The Story of the Les Paul Artifacts in the Mahwah Museum

with Sean McClowry

Saturday, April 23 

Sean McClowry discusses the artifacts from Les Paul’s home studios which are on display at this museum. The unique collection, not seen anywhere else, is on long term loan from the Les Paul Foundation.

Special attention will be given to the “Octopus,” the “Monster,” the Sound on Sound machine (Ampex 300), and the Wally Jones Mixer. Sean will go through the music made on each of these machines, the origins of the machines, they way they function, and the dates that Les used them.

Sean McClowry, Associate Professor of Music Industry at the College Of Saint Rose, teaches courses in record production, analog recording, songwriting & composition, music business, and double bass. Sean is active as a music producer, composer, songwriter, and performing artist in both popular and classical music worlds. Specializing in historic methods of recording and music production, Sean’s area of research is Les Paul and Mary Ford, their groundbreaking recordings, and technical advancements as recording artists. Sean spends lots of time restoring and using vintage recording equipment, including record cutters and Ampex reel to reel tape machines. Sean’s work with this medium is part academic and part obsession. He is currently working on a book about Les Paul.