Will's professional career began in 1998, producing content for radio broadcast at Human Life International. In 2003 he accepted the position of Chief Recording and Mastering Engineer for National Media Services' "Upper Room Studios," a position he held until April 2019. In 2005, Joltin' Jim McCoy (Patsy Cline's first guitar player,) hired Will to consult on a new studio design and build. That evolved into a friendship as well as a "moonlighting" position in Jim's brand new studio (Troubadour Records,) which lasted until Jim's passing in 2016. Will considers Jim to be a major contributor to, and inspiration for his knowledge base and drive in is own career path. In the spring of 2019, Will left National Media Services to pursue his lifelong dream of owning and operating his own music production facility. Métier Mastering was born.

Will’s greatest attribute just might be his own musicianship and love of music. In 1993 Will earned his Bachelor of Music (Music Education) from Shenandoah University's Conservatory of Music. While attending SU, he studied music theory, composition, arrangement, music education, music production and recording systems techniques. He also tutored many students in performance and assisted with local school ensembles. He minored in piano, and his major instrument is the trumpet. He studied both jazz and classical styles of performing. During his time in the Conservatory, he performed with many guest artists and composers, including Randy Brecker, Allen Vizzutti, and Alan Baylock. He performed two master classes for trumpet master Eugene Blee.

Will's professional experiences include; recording and mixing full score music productions, completing detailed audio restorations, executing audio and video reformatting, capturing narration and voice for broadcast, consultation in audio capture & acoustic design, and performing world class mastering for commercial release albums. Will designed and configured several production facilities during his career including the studios of; Troubadour Records, Human Life International, The Upper Room Studios, and the brand new Métier Mastering and recording studio.

Accolades

Will's knowledge and experience of recording and mastering is only exceeded by his love of the business. Will has contributed in the production of multiple award winning and nominated projects, as well as many chart topping hits. He has worked on 27 nominated and/or award winning songs/albums. Some notable accolades include; the 2010 Wammy (WAMA) for Best Bluegrass recording, Best Historical Research in Recorded Country & Roots Music (ARSC) of 2021, WAMA nominations in various genres, 3 Spirit Awards, 2 Spirit Award nominations, 4 Akademia awards for "Best Dance Song," nominations through; BMAI, The Academy of Western Artists and The Western Music Association respectively, and "song of the year" and "album of the year" awards through The Pro Cowboy Country Artist Association.

The Charts

Will had a hand in the production of over 120 charted songs or albums, with almost half of them earning top 10 status on various charts, and in multiple genres. Some highlights include; mastering Grammy nominated, and IBMA Bluegrass Hall of Fame member Bill Emerson’s (Bill Emerson & Sweet Dixie,) "The Touch of Time," Roots Music Report's Top 100 Bluegrass albums of 2012 (#5.) In 2020, Will mixed and mastered The Plate Scrapers’ “Destination Horizon which charted #9 on Billboard’s July Bluegrass charts. Will recorded Gina Clowes' "True Colors," which hit #13 on Billboard's October 2017 Bluegrass chart. In 2015 Will recorded, mixed, mastered, and co-produced Trinity River Band's hit album "Heartstrings," which debuted multiple singles on the Bluegrass Today charts, including “How Blue” (#2,) which remained in the top 5 for five consecutive weeks. Will was privileged to work on Gregg Welty's most recent project, "Community," the largest collaborative bluegrass album ever made. "Community" was one of the very first albums mixed and mastered by Will at Métier Mastering. "Community" charted every week for over a year. Its most notable climb was to #3 on Roots Music Report's top 50 Bluegrass Albums. "Community" also hit four top 20's on the Bluegrass Today charts. In January 2020 it earned a spot on Roots Music Report's Best Bluegrass albums of 2019. Will also worked on songs or albums by; Terry Brown, Circa Blue, Kevin Davis & Ban Caribe, Nothin' Fancy, Davis Bradley, The Fly Birds and Bud's Collective who's projects all climbed into the top 5 on various genre charts.

Will has had the honor of working with many other notable artists in various capacities, such as; Don Reid, Shawn Lane, Marty Raybon, Frank Solivan, Mike Munford, Tony Rice, Walter Hensley, Michael Cleveland, Mark Schatz, Gaven Largent, Marshall Wilborn, Patrick McAvinue, Clay Jones, Chris Luquette, Joltin' Jim McCoy, Mark Johnson, Emory Lester, Scythian, Robbie Limon, Robert Mabe, The Jakob's Ferry Stragglers and more, and is quickly gaining the reputation as a superb mastering and recording engineer, with artists requesting his services from all over North America.

Studio Rates: Recording, Mixing, Restoration

Hourly rate: $55 per hour

Weekly package: $50 per hour (up to 29 hours)

Album package: $40 per hour (30 or more hours)

*Mastering: $45 per song: ($150 minimum.)

NOTE: For projects recorded and mixed here, you will only be billed Studio Rates for mastering

*Basic Album Mastering: $150: (Normalization, Noise reduction, Basic EQ)

NOTE: Up to 80 minutes of content.

Mastering for Vinyl: $45 per song: ($150 minimum) Includes Side A & B wav files

Add Mastering for Vinyl: (in addition to Mastering): Add $99 per each Side A & B needed

ISRC Codes: (For an existing and completed album): $99: Includes Texting, ISRC codes and DDP image

Virtual Album Consultation: $25 per hour.

Need to record at home but want us to mix and master your album? It's always best to record here, but if circumstances require you to do your own recording, we can talk you through the process and offer customized tips and pointers based on the information gathered about your equipment, environment and your recording goals. This will allow you to capture the best sound possible from your home. We will also provide instructions on how to send the files to us when it's time for mixing.

* Includes Consultation, CD Texting & Gracenote registration, ISRC codes, WAV, AIF or virtual CDA audio Proof, MP3 files with ID3 tags, PQ data sheet and a DDP image for your manufacturer.

NOTE: MP3 files will be: 320 kbps @ 44.1 kHz /stereo, unless requested otherwise.