NAMM attendees can enter to win visit from revamped John Lennon bus.

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A BRAND NEW JOHN LENNON Educational Tour Bus, dedicated to providing students with free hands-on opportunities to make music and produce video projects, will be unveiled to the music products industry at winter NAMM. This non-profit mobile pro audio and HD video operation contains two recording and video production studios, a green screen room, iso booth, presentation/demo room, and living quarters for three staffers, all onboard a moving vehicle. The Lennon Bus has an illustrious history as a hit maker, with chart-topping singles from The Black Eyed Peas and Fergie recorded on board.

Retailers who stop by the Lennon Bus, located on the Arena Plaza, can enter to win a visit by the bus to their store. The opportunity to drive store traffic through free public tours of the state-of-the-art mobile studios represents an exclusive community event for any retailer. The three on-board engineers will introduce customers and new visitors to the studios, explaining and demonstrating music and video production, highlighting all the newest gear. The new bus has two on-board studio environments, each powered by a high-end Apple Mac Pro loaded with Ableton Live, Logic Studio, Final Cut Studio, and Sibelius music notation software, supplemented by an Apple XServe and XRAID system that facilitates high-bandwidth HD multimedia production and storage.

As a special bonus, the bus's PR staff will work with the winning retailer's store an invite local media to cover the event, further positioning the store as a positive place for consumers to call home. The Bus will also provide free visitor "goody bags," which can include a coupon or other collateral material from the store.

Retailers can enter by stopping by the bus between Thursday, January 17 and Saturday, January 19. The drawing will take place at noon on Sunday, January 20.

Plans for the second mobile recording and multimedia studio have been in the works since the first Lennon Bus hit the road a decade ago. Executive Director Brian Rothschild and Music Manager David Sonenberg created the outreach project that began by providing programs in songwriting and audio production. Over the years, the program expanded to include video production, and the new bus has taken the technology even further with the addition of Sony HD video solutions, Mackie 5.1 surround sound monitor systems and Apogee's high-definition digital audio converters. Also new for '08 is an onboard Chromatte booth from Reflecmedia, as well as Bogen Imaging's full line of grip equipment, tripods, filters, and accessories.

The non-profit program, now in its 11th year, is made possible by the generosity of Yoko Ono Lennon and corporate sponsors including NAMM and Maxell Corporation of America. In 2008 the bus will tour high schools, colleges, and retailers, and will continue its Battle of the Bands program in association with major daily newspapers and other media outlets throughout country.