Prairie Sun Recording Internship Program

The internship program at Prairie Sun Recording is an immersive introduction to all aspects of studio operations. Unlike other studios, which may have up to twenty interns working irregular shifts, Prairie Sun instead retains a few dedicated full-timers. Our focus on a select group of interns means that someone who is responsible and hardworking will sit in on and help with sessions within months, not years. Interns are the first here and the last to leave, involving them in everything that happens at the studio from open to close. We look for detail-oriented candidates who are highly motivated to learn, have a basic understanding of studio technology, and are ready to leave their pride at home for the sake of education and career. Candidates must have a cell phone, a reliable car for running studio errands and a burning desire to learn more about the recording industry.

Office Duties Include: • Errands • Phones • Cleaning • Parking Lot

Management • Studio Management Training • Booking • Marketing

Maintenance duties include: • Painting • Landscaping • Watering •

Cleaning Guest Facilities

Studio Duties Include: • Errands • Cleaning • Gear and instrument

upkeep • Interfacing and moving outboard gear • Helping Assistant

During Sessions – setting up mics, wrapping cables, etc. Like the studio, interns must be available at a moment’s notice twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. Mooka, Prairie Sun’s owner, calls it a “boot-camp environment,” meaning both that no job is too small, and that upon successful completion of the program interns will be better prepared for the rigors of studio work.

Our internship program has been a starting point for a number of successful producers and engineers, including all of the Prairie Sun staff engineers. Prairie Sun engineers and interns have enjoyed the opportunity to work with artists such as Tom Waits, Journey, Groundation, The Mountain Goats, Primus, High on Fire, Red Sparowes, and Joe Louis Walker, and assisted producers and engineers such as Steve Albini, Billy Anderson, Tchad Blake, Scott Solter, and John Vanderslice. Recent studio manager Nick Tipp, who transitioned into managing immediately after his internship, says, “After interviewing at all of the major recording studios and many of the minor ones I discovered that there was only one place on the entire west coast where I would have the opportunity to gain first hand experience with an engineer on top-of-the-line equipment in a serious facility, without waiting 6 months to a year, possibly longer. This was possible because the company is essentially a very small operation with a serious gear selection and rooms to match, as well as the near constant influx of talented engineers and producers”.

Matt Wright was an intern less than a year ago with no formal engineering training. Today he works side by side with some of the best.

If you’re interested please email the studio manager Andrew Mastroni direct – [email protected]

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