Detroit Techno Vinyl Pressing

Spencer Harris – School of Music, Theatre & Dance

Collaborators: Nick Warren, Tanner Rodriguez, Margaret Kogos, Leo Viglietti, Hannah Nutting, Morgan Elder, Laine Fleszar –  School of Music, Theatre & Dance

Creating a record involves the collaboration of composers, performers, audio engineers, and graphic designers, all of which will play a role in this team. A vinyl record represents an excellent opportunity to highlight and combine these diverse skillsets to create a concrete product that gives all involved parties the opportunity to grow professionally. The benefits of group collaboration are clear – we will all have the opportunity to contribute to a shared musical project, and be involved with the processes of recording, mixing, mastering, and cover design on some level. 

The project will take place in 2 stages –first, team members will develop, perform, and record piece based on the theme of Detroit Techno by April 13, resulting in approximately 30 minutes of audio. That audio will then be mixed, mastered, and sent to Archer Records over the next two weeks, who will press the recordings onto 200 vinyl records. Rather than simply responding to a theme, circulating a record would allow students to join the ongoing dialogue around Detroit Techno, and become part of an internationally-acclaimed music practice. In addition to helping students grow as professional musicians by expanding their recorded catalogue, a vinyl record would also serve as an artifact to be shared with the local community, including in record stores like Encore and Peoples. This would help bridge the gap between the conservatory practices of SMTD and the local music scene, and could serve to generate interest in both the Performing Arts Technology department and SMTD among prospective students. Creating a record involves the collaboration of composers, performers, audio engineers, and graphic designers.