Housed in what was once St. John's Church built in 1896, the capacious room is now an acoustically gorgeous recording studio.
Dreamland is a residential recording studio with an unusual amount of vintage and modern gear.
Dreamland was tailored for big-budget projects in the 80s and 90s. Record budgets may have changed since then, but Dreamland has not. We still offer the same quality we did when a record budget was $500k and up. It’s all still here & more, and we encourage everyone to enjoy it.
Dreamland is for artists who take the time to nurture their craft. We have found that musicians are able to get more done in less time here at Dreamland than at other studios, because of the onsite lodging and our focused yet relaxed atmosphere. The only distractions are the eagle’s nest, fire pit, and upstate mountain breeze.
history of the studio
Joel Bluestein opened Dreamland in response to the recording studio climate at the time, which he found to be a mostly hostile working environment. His goal was to create a socially-responsible business that treated its employees like family, and was an overall better place to work and record.
Recording studios were mostly male-dominated at the time, and Joel wanted his studio to challenge that precedence. He focused on hiring women and bringing in new ideas and ways of working.
In 2005, the studio closed down. The economy had plunged and many studios were closing their doors.
In 2008, however, Jerry Marotta came onboard and re-opened the studio with Joel. They continued their mission of maintaining the family-oriented, comfortable, creative vibe of Dreamland.
Tour the layout
testimonials
“The feeling you get when you walk into Dreamland gives you the chills.”
“When the sun beams through the stain glass windows during the afternoon, it’s impossible not to be in awe… I haven’t worked with a drummer who hasn’t been totally inspired by the sound of the room. Made my job of getting a drum sound easy…” –John Agnello (Aerosmith, Cyndi Lauper, John Mellencamp, The Kills, Dinosaur Jr., The Breeders)
“Still one of my all time favorite rooms.”
“I even tell people to this day- I've worked in rooms all over the world in the best studio cities. I live in Nashville with arguably the best studios available. Dreamland is still, hands down, the best place to creatively make music. From the space, the gear, and the instruments. Not to mention the vibe. It still goes unmatched to this day. I wish it came to Nashville with me.” –Dave Clauss (Shakira, Keith Urban, Quincy Jones, Rascal Flatts, Gwen Stefani)
“The space itself inspires music making: open, spiritual, warmly reverberant.”
“I was astonished at the breadth of instruments and amps available: if it isn't there, you don't need it. The recording console is fully capable and I really like the layout with the full visibility of the recording space from the control room. Overall, a very powerful combination!” –Steve Albers
“There’s nothing better for focus and camaraderie than spending 2 weeks in the woods.”
“We grilled every night and hung out on the porch and listened to the coyotes talk to each other… Where else can you open the back doors and throw a guitarist playing acoustic guitar out there to do an overdub and feature crickets chirping in stereo? Fuck yeah, Dreamland Recorders.” –John Agnello (Aerosmith, Cyndi Lauper, John Mellencamp, The Kills, Dinosaur Jr., The Breeders)
“I have great memories of working at Dreamland.”
“My main impression of the studio was that, not only was it very well maintained (with a great board, mikes, etc.), but it was also a ‘musical space.’ Nothing seemed to be a struggle. It also didn’t hurt that I was working with some great artists (Ron Sexsmith’s first album, and Suzanne Vega’s 99.9F), and that we had some serious musicians onboard (Jerry Marotta, Bruce Thomas, etc.). And, of course, Tchad Blake was on the sessions. I’m just happy to hear the studio is still running and in good hands.” –Mitchell Froom
