Let’s rewind. 1985. I was 14 years old and growing up in Brazil. My late father was a pilot and he used to bring my family goodies from the United States. At the time getting presents from abroad was just about the coolest things in the world. I asked for a radio/tape player once and I absolutely adored it. It had two tape decks so I could make mixed tapes for my buddies and I. I noticed once that the machine had a tiny little hole at the top and for some reason I guessed it was a microphone. I proceeded to press play and record and there it was, my first “microphone.” I was also learning the guitar at the time so I started to record myself and play it back so I could really listen to my mistakes and improve. And all a the sudden, out of nowhere, I had the idea of borrowing my sister’s tape deck. Now I could play back my recorded guitar part out of her tape deck, play my guitar along the recording, then record those two simultaneous sounds to my tape deck. I guess that was some type of multi-tracking going on there, but whatever it was, I developed an early curiosity and taste for recording.

Over the years I have been involved in a good number of home recording projects working with a number of different people. So I have been a very dedicated home recording hobbyist for quite a while. The idea of having a recording studio has always been in my mind in one way or another, however the financial investment has always kept that wish at bay.

Then just a few years back, after chatting back and forth with fellow musicians I learned about the Recording Arts classes at Cuesta College and how amazing the music program is. Well, if I couldn’t own a studio, I would at least have an opportunity to take classes in an absolutely amazing recording studio and have access to some of the best equipment you can find.

I took the required 4 semesters of Recording Arts at Cuesta College. During the 4th and final semester each student was required to find a band and record 3 songs with the help of 3 student assistants. Essentially we had the studio and equipment to ourselves and 5 hours to set up, record and break down. I asked local college band The Sanspits if they were interested in being recorded and they were very excited about the opportunity. The recording session was absolutely amazing and was one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life and the band members are like family to me now. While mixing their tracks I started feeling a little bit of sadness. I adored the studio at Cuesta and really feel like I found something I am really passionate about, but soon I’d have my Audio Technology certificate and the class and recording would all be over. I wondered ty myself, “there are other “Sandspits” out there so how are they going to record their music? How are they going to be heard?” That’s when I thought for the first time about starting a non-profit recording studio and the name came about very quickly. Finances are often a barrier prohibiting young artists from realizing their visions. I wanted the “Hub” to be mostly about youth and give them their first opportunity to attain a professional quality representation of their music at a very affordable rate.

The original idea was to raise enough money for a dedicated recording studio space and gear but I think starting small is the way to go. Let things breathe and grow over time. With a fairly small initial investment The Rec Hub is now a mobile recording studio consisting essentially of a giant portable drum booth, a 24-channel portable digital mixer that fits in two compact rack spaces, and of course a bunch of microphones. The actual recording space varies depending on the project. In addition The Rec Hub is also an expression and learning space with the goal of hosting video-blogs, expression jam sessions and educational classes.