Recording Archives - Lisa Hilton Music

pianist lisa hilton wearing a hat in front of a piano

Inside Capitol Studios

September 24, 2020 by Lisa Hilton

Al Schmitt, Capitol Studios, Chandler Harrod, Producer, Recording

The first time I went to Capitol Studios I was so excited to work such an iconic building, and it’s still exciting twelve years later: it is absolutely impressive and fabulously cool. The architecture itself is an integral part of the Hollywood myth and seeing it’s record shaped design always lifts my spirit when I spot it from the freeway, (something I need after morning traffic!) The mid-century landmark was finished in 1956 and Wikipedia states: “The building’s design is based on the graduate school drawings of Lou Naidorf who, as the primary architect, designed the first circular office building when he was 24 years old.” Inside classic black and white photos line the halls showing Frank, Nat, Tony and others.

The building is immaculate, so walking into the studios it’s easy to imagine the many top recording artists working there throughout it’s long history. Every year is a different experience for me – one year trumpeter Chris Botti and singer/actor Eric Benet both popped in the studio at the same time. Another year a male voice commented “Who is that playing the piano?” I turned around and recognized the singer John Mayer, (he’s very tall). One year there was opera in Studio A and the Rockettes blasting Christmas carols out of Studio B, the hallways awash with wacky song mashups! This year, of course it’s different, because Capitol is still officially closed – the friendly hellos, waves and hugs are missed, but we were thankful to be back at work in the studio again.

I use three studios for my albums: one to record the music, (this year at The Village Studios), and I then use Capitol to mix the music. (To finish the album I use Lurssen Mastering). The mix engineers, Al Schmitt and Chandler Harrod, combine, or mix, the already recorded sound into the most pleasing audio. For example, as the producer I told them that I was concerned about the cymbals overpowering on some tracks, so Chandler toned them down. In other spots, Al adjusted the bass so we can hear Luques Curtis’s cool solo better, or the very last detail on Rudy Royston’s delicate drum end. This is done by adjusting the controls on the console, and of course decades of audio experience.

Mixing with Al is actually the easiest job I have as a producer – when someone has 23 Grammys I know I’m in the best of hands, right? For the last and final step, the mastering engineers will balance the overall audio of the entire album so that one track is not louder than another for example and puts the correct spacing between tracks.

Soon the new music will be ready to send out to with the world. I’m always very happy that the work is mostly done, and I can hardly wait for to share with everyone!

Enjoy your day,

Lisa

IN THE STUDIO

August 19, 2020 by Lisa Hilton

Luques Curtis, Recording, Rudy Royston, Social Distancing, Studio

Yep, we did it! We recorded a new jazz album, and it was the culmination of six creative months composing during an unprecedented time in America’s history. Whew!

This year recording new music, like everything else, was different of course. Every studio date seems like a miracle to have the band/engineers/studio/piano all available on the same day. The logistics – more like a complex dance – to find a studio that was open and had good safety procedures in place, were more involved than in the past, but thankfully everything finally came together. I decided on recording at The Village Studios in West Los Angeles this year because they are a top studio, (with an illustrious history), and also have approval from the City of Los Angeles to remain open despite any lock down in California. In addition, they were very kind to me during my evacuation from the Woolsey fire almost two years ago, and I like to work with kind people.

Despite all the preliminary work, scheduling, and pandemic precautions, once we enter the studio, everything changes for musicians. We are able to focus 100% on our art, our instruments, the moment, and sound itself. You do hear stories about musicians having difficult times in recording sessions, and there is stress to get things “right”, but I love the act of creating music in the moment with the highest quality sound. Awesome bandmates Rudy Royston and Luques Curtis, top engineer Chandler Harrod, (with Karl Wingate assisting), perfect studio acoustics, and of course, the big nine foot Steinway D that was loaned to me for recording. (This year I was told the piano was a favorite of film composer John Williams – well, it was fabulous!)

So, how did we do? Hmmm… I have a rule that I don’t “judge” until I’m all done. In the studio your senses and emotions are heightened: I think the worst thing you can do is judge under those kinds of conditions, because the tendency is to think it’s the best thing, or the worst thing you’ve ever heard! So in the studio we play at the top of our abilities with freedom from over-analyzing. Those are the euphoric moments for me – when the music comes alive after months of thought, trials, and efforts magically blossoming in real time into a creation we will share with the world. To say that it is an incredibly cool experience is a huge understatement – those are the moments the composer lives for – it feels like the birth of music itself.

Enjoy these last couple weeks of summer,
Lisa