Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Berklee Creates Scholarship Fund in Honor of Recording Legend Al Schmitt

24/11/2021

Berklee Creates Scholarship Fund in Honor of Recording Legend Al Schmitt The scholarship fund will support financially and academically deserving students majoring in music production and engineering.

By

Colette Greenstein

November 23, 2021

Al Schmitt

Berklee has created the Al Schmitt Engineering Scholarship to honor the legacy of multiple Grammy Award-winning recording engineer and producer Al Schmitt.

The scholarship was established by the Music Production and Engineering Department (MP&E) with a $50,000 donation from the endowment fund of Wayne Wadhams, a former Berklee faculty member who was instrumental in founding the department in 1983. The fund will support students majoring in MP&E who are financially and academically deserving and have the potential to make a significant contribution to society through the art and craft of audio engineering and record production. The tuition-based scholarship will be awarded to one student per year, with the inaugural recipient set to be announced in fall 2022.

Al Schmitt would be so honored and pleased, as is his family, at making the scholarship available, said his wife, Lisa Schmitt. We can think of no greater way to celebrate Al than to financially assist those attending Berklee who want to follow in his footsteps.

Schmitt, one of the most decorated and longest-active recording engineers in the music industry, passed away on April 26, 2021. In a career spanning more than 60 years, he won 20 Grammy Awards, two Latin Grammys, and a Trustees Grammy for Lifetime Achievement in 2006. He won his first Grammy in 1962 for engineering Henry Mancini's Hatari! film score.

Want to Contribute to the Al Schmitt Scholarship?

Learn how to make a gift to the Al Schmitt Engineering Scholarship fund.

Schmitt recorded more than 150 gold and platinum albums, including George Benson's Breezin, Steely Dan's Aja, Natalie Cole's Unforgettable... with Love, and Berklee alumna Diana Krall's When I Look in Your Eyes. He collaborated with some of the most iconic musicians and artists of the past 60 years, from Duke Ellington, Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, and Elvis Presley to Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Barbra Streisand, Ike and Tina Turner, and Celine Dion, among many others.

I can't think of a more meaningful way for us to honor a man that defined every benchmark of the craft of music production and audio engineering. Al's work embodied limitless musicality, stunning technical ability, and most importantly a sense of warmth, compassion, and humanity, said Rob Jaczko, chair of Music Production and Engineering. The MP&E Department at Berklee is proud to award the Al Schmitt Engineering Scholarship to recognize and inspire the next generations of audio professionals.

A native New Yorker, Schmitt later moved to Los Angeles and became the first engineer hired when RCA Records opened its studio in Hollywood in the 1960s. Known as the engineer's engineer, Schmitt cofounded the Recording Academys Producers and Engineers Wing and served on the academy's National Board of Trustees. In 2014, he received an Emmy nomination for his work on CBS's The Beatles: The Night That Changed America. That same year, Berklee presented Schmitt with an honorary doctorate, and in 2015, he was the first engineer/mixer to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

There are no two words on the planet more synonymous with excellence in recording than Al Schmitt, said Daniel M. Thompson, assistant chair of Music Production and Engineering. Over decades, Al has come to define the art of the craft, and at the same time I can think of few engineers or producers who have been as universally beloved as Al, for his wit, his wisdom, and his warmth as a person. We are thrilled to be able to help preserve Als legacy while lifting up the next generation through the Al Schmitt Engineering Scholarship at Berklee.

Related Categories

News

Most Popular

Arooj Aftab B.M. '10

Berklee's 2022 Alumni Grammy Nominees: See the Full List Nominees include Arooj Aftab, Miguel Zen n, Esperanza Spalding, and others in categories including Record of the Year, Album of the Year, and Song of the Year.

Latest

Tia Fuller, Berklee City Music ambassador and artistic director of the Berklee City Music Boston High School Academy program, delivers remarks at the Berklee Encore Gala ahead of performances with City Music students and fellow ambassadors.

Image by Mike Spencer

Berklee City Music Launches Ambassador Program Nine ambassadors representing all aspects of the music industry will advise, mentor, and work with Berklee City Music students throughout the academic year.

Berklee student Henry Ferland, aka Traash Boyyy, with former Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis

Image by Shira Stoll, courtesy of NBC10 Boston

Student TikToker Takes on Trash with Help from a Former Governor Henry Ferlands activism has gone viral on TikTok and led to a meeting with fellow clean-up enthusiast Michael Dukakis last week.

Al Schmitt

Image courtesy of the Schmitt family

Berklee Creates Scholarship Fund in Honor of Recording Legend Al Schmitt The scholarship fund will support financially and academically deserving students majoring in music production and engineering.

Read All

Subscribe The latest sounds, stories, and ideas, sent to your inbox weekly.
LINK: https://www.berklee.edu/berklee-now/news/berklee-creates-scholarship-f...
See more stories from berklee

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

09/10/2026

Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026

September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026 New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...

07/10/2026

Dalet Flex LTS Delivers Smarter Media Operations from Ingest to Distribution

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...

30/09/2026

SGO Unveils Workflows Slate To Enable Automated Burn-ins, Slates

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Public Advocacy Group Urges Broadcasters to Stop Airing Trump Taxpayer Funded Ad

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Qvest Promotes Katlyn Alexander to CEO, North America

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Mavis Camera 8-2 adds iPhone 18 Pro Support with Variable...

Mavis has launched Mavis Camera 8.2, the latest release of its professional camera app for the iPhone and iPad. This update brings support for iPhone 18 Pro and...

29/09/2026

Oak View Group Names Cisco as Official Technology Partner

Oak View Group (OVG) has announced Cisco as an Official Technology Partner, with plans to standardize infrastructure across its venue network on Cisco solutions...

29/09/2026

SportsNet Pittsburgh Wins Three Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards

SportsNet Pittsburgh (SNP) won three honors at the 2026 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards. Program awards went to Bucs BP in the Sports Program Live category (produced ...

29/09/2026

CBC, PWHL Revive Hockey Night in Canada' on Saturdays

The Professional Women's Hockey League has announced home openers for all 12 teams for the 2026-27 season, along with a broadcast partnership with CBC under...

29/09/2026

Manifold Technologies Recognized as MXL Contributor Following IBC Innovation Award

Manifold technologies has been recognized as a contributor to the Media eXchange...

29/09/2026

Fubo Launches My Local Sports RSN Add-On Package

FuboTV has announced My Local Sports, allowing subscribers in select markets to add their local regional sports network (RSN) as an add-on to a Fubo Sports subs...

29/09/2026

ANI Deploys Grass Valley AMPP and Framelight X for News Operations

Asian News International (ANI), a wire agency and video news provider based in India, has deployed Grass Valley's AMPP Media Operating System and Framelight...

29/09/2026

SABC Deploys Ikegami UHK-X600 Cameras for IP-Based Production

South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has deployed Ikegami UHK-X600 cameras as part of an upgrade to IP-based production infrastructure. The deployment ...

29/09/2026

Busy in Bristol: ESPN Headquarters Come Alive With New Studio W, Remote-Production Workflows

REMI, REMCO models will drive the bulk of the broadcaster's NHL productions ...

29/09/2026

NASCAR Productions' Keith D'Alessandro on the Continued Evolution of Its Centralized Production Hub

Three years in, the facility is supporting more centralized race production, com...

29/09/2026

NBC Sports Brings Robust Sunday Night Baseball Production Playbook to MLB Wild Card Round

NBC, Peacock, and NBSN are carrying all four Wild Card series with a production ...

29/09/2026

Sundance Institute Announces 2026 Doc Fund Grantees

19 Nonfiction Projects Across All Stages of Production to Receive More Than $1 million in Support as Documentary Film Program Approaches 25th Anniversary LOS ...

29/09/2026

Zynaptiq introduce Loud & Wide

Two new plug-ins launch alongside updated bundles Zynaptiq have just announced the launch of two new plug-ins, alongside new and improved versions of two of...

29/09/2026

Wes Audio unveil the ngOmniBox

All-in-one bus processor revealed Wes Audio's ng product range has come a long way since it was first introduced, and now includes a tasty selection of ...

29/09/2026

First Baptist Nashville Drastically Upgrades Production Communications with...

eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......

29/09/2026

Fubo TV Launches My Local Sports'

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

ARRI Targets Content Creators with New HONOR Smartphone

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

Asian News International Enhances Workflow with Grass Valley AMPP, FramelightX

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

SABC Chooses Ikegami UHK-X600 Cameras to Support IP Studio Transition

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

SABC Upgrades to IP-Based Production with Ikegami UHK-X60...

Ikegami announces that the South African Broadcasting Corporation, SABC, has chosen Ikegami UHK-X600 camera systems as part of an advance to IP-based operation ...

29/09/2026

Blendkit Offers 20% Discount to Celebrate Crossing 150K Asset Milestone

Blendkit Offers 20% Discount to Celebrate Crossing 150K Asset Milestone Brie Clayton September 29, 2026 0 Comments Blendkit, the largest 3D asset libr...

29/09/2026

Ease Live Reports over 75 Million Interactive Sessions Du...

Interactive streaming specialist Ease Live supported more than 76.5 million fan sessions across three major European media operators during this summers FIFA Wo...

29/09/2026

Ease Live to monetise key moments in live sports

Ease Live has added support for VAST (Video Ad Serving Template) to its graphical overlay technology, opening up new ways for broadcasters, streamers and rights...

29/09/2026

Rise AV launches awards celebrating the women advocates a...

Rise AV has announced the launch of the inaugural Rise AV Awards, a new global awards programme celebrating the women, advocates and organisations across the AV...

29/09/2026

Netflix Deploys Advanced Sony PTZ Cameras For Wonka's The Golden Ticket' Production

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

Massachusetts Broadcasters Association Names Gene Lavanchy 2026 Broadcaster of the Year

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

ESPN Reports Its Most-Watched WNBA Regular Season

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

Scripps Taps Digital News Veteran Sean McGarvy to Lead News Strategy

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

Gray Raises Political Ad Revenue Estimates

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

Edward Czarnecki Uses Game Theory to Assess ATSC 3.0 Transition Policies

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

First Baptist Nashville Drastically Upgrades Production C...

Clear-Com announced that First Baptist Nashville has upgraded its production communications with a Clear-Com intercom solution as part of a comprehensive sanct...

29/09/2026

Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K Captured Action Shots for Sketch

Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K Captured Action Shots for Sketch Brie Clayton September 28, 2026 0 Comments Camera's portable design and dynamic range...

29/09/2026

Kean Production Services Deploys AJA ColorBox to Deliver Consistent, Accurate Color Across In-venue Displays at Live Events

Kean Production Services Deploys AJA ColorBox to Deliver Consistent, Accurate Co...

29/09/2026

Berklee Alumni and Faculty Nominated for the 2026 Latin Grammy Awards

Berklee Alumni and Faculty Nominated for the 2026 Latin Grammy Awards A total of 28 Berklee alumni and faculty earned nominations across 20 categories this ye...

29/09/2026

Berklee's K-Pop & Beyond Explores Connections Between K-Pop and Hip-Hop

Berklee's K-Pop & Beyond Explores Connections Between K-Pop and Hip-Hop Now in its fifth year, the series brings together artists, industry leaders, and s...

29/09/2026

The energy transition will only succeed if it lasts

We tend to think we live in a digital world, with hopes and fears around artificial intelligence (AI), quantum computing, data centres and the next big technolo...

29/09/2026

Apple releases new guide to help families build healthy digital habits - UPDATE - Posted on 29 September 2026

Today, in partnership with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), Apple relea...

29/09/2026

Final Cut Camera now supports variable aperture on iPhone\u00A018\u00A0Pro - UPDATE - Posted on 29 September 2026

Final Cut Camera, the professional filming app for iPhone, receives a major upda...

29/09/2026

RT lyric fm launch the hunt for Choirs for Christmas

RT lyric fm is proud to announce the annual Choirs for Christmas competition callout. Warm up those vocal chords and join us on RT lyric fm for a celebration ...

28/09/2026

NHL Names Adobe as an Official Creative, Marketing and AI Partner

The NHL has announced Adobe as an Official Creative, Marketing and AI Partner beginning with the 2026-27 season. The partnership will provide the league and its...

28/09/2026

MultiDyne to Showcase Expanded Portfolio Including MRMC Robotics at CABSAT 2026

MultiDyne will exhibit at CABSAT 2026 (October 5-7, Dubai Exhibition Centre), showcasing an expanded technology portfolio following its June 2026 acquisition of...

28/09/2026

ARRI and HONOR Launch Co-Branded HONOR Magic9 Pro Max

ARRI and HONOR have announced the HONOR Magic9 Pro Max, a flagship smartphone carrying ARRI branding on the device and packaging as the first product-level expr...