RIP walter Sear

[joel hamilton]

Sad.
Walter Sear died.

[dgrieser]

That is sad.

[mwerden]

Boo. I read an article of his a year or to ago so I sent him an email. He personally responded and invited me to drop in, an opportunity that I've apparently missed.

[Rabbit]

Man that really is sad. I recall an interview Tape Op magazine did with him a few years ago. One of my favs.

[Waltz Mastering]

R.I.P. Walter.

A great and knowledgeable man.

I had the pleasure of talking with him for a few days when working out of his studio a few years back.

[Slau]

Sad to lose such a nice gentleman. I used to attend studio owners meetings for SPARS at Avatar some years ago. Walter would attend and we'd sometimes walk in the same direction down the street after the meetings and chat. He was a very friendly and approachable person. I attended a couple of listening sessions with him and he was a very straight-forward and no-nonsense contributor. He made us laugh with his insistence that his gear be shut off at the end of the day. He used to say, "At the end of the day I go to sleep and so my equipment must go to sleep." Any further talk about life cycles of switches and all made little difference to his position

We've lost a legend.

[Tragabigzanda]

I had the true pleasure of spending a day with Walter when I interviewed TJ Doherty at Sear Sound. He was so generous with both his deep wisdom and sense of humor; he was so proud to take care of his clients, his employees, his guests, and his gear. Thanks, Mr. Sear...

[fuzz]

I'd only heard he was in the hospital a few days ago. Its very hard to think of many other people who have approached this field with the dedication, perseverance and grace as Walter. The last time I saw Walter and we spoke, he was refinishing a studio door in the hallway of Sear. He never stopped working, quite an attribute. He is missed.

[darjama]

Rest in peace.

[Theo_Karon]

Very sad news. Seems like he had a long, full life, though, and his contributions won't soon be forgotten. I never met him, but when I was maybe 15 or 16 years old and just starting to get into recording, I sent him an e-mail detailing my thoughts on the record-making process and asking advice- I don't very well recall any specifics, but knowing the way I was back then there was probably a good deal of pretentious BS.

Walter was generous enough to write me a long and very thoughtful response which essentially boiled down to "shut up and learn for a while, use your ears, record whenever and wherever you get the chance, and never accept anything less than the absolute best sound you are able to achieve in a given situation," stated, of course, much more gracefully than that. I wish I still had the original e-mail. He couldn't have known the weight his response would hold, but it made a profound and lasting impact on me. It says a lot about the man that he'd take the time out of his no doubt busy day to answer an email from some hot-headed punk with the same dedication and wisdom that's so apparent in his recordings.

RIP

[drumsound]

It is another great loss. We are greater as a recording community for his presence.

[Brett Siler]

The day I heard of his passing I put on my Richard Hayman - Genuine Electric Latin Love Machine LP, which was recorded by Walter Sear, and listened in his honor. RIP brother.

[Spindrift]

I visited Sear Sound in 2006 to check out the studio. On the walk there, it started pouring rain and when we got to the studio a few minutes later we were completely soaked. When we got off the escalator, I was told "Walter will be here in a minute". I had assumed that we would be given a quick tour by the bookings manager, but Walter walks up a moment later, towels in hand for us to dry off.

He was extremely generous with his time and his knowledge. He spent a full hour showing two of us around the studio, talking about gear, studio construction and approaches to recording. He had a great sense of humour and his immense passion for the art of recording was truly inspiring.

adam

[Teacher's Pet]

I had a brief and tiny introduction to him once -- It was at Sear Sound and he was elbow deep in some project -- in a narrow workshop, surrounded by heaps of electronics. That is a cool memory.

I've read all the essays on the Sear Sound site;
Please post more links if you have them. Writings, bio, whatever.

- Robin