and recording engineers Chuck Ainlay, Ed Cherney, Frank Filipetti, George Massenburg, Phil Ramone, Elliot Scheiner, and Al Schmit, the METAlliance is a collaborative community that allows producers, engineers and audio technology manufacturers to work together to ensure the highest standards of audio production.

Graham Boswell, sales and marketing director of Prism Sound, says: “It is a great honour to receive METAlliance certification for one product, but to receive it for two is very special. We do not mass produce electronics. All our products are specialised performance products built to offer high quality, flexibility and ease of use to the most discerning in the industry.”

Alongside platforms for research and development, standardization and education, METAlliance also works closely with manufacturers to evaluate and certify products that offer the highest levels of quality in the recording chain. To date, only a handful of products have achieved this accolade.

Multi-Grammy(r) winner Frank Filipetti used an Orpheus in conjunction with Cubase to record Carly Simon at her home in Martha’s Vineyard. He remarked,” The Prism Orpheus is a unique, ergonomic, sonic marvel wrapped up in a 1U case. If you’re looking for a one cable solution for your DAW, this is it.”

At Capitol Studios in Los Angeles, Al Schmitt has been using Prism Sound’s ADA-8XR converters to record Willy Nelson, Barbra Streisand and Diana Krall. “In my opinion,” he commented, “these are some of the best converters I have ever used. I love their transparency and the fact that they don’t color the sound at all. I also love the clarity of the audio I get when I use Prism Sound ADA-8XRs. Although I’m currently based in Los Angeles, I work at many studios around the world and wherever I go I try to make sure I have Prism Sound converters in the control room.”

METAlliance director Chuck Ainlay reports: “I’ve done some very extensive converter shootouts and in my opinion the hands down winner was the Prism ADA-8. Now that same quality is available in the smaller more affordable package of the Orpheus with some interesting and practical features.” George Massenburg added. “Prism converters raise the bar significantly for quality design and performance, reliability and flexibility.”

Prism Sound’s ADA-8XR is useful for producers, engineers and songwriters looking for quality results when recording, tracking & overdubbing, mixing to stereo or surround, mastering and monitoring. The ADA-8XR is appropriate for recording vocal, single instruments, drums or orchestra and is ideal for providing multiple outputs for external analog summing.

Introduced in 2007, Prism Sound’s Orpheus is a 1U, 19-inch rackmount 192kHz FireWire interface. The Orpheus offers a variety of features, including microphone pre-amps, customizable monitor control, various digital I/O and a complete foldback monitoring system. The flexibility of Orpheus makes it suitable for musicians, engineers, producers and re-mixers who are working in a project studio environment using Mac or PC-based music software. When it is necessary to transfer projects to a commercial recording studio, it is simple to integrate the interface with large-scale systems such as Pro Tools or native setups.

For more info about Prism Sound, visit: http://www.prismsound.com

For more info about the METAlliance, visit: http://www.metalliance.com

BRANSON, Missouri⎯The Mickey Gilley Theatre in Branson, MO is celebrating its 20th year as an entertainment venue, recently adding a Yamaha M7CL digital audio console to mark the occasion. With 39 hit songs under his belt, Gilley, who built the theatre back in 1989, placed 17 of the 39 songs at the number one spot on the country music charts. The theatre, which seats 1,000 people, plays host to Gilley himself five nights a week as well as an afternoon comedy show featuring Joey Riley. The venue has welcomed many entertainers over the years including Les Brown Jr. and the Band of Renown, Bob Anderson, and Johnny Lee, to name a few.

“The M7CL console has been absolutely amazing,� states Matthew Miles, front of house engineer. “At the time of purchase, our theatre in Branson offered four different shows a day, six days a week. I had been using two analog consoles for Mickey’s show along with a smaller 24-channel console as a sidecar at front of house for three other shows and as well as a fourth for monitors.� The theatre also has a complete video department where every show is filmed and a fifth analog console with a sidecar was used for a separate video mix. “The M7CL was able to replace ALL FIVE of the analog consoles, not to mention all the outboard equipment,� says Miles. “The audio quality is outstanding, and the ability to jump from show to show using a thumb drive is incredible. The console has been truly a dream come true for me.�

At the time of purchase, Miles said he was looking at several other consoles but kept coming back to the Yamaha M7CL because of the features offered at its price point. “This console is by far the best ‘bang for the buck’ out there,â€? he adds. Mickey’s show is using all 48 input channels, 15 monitor mixes, Left, Right and Center main outs, a matrix mix to video, and 32 tracks of direct out recording. “I’m also using all internal effects and processors, with no outboard gear.â€?

Miles said the console has been readied for the road for Gilley tour dates.

For more information on the Mickey Gilley Theatre, visit www.gilleys.com.

For more information on the Yamaha M7CL digital audio console, visit www.yamahaca.com.
-END-

Photo Credit: Tanner Dimetroff

About Yamaha Commercial Audio Systems, Inc.:
Yamaha Commercial Audio Systems, Inc. (YCAS) provides a full line of integrated professional audio products offering complete systems solutions for the broadcast, sound reinforcement/installed sound, touring, commercial recording, and post production markets. With the recent purchase of NEXO loudspeakers by Yamaha Corporation Japan, the company remains the official U.S. and Canadian distributor for all NEXO models. YCAS offers comprehensive in-house and field product training for its customers, a dedicated dealer network, and 24/7 technical support.

Affordable and portable system delivers exceptional sound quality, more creative mixing options and compatibility with leading third-party tools
Avid® (NASDAQ: AVID) has introduced Digidesign® VENUE SC48: a fully-integrated audio and processing live sound solution developed for small to mid-sized houses of worship, clubs, and corporate A/V companies, as well as touring customers. As a cost-effective and compact system, this solution delivers exceptional sound quality and compatibility with industry standard professional audio and video systems. VENUE SC48 also combines I/O, digital signal processing and tactile control and offers built-in support for a number of professional audio plug-ins that provide customers with more creative mixing options.

Building upon the industry-leading VENUE family of professional live sound systems, the VENUE SC48 system delivers the same sound quality and clarity customers around the world have come to expect from VENUE, in a compact footprint designed to meet the needs of customers with smaller to mid-sized live sound applications. The console introduces several groundbreaking features designed to enhance and streamline the mixing process including:

· Professional Plug-In Support enables customers to install and use software plug-ins from Digidesign and a number of third party developers to easily and instantly re-create and recall an artist’s signature studio sound during a “live� performance.

· Direct Connection to Pro Tools LE® makes it simple to record shows and perform Virtual Soundcheck: a timesaving process that enables customers to playback and mix tracks recorded from a previous performance using a computer connected via VENUE SC48’s built-in USB port.

· Channel Control allows easy access, display and adjustment to any channel parameter with the single click of a button. In addition, any eight parameters can be assigned to the color-coded framework for immediate access during the mix.

· Center Flex Channel provides immediate access to any key input, such as a lead vocalist’s microphone, without having to go through fader layers.

· VCA and Group Spill provides easy control and quick access to grouped channels within a mix by focusing the control surface layout to match the logical groupings created by VCA and Group style mixing.

“The sonic quality of the SC48 far surpasses any other digital desk I’ve mixed on and has really helped us improve our finished product,â€? said Eric Kibbe, audio manager and mixer of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif. “Our services often change on the fly, and the size, flexibility and layout of SC48 enables me to work more quickly to address things in the mixes that were never before possible.â€?

All VENUE systems, including the VENUE SC48, Mix Rack, Profile and D-Show® console, use the same VENUE D-Show software, allowing customers to easily transition show files between any system in the VENUE product line within a familiar interface. And with VENUE D-Show 2.8.1 software – available in June to registered VENUE system owners for $149 USD via authorized dealers – customers can take advantage of several new workflow innovations, popular user-requested features and other enhancements to increase workflow and mixing efficiency across all VENUE systems.

“We realize that our wide spectrum of customers have different requirements. With the VENUE SC48, we’ve been able to advance our popular VENUE platform to meet the specific needs of customers in smaller to mid-sized applications, at an aggressive price point,� said Tex Schenkkan, Avid’s vice president and general manager, audio. “By expanding the current portfolio of the VENUE product family, the solution’s open plug-in architecture also enables our customers to integrate the console with industry-leading creative tools, enhancing the live sound experience.�

Availability

VENUE SC48 is available now. To learn more about VENUE SC48, click here. For pricing information, please contact your local Avid salesperson or reseller.

About Avid

Avid creates the digital audio and video technology used to make the most listened to, most watched and most loved media in the world – from the most prestigious and award-winning feature films, music recordings, television shows, live concert tours and news broadcasts, to music and movies made at home. Some of Avid’s most influential and pioneering solutions include Media Composer®, Pro Tools®, Avid Unity™, Interplay®, Oxygen 8, Sibelius® and Pinnacle Studio™. For more information about Avid solutions and services, visit www.avid.com, del.icio.us, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube; connect with Avid on Facebook; or subscribe to Avid Industry Buzz.

© 2009 Avid Technology, Inc. All rights reserved. Product features, specifications, systems requirements and availability are subject to change without notice. All prices are USMSRP for the U.S. and Canada only and are subject to change without notice. Contact your local Avid office or reseller for prices outside the U.S. and Canada. Avid, the Avid Logo, Digidesign, D-Show, Pinnacle Studio, Avid Unity, Interplay, Media Composer, Pro Tools, Pro Tools LE, and Sibelius are trademarks or registered trademarks of Avid Technology, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States and/or other countries. The Interplay name is used with the permission of Interplay Entertainment Corp., which bears no responsibility for Avid products. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Mumbai, India – May 2009… Written and directed by Abhishek Kapoor and produced by Farhan Akhtar and Riteish Sidhwani, Excel Entertainment’s hit film Rock On! is a story is about four friends who start a rock band in college. They almost make it big, but egos clash and they go their separate ways until ten years later when they re-group to perform on stage once again. Released in August of 2008, Rock On! has been highly successful—so much in fact, that at the recent 54th Filmfare Awards (India’s equivalent of the Oscars), Vinod Subramanian, the film’s location sound mixer, received the award for Best Sound. For a film of this nature, capturing high quality sound is more essential than ever, and helping him make it all come together was his wireless microphone equipment from Lectrosonics. more

Famed PBS Kids TV Show Remade for the 21st Century

New York, NY – May 7, 2009 – Beatstreet Productions has finished audio post-production for 35 episodes of a new version of the classic children’s TV series, “The Electric Company” for PBS. The series combines a 15-minute narrative storyline that is interspersed with segments that include curricular clusters of music videos, sketch comedy, animation and short films. It features special guests including Whoopi Goldberg, Tiki Barber, Jack McBrayer, Wyclef Jean and original songs from Ne-Yo.

“Recording Ne-Yo was a real treat,” explains Beatstreet engineer Jeff Malinowski. “Often, tracking high-profile talent can be hit or miss but he was a true professional and was genuinely excited about the project.”

Beatstreet’s Matt Longoria handled Sound Design and Mixing for the series. “The show’s polished camera work, slick graphics, and beautiful animations demanded a compelling soundscape, which we were happy to provide. I am especially proud of the transition segments. They feature cool grooves, beats, and fun sound effects that mesh with the animations perfectly to segue the show between segments. The transitions, and many other segments in the show heavily utilize Spectrasonics Instruments Plug-ins: Stylus RMX, and Omnisphere. I have found them to be indispensable tools for composition and sound design. We made the sound design as rich as possible, while at the same time using sound effects to focus kids attention on the lesson at hand. An indispensable item is our Digidesign Icon D-Control. The D-Control has many useful and intuitive features that allow me to mix quickly and efficiently.” more

A customized AX364 enclosure is key to powerful and highly intelligible sound at Citi Field

Whitinsville, MA, USA – May 5, 2009 – Mets fans will never miss a word when they see their favorite team play at the new Citi Field in Flushing, Queens, New York, thanks to an EAW sound system that’s as “amazin’� as the Mets themselves (to borrow the Mets’ first manager Casey Stengel’s colorful adjective for the team). Over 550 EAW MK and AX series boxes fill the bowl of the 42,000-seat stadium, which opened on April 13, 2009. The systems integrator was TSI Global Companies, LLC, and it was designed by consultants WJHW. The result is a highly focused system that is consistent in quality of sound and intelligibility from the top row to the field boxes. Employing EAW ensures that, from a sound point of view, everyone has a great seat.

The key element of the massive and complex sound system is a customized version of EAW’s full-range AX364-210 Arrayable Install Loudspeakers with 60×40 horn, modified to fire simultaneously forward, down and to the rear. A pair of 10-inch woofers was added to the cabinet, aimed downward to cancel low-frequency buildup in what is, essentially, an architectural bass trap. Three of these precisely modified enclosures are installed at the clubhouse level, one of the most challenging spaces in a stadium of this design. Other notable aspects of the system include a large number of under-balcony speakers. These units make certain that the sound in Citi Field is beamed to hard-to-reach seats under overhanging tiers with the same clarity and intelligibility as everywhere else in the stadium. Furthermore, the system is delayed vertically through the upper and middle-tier levels, with delays ranging from 35 ms to 95 ms, computed using acclaimed SMAART software. Smaller clusters made up of various combinations of EAW MK5396, MK5364 and MK2396 2-Way Full Range Installation Loudspeaker enclosures serve seats on the field’s main level and outfield seating sections.

“This was an immensely complex and challenging system, engineered to accommodate a sophisticated architectural design, and EAW products are at the core of the solution,� says Paul Murdick, Vice President of A/V for systems integrator TSI Global. “The modifications that EAW were able to execute on their AX364 enclosure met the specifications laid out by WJHW to a ‘T.’ As a result, those boxes are key to the overall consistency of the sound throughout the stadium, even in challenging locations. And the SMAART software made certain that the time alignments were precise and consistent from top to bottom. Thanks to EAW, there truly isn’t a bad seat in the house.�

For more information, please visit www.eaw.com.

Celebrity Sponsor Glen Ballard Praises Online School.

Pictured at Record Plant Recording Studios in Los Angeles is renowned producer/composer Glen Ballard. Photo by David Goggin.

Berkleemusic.com, the online continuing education division of the distinguished Berklee College of Music, has announced that May 10 is the deadline to apply for Celebrity Online Scholarships. The scholarship program is designed to reward and assist outstanding students who demonstrate superior academic performance studying at Berkleemusic. Each recipient of the Celebrity Scholarships will receive an award of $1,250 to be used towards paying their tuition and helping them achieve their goals.

Berklee has partnered with a growing list of celebrities to help promising online students achieve their dream of a life in music. Celebrity sponsors supporting music education through their work include such artists as Gloria Estefan, Steve Vai, Bill Cosby, Mark Mothersbaugh, and acclaimed producer/composer Glen Ballard, who explained, “Berklee has always had the reputation of not only being an excellent music school, but also one which is really in touch with contemporary music and all other kinds of music, too. Berklee gives you all the experience that academia can provide, but it also gives you the extras, the real connection to real music which leads to people performing music and making a profession out of it.”

Classically-trained Ballard is without a doubt one of the true success stories in the history of music. Through a career that spans more than two decades and accounts for an extraordinary 150 million albums sold, Ballard has exercised a unique instinct for what makes a song memorable, utilizing his composing and producing talents to create music that communicates directly with the listener.

“There is a fundamental difference in the way that Berklee approaches and differentiates itself from lots of other great schools,” Ballard continues. “It’s the practical application of what you are learning, and the sense that it isn’t just theoretical. That sensibility combined with expanding the campus in the online school to reach the entire world, is one of the greatest gifts imaginable. Going to Berklee has always been a goal of a lot of great musicians, and it still is. Access to that great experience has never been greater — that’s why I am so excited about this online program.”

ABOUT BERKLEEMUSIC.COM
Berkleemusic.com is the continuing education division of Berklee College of Music, delivering online access to Berklee’s acclaimed curriculum from anywhere in the world. Berkleemusic’s award-winning online courses and certificate programs are accredited and taught by the college’s world-renowned faculty, providing lifelong learning opportunities to people interested in music and working in the music industry. As the business of music continues to move online, Berkleemusic is taking a leadership role in educating the next generation of producers, performers, and entrepreneurs on this evolving industry landscape. Berkleemusic’s students come from over 80 countries around the world, and include Grammy(r) award winners, managers, artists, publishers, music business entrepreneurs and major international touring acts.

http://www.berkleemusic.com

For info about the scholarship program:
http://www.berkleemusic.com/scholarship

FORT WAYNE — Leading audio retailer Sweetwater has received a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum Certification for its new Forth Wayne, IN facility, which boasts three new recording studios and a presentation theatre designed by Russ Berger Design Group (RBDG). more