| Connecting Seattle's music creators to |
Studio Sessions Pilot(Vol. 1 — Avast! Recording Co.) |
|  |
The SCA is excited to announce the launch of a new program designed to provide a cohort of music creators with the opportunity to collaborate with an arranger, record with a professional ensemble, and learn how ideas become reality in the studio world.
For this pilot, we're partnering with the legendary Avast! Recording Co., where hundreds of notable artists have recorded, including Soundgarden, Death Cab for Cutie, Fleet Foxes, Macklemore, Train, Modest Mouse, Wayne Horvitz, True Loves and The Head and the Heart.
How it works:
- SCA is accepting the first 8 artists that complete registration to be part of the Studio Sessions Vol. 1 Cohort (link at the bottom of this page. Please read everything on this page before you submit). Part of the submission process will ask for one track or demo. This will be what the ensemble will record to.
- SCA will host one or more brief virtual spotting sessions where each cohort artist and the arranger will be able to communicate rough arrangement ideas and direction before the arranger begins work. These sessions will be open to all cohort artists and SCA members to highlight what the communication between artist & arranger looks like.
- The arranger will complete arrangements 1-2 weeks ahead of the studio day, ensuring each artist is satisfied with the parts the ensemble will record.
- Cohort artists and, pending studio capacity, SCA members will be invited to attend the entire studio day, currently slated for Sunday, August 16th 10:30am - 8:30pm. Attendees of the session will learn what the communication between engineer, arranger, instrumentalists, and artist looks like, and see examples of studio project files, microphone placement, sheet music, and more. A schedule will be made in advance, with up to one hour being reserved for the recording of each track. Refreshments will be provided.
- The studio day will conclude with each cohort artist receiving professional recordings of the ensemble, ready to be mixed.
Who's involved: The Seven Sky Horn Trio
Brian Bermudez — Tenor Saxophone
| Brian is a saxophone chameleon performing many different genres around the greater Seattle area for the better part of two decades. A product of the high school jazz education in the Puget Sound region, Brian found his way to New York where he attended The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music later returning to Seattle to study at Cornish College of the Arts. He has been privileged to have many mentors, chief among them Dave Schnitter, Johannes Wallmann, Denney Goodhew, Hans Teuber, Julian Priester, Dawn Clement, Jovino Santos Neto, and Jim Knapp. |
Arthur Sagami — Baritone Saxophone
| As a saxophonist Arthur has been a featured soloist with the Spokane Symphony, the University of Idaho Symphony Orchestra, and the Pacific Lutheran University Symphony Orchestra. He has served as the saxophone and jazz teaching assistant at the University of Idaho where his duties included teaching History of Rock and Roll, leading jazz ensemble III, coaching chamber groups and jazz combos, teaching private lessons, and leading saxophone fundamentals classes. He has been recognized extensively in both classical and jazz settings, winning the 2014 Musicfest Northwest Festival, and being repeatedly recognized as an outstanding soloist at the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival. As a chamber musician Arthur performed as a member of trIaD, placing as a finalist in the 2016 MTNA national chamber music competition in San Antonio, having won the state and regional competitions. He currently plays saxophone for Turtlnk, a jazz-pop group based in Seattle, WA, and a member of and arranger for the South Sound Saxophone Ensemble. |
.png)
Daniel Lombard — Trumpet
| Daniel is an active trumpet player based in Seattle, WA. He graduated from Western Washington University in 2017 with a bachelor's in trumpet performance. He studied both traditional music theory and jazz theory. Since graduating, Daniel has been touring nationally and internationally with the Portland-based band Marchfourth and his own project Hard Maybe. He also performs locally in Seattle pit orchestras, most recently in Seattle Gilbert and Sullivan Society's production of "Cabaret.” Along with performing, he has prevailing passion for education. He has worked privately as a trumpet, piano, and guitar teacher since 2012. He also taught a jazz combo at his alma mater. |
.png)
Seven Sky — Arranger
| Seven Sky has spent over a decade as a full-time multi-faceted music creator. As a composer, he has been commissioned to write for numerous ensembles, including string quartet, wind quintet, saxophone octet, harp and flute duo, and full orchestra. As an arranger, Seven has added auxiliary elements such as horns, strings, and chamber orchestra to the live and recorded projects of dozens of local Seattle-based bands and artists. His contributions earned him a voting membership with the Recording Academy (the Grammys) in 2024. He has arranged for symphonies all over the country, including Greenville, Seattle, and San Francisco. He was appointed to the Seattle Music Commission by Mayor Katie Wilson in 2026. |
Horn Arrangement Examples:
|
Program Timeline |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Why we're launching Studio Sessions:
Many local bands, artists, and composers want to collaborate with live players, but too often, logistics, connections, and finances get in the way. A studio day rate plus $100/hr session players with multiple hour minimums and an arranger can easily bring the startup cost to well over $2,000.
In our mission to connect Seattle's music creators to Community, Education, and Opportunity, we see Studio Sessions as a way to facilitate a win for four parties: artist, studio, arranger, and ensemble.
By consolidating studio time and players, connecting the community to collaborators, and spreading the opportunity among a cohort, we increase accessibility to experience professional collaboration involving studios, engineers, arrangers, ensembles, and fellow artists.
For this pilot, program registration is $300.
Please note that SCA program personnel and the arranger are donating their time for the pilot. Future Studio Sessions may have higher registration fees.
Program FAQs:Q: Who owns the recordings and arrangements? Q: Do I have to be an SCA Member to join? Q: Are there any genre restrictions? Q: Can I use my own horn arrangement? Q: Do I need to be able to understand theory or read music? | Q: Can my submitted recording be a demo? Q: Can all my bandmates attend the studio day? |