Bill Porter, 79, legendary recording engineer on almost 600 songs for Elvis, Chet Atkins, Orbison...
Hoodoo
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 8, 2010
Webster Mourns the Passing of Legendary Sound Engineer and Webster
Audio Production Professor Bill Porter
http://www.webster.edu/news/releases/images/porter.jpg
Bill Porter, legendary recording engineer and Webster University
Emeritus Special Lecturer, died July 7. He was 79. Following a career in
which he recorded almost 600 songs for such artists as Elvis Presley,
Chet Atkins and Roy Orbison, Porter returned to his hometown of St.
Louis and taught a wide range of audio engineering courses at Webster
University. Porter taught nine courses in Webster's School of
Communications audio production program and for the Leigh Gerdine
College of Fine Arts from 1999 to 2005. He won the William T. Kemper
Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2003 and a lifetime achievement
award from the Webster University Student Chapter of the Audio
Engineering Society.
"Bill Porter was a perfectionist who shared his wisdom and talent with
new generations of audio production students," said Debra Carpenter,
dean, Webster University School of Communications. "He was a true
Southern gentleman and my friend. His passing is a great loss to those
of us who knew and loved him."
Porter is widely regarded as the creator of the "Nashville Sound," was
sound engineer on 15 of Billboard’s Top 100 Songs of All Time and was
the first recording engineer inducted into the Audio Hall of Fame.
During his time at RCA Studios, Porter recorded most of Elvis' No. 1
hits in Studio B in Nashville, and, in the 70s recorded several of
Elvis' concerts.
Although Porter himself never graduated from college, he created and
co-authored the first college level curriculum in audio engineering.
Many of his methodology and curriculum are still being taught today.
"Bill was a humble man and a rare talent," said Barry Hufker, Webster
University professor of audio production. "He accomplished everything in
music recording most people only dream about. He cared deeply about
education and the students. He worked hard to share his knowledge and
experience to teach students how to listen and then to open their minds
to all the possibilities around them. No other teacher could offer what
he had and we were blessed to have him. He had a huge impact on the
shape of our audio production program. All who knew him here will miss
him greatly."
With its home campus in St. Louis, Webster University is a worldwide
institution committed to delivering high-quality learning experiences
that transform students for global citizenship and individual
excellence. Founded in 1915, Webster offers undergraduate and graduate
degree programs through five schools and colleges, and a global network
of more than 100 campuses. Its 20,000-plus student population represents
almost 150 nationalities.
Since opening its first campus overseas in Geneva in 1978, Webster has
become a recognized leader and innovator in global education. The
University's Study Abroad programs rank in the top 2 percent of the more
than 1,400 colleges and universities surveyed in the "America’s Best
Colleges" 2010 edition of U.S. News & World Report. Webster is one of
just 34 U.S. institutions to share this distinction, which recognizes
study abroad programs that involve substantial academic work for credit
and considerable interaction with the local culture. The University's
international presence now includes campuses in London; Vienna;
Amsterdam and Leiden, the Netherlands; Shanghai, Shenzhen and Chengdu,
China; and Bangkok and Cha-am, Thailand. Webster also has educational
partnerships with universities in Mexico and Japan.
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