Bruce Swedien

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Lore & Background

Swedien's unique sonic signature stemmed from his "Acusonic Recording Process," a technique where he paired microphones on vocals and instruments, enabled by synchronizing several multi-track recorders with SMPTE timecode. This method achieved an enhanced roomy ambient sound evident in George Benson's "Give Me the Night" and Michael Jackson's albums. During sessions with Jackson, Swedien frequently experimented to find the perfect tone; he had the singer stand at varying distances from the microphone and even sing through a cardboard tube. His career began in 1954 when, at age 20, he converted an old movie theater in Minneapolis into the Swedien Recording Studio. After moving to Chicago in late 1957, he worked under Bill Putnam at Universal Recording Corporation before meeting Quincy Jones in 1959 while Jones was vice president for Mercury Records.

In Their Own Story

In 2009, Swedien published In the Studio with Michael Jackson, documenting his specific experiences recording with the artist. The text reveals his hands-on approach to engineering vocals, describing how he manipulated physical variables like distance and the use of a cardboard tube to alter the sound before it hit the tape. These experiments were part of a broader philosophy that began when his father bought him a disc recording machine at age 10 and a professional tape recorder after high school. Swedien's journey from studying electrical engineering with a music minor at the University of Minnesota to running studios for Brunswick Records in the late 1960s and 1970s laid the groundwork for these innovations. His work extended beyond pop hits; he also engineered scores for films like Night Shift, The Color Purple, and Running Scared.

Reader's Guide

For those studying Swedien's legacy, his technical contributions center on the synchronization of multi-track recorders using SMPTE timecode to pair microphones, a hallmark of his "Acusonic Recording Process." His career trajectory offers a blueprint for modern engineers: starting with independent studio ownership in Minneapolis at age 20, moving through major labels like RCA Victor and Universal Recording Corporation, and eventually leading the sound development for Brunswick Records. His collaborations spanned decades, from early work with Dinah Washington and Sarah Vaughan in 1959 to later projects with artists like Paul McCartney, Barbra Streisand, and Jennifer Lopez. On November 30, 2015, he received the Pensado Giant Award at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, California, presented by Quincy Jones, cementing his status as a giant in sound engineering.

Did You Know?

• Swedien died from surgery complications for a broken hip caused by a fall; he was also diagnosed with COVID-19 but remained asymptomatic.
• He first achieved widespread recognition in 1962 engineering Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons' single "Big Girls Don't Cry," which stayed at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for five weeks.
• His father, of Swedish descent, bought him a disc recording machine when he was only 10 years old.
• On August 30, 2015, Quincy Jones personally presented Swedien with the Pensado Giant Award at Sony Pictures Studios.
• Swedien wrote about his experience working with Michael Jackson in a book titled In the Studio with Michael Jackson published in 2009.