BSO's unseen musician: The recording engineer

Boston Globe

19-05-2025

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Nick Squire looks at live monitors of the Symphony Hall stage during a BSO rehearsal break. (John Tlumacki/Boston Globe Staff)
John Tlumacki/Globe Staff
The engineer works with assistant recording engineer Cole Barbour, audio editor Bob Wolff, producer Shawn Murphy, and mastering engineer Tim Martyn. In March, the BSO and Deutsche Grammophon released their 19-CD box set of
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Where to find him
: www.nicksquire.com/
Age
: 41
Originally from
: Omaha
Lives in
: West Roxbury
Nick Squire, lead recording engineer for the Boston Symphony Orchestra, has won four Grammy Awards. Some sit on a speaker in the studio. (John Tlumacki/Boston Globe Staff)
John Tlumacki/Globe Staff
Studio
: Squire constantly updates the studio, built in 2015. Three of his four
'The idea is to provide a very transparent space, a neutral space for listening,' he said. Twelve speakers broadcast all frequencies more or less equally. The acoustics of the room are likewise neutral.
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How he started
: Growing up, Squire played drums in rock bands, but he also used a little karaoke machine with two cassette decks and two microphones for recording experiments. 'I was always a little bit more interested in the technical stuff than the playing,' he said. He went on to
What he makes
: Along with albums, Squire and his team record up to 350 concerts a year for the BSO, the Pops, and other groups. His team captures and massages every live performance.
Nick Squire, lead recording engineer for the Boston Symphony Orchestra, dons a pair of headphones in the BSO's recording studio. (John Tlumacki/Boston Globe Staff)
John Tlumacki/Globe Staff
'We can put mics in different places on stage to bring elements more forward or bring the score more to life, while being careful to maintain all the balances and the color,' he said.
How he works
: The engineers set up 40 or 50 mics for an orchestral performance to capture its full sonic scope.
Throughout the crafting of an album, they consult with Nelsons and his players on balance, and on sounds and passages to emphasize. Wolff takes the best of three performances of one concert and stitches them seamlessly together. Murphy mixes the recording, finessing artistic and technical components. Martyn applies finishing touches.
'My job is to always look after the best interests of the orchestra,' Squire said. 'All the individual musicians and Andris.'
Advice for sound engineers
: 'Say yes to everything. I thought I was going to do rock music. I had no interest in classical music,' he said. 'I just said yes to everything that I could. Here I am, and I love it.'
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Nick Squire at the sound board in the BSO's recording studio in the basement of Symphony Hall..John Tlumacki/Boston Globe Staff
John Tlumacki/Globe Staff