A school project by 19-year-old Full Sail Music Production student Steffie Antony TJandra won an international song contest for the latest ASSR recording Master Class held by renowned producer and engineer Alan Parsons at ParSonics studio (the go-to studio for local celebrities and beyond) in rain-lashed Santa Barbara on March 3rd & 4th.
“I normally just write music,” said Steffie after the Master Class. “This is the first time I’ve written the melody and the lyrics as well.”
Inspired by the rom com What If? Steffie Antony’s moody R&B ballad I Don’t Want To Fall drew universal acclaim from attendees and production staff alike. ASSR’s co-founder Julian Colbeck said it showed maturity beyond her years, saying: “The song is easily on a par with likes of Kamille Purcell or Emily Warren. Steffie might even be channeling some Taylor Swift and Nora Jones.”
Alan Parsons called it “A great song” and went on to praise Steffie’s studio etiquette after she flew to the master class from Orlando, courtesy of Full Sail.
“She was always decisive about what worked and what didn’t and was very sensitive and complimentary to the vocal performed by the amazing Brandi Rose. The result would not have been the same without her presence at the Master Class.”
ASSR’s long-established classes provide attendees with a unique insight into how records are made, with a Neve 5088 console and a live tracking session aiding and abetting Alan’s consummate production and ProTools programming skills at the hands of Parsons’ studio sidekick Noah Bruskin. The session, mixed in Dolby Atmos, also featured ambisonic recording using a Rode NT-SF1 mic and an underwater hydrophone (mic) from Cetacean Research Technology.
The song search was open to Master Class alumni spanning the event’s 10-year history plus students enrolled in ASSR’s online recording course and students taking the ASSR video curriculum at Full Sail. Eighty-four submissions were made, from students to music professionals. “And even one best-selling crime writer!” says Julian Colbeck, mysteriously.
Although there are tentative plans to release the version sung by Santa Barbara native, Brandi Rose, “it honestly wouldn’t surprise me if Barbara Streisand recorded this, says Colbeck. It’s that good.”
ASSR’s Master Classes: www.artandscienceofsound.com/mcts/santa-barbara2023
ASSR’s online courses: www.artandsienceofsound.teachable.com
Full Sail University: www.fullsail.edu
