Fort Wayne, Indiana, might not come to mind as a vital music industry hub, but it should. While cities like Nashville, LA, New York, and London soak up the spotlight, this small Midwestern city has quietly built a hidden network of professional-quality recording studios. Thanks in large part to Sweetwater.com, these Fort Wayne studios have access to some of the finest recording gear in existence and are out pacing some of the more larger and more well-known studios across the United States.

 

Located in Fort Wayne — and boasting a top-tier studio of its own — Sweetwater is one of the world’s largest online music equipment retailers. It’s also an employment powerhouse — currently with well over 2,000 highly trained, on-site employees. 

 

Many of them, especially in their sales department, come to the city with deep résumés that include Grammy nominations, arena-level touring, and A-list studio credentials. Combine that with the city’s already healthy music scene, affordable cost of living, and access to Sweetwater’s massive warehouse, and you get a community of independent studios that rival any other market.

 

We recently connected with six of Fort Wayne’s studio owners who are adding their own spin to the city’s thriving scene. From transplanted Sweetwater employees to Fort Wayne natives, they detail their distinct studios, personal journeys, and the magic that makes this city a recording haven.

Availability: Open to outside and commercial clients

Services: Full music and video production, recording, editing, mixing

Website/socials: BrickShedStudios.com

 

As both a Fort Wayne native and former Sweetwater employee, Bleke has deep ties to the city’s music and creative scenes. His Brick Shed Studios serves as “a creative music space” specifically designed to foster those communities.

 

 

I bought my first set of multitrack recording sound cards in 2002 and have been obsessed every day since. Even when I studied music at Berklee, toured, and was a drummer and bandleader for several years on cruise ships, [or when I was] living in Boston, New York, or Phoenix, I had some iteration of my studio.

 

 

I built my first recording space in a woodshed with my father in our backyard when I was in high school, affectionately called “The Shed.” Brick Shed Studios is an homage to that first studio. It's an accessible studio where anyone can make music. Whether you’re a professional, weekend warrior, or beginner — we have so much to learn from each other.

 

 

I do a lot of different projects and enjoy them all, but I especially love working with singer/songwriters to build up their productions. Seeing their reaction the first time they hear their song [fully realized] is the best feeling ever.

 

 

I'm most proud of my live room. I've spent a lot of time building up the space to be a room with character. It sounds like the plug-in you would ultimately add to give your track a natural ambiance. It also deadens up pretty easily if that is what is needed for your project.

 

 

It’s pretty amazing. Sweetwater has brought amazing talent from all over the country. That's undoubtedly helped create one of the most talented and concentrated home-recording scenes in the country. I'm fortunate to have been born and raised in such a city.