Our March Feature Profile is Beth O'Leary a freelance monitor engineer and system tech based in the U.K. She has toured as a system tech with Arcade Fire, J Cole, the Piano Guys, Paul Weller, and more.

You Can’t Be What You Can’t See
We bring to you the stories of women working in audio, from the Groundbreakers to the Next Generation.

Resources to utilize during this forced downtime and unemployment. From best business practices, career development, continuing education, and side hustles to get us through this.

The Perfect Bedtime Story

"I, like many of you, hit the “buy” button immediately once Women in Audio by Leslie Gaston-Bird was published. A textbook about us, for us, and most importantly, by us! Reading a textbook has never been this empowering."

Nicole Kirch is a recording engineer and musician. In her short career, she has worked on location sound, post-production, stage crew, and electronics.

A Note on Saying Thank You

I feel very strongly that it’s important to pass on these thank-you notes because it’s often underestimated how much weight a band’s attitude can have. How simply being friendly and rolling with the punches makes or breaks stressful situations, and makes all the difference between a rushed soundcheck being doable or downright miserable.

Sydney Bolton is a live sound engineer based in Seattle. When, not behind a soundboard she may be found in a darkroom, skateboarding, or playing drums.

Navigating through Coronavirus

The outbreak of coronavirus is impacting us all. Whether you’re a freelance musician or salaried employee the virus has shut down multiple sectors leaving many worried about the future ahead. I have prepared some links to some things that can help those working in the music industry. h

Jen Athan is a composer and producer based in Glasgow. She has written music for theatre shows and short films and enjoys creating music to accompany a narrative.

Kate Finan shares 3 steps to cutting classic cartoon effects in her latest blog, Check it out!

Kate Finan began her career as a post-production sound effects editor. Over the next several years, she worked her way up to being a supervising sound editor at Warner Bros. and then left to start her own studio, Boom Box Post.

Side Hustles for the No Work Drought

Whatever your side hustle, remember that it should stay on the side, so don’t pick up something that makes you buy a bunch of new equipment or requires a ridiculous amount of time. Do try to find something that’s fun, keeps you learning, and most importantly, brings the $$$! Cheers and Happy Hustling!

Elisabeth Weidner is a sound designer, composer, and engineer based on California’s Central Coast.

How to Make Tech Easier -
Be Prepared

"Having a smart layout for your DCAs and a clear script can be the difference between an incredibly stressful or a delightfully smooth tech process."

Heather Augustine is an audio engineer and graduated from Penn State University with a BFA in Theatrical Design and Technology, with an emphasis on Sound Design, and has been on the road for the past 7 years. Currently, she is the A1 for the first national tour of Mean Girls.

SoundGirls Self-Care: Coping with Anxiety

"Working in the Entertainment Industry can be stressful at times. During the past few weeks alone due to COVID-19 has created a lot of fear and anxiety not only in our work industry but many others as well."

Alyasia Muhammad-Turner is a freelance sound engineer and musician, currently based in Atlanta. Alyasia’s goal is to continue education and training for women, non-binary, and LGBTQ+ in STEM fields.

Janice Patane has ten years in a large-scale corporate environment in the field of statistics, primarily undertaking roles in Business Strategy. I have experience in corporate planning, communications, policy, legislation, training, business continuity and of particular note here, I am certified in risk management.

Introducing Women in Audio Spotify Podcast

Tanglea Lamb has a new podcast on Spotify. Women in Audio. The First Episode Interview with SoundGirl Virginia Haladyna

Virginia Haladyna is a musician, songwriter, performer, and freelance recording engineer based out of Austin, Texas.

Word Clocks, Clock Masters, SRC, Digital Clocks And Why They Matter To You

Three digital audio consoles walk into a festival/bar and put in their drink orders. The bartender/front-end processor says, “You can order whatever you want, but I’m going to determine when you drink it.”

Arica Rust is a live sound engineer specializing in systems engineering. She currently freelances under her company Wavelength Engineering and has extensive experience working with L-Acoustics and d&b audiotechnik systems.

The podcast industry has been receiving attention for some time now. Sarah Calvert recently had the pleasure of talking with Fela Davis about podcast audio and what it means for the audio industry.

Sarah Calvert is a sound designer and composer based in the midwest. She feels the most satisfaction when mentoring and teaching younger students. She is continuing her education for a master's degree in sound design and another undergraduate degree in music composition and theory.

Gain Without the Pain

Gain Structure for Live Sound Part 1. Gain structure and gain staging are terms that get thrown about a lot, but often get skimmed over as being obvious, without ever being fully explained. The way some people talk about it, and mock other people for theirs, you’d think proper gain structure was some special secret skill, known only to the most talented engineers.

Beth O’Leary is a freelance live sound engineer and tech-based in Sheffield, England.

Gain Without the Pain Part 2

In my last blog, I outlined the basics of gain structure, and how to get to a good starting point for your mix. This time I want to discuss a few situations where you might take different approaches to how you set your gain, and why.

Beth O’Leary is a freelance live sound engineer and tech-based in Sheffield, England.

Girl Boss

"To be a woman in our industry it takes a lot. A lot of power, energy, skill, leadership, determination, drive, patience, compassion, emotion, and strength."

Heather Holm, holds a BA in Broadcasting & Digital Media Communication & an MS in Organizational Change Leadership. Heather works in higher education dealing with event logistics and production technology.

Inspire the Next Generation

"Empower your daughters, sisters, and nieces so they can have opportunities to learn and research whatever excites them."

Susan Williams is an educator in Winter Park, FL. Susan has spent her career working for various theatres, including the Orlando Repertory Theatre, The Garden Theatre, & the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival.

Clothes or Leaking Focus

Clothes have to FUNCTION. Certain kinds of cotton will make me sweat out a shirt in minutes. Too light a color and I’m a blur in bright lights. Polyester will stink faster than it takes me to look up how to spell “polyester.”

Singer - Songwriter Willa Mamet lives in Oakland, CA, with her beloved upright, her uncle’s guitar, a whole lot of elderberry bushes, and her six-pawed cat. She travels. A lot. For music.

SoundGirls of Mexico Blog

La falta de sueño, mala alimentación, cambios de horarios frecuentes y principalmente el estrés son pieza fundamental para potencializar el cansancio mental y físico de cualquier ser humano, es por eso por lo que les compartiré algunos ejercicios para contrarrestar nuestro desempeño.

SoundGirls of Mexico Blog:
Managing Stress at Work

"Lack of sleep, poor diet, frequent schedule changes, and mainly stress are fundamental pieces to potentiate the mental and physical fatigue of any human being. Carolina Anton shares some exercises to help counteract mental and physical fatigue."

A Beginners Guide to Wireless Frequencies

"Learning about and using wireless equipment can be overwhelming – there are a lot of differences from traditional gear and rather importantly there are strict rules around using radio frequencies that vary from country to country."

Michelle Sciarrotta is a singer/songwriter, composer, and musician. Michelle has worked all over the UK and Europe. She is passionate about women’s rights and education for girls.

How Do You Measure Career Success?

The fact that I am still here 25 years later thinking, talking, working and now inspiring young people to pursue a career in audio defines me as an audio professional.

Erica D’Angelo has been working as an audio engineer in Australia since 1997. She is the Director of the SoundGirls Melbourne Chapter

Audiologists and Hearing Tests

Hearing tests aren’t a common topic of conversation between audio professionals. But why? You’d think in an industry where our careers depend on hearing (and we do educate about hearing loss) we may want to get our ears checked periodically. Check out April Tucker's Blog on her recent hearing test with Dr. Julie Glick.

April holds both a Master’s Degree and a Bachelor’s Degree in Sound Recording. April works as a re-recording mixer and sound editor, but has experience as a music editor and mixer, and ADR and Foley engineer.

The SoundGirls Yearbook 2019 is now on sale ($25) and will start shipping in January. The Yearbook has all of SoundGirls’ Feature Profiles for 2019, the best of the blogs, and tips and resources. All proceeds will fund three programs The SoundGirls Scholarships, The Ethel Gabriel Scholarship and The SoundGirls – Gaston-Bird Travel Grants.

The EQL Directory
Powered by SoundGirls, Made Possible by Spotify

The EQL Directory is a global database of professionals that seeks to amplify the careers and achievements of women working behind the scenes in music and audio. Any person around the world can add their name and claim their space. And, any person looking to hire a more inclusive creative team can find professionals in their area.

Editing SoundGirls into Wikipedia

Wikipedia Hackathon to add Women in Audio into Wikipedia. Nicole has provided SoundGirls with a roadmap. It is a great step by step guide.

Nicole Kirch is a North Carolina based recording engineer and musician. In her short career, she has worked on location sound, post-production, stage crew, and electronics.

Helpful insight and advice as you navigate the industry as a young freelance musician. It identifies common challenges facing freelance musicians, and signposts sources of support that you can access.It also includes tips on identifying and managing anxiety and other issues, and when to seek help or access specialist support.

Career Paths in Film and TV – Highlights

Guide to Supporting Women in Audio

A resource for men and all people interested in social equity in audio. In Collaboration with Yorkshire Sound Women Network, Big Bear Audio, Huddersfield University, and #HeforShe

Report Sexual Harassment or Assualt - JDoe App

Sexual misconduct remains a difficult crisis for women and men. Fear, social blaming, and isolation continue to be key factors that cause victims to remain silent. JDoe is an encrypted and anonymous reporting platform. By linking victims of mutual offenders with lawyers. JDoe is designed with survivors and witnesses in mind. A detailed index of sexual misconduct laws by state is built directly into the app to help guide users through the reporting process. Quickly browse for nearby resources and the latest policies concerning sexual misconduct.