At the end of a gravel driveway that winds through a tree-dotted pasture sits Cedar Creek Recording. The business operates out of a stone house on a 9-acre homestead at 5012 Brighton Road, Austin.

“Having a private place that’s not in the country—that’s what makes this place really unique,” Cedar Creek’s chief engineer Andre Moran said. “You can go out to Spicewood or Dripping Springs or Wimberley, and there’s lots of studios, but you have to schlep your way out there. Here, you’re five minutes away from everything in town.”

Moran has been working and performing in Austin since 2004, when he and his wife and fellow musician Noëlle Hampton moved to the area from San Francisco.

Relocating meant Moran needed to find work. A Google search for “recording studios in Austin” led him to his longtime business partner Mark Hallman, who also manages Cedar Creek Recording.

The pair began working together at the historic Congress House Studio at 7308 Congress Ave., Austin, which Hallman had owned and operated since the mid-1980s. There, Hallman produced recordings for Carole King, Ani DiFranco and Oasis, among others.

Moran and Hallman signed on with Cedar Creek’s owners and relocated to the studio early this year, after Hallman sold Congress House Studio in December.

“Mark and the former owner of Cedar Creek were friends for a lot of years,” Moran said. “Mark did a lot of projects here back in the ’80s, so it’s kind of a full circle. For a long time, people called Congress House and Cedar Creek sister studios.”

At Cedar Creek, Hallman and Moran foster a “musician-friendly environment,” in which artists are encouraged to experiment with different equipment, instruments and modes of recording.

“We keep lots of instruments lying around, so if you’re recording and wondering, ‘What will this sound like if we add this instrument?’ you can pick one up and find out,” Moran said.

Cedar Creek Recording

5012 Brighton Road, Austin