Seth MacFarlane & Norah Jones, Suzanne Vega and All Time Low Recording at Avatar
Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane is recording an album of 1940s and 50s-era Broadway standards for Universal Republic Records, working with producer and arranger Joel McNeely.
MacFarlane and McNeely recently recorded for the project in Avatar’s Studio B, joined by Norah Jones, with engineer Frank Fillipetti. Rick Kwan assisted on the recording sessions.
The album is reportedly being produced using recording techniques from the 40s-50s era — MacFarlane singing live backed by an orchestra and big band all in the same room. They’ve been recording at Capitol Records Studios in Hollywood, utilizing the same microphones, mic pre-amps and signal chains (to analog tape) used in recordings made there by Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole and Rosemary Clooney.
Naturally, when in NYC, they booked time at Avatar where the production could continue in that style with much (if not all) of the same gear.
Suzanne Vega's back in the studio, recording with producer/engineer Joe Blaney
In other recent sessions at Avatar Studios…
– Alicia Keys recorded in Studio A for an interactive Music Experience project by Sony Wonder Technology Lab with producer Chuck Fishbein, engineer Jeff “Jedi Master” Jones (also assisted by Kwan).
– Randy Travis and Kristin Chenoweth recorded in Studio G with producer/engineer Elliot Scheiner assisted by Bob Mallory.
– Suzanne Vega recorded in Studio A with engineer/producer Joe Blaney.
– All Time Low recorded in Studio C with producer David Kahne, engineer Roy Hendrickson, assisted by Aki Nishimura.
– More music for Glee was mixed in Studio G with producer Tommy Faragher, engineer Bryan Smith, assisted by Charlie Kramsky.
– Tracking sessions for the Mildred Pierce (HBO) score continued in Studio A with composer/producer Carter Burwell and engineer Todd Whitelock assisted by Rick Kwan and Fernando Lodeiro.
– Jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut recorded in Studio B with producer Todd Barkan, engineer Katherine Miller assisted by Charlie Kramsky.
– Jazz guitarist Steve Khan mixed in Studio C with engineer James Farber assisted by Rick Kwan.
– And The Great Unknown recorded in Studio C with children for an ASCAP and America Scores (a nonprofit group that runs after-school programs) songwriting project produced by Sue Devine and engineered by Rick Kwan.