As promised, stuff about the Studio!
Dick set up his vibes, the xylophone and congas, and I set up the MOTU and all its little friends. He's had some great sessions and I even managed to catch some of it on the MOTU and computer.
The vibes are the silvery instrument to the right.
Oh, if you don't know what a MOTU is - it's a little gizmo about 15 inches long, about an inch and a half high and about 7 inches deep. On the front are dials and switches and lights and on the back are about eleventy-thousand jacks. You plug microphones or amplifiers into the back and adjust the levels on the front. There is a "firewire" that attaches it to the computer. It allows me to record Dick's music digitally on the computer and then modify it (when I figure out that part of the software). Mostly we record a track of drums, then play it through headphones while Dick then plays vibes and we record that on a second track. Then we listen to both tracks, and I say "Wow", and Dick complains about clinkers.
Me working at the computer and MOTU under the loft.
Anyhow, this is one of the main purposes of the studio - to work on recording music. It's also a place where we can spread out and work on various projects and keep our "works in progress" progressing without having to put everything away at dinner time.
View from the loft
More news on the studio! We got someone to do the insulation and put up the studs for the interior walls. He's got a good start on things, and will be able to put in the windows when they arrive. He also explained why nobody wants to put in the windows - the steel skin of the building has to be removed, cut and replaced. No wonder Cleary passed on it!!! But we are seeing progress so that's improving my outlook for now.
