Gilbert, Ariz., Jan. 29, 2018 - The Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences (CRAS; www.cras.edu), the premier institution for audio engineering education, will be opening the doors to its Gilbert, Ariz. campus (1205 N. Fiesta Blvd.) to prospective students, parents, and the media on Saturday, Feb. 10 from 10am – 4pm. Three CRAS graduates who worked on Grammy-nominated albums will be on hand for the Open House, and they will also be part of an Open Panel Forum held for current CRAS students the evening of Feb. 8. “There are a host of opportunities for our students once they graduate, and we want to give them an idea of what’s out there first hand for them once they enter the open market,” said Kirt Hamm, CRAS administrator. “Besides our mandatory internship program, getting our students in touch with our graduates who are either working for others, or who have made the leap into self employment, is huge. That’s what this grad panel is about in our upcoming Open House. Continued education, networking, and learning what it takes for going out on one’s own by those who have done it already is of enormous value for any student.” Hamm continued, “We also want prospective students and their parents to discover everything there is to know about a CRAS education, and with hard work and dedication just how successful they can be. For instance, we have a graduate who has been nominated for a 2018 Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical for his work on Roger Waters’ album “Is This The Life We Really Want”. In addition, 28 CRAS graduates worked on 26 Grammy-nominated albums and songs across 28 categories. Members of the Feb. Open House Grad Panel include:
  • Greg Eliason; works at Westlake Studios in West Hollywood, Calif. currently as an Assistant Engineer. He recently worked on the Grammy-nominated album “Melodrama” by Lorde, as well as albums by Superfruit, The Weeknd, Willie Nelson, and Apocalyptica.
  • David Davis; a Freelance Engineer based out of Los Angeles. He recently worked on the Grammy-nominated rock album “A Deeper Understanding” by War on Drugs, as well as the newest Miguel record, John Legend, Wyclef Jeans, and All Time Low.
  • Ike Schultz; a Freelance Engineer based out of Los Angeles. He recently worked on the Grammy-nominated album “The Transition of Mali” by Mali Music, as well as other albums by Rihanna, Sia, Dua Lipa, and Imagine Dragons.
At the February Open House, guests will be able to interact with CRAS faculty and get a taste of the curriculum and the state-or-the-art audio gear spread throughout its numerous classrooms as well as its 42-foot Mobile Broadcast Unit. They will also be able to participate in live demonstrations in many of these real world audio recording studios, live sound venue, and labs. The Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences is composed of two nearby campuses in Gilbert and Tempe, Ariz. A CRAS education includes Broadcast Audio, Live Sound, Audio Post for Film and TV, Music Production, Commercial Production and Video Game Audio, all taught by award-winning instructors who have excelled in their individual fields. CRAS’ structured programs, and highly qualified teaching staff, provide a professional and supportive atmosphere, which is complemented by its small class sizes allowing for individual instruction and assistance for students in engineering audio recordings. CRAS has been providing quality vocational training in Audio Recording for more than three decades. The curriculum and equipment are constantly being updated to keep pace with the rapid advancements in the music and sound recording industries. CRAS’ course offerings and subject matter have always centered around the skills and knowledge necessary for students’ success in the Audio Recording industries. The 11-month program is designed to allow every student access to learn and train in all of the Conservatory’s studios which are comprised with state-of-the-art audio recording and mixing gear, the same equipment used in today’s finest studios and remote broadcast facilities, including Pro Tools 12, API Legacy consoles, SSL G+ and AWS consoles, Studer Vista consoles, and much more. All students must complete a 280-hour industry internship to graduate from the Master Recording Program II that may ultimately lead to industry employment. Every year, CRAS graduates populate, in great numbers, the Grammy nominations for the year. A CRAS graduate was nominated for a 2017 Record of the Year Grammy Award. In addition, 32 CRAS graduates worked on 35 2017 Grammy-nominated albums and songs across 35 categories, of which 11 graduates received multiple credits on nominations. “We want everyone to see, hear, and feel how our 11-month program focuses exclusively on what a student needs to know to begin living their passion in any one of the many facets of the Recording Arts,” Hamm concluded. For more information on the Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences, please visit www.cras.edu, contact Kirt Hamm, administrator, at 1-800-562-6383, or email to info@cras.edu. About The Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences Based in the heart of The Valley of the Sun with two campuses in Gilbert and Tempe, Ariz., The Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences (CRAS) is one of the country’s premier institutions for audio education. The Conservatory has developed a unique and highly effective way to help the future audio professional launch their careers in the recording industry and other related professional audio categories -30-