McMinnville High School (MHS) is preparing to launch a brand-new, state-of-the-art recording studio on campus. The project is part of the new performing arts area upgrade made possible by the 2016 Mac Schools Bond and a Rutherford grant.
Led by MHS Vocal Music director Dana Libonati, the studio will be open to high school students for free recording sessions expected to run between 3:30 – 5 p.m. on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. The long-term goal of the studio is that it would be open to staff and the community for a small recording fee.
“This is likely the only high school in the state with such a studio,” said Libonati. “We were lucky to have the additional space with the bond construction and the grant for equipment from the Rutherford family, which also allowed us to contract with a local recording professional to help design the equipment setup for the studio.”
The studio features
- An engineering room with Apple computer, Pro Tools software, playback speakers, interfaces, headphone amplifier and more.
- A recording room with a full drum set with drum microphones, a digital piano, a guitar amp, a bass amp, four vocal mics, a 20-channel snake, headphones, music stands, carpet, sound-proofing panels and more.
The studio will be run by two student engineers, Graham Sommers and Scott Winkenweder, who applied for the positions. Both juniors, the new engineers have started the training process, learning the equipment and how it works.
The studio is expected to launch in November.
10/18/2019