was born in Vermont, and brought up in New England. As a child, his elementary school teachers would put him in the back row during singing classes so other kids could tune better by hearing his voice. In 1970 at the age of twelve, he formed a band called The Flock. Admission to their backyard concerts was a nickel.
Recording music has been Mark’s sole profession since 1983, when he became staff engineer at Euphoria Recording Studios in Boston, Massachusetts. Sessions there included albums with Jimmy Miller (producer for the Rolling Stones, Blind Faith, and Traffic, among others), Johnny Thunders, and Scruffy the Cat. He moved to the San Francisco Bay area of California in 1986.
Mark is an accomplished musician, and his musical skills inform his work as an engineer and a producer. With most classical works, he reads and edits the music from the conductor’s score. Many of his clients depend on him to edit and mix airplay- ready masters from the shows they perform. His recordings have been broadcast on Performance Today, KDFC, KRCB, and many commercial and NPR stations nationally.
Mr Lemaire founded Rubato Recording to provide “audiophile anywhere” music recording services, specializing in classical, jazz, and anything interesting and challenging. In addition, Mr Lemaire’s studio recordings include all kinds of music, made in a variety of studios. Examples: Cascada De Flores , Orquesta La Moderna Tradicion , Neurosis , Christie McCarthy, Mandible Chatter, and more.
Mark Lemaire is a member of the San Francisco Early Music Society and the American String Teachers Association . He is also a singer and guitarist. His releases include Rubato: Pieces for Guitar, and Leftover Dreams. Information about Mr. Lemaire’s music is available here.
“The sound Mark Lemaire captures is absolutely
beautiful, with a natural warmth and transparency that is crucial
to making a high-quality acoustic or classical recording. His rare
combination of score-reading skills, musicianship, and keen ears
not only make his sessions flow smoothly and efficiently, but also
enables those who are recording to concentrate on playing their
best.”
--Patrick Francis, classical guitarist & member of the San
Francisco Guitar Quartet
“Mark’s equipment is excellent, he is attentive
to detail and he is cooperative and collaborative. His
effectiveness was noteworthy when we put together a complicated
recording project with a children's choir in Germany. Editing and
mixing the two choirs in remote locations was no easy trick but
Mark handled it with ease. Bravo!”
--Robert Geary, Artistic Director, Volti, Piedmont Children's
Choirs, San Francisco Choral Society
“Mark Lemaire has been making beautiful concert
recordings for us for years! He is a musician and also a very nice
person, which helps a lot. I highly recommend Mark's services to
anyone needing a recording engineer who really attends to the
details and always strives to do his considerable best for
you.”
--Sharon Gustavson, Managing Director, San Francisco Bach
Choir
“Mark Lemaire’s standards and equipment are of
the highest order. He uses microphones, pre-amps and other gear
that far surpasses commonly encountered professional standards. He
also takes great pains to obtain a recorded sound that is at once
honest, transparent, warm, supple and highly detailed. Although,
in my opinion, there is still no substitute for live performance,
Mark’s recordings come close to capturing the essential
nature, vitality and life force of a live performance. I would not
hesitate to suggest his services to anyone serious and critical
about their art.”
--Mark Simons, Guitarist, San Francisco Guitar Quartet
“Mark Lemaire is a consummate professional. Few people
have such a total command of proper recording, mixing and editing
technique, have as keen an ear, and moreover are as completely
reliable and affable as Mark. His mixes and recordings always
sound spot-on. Three words sum it up: ‘Mark's the
best.’”
--Joseph Gregorio, composer / conductor
"Mark works fast and accurately, knows his stuff both musically and technically, and is a supportive, creative partner in the recording and editing process. Mark’s demeanor in a recording session is relaxing, really conducive to good music-making, and yet also efficient—we get a lot done! I wouldn’t consider using anyone else.
For my projects, Mark has recorded a large choir with organ,
a small vocal ensemble, vocal soloists, dueling pianos, a rock
band, gospel trio, percussion, guitars, fiddle,
handbells…you name it! There doesn’t seem to be any
combination of instruments or voices that he can’t make
sound good. I have always been impressed by his versatility,
flexibility, and imaginative approach to recording. His ultimate
aim is to make us sound great, and we always have.”
--Kim Rankin, Director of Music Ministry, First Unitarian Church
of Oakland
“Sonically, Mark is one of the best engineers out
there. His recordings are super clean and he is a master at the
board.”
--Christie McCarthy
“My musical collaboration with Mark Lemaire goes back
a decade, and spans my first classical CD project to my latest
live rock’n’roll show. Whether choosing and placing
microphones, recording, playing back, editing or just talking
about it all- he is on top of it and I know we are creating
quality music.”
--Steven Bailey, Classical Pianist and Bob Dylan impersonator
“Mark is the total professional; he created a
supportive recording environment without ever compromising the
quality of the project. He has a terrific, musical ear: his edits
were seamless and the overall sound was excellent.”
--Nanette McGuinness, lyric soprano
“Mark is an exceptional recording engineer. His
experience and knowledge of the technical and musical issues are
invaluable. His editing skills are on a par with the best in the
field. Our recording of "Shadow Tree" is undeniably the finest
recording a work of mine has ever received—I couldn't be
more delighted.”
--John G. Bilotta, composer
“Mark Lemaire's finesse and attention to detail, as a
player and an engineer, is well-known, but it was his deeply
creative nature that gave my first project some special qualities
I'm not sure it would otherwise have had. A little brilliance
always peps up a track, but couple it with the unexpected, and you
have something you can't stop enjoying. Don't miss an opportunity
to work with Mark; you will never regret it.”
--Carol Denney, musician, "The Rich Will Never Be
Poor"
“Mark Lemaire gets my highest
recommendation.”
--Fritz Steinegger, pianist
“It has always been a pleasure to work with Mark
Lemaire. Mark is very professional—never distracting the
audience or performers from the music itself. His experience
recording live performances of choral and instrumental music is
evident in the high quality of the finished
product.”
--Helen Barrios, President, California Bach Society
“I chose Mark because of his skill as a vocal coach,
his easy manner in the studio, and his ears. I absolutely trust
his judgment—and he is a joy to work with!”
--Megan McLaughlin
“Mark has an easy confidence that makes for a very
comfortable working environment. I quickly trusted his feedback as
he clearly has an acute ear for timbre, tuning, style, dynamics
and timing. The editing is seamless and more importantly, I feel
that Mark was able to capture the unique quality of my
voice.”
--Christa Pheiffer, soprano