August 2025 Newsletter
- The Premises Studios
- Jul 31
- 6 min read
QUOTE OF THE MONTH
“Music can move, inspire, connect, heal, be a source of joy, an art form, a signpost to a different world and also deliver a potent message. In short, it has all the tools to change the world.”
Pete Lawrence, activist, pacifist and songwriter, co- founder of Cooking Vinyl and The Big Chill.
Pete’s joyful optimism about the power of music is partially informed by his campfire singing sessions in bucolic parts of England and Wales, where likeminded folk gather round the fire and sing songs together. Indeed, it is rousing to sing collectively. Go see a great Gospel choir, for example, and anything feels possible, or better still, JOIN a choir. FORM one! There is audience singing, which is a bit Marmite in terms of love or hate: (think “So, Sally Can Wait,” as rendered by a stadium of devotees) but people still leave the concert with tunes in their head, smiles on their faces, and a sense that at least for one night, they can park the horrors of the world for a good old singalong.
And now, onto all the Premises news that’s fit to hear.
PIANO WEEK NOW SOLD OUT
WOMEN IN JAZZ LEARN TO DRIVE THE DESK IN STUDIO A
Women In Jazz, in partnership with Yamaha, (who loaned us a ton of great gear, which we were sorta hoping they would forget about collecting, but they didn’t) ran a course for female songwriters and budding producers to get them into the feel of both sides of the desk. Five women, three songs, lots of planning and working together. So how did it all go? We asked Lou Paley, head honcho of Women in Jazz and all-round music mover and shaker, how it all panned out. She kindly passed the questions on to three of the course participants. Rosie FT:
What was your takeaway from the course and do you feel you want to carry on learning more with a view to writing and producing for a living?
My main production takeaway from the workshops was understanding the character you can achieve in a track just by minor adjustments in the engineering process - something I witnessed first-hand. Mic shoot-outs are super beneficial for finding something that works with your voice and microphone choice has such a strong emotional impact on the song in the long run. Fia (one of the engineers) and I also learned some great techniques for mic'ing up a guitar amp. Using room mics to achieve an automatically characterful sound. Really interesting stuff! I've realised I'd much rather get everything right during the recording process rather than at the post-production end of things.
And to her course mate Cleo:
What struck you as the most challenging part of the writing and production of a song and what felt easier than you expected, if anything?
I think the most challenging part of the song writing and production process was first getting used to the set-up of all the mics! And understanding how this affects your recording of each individual instrument. What felt easier than I expected was just settling into recording and doing the 'mic shoot outs' and learning the different sounds of each mic.
And this from the delightfully named Rosie From The Block: (no relation to Jenny):
What worked for you best on this course? Can you see yourself pursuing a career in music?
Having a second pair of ears is essential to the creative process. Yes, there is amazing equipment present at The Premises but it means nothing if you haven’t got someone who actually does creative things with it and uses it to enhance the recording and the music. Having sound engineer Fia there to help out with all of that and show what the possibilities are with each pre-amp, compressor, EQ and mic was really what made this course worth it for me. As soon as Fia and I started working in the studio my nervousness melted away and I knew I was in good hands!
Big up to Lou Paley and Yamaha for making it all happen, and our own trainee engineers Ula and Yona. More of this sort of thing, please!
BASS AND TRIO WORKSHOPS – SAT OCT 11th
Yolanda Charles, who ran an intensive bass and rhythm section workshop over a weekend in March, is back in October to run a similar course over one day this time. Yolanda is one of the most in demand bass players in the business, having worked with Hans Zimmer, BB King, Mick Jagger, Paul Weller, Squeeze, Queen, Eric Clapton and countless others.
Now she divides her passions between her own band, teaching and collaborations.
The course is in two parts, and you can do one, or both.
The morning session is for bass players who want to expand their knowledge about the practical uses of all those scales and exercises.
The bass part will run from 10-2 and will give you solid, creative ideas highlighting how to apply the knowledge you already have, but still feel unsure about how to actually use!
This creative session explores how to write basslines, how to play with feel, how to lock with the other musicians and what you can do to improve your playing style by making small, but impactful changes to your playing.
Then in the afternoon, from 3-5, you can join this:
INSTRA-MENTALS - trio clinic, and you can be a bass player or guitarist or drummer for this part, which includes Yolanda’s trio with Nick Linnick on guitar and Nicolas Viccaro on drums.
This masterclass will showcase the power of effective listening, reacting and improvising. The trio will perform songs from their setlist, demonstrating elements contained in the arrangements.
Bass players, guitarists and drummers will have the opportunity to play through musical ideas and ask in-depth questions about harmony and rhythm throughout the session.
Costs are: £75 for the morning session and £50 for the afternoon one but if you book both, we can do you a combined rate of £110.
For more info: michele@premiseseducation.org
SONGS ABOUT LIFE IN PRISON AND WHAT LIES BEYOND
Singer-songwriter and pianist Mark was in Studio A recently recording six soulful, funky tunes with a view to life beyond his 16 years in prison for a crime he and many others say he did not commit.
On day release from his open prison, he’s been studying for a Masters at university, where he joined the student Music Society and formed a band. His next move was to get recorded. Enter Tricia Zipfel of Vox Holloway, a community choir that seeks to link choral music to social justice. Tricia got in touch with us and we were happy to help. Mark told us how much music has meant to his survival inside. “I get out my emotional strain through music. I was lucky during the Covid lockdown, when we were in our cells 23 hours a day, I was able to borrow the chapel’s keyboard and compose, so it was a very creative period for me.”
While you might think it is hard to find the creative muse in prison, this was not the case for Mark. “One track, ‘Raindrops’, is a jazz-funk song about a rainy day in my cell. The melancholy of the storm outside reflected what I was feeling inside, but at the end of the storm there’s a rainbow.”
Having maintained his innocence throughout, Mark looks forward to his eventual release, with his band name, ‘Liberated’ reflecting the lyrics of his songs about hope, love, and freedom. Watch this space.
When Mark gets out, he’s got a million things to do, and we fervently hope he’ll be recording many more tracks here at the Premises.
WHO’S BEEN IN?
Well wouldn’t you like to know! So here they are, all the famous and almost famous musicians working hard here last month to make the world a nicer sounding place: Sienna Spiro, Duke Street Big Band, Issey Cross, Poppy Ajudha, Gretta Wenner, The Cover Up, Santiago Morales, Yacht Brothers, Perusi Kakaire & Chloe Qisha, Cast, Dulwich College, Kate Nash, Jacotene, Folded Wing, Dry Leg, Alex Wilson, Luca Pachetti, Wealth Union, Singing Bowie, Tim Quick, London Voice Academy, Miraculous Mule, Beany McSweaney, Adam Waldmann, Graham Oakland, Spearmint, Autoheart, Jonathon Jeremiah, Tom Griffiths, Anna Calvi, Vibe Village, Laura White, Dirty Rumour, Kneeslide, Rizzle Kicks, Arthur Hill, CSX Pistols, The Jam, Victor Ray, Everyone Says Hi, Rhoda Dakar, Nobles, Jocelyn Brown, Oscar Dawson, World of Sonics, Joon Dada, Samsara, Moving Mirrors, Nectar Woode, Michael Fitzgibbon, Trigggerfish, Maia, Hope Winter, Olly Alexander, Remetik, Edgar Jones, Camilla George, Kelli-Leigh, Brian Martin, Taxa, Iraina Mancini, Maya Delilah, The Broxton 100, Vasili, Santi, Irene Taylor Trust, Charlotte Plank, Sunny Afternoon, Sid Blues Power Trio, Paul Carmichael, Muroki, Harper Finn, Levitation Orchestra, Attawalpa, Alfie Whitbread, Springfield Quartet, Jade Bird, Blue Lab Beats, Johnny Flynn, Dissolved Girl, Absolute Amy, Nubya Garcia, Jorge Incolor, Octahawk, Emeli Sande, Dope St Jude, Blank Canvas, Shalom, James Mason, Terrianne, PP Arnold, Green Tea Peng, Family Stereo, Eden, Jazz Jamaica, Wasia Project, Goldie, and many more!
AND FINALLY...
