STUDIO PROFILE
MAKING A MARK
Now situated in sunny Santa Monica and run by former studio boss Michael Marquart’s daughter Samantha, Windmark Recording has experienced nothing but success since moving West. Adam Savage went on the case to find the reasons why.
I
t cannot be easy to establish a highend recording facility in a place like Los Angeles County these days. In an area already scattered with big-name spaces, most new studio owners can expect a tough challenge right from the off, but there were no concerns that Santa Monica-based Windmark Recording would struggle to get off the ground when it opened its doors in 2012. Initially set up in Virginia almost 30 years ago by Michael Marquart, a successful producer, songwriter and former drummer for ’80s new wave outfit A Flock of Seagulls, Windmark is now making a name for itself in California under the leadership of Marquart’s 22
March 2015
daughter, Samantha, with Michael’s son Mikey also responsible for the upkeep of the facility and its equipment. Following the sale of the original studio 10 years back, Michael Marquart had been looking for somewhere to build his own private space further West, but Samantha had a better idea. “My Dad was thinking of building a small studio at his house in Malibu so he had a place to work when he was in town, and I suggested he build something in Santa Monica so my brother and I could use it as well,” she recalls. “In my effort to try to convince my Dad to agree, I thought it would give a little bit more incentive if I threw in the idea of renting it
out every now and again when he wasn’t in town. That’s when it hit me – why in the world wouldn’t we just open up a studio out here?” The decision was made to acquire a sizeable space formerly occupied by Grammy award-winning songwriting and production duo Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, designed with high-quality wiring and a focus on eye-catching aesthetics. And although they went with the old name to carry on Windmark’s legacy, the Marquarts felt that a fresh start was for the best. “When we decided to open on the West Coast with me as the manager, we approached it like a new studio
entirely,” Samantha says. “What worked for my Dad on the East Coast wouldn’t necessarily work out here in terms of studio operation, so we needed to start from scratch. However, my father set a standard of excellence when he first opened Windmark, and that remains unchanged.”
A RARE TREAT What also remains unchanged are some of the six-studio complex’s most prized possessions when it comes to gear, including one of only four ultra-rare vintage Neve A4310 consoles ever built and a 1967 Ampex 16-track two-inch tape machine once owned by Les Paul –