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Patrick
Leigh (Smolinski), Owner/Operator New
London, WI
Phone: (715)
752-3085
Email: Pat@AlternativeMIDI.com
Welcome to the Home of Alternative
Enterprises, located in New London, in northeast
Wisconsin, just 30 miles west of Green Bay, and 25 miles
northwest of Appleton and the Fox Valley. We invite you to take a look around the site. We
will be periodically adding new content so check back
often. Be sure to visit our extensive and growing
"Links" page. Many basic questions about
the studio and Alternative Enterprises in general are
answered on the "Frequently Asked Questions" or
"F.A.Q." page (above).
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Auto-Bio:
I have been involved in music ever since I
got my first keyboard in 1969. I was 7. It
figures, as my dad Ricky Leigh was a major guitarist in
Wisconsin in the 50's and 60's, in fact, best in the state
for 3 years running in the '60's. He
formed the first rock & roll band and cut the first
rock & roll record ever released in the state of
Wisconsin in the mid '50's. He played shows with
Seals and Crofts, and rehearsed with Toto before they
started out in California. He provided me with
all kinds of audio
equipment, from when I was little, and encouraged me to pursue
greater things than he has done.
I eventually
discovered synthesizers, which quickly became my true
calling. Although I picked up guitar and bass in
high school, and eventually drums a few years ago,
keyboards has always been my main instrument. I have
played in many bands through the years, and in 1986 I was
hired by Henri's Music as a synthesizer, MIDI, and music technology
specialist. Early in my 15-year tenure at Henri's, I
became a synthesizer teacher, which now has expanded to
guitar, bass and drums as well. I never took a
lesson in my life, but after 20 years of trial and error,
I finally put the theory puzzle together and found I was able to teach
in a unique way, stressing
theory and playing by ear, rather than note-reading.
I still can't read sheet music!
During my time at Henri's, I also
worked with my co-worker, Jeff, at Bonzai Recording Studio
at night after work. We quickly graduated from
4-track cassette to 16-track 1" tape. This was
when I learned a lot of my fundamentals.
On January 1st, 2002 I opened the
doors of the Alternative Recording Studio in New London,
WI, and 3 days
later, I became a proud dad-of-twins, Jeffrey and
Emily. I also started designing my own
website, which is now a fair part of what I do,
culminating in what you are looking at here today. In January 2004 we moved the studio out of
the "sardine can" upstairs in the house, to our new
facility next door, including 3 iso-booths for maximum
reduction of "bleed-over" from the other
instruments.
One day, I got a call from a
songwriter who asked me if I could put all the instruments
behind him singing, as he wrote songs, but did not play an
instrument. Now songwriter services is 75% of what I
do (although recording bands with the iso-booths is
catching up quickly). I joined Songwriters Of Wisconsin International
2 years ago, and now work with songwriters from all over
the state. I retired from the "band thing" about
4 years ago in order to put more time in the studio.
I invite you to take a tour of the
site, and I look forward to working with you.
Patrick Leigh
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