If you’ve ever read any of my reviews, you’ll see a pattern in which I name-drop La La Land and producer extraordinaire Anne Gauthier fairly often. Why? Because everything, literally everything, that I have heard that has been recorded at La La Land by Anne Gauthier sounds phenomenal! The way Gauthier is able to give all instruments on every song she records so much personality is astounding; capturing such rich, warm, full, deep tones that truly spotlight the essence and soul of each instrument. Finished recordings most often sound not like recordings at all, but as if you are sitting in the studio with the musicians as they play live. La La Land isn’t just one of the best recording studios in the area, it’s one of the best in the world! It’s no wonder why the studio has played host to the likes of Jim James, Ray LaMontagne, Jake Shears, GRLwood, Strand of Oaks, Joan Shelley, Boa, and countless other national, regional, and local artists.
So with that in mind, it was with great interest when I saw La La Land was hosting a recording camp, and great disappointment when I saw it was only for teens ages 13-18. I’m being serious when I say I wish they were offering this camp for adults. I would love to get the kind of hands-on professional studio training these teens will be getting during this camp. This is the opportunity of a lifetime for teenagers interested in the recording arts. “There’s not many audio tech educators even at the college level in town that are studio trained / much gear available in those programs, so I thought that would be a fun and nice community thing to offer,” said Gauthier.
What exactly is the La La Land Recording Camp? I believe their website describes it far better than I can: “Have you ever wondered how your favorite songs or records were made? Ever wondered what the inside of a professional recording studio looked and felt like? Curious about how recording equipment – from big consoles to microphones to computers (and everything in between) – really works?
La La Land Recording Camp is a professional studio recording camp designed specifically for teenagers, offering a full week of dynamic, hands-on experience with a world-class producer/engineer, [LEO Weekly has confirmed Anne Gauthier will be the instructor], in Louisville’s coziest and coolest studio, La La Land. At La La Land Recording Camp, you will learn the nuts & bolts of recording professional audio: from hardware basics to digital audio workstations (DAWs), live instrument recording, signal processing (think reverb and echo), and multi-track mixing, as well as intangible insight in how a producer/engineer helps get the best performances (i.e., takes) out of a live band playing real music in a room together.
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Each day at La La Land Recording Camp you will dive head first into free-flowing conversations and hands-on tutorials focusing on how outboard gear works, which microphones work best for different instruments and voices, how compressors and effects processors change the shape, feel, and color of sound, and how to organize a mixing session to get the absolute best end result – a song you and the artists you work with are proud of and want to share with the world.
La La Land Recording Camp will culminate with an actual recording session with a guest band, where you and your fellow campers will run the show, set up the session, mic the instruments, fine-tune all the tones, help make production and engineering choices, mix a song, and celebrate your success with a celebratory playback party.”
All five days will focus on a different area of studio recording. Day 1: Gear Deep Dive – Mic to Console, (focus: hardware basics). Day 2: DAW and Recording Basics, (focus: digital foundations). Day 3: Instrument Recording and Sound Control, (focus: real instrument recording). Day 4: Mixing 101, (focus: bringing it together). Day 5: Live Band Recording Day, (focus: full session execution).
The La La Land Recording Camp, which is sponsored by 91.9 WFPK, will run Monday, July 28th through Friday, August 1st from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. each day. Camp fee is $935 (plus tax), all professional equipment included. Registrations will be taken through Sunday, July 27th – however, class size is limited to only six people and this is the last camp La La Land is offering this summer, so advance registration is highly recommended.
To register for camp, visit: lalalandsound.com/recording-camp.
For camp FAQ, visit: lalalandsound.com/recording-camp-faq.
For more information on La La Land, visit: lalalandsound.com.
For more info on Anne Gauthier, visit: annegauthier.info.
For any additional questions, email: hello@lalalandsound.com.
And yes, I am honest-to-God jealous of all the teens who get to do this camp!
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This article appears in Jun 20 – Jul 3, 2025.