Your browser is out-of-date!

Update your browser to view this website correctly. Update my browser now

×

Case Study: Jonathan Lopez Garcia; Engineer on GRAMMY & Latin GRAMMY Award Winning Projects

At Just Age 25 as a Recording Engineer at Westlake Recording Studios, Jonathan Lopez Garcia Has Already Worked on GRAMMY and Latin GRAMMY Award Winning Projects

 

Gilbert, Ariz., Jan. 16, 2025 – Jonathan Lopez Garcia was born in Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico and grew up in Yuma, Arizona. His parents were in the civil engineering and medical fields. Now, at just age 25 as a recording engineer at Westlake Recording Studios, he has already worked on GRAMMY and Latin GRAMMY award winning projects.

It just goes to show that family support, having the drive and desire to succeed, and having the best possible education can lay the foundation for success.

Jonathan Lopez Garcia

“I was fortunate enough to have music ranging from Luis Miguel to Caifanes to Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg playing around the home as a child, and so I was always drawn to a good rhythm and being able to participate in the feeling of good music,” explained Garcia. “My first taste for audio gear, engineering, and music creation came from taking piano lessons in middle school and recording myself and friends rapping and singing at home in high school. I just had a Shure USB mic going straight into GarageBand, but I was hooked.”

Garcia said that his pro audio interest came from the desire to make his own projects sound better and more cohesive. Through research of the engineering and production roles, he developed a great love and respect for the men and women involved in every step of music’s creative process.

“I felt that would be a good place for me to put my effort and energy into,” Garcia continued. “That feeling was enough for me to make the hard left turn and drop my nursing major classes to look for a music/pro audio education program.”

Garcia began searching for music and audio engineering programs. Once he discovered The Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences (CRAS), he visited the school for an open house tour with his father.

“We both agreed pretty quickly that the program was much more detailed than other schools I had researched, and it would attack each stage of the material in a focused and in-depth fashion,” Garcia said. “My father advised me that if I was going to make the decision to go after my dream, CRAS was the starting point. I wanted to learn from real people who have worked on the real deal records, so I moved to Phoenix to start classes in October of 2018.”

When entering CRAS, Garcia was about 80 percent sure that he wanted to pursue Studio Engineering/Production, as that’s where his first love and passion for the field was centered. The pull from Post-Production/Sound Design was always there but he wasn’t as well versed in Film/TV history, so he stuck with what he knew. However, Garcia admits that he would still like to find opportunities in the film/sound design world in the future if they come across his path.

Upon his graduation from CRAS, Garcia’s first two years at Westlake were as an intern/runner and a brief six-week stint in the tech shop (2019-2021). From Fall 2021 until now, he has been in the roles of 1st and 2nd engineer.

“I primarily handle coordination, setup, troubleshooting of equipment for recording/mixing/filming sessions at the studio and I am responsible for the technical aspects of the sessions, as well as ensuring client experiences are top notch by providing the right amenities and keeping the session moving at an efficient pace,” Garcia explained. “The best part about my job is being a part of the workflow for such a wide range of people. I learn something new every session.”

And now, GRAMMY Awards are part of Garcia’s resume.

“The GRAMMY wins for SZA’s SOS album were huge since all members of Westlake’s 2nd Engineer staff at the time were credited for the project,” said Garcia. “My first time having my family’s name on an award in a field we had no prior history in was a great example of the family style community in the work environment that made those sessions more fun since we were always lifting each other up. I’m glad I can say some of my closest friends share those experiences and rewards with me. A Carin Leon project that I was fortunate to work on also won a 2024 Latin GRAMMY Award, of which I am proud of since the music was primarily in Spanish. That made it more rewarding to celebrate with my family back home.”

Garcia said the he wouldn’t have the opportunities he does now without the education he received at CRAS. I feel CRAS has the best approach for teaching pro audio. They make sure you fully understand why things work the way they do before sending you out into the industry. Nancy Scharlau, Mark Brisbane, Scott Murray, Rick Allen, Adam Rogers and James Bender specifically were instructors who took the time to ensure every student got what they needed out of the lectures/practice time. Those kinds of approaches were key to feeling confident in what I was learning.”

Work ethic and drive are not lost on Garcia and his success.

“The most interesting thing along my journey has been the conditioning to the A-List clientele in the studio environment,” Garcia noted. “Everyone just wants to have a good day and be able to express their ideas as easily as possible. Seeing how their work ethic can push the session into the 20-30 hour territory still blows my mind. It’s awesome how much effort some of them put into their music.”

Garcia makes it a point to show up every day, no matter what lay ahead. “I made sure to stay consistent with the quality of work I was putting into each of my roles as I progressed up the studio hierarchy,” he said.” People would leave the studio for many reasons and we had to step up at a moment’s notice. The most important thing for me was learning about the next role each time I was promoted so I could make the best use of my opportunities.”

And what would Garcia advise to current CRAS students?

“Learn as much as you can,” he encouraged. “Keeping an open mind will always put you in better situations and yield better results. Remember why you started pursuing the pro audio path…that will keep you alive. Oh, and have fun, of course!”

# # #

 

About The Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences

The Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences is composed of two nearby campuses in Gilbert and Tempe, Ariz. A CRAS education includes broadcast audio, live sound, film and TV audio, music, and video game audio, all taught by award-winning instructors who have all excelled in their individual fields, including sound reinforcement, audio recording and production, digital recording, troubleshooting/maintenance, and music business.

CRAS structured programs and highly qualified teaching staff provide a professional and supportive atmosphere, which is complemented by its small class sizes allowing for individual instruction and assistance for students in engineering audio recordings. CRAS has been providing quality vocational training in audio recording for more than three decades. The curriculum and equipment are constantly being updated to keep pace with the rapid advancements in the music and sound recording industries. CRAS’ course offerings and subject matter have always centered around the skills and knowledge necessary for students’ success in the audio recording industries.

The 11-month program is designed to allow every student access to learn and train in all of the Conservatory’s studios which are comprised with state-of-the-art audio recording and mixing gear, the same equipment used in today’s finest studios and remote broadcast facilities, including Pro Tools 12, API Legacy consoles, SSL AWS consoles, Studer Vista consoles, and much more. All students must complete a 280-hour industry internship to graduate from the Master Recording Program II that may ultimately lead to industry employment.

For more information on the Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences, please visit www.cras.edu, contact Kirt Hamm, administrator, at 1-800-562-6383, or email to info@cras.edu.

-30-

Featured Articles

Close