WOODLAND – The formerly vacant parcel at 103 East Main Street in Woodland will no longer resonate with the song of silence, but rather echo with the blend of musical instruments and harmonious voices of local recording artists.

Reverend Rodney M. Persons Sr. joined by General Manager Gloria Johnson along with friends and other members of the community gathered together Saturday, January 17 at Master’s Touch Recordings for their open house celebration and dedication ceremony.

As music from a live band filled the halls of the newly opened building, Rev. Persons shared the vision that led to the opening of the recording studio.

&uot;My family was always very musical,&uot; he said. &uot;My dad plays piano and my twin brother sings and has his own band and I was always singing.&uot;

Persons, who has sung semi-professionally and taught music for the past 15-16 years, said he felt the Lord leading him to expand his sphere of influence by exercising more of the gifts and talents God had blessed him with to help others achieve their goals.

&uot;I have always wanted to pursue the dream of opening a recording studio and now God has given me the provision to pursue it. The town has welcomed me with open arms and it feels wonderful to give back to the community,&uot; said Persons who holds fast to the New Testament scripture Phillipians 4:13 for his encouragement.

Back in July of last year, before the recording studio formally opened its doors, Person did a live recording for nine local groups in Powellsville. &uot;It was a lot of fun and it turned out really great,&uot; he said.

Persons expressed hope that the new recording studio would give local artists, who wouldn’t otherwise have access to such a facility, the opportunity to record their work.

The studio, which contains a 32-track recording board, 24 channel mixing, compact disc and cassette recording devices, 400 and 150 watt amps with surround sound, is also equipped to manufacture and package recorded materials.

&uot;Everything we do here is digital,&uot; he said. &uot;We have packages for those just starting out at the 200-300 levels on up and we do all the shrink wrap and mix downs here on site to make it more convenient for the artists.&uot;

Deacon Donald Grant, one of the vocalists of the Glorifiers of Christ, led the dedication ceremony with a prayerful benediction emphasizing the importance of remaining &uot;in the vine&uot; referencing John 5:15 and offered thanks and praise to God on behalf of all those present.

Grant prayed for blessings on the building and all who pass through its doors and dedicated the business back to the Lord from whom &uot;every good and perfect gift&uot; comes.

&uot;Anything I have is the Lord’s,&uot; said Persons, &uot;that’s why I’m dedicating it all back to him.&uot;

Voices lifted up songs of praise, as the band closed with musical selections of Ron Kenoly’s &uot;If you can use anything Lord, you can use me&uot; and other inspirational songs.

&uot;There should always be a praise in your spirit,&uot; said Persons as he yielded to the Reverend from Mount Nebo Missionary Baptist Church who encouraged Persons to continue to his work here, but to also set his sights high toward &uot;reaching new heights.&uot;

&uot;We’re really excited about this,&uot; said Persons. &uot;We hope it will be a blessing to others as much as it has been so far to us.&uot;

Persons resides in Pendleton with his wife, Loisteen, and dedicates his spare time to evangelistic preaching engagements &uot;wherever the Lord sends.&uot;

For more information or to schedule a recording session, contact Master’s Touch Recordings at 252-585-3617 or email: godslove@isp.com.

Information will also be broadcast on local radio WRCS 970 AM and WWDR 1080 Gospel AM.