Lowery (left) and Martin (right) in the Hill Music Building’s Taylor Recording Studio.

Birmingham-Southern music students Logan Lowery and Adam Martin have spent countless hours in the Taylor Recording Studio on campus. The result: an improved space for student musicians and a soon-to-be-released album.

In spring 2021, Lowery and Martin began working on renovations to the studio in Hill Music Building with support from the Association of Music Students and the Department of Music. The Taylor Recording Studio was established in 1997 with a gift from Crawford L. Taylor, Jr. ’62 and Marlene Smyth Taylor ’61, longtime supporters of the College and its performing arts programs. Both Lowery and Martin have experience in music production and used their knowledge to plan and install their updates to the space.

“Logan and I decided that the studio needed to be revamped,” says Martin, a junior from Mountain Brook. “Now, it is completely up and running, and will be accessible to musicians on campus who’d like to have a song recorded, as long as they go through the proper registration.”

They made some aesthetic changes – new carpet and furniture – and improved the space’s workflow. They rearranged and tested all the equipment and made sure all the pieces were communicating with each other properly for the best recording experience.

In the space, students have the opportunity to work together on projects or work independently in the traditional recording studio set-up. One room serves as the control room, where an audio technician can operate while, in the other room behind the window, performers can sing or play.

“Part of the flexibility of the studio is that it can also be operated by one person, which is exactly what I’m doing while I record my album,” says Lowery, a senior from Ashville, Alabama.

Lowery has taken advantage of the improvements this summer as he records songs for his first full album, “Music is: Therapy.” With a collection of styles incorporated into the album, including folk, indie, choral, and musical theatre, Lowery’s work explores the psychological impacts of music.

“Music has been present and active throughout my entire life, and to some degree I’ve always wondered why it is that music can have such an influence on people,” he says. “In the studying that I’ve done, I have learned how much can be therapeutic in so many ways on a tangible, observable neurological level.”

Music psychology is something Lowery has been able to study in his courses at BSC, and this isn’t the first time he’s recorded his own music. Throughout the pandemic, he expanded his music production skills and recorded his first EP, “Quarantine Reflections,” from his room and later released a single, “Rest,” in September 2020.

Lowery has seen his work evolve, and he’s definitely upgraded his studio space with the on-campus resources. Singles from the album will be released throughout August, leading up to the full release of “Music is: Therapy.”

“My favorite parts of recording this album have easily been the moments when all the pieces come together and the organized sound that is music fills the space that I’m sitting in,” he says. “I’m thrilled for people to hear this music because of how much I’ve enjoyed the moments of excitement involved in creating anything.”

Lowery is ambitious and passionate about music and is always curious to learn more. He often seeks guidance from his music professors, who have encouraged him ever since he first auditioned for the program in 2019.

“My experiences in the BSC music department have been invaluable,” Lowery says. “Through the courses that I’ve taken, I’ve gained a deeper understanding of how music works and how it has developed over the centuries,” he says. “By learning about how music works and has worked, I’ve been able to learn through the collective experience of all musicians throughout history by learning about what they discovered and innovated.”

Follow Lowery @loganwlowery and Martin @adam_makes_music on Instagram to keep up with new releases.

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