hsr/ny Celebrates 30th Anniversary

April 29, 2005 -- In 1975 he was one of the country’s most creative recording engineers. Howie Schwartz had attended the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester; DJ’d for Armed Forces Radio in Germany; had been a recording engineer in Hollywood, working first for the legendary Mel Blanc (the voice of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck), recording, writing, and producing comedy radio commercials; and later for Wally Heider Studios where he engineered numerous gold and platinum record albums. In 1971 Schwartz had moved to the Production Department of CHUM Radio and the CHUM Group of stations in Toronto and a year later brought his considerable talents to New York City where he was an Engineer at the now defunct National Recording Studios, and later at the now defunct 12 East Recording.

His career was in high gear but it was being turned down for a raise that crystallized his decision to open Howard M. Schwartz Recording, Inc. (now hsr/ny) and, on August 21, 1975, with one studio, one engineer (himself) and a receptionist, the dye was cast.

A year later, Howie Schwartz was turning down enough work to warrant the addition of a second studio and a second engineer. The work kept coming, the company kept growing and today, hsr/ny is one of the nation’s preeminent full service audio post-production facilities with fifteen audio-for-video studios, two casting studios, and 45 employees who work at the company’s 25,000 sq. ft. complex on the 19th floor of Manhattan’s Graybar Building above Grand Central Station serving their feature film, advertising, television, radio, Internet, corporate and industrial clients.

hsr/ny CEO Howie Schwartz points out that “originally I only wanted to bring Hollywood rock ‘n roll technology to commercials. No one had yet done it. All the advertising music studios and recording studios were from another era.” But today, in addition to cutting edge technology and creative mixers, hsr/ny, “provides our clients with an unparalleled audio experience and a slate of creative services including Dolby Surround Systems, ADR/Foley, killer casting for radio and television, the largest on-line library of stock music and sound effects under one roof in the country, multiple ISDN telecommunication systems (including APT, Dolby Fax, 3D2, and T-1 lines); radio commercial creative services, production and direction; sound design, original music, talent payment and handling, and we provide impeccable service and an unforgettable experience to our clientele,” he is quick to add.

Company President Beth Levy, who joined Schwartz and his team in 1982 as the receptionist, is responsible for the day-to-day operation of hsr/ny. Her operational and strategic expertise helps to maintain hsr’s leadership position and to grow the business, respond to clients needs and stay ahead of the industry curve.

“When I joined Howie twenty three years ago we had four studios and were doing very well. It would have been easy to rest on our laurels, but we wanted to really service our clients, to give them the talent and the tools they needed to do their jobs. So, in addition to recording services, in recent years, we expanded into casting, ADR for motion pictures and TV, video postproduction and multimedia, and we plan continued growth in these and other areas,” explained Levy. “I think the main reason this company has been successful and continues to grow is that we've been able to apply the expertise and knowledge we've gained from the past, and at the same time benefit from the creative, young minds who have such a bright vision for our future. Howie is tremendously supportive and inclusive and each and every employee feels free to offer suggestions and have his or her voice heard. Their participation has helped keep this company moving forward. Watch out. We’re just getting started,” she added.

Today the hsr/ny team includes some of the nation’s most creative engineers, mixers, and sound designers including Fernando Ascani, Bill Higley, Roy Latham, George Meyer, Glenn Navia, Kevin O’Leary, Henri Perotti, Steve Rosen and Brian Tarner, and music director Andrew Knox.

hsr/ny is headquartered at 420 Lexington Avenue, Suite 1934, New York, NY 10170; (212) 687-4180; (212) 697-0536.