Each year the MKS Studio Vivacé Select Choir records a song for a music video. Tesco Productions has had the privilege of providing the music production services for a fourth year. The Vivacé Select Choir is composed of the more advanced MKS Studio vocal students, and their annual music video provides them with a professional audio recording experience as well as the making of a video. In addition, some of the students participated in the unloading/reloading of the recording gear and also assisted in the setup/tear down. This year’s selected song accompaniment was prerecorded in the studio and then played back for the recording performance at a local church. There are two solo pieces and a descant in the song as well. The choir is directed by Monica Kofi of MKS Studio. We’re looking forward to the completed music video.

Most often in recording lingo a tune-up means getting an instrument or vocal on pitch. However, it can also apply to the space in which a recording takes place. Such is the case right now as Tesco Productions is fine-tuning the main recording room to better match spoken word recording – namely audiobooks.

The custom designed wall panels I made 40 years ago which are a combination of farm technology and fairly standard acoustic materials have served well, but it’s time to be more precise. I and a friend did a lot of change-out this past year with the replacement of some 40 year old ceiling foam panels and installing additional treatment. However, there were still a few problem frequency areas that sometimes popped their tones out and it was time to advance to a new level. After considerable research I arrived at professionally designed panels from GIK Acoustics that focus specifically on the remaining problem areas. Since I also desire to maintain the room as a music recording space I didn’t want to do over-treatment, and these panels should match that task as well. I’ll do an update when they’re all in place.

The middle of last month (December) I received an invite to again record an audiobook for ONE Audiobooks. I readily accepted and this week Rachel Jordan came in for three days and recorded a delightful book she has authored, if the ocean has a soul. It’s quite a unique writing for our Midwest region since it pertains to Marine Biology, but Rachel is very qualified to write on the topic and that’s only part of her story. It’s greater scope is addressing the various issues surrounding Science and Faith – including can/should they be in harmony and if so – how? Can one inform the other, what evidence and resources do we have in both these areas, do people have responsibilities to our natural world, and how do we ultimately arrive at Truth?

Growing up in a Christian family, being exposed at an early age to the ocean, arduously studying to be a Marine Biologist, searching/waiting for a job, and engulfed in the underwater world through many sea dives all caused Rachel to formulate her nature/creation perspectives. Her work at multiple choral reefs became a key eye opener. The sea world consists of countless ecosystems that are often experiencing severe adversity. With environmental changes caused by a myriad of factors, she watched helplessly as entire reef areas died even though she and teams of people applied all they knew to keep them alive. All of these experiences and the people she met along the way informed her response as a Christian to what our relationship should be to the natural world around us – or is it just “natural” and is it just “around us”? What pieces of God’s original creation are still evident, and what role do we have in understanding, appreciating, and preserving it? And then ultimately there’s eternity. How does the natural world fit into that future? How do we?

An excerpt from if the ocean has a soul states this. “As we become attuned to the heart of our Creator and learn of his intention for creation (including us), we can take hope in the fact that the original design of earth now teaches us of heaven, the Kingdom of God into which we will someday be completely restored.” In the meantime there’s a whole lot we can learn from this book about marine life, our faith, and integrating all areas of our lives into a cohesive response to our Creator. This book is well researched, written and read, and it was a great experience to come alongside Rachel and ONE Audiobooks to bring its words into oral form. You can find information about Rachel’s newsletter, fun nature stories and a link to obtain the book here.