From half inch eight to one inch sixteen to several digital formats ending with Pro Tools, the evolution of David Lange Studios extends from the 1970s to present. The high standards and effectiveness of David’s studio is in large measure a result of his ability to recognize and then utilize the best available tools. A consummate musician’s musician David has unerring instincts for great sound, great time, and great tone, which he puts to use quietly every day in the studio.
Of course, it helps to have great ears.
“David has great ears, which come into play in both tracking and mixing. He’s also got phenomenal editing skills; I’ve never met another engineer with such speed and attention to detail. When someone calls me to play on a project, I’m always happy if it turns out to be at David’s studio.” – Bill Anschell
Early History
In the late 60’s there was a musical revolution. A new instrument had been created that could sound like any of the instruments that came before it and promised infinite possibilities. At least that is how David Lange saw it when he was coming up as a musician in the early days of synthesizers. He thought that synthesizers would offer the ultimate freedom in music. He began his first experimentation with an EMU synthesizer, and almost immediately he brought it on the road and used it for gigs for effects or as an interesting new lead instrument.
In the early days of synthesis when all synthesizers were monophonic, David quickly realized that he would need a recording device if he wanted to truly explore all the possibilities that synthesizers had to offer. He acquired his first tape recording device and continued his dive into the world of synthesis. Eventually, however, the same forces that drew him to the recorder, brought him to other pieces of gear. A console was really needed to record efficiently and he needed reverb to bring the instrument out of the theoretical and into a real world space. He turned his garage in South Tacoma into a full-fledged recording studio, where he could house and operate all of this new equipment. Concrete was poured and sound proofing was added and in 1980 the first iteration of David Lange Studios was born.
Of course, it helps to have great ears.
Early History
In the late 60’s there was a musical revolution. A new instrument had been created that could sound like any of the instruments that came before it and promised infinite possibilities. At least that is how David Lange saw it when he was coming up as a musician in the early days of synthesizers. He thought that synthesizers would offer the ultimate freedom in music. He began his first experimentation with an EMU synthesizer, and almost immediately he brought it on the road and used it for gigs for effects or as an interesting new lead instrument.
“David has great ears, which come into play in both tracking and mixing. He’s also got phenomenal editing skills; I’ve never met another engineer with such speed and attention to detail. When someone calls me to play on a project, I’m always happy if it turns out to be at David’s studio.” – Bill Anschell
In the early days of synthesis when all synthesizers were monophonic, David quickly realized that he would need a recording device if he wanted to truly explore all the possibilities that synthesizers had to offer. He acquired his first tape recording device and continued his dive into the world of synthesis. Eventually, however, the same forces that drew him to the recorder, brought him to other pieces of gear. A console was really needed to record efficiently and he needed reverb to bring the instrument out of the theoretical and into a real world space. He turned his garage in South Tacoma into a full-fledged recording studio, where he could house and operate all of this new equipment. Concrete was poured and sound proofing was added and in 1980 the first iteration of David Lange Studios was born.
The 1980s
After the studio was constructed, musicians found their way to the studio by word of mouth alone, and David started amassing clients from a broad range of styles. His most served demographic was local singer-songwriters cementing his affiliation with Victory Music. Through Victory music he connected with a number of clients, including Michael Tomlinson, whose album Run This Way Forever went on to sell over 100,000 copies nationwide.
“A great environment for creativity. Very relaxed and unstuffy, but still totally professional. Excellent equipment and one of the best engineers in the game. I haven’t (yet) recorded my own project there, but I’ve worked with David consistently for over a decade. Can’t say enough about him and his studio.” – Haz Araki-Campbell
What had originally been built to feed a passion for synthesizers eventually grew into a thriving business. After several years of recording in the South Tacoma studio, David decided that he needed a larger space, preferably not in the flight path of McCord Air Field. He saved and searched for several years until he eventually discovered a swath of wooded property in what was then unincorporated Puyallup. He purchased the property and began the years-long construction of the new studio.
The 1990’s
After clearing the land, David and a crew of friends began building the studio and the house on top of it. The design of the studio interior was made possible through some guiding advice from the world class studio designer Russ Berger. And finally, through countless hours of hard work and persistence, in 1990 David Lange Studios had moved to its current home. Clients started pouring in to record in this new open space nestled in the trees. Paul Anastasio, Clipper Anderson, Hilary Field, Orville Johnson, Greta Mattassa, Barney McClure, Jo Miller, Jovino Santos Neto, Pearl Django, Gail Pettis, Uncle Bonsai and scores of other musicians all found their inner excellence at David Lange Studios.
What was originally designated as a storage room turned into another recording booth and the studio acquired one of its most prized possessions, an 8-foot Kawaii Concert Grand Piano. The new space and the piano also marked a paradigm shift for clientele. One of David’s original musical passions was Jazz, but the South Tacoma studio simply didn’t have the space for a jazz ensemble. However, the new studio could easily fit a jazz quartet or more if the need arose, and so jazz musicians across the northwest found a home at David Lange Studios.
“David is one of the best engineers around, and a wonderful guy to work with. I have done many projects in his beautiful studio, both as a musician and a producer. When I produce a project with David as engineer and I hear something that needs to be done, he is usually already doing it before I even tell him! Makes my job easy! I highly recommend his studio and David himself. Top notch!” –Rob Moitoza
Today
The studio continues to grow today. Vinyl became cassettes, which became CD’s, which became digital downloads. The studio has lived through all of these iterations and continues to expand into the future adding video shoots and editing to the list of services provided. The studio features an isolation vocal booth, a large room with full-sized gobos for drum kits and an additional isolation room. With a wide array of top of the line microphones and equipment, for solo artists or large ensembles, for live or build-it-track-by-track projects, David Lange Studios has what you need.
Clients can expect to be treated with respect and care, listened to attentively, and cajoled into their best performances with gentle humor and kindness. When not in the studio clients can experience the serenity of the surrounding tall cedars and stroll through the pathways that wind through the property.
There is a wonderful sense of quiet space when I walk in to David’s Studio. A world apart, ready to be filled with whatever I bring. .Not only is David a great engineer, He is patient and reliable and has a very crisp sense of humor. His Grand Piano is always in tune and I wish I could make 4 more CD’s there!.I promise to lay off “Macho Muchacho “! – Ann Stockdale
Staff
David Lange
David’s formal journey into music began at the age of five when he started accordion lessons. Studying the tradition literature of the instrument he competed on the accordion into his mid- teen years. Around the age of 14 he discovered jazz. Jazz and accordion were odd bedfellows but a serendipitous association brought him to Kenny Olendorf, a Chicago jazz accordion player who recently had moved to the Northwest. He continued jazz studies with Kenny as well as being active in many forms of music in High School. After High School he went on to study music at the University of Puget Sound and then U of W. He spent the next five years on the road playing in club bands. Somewhere in there he was seriously seduced by the allure of the synthesizer. That passion for the brave new world of synthesis took him on a circuitous path to starting a recording studio. Although the studio has been his principle focus for the past 40 years, in 2007 he came back full circle to the accordion. In that year he became a member of the hot club band “ Pearl Django.“ He has subsequently released two solo CDs of accordion music, mostly original music.
Benjamin Lange
Benjamin’s interest in music started at a young age. He began studying piano when he was five, but a few years later he discovered a passion for stringed instruments that has carried on to this day, most notably with the mandolin. In his day-to-day studies, he was largely self taught, but he attended several camps and seminars to hone his skills such as the Wintergrass Youth Academy, the Mandolin Symposium, and in his later teenage years the Savanah Music Festival’s Acoustic Music Seminar and the Mike Block String Camp. At this time he had also experimented with recording music using DAWs like Garageband and Reaper, and eventually ProTools. His musical education took a short hiatus as he attended the University of Washington where he received a degree in Applied Physics. Almost immediately after graduating in 2017, he began his employment at David Lange Studios and since then, he has assisted with most of the projects coming out of the studio. He is responsible for a large amount of the tuning and editing that comes out of the studio, all of the video editing, and has been the lead engineer on several projects.
