About

Rob Greco offers great guitar tuition in Nottingham as well as recording studio services in Nottingham

For More information about guitar Tuition go to my homepage at the top.

About the Guitar teacher: My name is Rob Greco I am a Song Writer / Producer / Guitar tutor based in Nottingham, A Guitar Player as well as Piano, Synthesizer/ Drum programmer and Bass player. My Weapon of choice is either a Gibson Les Paul or a Akai MPC 3000le depending on the musical situation! I Write Music that can be described as Rock/Metal when I have the Gibson to hand, when I am  hitting the MPC it is Hip Hop plain and simple. I love that gritty sound of the older samplers and do not consider any sampler to be better than the 3000le. The studio I run is smooth, relaxed as well as professional and my clients always come back because of the friendly home from home environment.

This page is to tell you a little more about me, what makes me tick and also what I like to do in my spare time. I am fully CRB checked and a copy can be presented on request. I am involved in producing for a number of local bands at this moment in time that range from heavy Metal to smooth Jazz. From inspiration to CD master I can help you on your way to a polished album. I also teach electric and acoustic guitar, from beginners to pro alike I have a large portfolio of students I have taught over the years and will never grow tired of teaching people this wonderful instrument.

Based in the heart of the City of Nottingham, I am usually hard at work in the studio working on my tracks other artists tracks or giving guitar tuition in Nottingham. (Based right in the middle of all the action)! - Close to local pubs, restaurants art galleries and music venue - Nottingham is rich in entertainment also and has a great music scene.

When I am not in the studio giving guitar tuition. I enjoy time with his family, walks in the park with my dog, cycling and socialising with friends. I enjoy fine dining and cooking, comedy and a good book.

I started playing guitar at 14 and saved intensely with paper round money and Christmas money (twice) to get a USA Fender Strat and was my  pride and joy for many years along with my Peavey 5150 stack which I worked through summer to get in 98 before moving onto Gibson Les Paul and Ibanez / Jackson guitars.

I have played in a number of bands throughout his time as a musician, playing styles such as Steve Vai, Jimi Hendrix, Joe Satriani, Queen, Bon Jovi, Metallica, Megadeth, Black Sabbeth, before branching out and becoming a song writer to create his own music and unique style. I really enjoyed going on tour in Germany that was great fun and certainly not something I expected to achieve when I first set out to learn the guitar.

I Studied Music Higher Education HND at New College Nottingham and whilst learning my trade I developed a love for music technology, with the help of  his trusty Roland MC303 and Cubase VST & Reason 1.0 I started to create all sorts of interesting music. It has always been my dream to be a guitar teacher in Nottingham.

My early years of music tech was the MC 303 and tape only and somehow this lack of equipment was quite liberating, you would be surprised what a good sound can still be produced on tape. Then came the technics 1210 and the art of sampling began. I became heavily addicted to collecting 70’s Jazz, Funk, Rock Lp’s and one of my nick names is Cratedigga because you can always find me searching the crates of records for a rare gem.

When I graduated from music school my collection of vintage recording equipment to also flourish I began with the likes or Roland TB-303 for that popular techno squidgy bass line. Roland MC-202 the poor mans 303, Roland TR 909 for the classic high hat, Roland TR 808 for the boom and the bap, Akai MPC 3000, Ensoniq ASR 10, Roland Juno, Roland Jupiter, Akai s950, Korg Trinity and the list goes on.

I  put the studio together in my loft and it was a huge achievement, I invested in a custom built DAW from Millenium Music, Cubase 4, and a hot audio interface between the Daw and my analogue Mackie mixer and I streamlined what I  needed and what I didn't need and I sampled all my vintage kit through the MPC so I still has it all on CD

Today I am at my most happiest when I am either playing or teaching the Guitar, Recording an artist in my Nottingham based Recording Studio - (no longer in his loft!!) or producing my own tracks

My equipment list is streamlined to get the job done! I have a vocal booth in the studio and a large enough live area for the band to record.

The Daw I use contains Cubase 4 Advanced Music Production System

Cubase 4 represents the cutting edge in digital audio workstations. Designed for professionals from the ground up, Cubase converges extraordinary sound quality, intuitive handling and a vast range of highly advanced audio and MIDI tools for composition, recording, editing and mixing.

Cubase 4 comes with a brand-new VST3 plug-in set and four new integrated software instruments with more than 1000 sounds. The revolutionary SoundFrame™ is a powerful combination of Track Presets, Instrument Tracks, and MediaBay database, to help organize all your sounds from every instrument - both software VSTi and hardware. Cubase 4's mixer now offers a flexible Control Room section and up to four independent studio mixes. Composers and musicians benefit from the enhanced score editor while the redesigned user interface with many new features speeds up workflow and boosts creativity to new levels.

Cubase 4.1 additionally offers significant features such as Sidechaining for VST3 Plug-ins, free routing, a Global Transpose Track, Music XML support and much more.

Features

    * State-of-the-art Audio + MIDI Recording/Editing/Mixing
    * Complete new set of VST3 virtual instruments and effects
    * Real multi-channel 5.1 surround sound
    * SoundFrame™ - Universal Sound Manager
    * Control Room integration within your outboard studio environment
    * Seamless integration of external audio and MIDI hardware
    * Pristine 32-bit floating point audio engine
    * Professional music notation and score printing
    * Cross-Platform: Windows and Mac OS X Universal Binary

A Liquid Mix. Each of Liquid Mix’s 32 channels provides EQ and Compressor emulations selected from a huge pool of high-quality vintage and modern day classics. 20 EQs and 40 Compressors are available straight out of the box, with an expanding library online. Furthermore, a totally unique hybrid 7-band ‘super EQ’ can be built out of separate classic EQ sections in every one of the 32 channels. Each channel appears as a separate VST/AU/RTAS effect within the sequencer and will work within all major applications, including Pro Tools.

Liquid Mix uses the same patented Dynamic Convolution process as Focusrite’s Liquid Channel. Unlike standard convolution techniques, Dynamic Convolution utilizes vast processing power to sample the effect of a classic processor on a series of audio pulses, at many different gain settings and all frequencies. In Liquid Mix, all this processing is done using onboard DSP, so the processing has almost no effect on your computer’s own CPU.

Features:

    * One of a kind – any Compressor and EQ in history. Every Liquid Mix channel uses dynamic convolution to provide 20 EQs and 40 compressors, with a free expanding library online.
    * Onboard DSP - 32 Channels of Liquid Mix Compression and 32 EQs run off Liquid Mix’s own DSP – many more than are possible with CPU alone.
    * Software and Hardware control - EQ and Compression can be applied via a hands-on control surface, or within your DAW application via a simple GUI.
    * Hybrid Super EQ creation - Unique 7-band super EQs can be created, constructed from separate classic EQ sections of your choosing
    * Desktop Metering - Large format LED bar-graphs mean ergonomic display of levels and processor impact


OctoPre. OctoPre, brings Focusrite pre-amplification and A/D-D/A conversion to a new level of affordability for DAW and digital console users. OctoPre provides eight channels of pristine Focusrite preamps, including two "Super Channels" that offer mic impedance matching and instrument DI inputs plus other features.

The A/D-D/A board installed, OctoPre LE brings more to the DAW via ADAT* lightpipe than ever before, allowing users to make the most of often neglected ADAT* inputs and outputs for tracking and monitoring. In addition, the A/D-D/A option provides wordclock in and out as well as being the only converter in its class to feature 256x clock - a must-have for Pro Tools engineers.

Extremely easy to use, OctoPre LE helps to save session time and engineer heartache. Auto switching front and rear panel inputs and total control of the digital I/O from the front fascia allow the unit to remain racked and patched, with every I/O solution available at the flick of a switch. In typical Focusrite fashion, the OctoPre LE upholds professional standards throughout, boasting class-leading specifications:

Akai Mpc3000le. "MPC3000 Limited Edition
The rebirth of a classic
Who hasn't heard of the MPC3000, the machine that made whole genres of music possible? The sound, the rhythmic feel, in fact the way everything came together made the MPC3000 completely unique--an instant classic. And now there's the MPC3000 Limited Edition. With all the vintage features of the MPC3000 plus a gorgeous custom paint job, the MPC3000 Limited Edition once again gives you the chance to put a legend to work for your music. Are you ready for classic performance with incredible looks? Then check out the MPC3000 Limited Edition. But be careful, because to try it once is to love it forever.

The MPC's friendly interface
Sampler, drum machine and MIDI sequencer in one instrument
Dedicated buttons for most-used functions
Informative graphic display with soft keys
Interactive Help function
The world's most powerful sampling drum machine/phrase sampler
Uses the sound engine of Akai's S3000 sampler
44.1 kHz, 16-bit stereo sampling with 32-voice polyphony
Resonant digital filter + envelope per voice
Large, great-feeling, velocity- and pressure-sensitive pads for expressive drum programming
Note Variation slider for programming a wide variety of real-time dynamics
Extensive cut-and-paste sample editing
Stereo Mix outputs + eight individual outputs
Built-in floppy disk and SCSI interface
Reads sample data from S1000 and S3000 series samplers
Powerful but easy-to-use MIDI sequencer
Supports both linear and pattern-style (looped) recording
75,000 note sequence capacity
Step Edit mode for fast recording, viewing or editing of any event in a sequence
SimulSequence allows two sequences to play simultaneously (e.g., playback a looped drum sequence while recording a multitrack keyboard sequence)
Flexible synchronization capabilities: MIDI clock, MTC, FSK24, 1/4 note audio and SMPTE (optional)
Two MIDI inputs with merge + four independent MIDI outputs (64 channels)

Establishing a standard
The MPC3000 helped to establish industry standards with its powerful sampling engine. Like the original, the Limited Edition MPC provides 16-bit, 44.1kHz stereo sampling, plus a digital interface for direct digital sampling from CDs and other digital sources.

Expandable memory, 32-voice polyphony
Each unit comes standard with 2MB of memory (21.9 seconds) and is expandable to 16MB (188 seconds) providing enough sampling for at least one million-seller. And with 32-voice polyphony, you can pretty well play all simultaneously&emdash;if that's where your music takes you.

Dynamic filtering, and a whole lot more
You want to mess with a sample? You've got it. Every voice has a resonant lowpass filter with envelope, amplitude envelope control and ""mono"" mode to cut off and retrigger a sound when played repeatedly. Of course you can slice and dice samples as you wish, and the built-in effects and 64-channel mixer add even more to your sonic arsenal.

Build 24 of your own drum kits
Build 24 ""kits"" each containing 64 sounds (from a common bank of 128 sounds) along with their individual editing parameters, and store them all in memory. Confused? Well what it means is you can record 64 unique sounds into sequences or trigger them remotely via MIDI. Plus there are 4 pad banks for the 16 front panel pads, giving you another way to access all 64 sounds in real time.

Note variation slider
This is what it's all about. You can control attack, decay, tuning or filter frequency of any sound with the slider. Better yet, you can do it as you record a sequence, or afterwards in a separate pass.

Wide range of storage options
The built-in 2HD/2DD floppy disk drive lets you conveniently store sounds or sequences. But why stop there? The SCSI/Digital Sampling interfaces put a whole world of hard disks, optical or CD-ROM drives at your service.

Vast sound library
What good is a great sequencer without great sounds? That's why we built the MPC3000 Limited Edition for compatibility with a vast sound library. Of course, there's a dedicated MPC library, but you also have access to S1000 and S3000 series disks, too

Rode NT1A Microphone. The RODE NT1-A. Winner of the Electronic Musician 2004 Editors Choice Award and the worlds quietest studio condenser microphone. This redesigned version of RODEs classic NT-1 has only 5dBA of self-noise.The new RODE NT1-A is one of the world's quietest mics. Multi award winning and the world's biggest selling studio mic, the NT1 is now a legend. The New NT-1continues this tradition while improving specifications and tonal qualities. Using cutting edge technology for electronics, RODE has implemented a computer controlled manufacturing line. Unlike many 'leading brands' all electronic boards are made without 'human hands' assuring high specifications, tight tolerances and unsurpassed consistency. It's built to last with a new computer controlled machine process. The body is then satin nickel-plated. Each NT1-A is supplied with a NTSM shock mount and zip pouch. This product is also available as a Matching Pair. See Related Products.

Mackie Analogue sound desk.
Mackie's CR1604-VLZ is a feature-packed update of what was already a feature-packed classic compact mixer. We collected all the comments from warranty cards sent in for the original CR-1604, and we listened to what our customers wanted. We designed the CR1604-VLZ with those comments in mind -- yet, we didn't let that advice go to our collective head.

All too many times a manufacturer forgets what made the first version of a product successful when it comes out with a "new improved" model. Our CR1604-VLZ maintains the original's sound quality, musical equalization, and rugged construction, and keeps intact the multi-configuration possibilities, too.

For one thing, the CR1604-VLZ is a true 4-bus mixer. With channel assigns to buses 1-2, 3-4, and main L-R, sub mixes are easy. How about sixteen (16!) high-headroom/low-noise mic preamps OK. And the new trim control gain structure for both mic and line inputs allow the CR1604-VLZ to handle everything from ultra hot digital multitrack signals to the most timid of vocalists.

EQ-wise, the CR1604-VLZ is not only 3-band with 12kHz Hi and 80Hz Lo shelving EQ, its midrange equalization is sweepable from 100Hz to 8kHz. The low cut filter on every channel lets you cut unwanted low frequencies like mic thumps and stage noise with one push of a button. Your low frequency EQ needs can now be met with Lo shelving EQ (rather than using the low EQ to do what the low cut filter was meant to do in the first place).

Event Tuned Reference Monitors. Tuned Reference 8 monitor. Their name tells the whole story—these monitors are precision tuned to provide flat frequency response and uncolored sound, giving you a true sonic reference for mixing. So when you mix on a Tuned Reference monitor, you know your mixes will translate accurately to other playback systems.

Too many other items to lists but the above list my core recording equipment.

I am getting married to my long-term partner Helen this year and I feel very lucky to do something so pleasurable as a way of earning a living.

I am very down to earth and a very patient guitar teacher based in Nottingham.