David

The 58^th Annual Grammy Awards are approaching, and while the announcements have us all buzzing, all of us at MSR would like to  announce our pride and involvement in several of the nominated projects, and further send out the very best luck to the nominees that made our studios home this past year:

Best R&B Album:

Black Messiah – D’Angelo and The Vanguard

MSR Studios Assistant Engineer Mike Layos

Best Rap Album

2014 Forest Hills Drive – J. Cole

MSR Studios Assistant Engineers Raphael Lee and Jack Mason

Best Rap Performance:

Apparently – J. Cole

MSR Studios Assistant Engineers Raphael Lee and Jack Mason

Best R&B Song:

Really Love – D’Angelo & Kendra Foster

MSR Studios Assistant Engineer Mike Layos

Record Of The Year:

Really Love – D’Angelo And The Vanguard

MSR Studios Assistant Engineer Mike Layos

Best Musical Theater Album

Something Rotten!

MSR Studios Assistant Engineers Dan Fyfe, Raphael Lee, and Jack Mason

Each session went by quickly and flawlessly, displaying the true quality and excellence of each professional’s performance skills off the stage and in the recording studio.The 2016 Grammy Awards will certainly be an event to watch and we look forward to congratulating our nominees!

Congratulations to J. Cole, Idina Menzel, (and next week) D’Angelo! Working with each artist on all of these chart topping albums have been nothing short of a pleasure. We’d also like to congratulate some of our team on this stepping stone: Mike Layos (Assistant Engineer for D’Angelo), Jack Mason & Raphael Lee (Assistant Engineers for J. Cole), Dan Fyfe & Alex Hendrickson (Assistant Engineers for Idina Menzel).

Ladies and Gentleman, Broadway stars and everyone in between, the 2014 Tony Award nominees have just been released! Amongst all the spectacular shows in Theatre District, we here at MSR are honoured to have “played a supporting role” in the following Tony nominated musicals and plays:

Aladdin:

Best Musical; Best Book of a Musical; Best Original Score Written for Theatre; Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical; Best Choreography

Beautiful- The Carole King Musical:

Best Musical; Best Book of a Musical; Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical; Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical; Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical; Best Orchestrations; Best Sound Design of a Musical

A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder:

Best Musical; Best Book of a Musical; Best Original Score Written for Theatre; Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical (2 nominations); Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical; Best Direction of a Musical; Best Orchestrations; Best Scenic Design of a Musical; Best Costume Design of a Musical

Bullets Over Broadway:

Best Book of a Musical; Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical; Best Choreography; Best Orchestrations; Best Scenic Design of a Musical; Best Costume Design of a Musical

If/Then:

Best Original Score Written for Theatre; Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical

The 2014 Tony Awards will air on Sunday, June 8^th at 9pm (EST). Until then, we wish nothing but good luck and sold out performances for all of our nominees!

The 56^th Annual Grammy Awards are less than one week away, and while our fingers are crossed in anticipation for the results, all of us here at MSR would like to send out a BIG good luck (and hopeful congratulations) to the nominees that made our studios their recording sanctuary just this past year:

Best Musical Theater Album:

          Kinky Boots
          Matilda the Musical
          Motown: The Musical

Best Rap Album:

Yeezus– Kanye West

 Best Urban Contemporary Album:

One: In the Chamber – Salaam Remi
New York: A Love Story – Mack Wilds

Best Jazz Instrumental Album:

Guided Tour – The New Gary Burton Quartet
Pushing the World Away – Kenny Garrett

It was an MSR Studios takeover when Matilda, Kinky Boots, and Motown all came in to record cast albums for their critically-acclaimed Broadway shows. Each session went by quickly and flawlessly, displaying the true quality and excellence of each professional’s performance skills off the stage and in the recording studio.

In our freshly renovated Studio B, newly retired two-time Grammy award winning producer/engineer Joe Ferla mixed Kenny Garret’s new album Pushing The World Away. Gary Burton’s latest release, Guided Tour, was recorded in Studio A by Pete Karam over the course of three days.

Salaam Remi kept himself busy here in Studio C throughout the year working various projects, including both his own album, One: In The Chamber, as well as Mack Wilds’ New York: A Love Story. Aiming for Grammy number 12, Kanye West had engineer Ken Lewis come in to record the choir tracks on the song “Awesome” for Best Rap Album nominee Yeezus.

The 2014 Grammy Awards will certainly be an event to watch and we look forward to congratulating our nominees!

Clients of MSR Studios fared well at this year’s Grammy Awards, winning nine awards across genres spanning from Folk and Jazz, to Urban/R&B, to Broadway.

Beyonce’s single “Love On Top” won a Grammy for Best Traditional R&B Perfomance. The song, featuring production by The-Dream and Shea Taylor, was record during her near 6-month stay at the studio in studios A and C.

Esperanza Spalding’s Radio Music Society took home two Grammys, one for Best Jazz Vocal Album and one for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalists (“City of Roses”).  The record was mixed over the course of a week by Joe Ferla in studio B.

Frank Ocean’s debut, Channel Orange, was awarded a Grammy in the category of Best Urban Contemporary Album. Various overdubs and editing were done in studio C by producer Malay.

Chick Corea and Gary Burton’s Hot House won two Grammys for Best Improvised Jazz Solo and Best Instrumental Composition (“Mozart Goes Dancing”). Hot House was mixed by Bernie Kirsch on our Euphonix System 5 in studio B.

Once: A New Musical, produced by Steve Epstein and mixed by Richard King in studio B, took the Grammy for Best Musical Theatre Album, a category in which MSR was proud to have taken part of the tracking and/or mixing in 3 out of 5 of the Nominees.

And finally, the categories of Best Engineered Album (Non- Classical) and Best Folk Album went to The Goat Rodeo Sessions, which featured Yo-Yo Ma, Chris Thile, Edgar Meyer and Stuart Duncan. The album was produced by Steve Epstein and Richard King in studio B.

Congratulations to all the winners, we at MSR are incredibly proud to have been a part of these great projects.

Happy New Year!

Looking back on 2012 and forward to 2013, we at MSR Studios are incredibly proud to have taken part in 15 Grammy nominated projects spanning across various musical styles and 20 categories. This list is a testament to the high caliber of artists, producers, and engineers who find a home in our facility. Congratulations to all of the 2013 Grammy nominees for their creativity, and thank you for helping make 2012 a successful year at MSR Studios.

And the nominees are:

Beyoncé / 4
Best Traditional R&B Performance

Bruce Springsteen / Wrecking Ball
Best Rock Album, Best Rock Performance, Best Rock Song, MusiCares Person of the Year

2 Chainz / Based on a T.R.U. Story
Best Rap Album

Frank Ocean / Channel Orange
Album of the Year, Record of the Year

Once: A New Musical
Best Musical Theater Album

Kanye West ft. Big Sean, Pusha T, and 2 Chainz / “Mercy”
Best Rap Performance

Jay-Z & Kanye West / Watch The Throne
Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, Best Rap Song

The Roots / Undun
Best Rap Album

Gary Burton & Chick Corea / Hot House
Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Best Improvised Solo

Esperanza Spalding / Radio Music Society
Best Jazz Vocal Album, Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist

Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer, and Chris Thile / The Goat Rodeo Sessions
Best Folk Album, Best Engineered Album (Non-Classical)

Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
Best Musical Theater Album

Newsies
Best Musical Theater Album

The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn
Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media

Smash / “Let Me Be Your Star”
Best Song Written for Visual Media