The studio portion of the program for Nordic Music Week 2009 is focusing on the changes the studio business has under gone since the advent of consumer digital recording. The rise to prominence of the “project studio” has allowed artists to record themselves able to take the time to create lavish productions without the expense of renting a professional studio. This in turn has hurt professional studios with rooms having to sell off equipment, layoff engineers, or close altogether to adjust for the loss of business. Production in the “project studio” however less expensive, can come at the cost of lower recording quality due to the lack of education and experience offered by professionals. NMW will address these issues by the following activities:

Sound on Sound, British technical journal will start the program off with a seminar by Hugh Robjohns on the impact of the BBC on the recording business in England and how that has changed after the rise of the project studio. This seminar will be followed by a general technical Q&A with both Robjohns and Paul White ranging from acoustical treatment issues to mixing.

Nick Sansano, US producer and engineer (Sonic Youth, The Bomb Squad) will hold master classes on recording drums, and mixing, both with an emphasis on the use of compression.

Group seminars on production with an international panel of producers from Denmark, the US, and Norway will compare and contrast production approaches from the “old school” studio approach to the newer project studio approach and discuss how these different worlds can use their various strengths.

Invitation only conversation between industry professionals discussing the changes in the industry and how the “old school” model and the “project studio” model can co-exist and benefit from each others strengths by discussing transitions, budgetary concerns, business models, and how to take advantage of newer technologies.

Please click here to see what else is happening at Nordic Music Week.