Forge Audio Insights

Welcome

Welcome to The Forge Audio Company Inc website. We’ve put a lot of thought and effort into the site, and hope you enjoy it!

Before getting started, here is a little background on who I am:

My name is Brad Belcher, I am owner and producer at The Forge Audio Company Inc. and I’m really pleased to be sharing audio thoughts with you here on “Audio Insights”. I have been professionally producing audio since 1988, and I have loved music and audio since my youth. In fact, I got my start in audio in high school creating audio driven presentations to match still pictures. In 1988, I moved to Vancouver to attend The Institute of Communication Arts where I graduated with Honors, receiving my degree in Audio Engineering. While attending ICA, I began my professional career at Blue Wave Studios assisting an extremely capable and creative group of audio engineers on a wide range of high profile projects. These projects ranged from producing music cd’s to films to television and cartoon series to jingles to radio and television advertising. During the period of 1988 to 2001, I was fortunate to get the opportunity to work at most of the top studios and audio production houses in Vancouver. In 2001, family and opportunity drew me back to Calgary, first working at OneSound, then partnering with GGRP Vancouver to create GGRP Alberta Inc. In 2011, I bought out my partners and changed the company name to The Forge Audio Company Inc. It has been quite a ride!

My hope for this forum is to pass along insightful perspective into what is involved in the creation of quality, professional audio…and perhaps kick-start a discussion about quality audio. The content will cover a wide array of topics all surrounding the craft of audio…how to define it, what is involved in the process of creating it, what the barriers are to quality making it into the final product, occasional technical discussions, how to empower talent to add to the final product, and many others.

To begin with, I would like to take the time to thank all of the mentors I feel fortunate enough to have been given the opportunity to tutor under over the years. They have helped shape my attitudes, understanding and abilities. Without their patience, guidance, and brilliance…I would not have had such an extended career in audio:

Audio Engineers

Rob Bartlett, Mike Thomas, Brian Campbell, Steve Smith, Todd Araki, Marcel Duperreault, Craig Zarazun, Pat Glover, Dick Abbott, Roger Monk, Don Pennington, Alex Downie

Producers

Brian Ahern, David Foster, Bruce Fairbairn, Miles Ramsay, Peter Clarke, Brian (Griff) Griffiths, Brian (Hoot) Gibson, Wayne Kozak, Michael Koran, Colin Weinmaster, Bob Smart, Dave Pickell, Paul Airey, George Blondheim, Terry Frewer, Sean Hossein, Dane Devilliers, Alex Downie

Voice Directors

Andrea Romano, Michael Donovan, Terry Klassen, Peter Clarke, Miles Ramsay, Brian Griffiths, Wayne Kozak, Michael Koran, Colin Weinmaster, Alex Downie

Studio Owners

Tom Lavin, Roger Monk, Alex Downie, Brian Griffiths, Miles Ramsay, Gord Lord, Don Thompson, Paul Airey, Judy Harnett, Ted Bishop, Colin Weinmaster, Wayne Kozak, Michael Koran

Technical Engineers

Charlie Knowles, John Vrtasic, Pat White

Studios

Blue Wave Studios, GGRP Productions, Koko Productions, Dick & Roger’s Sound Studios, Uptown Sound Studios, Airwaves Sound Design, Sharpe Sound Studios, Post Modern Studios, Wave Productions, Finale Post Productions, Avenue Music, The Sound Kitchen, George Blondheim Studios, Terry Frewer, Teddy Bear Productions, OneSound

Thanks to all.

My hope is that these insights will help more people understand the nuances, knowledge, and hard work it takes to create quality audio.

My goal is to get more people thinking/talking about quality audio, and where it fits in the modern digital world.

Please feel free to contact me with any thoughts, questions or concerns you may have regarding any of these audio insights.

Looking forward to getting started!

Passionate about the craft of audio…

Brad Belcher