Two musicians announced today that they’ll be launching a new recording studio in Fredericton. East coast music fans should have no trouble recognizing the partnership behind Marshall Studios: Jay Merrill of Earthbound/Gordon Gets Lost and Stephen Lewis of The Big Band of Fun.
The musicians have been heavily involved in New Brunswick’s music scene. Both Merrill and Lewis have been involved with the organization of music festivals including Folly Fest and countless other projects and collaborations. Now they’re hoping that those experiences will translate into a studio that will best serve the needs of other developing musicians.
“I am so excited to announce the start of Marshall Studios, a new avenue for music production, creativity and learning in the city of Fredericton,” posted Lewis in a Facebook announcement today.
The pair hope to offer a variety of services from the studio, including rehearsal space, several styles of recording, video production and editing, and music lessons and workshops.
Lewis has been working with New Brunswick’s education system to provide music workshops for students. He says that his hope for the studio is that it will provide an opportunity for learning and community.
“Jay is the man for all the recording and it’s his skills that are going to make it really great,” says Lewis. “I’m hoping to make it educational and useful to the local scene.”
Lewis says the opportunity to put together the studio was a matter of a lot of things coming together all at once. The space the studio now occupies on Fredericton’s Wilsey Road had been rented by a friend who suddenly had to move to Ottawa.
“It was already renovated, so he just needed to rent it and I was the lucky renter. And obviously Jay has helped me immensely through my musical career. It only made sense for us to use the space together.”
Merrill, who has ten years experience in the recording industry, beginning with a bluegrass album for the Bocabec Mountain Boys, studied Audio Engineering and Production at daVinci College (formerly The Centre for Arts and Technology), and after graduating, he returned to the college as an instructor. With the recent dissolution of the college’s recording program, the obvious solution for Merrill was a studio of his own.
Recently he’s been recording albums for The Torinos, Womb To Tomb, The Falling Leaves and Jamie Comeau & The Crooked Teeth, and producing live videos for The Big Band Of Fun, Patrick Murray and lots of other great New Brunswick talent.
“It’s kind of like a product for musicians by musicians,” says Lewis. “We are a part of the local scene and we want to make a bigger together. We plan to be really inclusive and try new and exciting things and also be a place for learning.”
The studio is currently open for business and can be found at 475 Wilsey Road in Fredericton, New Brunswick.