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Issue #61 – Mentor News
by L. Swift and Jeff McQ
In industry circles, he’s known by the moniker “Sax DMA,” but most people just call him Sax.
A major producer/engineer in the heart of New York City, Sax started off as a rock guitarist but soon found himself thrust into the heart of New York’s burgeoning R&B/hip-hop movement in the early ’90s, first working with artists like Busta Rhymes and A Tribe Called Quest as part of Jive Records, then with Missy Elliott, Wu-Tang Clan and Lauryn Hill as a tech for the world-famous Quad Studios in the heart of Times Square.
By the time Sax began mentoring students for the Recording Connection several years ago, he had already taught thousands of people on his own as part of Quad Studios for more than a decade. Today, he works out of Terminus Studios (formerly Tainted Blue), occupying the top-floor penthouse in the same Times Square building as Quad Studios.
Sax is generous with his praise when it comes to his top apprentices. “When Kristen [Bonano] came in to be interviewed, she didn’t know anything about the studio,” he says. “Just like me, [she] didn’t know anything, but read every Beatles book and Led Zeppelin book about how they recorded all this stuff, and knew all this equipment…I was blown away. I was like, ‘How do you even . . .’ I called the school immediately. I said I want her in my class. Now she’s learning these things and she’s just picking it up so quick.
“And then there’s Frank [Poulin],” he continues. “He’s just that guy that you want in your recording studio. He’s already got the demeanor, the personality, the attitude, the humility. He’s just a pleasure to be around and he’s just ambitious as hell.”
Sax says he’s also quite impressed with 18-year-old Marcus Charles. “He just absorbs stuff so quickly,” he says. “I teach him something and as soon as I tell him once, he’s just got it. Now already he’s on Lesson 13, I think, and he’s tracking Sharrief… He’s like a natural.”
Speaking of Sharrief, Sax is currently working on a major release album for the AMG/Universal R&B artist—and not only has he involved several Recording Connection apprentices in its production, but he also plans to share credit with them! “All my students, at least the top four who have been ambitious since the beginning…they’re going to get album credits for this,” he says.
So what makes an apprentice stand out for Sax? “I tell them, it’s 50% skill and it’s 50% personality,” he says. “I can teach you the skills in school, but I can’t teach you personality. So you’ve got to kind of have some of that on your side too…From my experience as a studio manager, I did not care what your resume looked like. I did not care where you came from. Within three seconds of coming off that elevator, I knew whether I was going to hire you based on your vibe, your presentation and your personality.”
Having taught for years before becoming a Recording Connection mentor, Sax couldn’t be more clear with his opinion about the mentor-apprentice approach: “Recording Connection is an incredible program,” he says. “Their whole structure is just brilliant…You are teaching in a facility, in a recording studio that’s already established. Because of the no overhead facility, in all these States, it’s the cheapest, most affordable school, at least that I’ve ever come across…in my personal opinion, this is the best way possible to get an idea of what to expect, because you are in the studio environment.”
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