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Empowering the Next Generation of Women in Audio

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SoundGirls Mentoring Session at AES – Oct. 20th

SoundGirls.Org Presents Mentoring Session at AES

Sponsored by DiGiCo

Join us for a Mentoring Session with Women Leaders in Professional Audio

Please join us at the AES Diversity and Inclusion Social 6:00 pm, followed at 7 pm for SoundGirls Mentoring Session in studio 4.

You must be a member of SoundGirls.Org. (membership is free and open to all genders and non-binary people. You can sign up on our website). You must register for this event as space is limited.

Register Here

This event is a casual mentoring session (not a panel) and you will be able to get advice and answers to your questions from industry leaders.

Industry Leaders Include (more tba)

Fela Davis is a graduate of Full Sail University and has over 15 years of experience in audio engineering. Her experience includes working for industry powerhouses Clair Broadcast and House of Blues.  She’s front of house for Christian McBride and co-owner of 23dB Productions.

 

 

Gil Eva Craig is an Audio Engineer and Sound Designer from New Zealand, primarily working in live sound. She is part of Western Audio Engineering, a live sound company based in Wellington New Zealand. Gil started as a studio engineer and sound designer for theatre. She has recorded and mixed numerous albums, three of these winning Tui (NZ Music) awards. Gil has also received several Chapman Tripp theatre award nominations, winning best sound design in 2010.

 

Caroline Sanchez is a freelance musician, audio technician, and technology specialist who regularly works for ABC, NBC, MTV, and Music Mix Mobile on production, music, and remote audio crews. Her experience includes working a number of positions in the broadcast field, ranging between stage A2, recording op, monitor mix, and RF tech on productions such as Good Morning America, iHeartRadio Music Festival, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and Late Night with Seth Meyers. Caroline is a local to the New York area and holds a Bachelor of Music in Sound Engineering Arts from William Paterson University.

Karen Anderson Chief Operating Officer and Den Mother at Rational Acoustics. Karen Anderson is one of the founding partners of Rational Acoustics, the developers of the Smaart Acoustic Test & Measurement software platform.  Prior to founding Rational Acoustics in 2008, Karen held a variety of sales & marketing positions within the professional audio industry including Marketing Manager at Meyer Sound and Director of Marketing for Eastern Acoustics Works (EAW) and Loud Technologies.

During her tenure in the professional audio industry, Karen has done pretty much everything from answering phones and coiling cable to managing multi-million dollar advertising budgets and running worldwide training programs.  She’s also managed to learn a fair bit about sound systems in the process. Karen holds a BFA in Theatrical Costume & Makeup design from U.C. Berkeley, which was hopeless for getting a job, but makes her a lot of fun to have around at Halloween.

Michelle Desachy is a music producer, recording and mixing engineer and musician based in Mexico City. She works as an independent contractor at different record studios in Mexico and USA. Her Academic Training includes” Music composition, audio engineering and production” at Fermatta Music Academy (Mexico City). Management and business affairs” by Harvard University. Music Cognition” and “Music Business” by Berklee College of Music.

 

Karrie Keyes – Monitor Engineer for Pearl Jam and Eddie Vedder Executive Director of SoundGirls.Org. Karrie has spent the last 25 plus years as the monitor engineer for Pearl Jam. Karrie started out doing sound for punk bands in Los Angeles in 1986 under the tutelage of Dave Rat of Rat Sound, where she spent twenty years helping to establish the company. She was able to gain an immense amount of hands-on experience and technical knowledge at Rat, which eventually led to her becoming the monitor engineer for The Red Hot Chili Peppers from 1990-2000. She first met and started working with Pearl Jam who opened for RHCP on their 1991-1992 Blood Sugar Sex Magic Tour. She has worked with Sonic Youth, Fugazi, and Neil Young.

Mike Bangs is a veteran in the touring world with an all-encompassing sound engineering and production management experience from many national and international tours, such as Katy Perry, Eric Clapton, and Aerosmith. Mike is now in charge of growing the Allen & Heath business in the touring market and supporting high-profile events, artists, engineers and sound companies as the new Live Sound/Touring expert.

A Special thanks to DiGiCo for sponsoring our AES Mentoring Session

Columbus – Community Recording Workshop

The Columbus SoundGirls Chapter  Presents a Community Recording Workshop.
Place: Capital University in the Convergent Media Center.
November 4, 2017
12:00 – 9:00 pm
This event is open to anyone who wants to learn more about the recording process and what it takes to be an audio engineer. Come for the whole day or drop in.

Register Here

Noon: Tour and Introduction to the Recording studio
1 pm: Microphones and Mic Techniques
2 pm: Microphone Differences – Hands on – listen to different microphones
4 pm: Set up recording session with local band Island Education
5 pm to 9 pm: Open recording session

Food and drinks will be provided.
SoundGirls is exclusive and open to all genders and non-binary people

SoundGirls Sound Camps Featured in FOH

What I Know Now

As a non-male* songwriter, performer, and producer, I am always grappling with the concept of ability and credibility. In press on artists that I admire and follow, I see unconscious sexism. Figures like Grimes base their entire brand and music around “doing it all” themselves, while powerhouses like Kendrick Lamar call their producer-artist relationships “collaborations” in spite of the fact that Lamar is decidedly unfamiliar with music technology, i.e., while he never touches a computer making a record.

Where is the line? When can non-male take ownership of what they have created? When can a non-male artist become a figure like Kendrick Lamar without being criticized for not doing everything, from writing to engineering to playing to producing to performing? It makes me angry. It makes me feel like I have a lot of teaching and showing to do. In an effort to do that, I have given some thought to what I know that I didn’t know before I was producing. Here are some of the most important things I have learned thus far that I would like to pass on to anyone who is just starting or needs a pick me up.

Your ears have to practice too

When I first started recording and producing myself, I thought that what I was making was sounding pretty good. I was always reading up on engineering and different production techniques. I even went against the wishes of my pride and would show other producers my sessions so they could give me feedback. Since I was aware of how to make something sound pretty good, I thought that I was already doing it. But there is no substitute for time and practice. Your ears will get better at their job the more that you use them. Engage with the sounds and arrangements you are working with. Ask other producers how they are hearing something. Get a perspective. Make decisions. Play. Wear earplugs for loud shows! You will find that your ears get better with practice.

Vocal production is extremely critical.

This point is related to the first one in some ways. I think that when I first started, I was so enamored with my voice just being recorded and effected that I didn’t think about all the ways to produce it even further. Eventually, I will do a whole post about vocal production, but beyond your chain (mic, preamp, compressor, etc.) being as good as your budget can afford, there is the physicality of vocal production as well. You have to ask yourself, what kind of record are we making? What kind of performance are we aiming to capture here from this vocalist? What are they capable of? Now how can I get that to come out of them and into the mic? Are they excited or turned off by the idea of being in a vocal booth?

Once the performance is done, then you get to work comping—the best bits of each take in a composite—though there are exceptions. Beyond the main vocal comp, you can also make use of doubles, harmonies, ad libs to create the perfect vocal for your record. The possibilities are endless. But it’s your job to make the decisions about how to get the best vocal audio into your DAW so you can continue to make it into an incredible record.

Silverlake kitchen studio – one of my many makeshift home studios

The more you make stuff, the more stuff you will make.

This one is pretty self-explanatory. If you haven’t experienced this firsthand, it may seem like an oxymoron. But it’s not. Trust me.

Working in groups can make you better, but isn’t the end all be all.

If you have the opportunity to write with other writers/producers, especially if they are more experienced than you, take it. If you don’t have that opportunity, seek it out. You will learn something, even if it doesn’t feel like it at the moment. Sometimes co-writing sessions can be tedious. Sometimes they feel like all you are learning is what you don’t like. But that’s very good to know! On the flip side, sometimes you make great new friends that blossom into much bigger relationships.

Co-writes are big in the music business right now. It’s an easy way for publishers, labels, and managers to make their clients feel like they are doing something for them, with minimal commitment and cost. At a certain point, it can start to feel like if you don’t do it a lot, then you’re doing something wrong. But that’s just the status quo that the big businesses created to have more control over their creative people. At the end of the day, YOU are the creator of the music, and it’s up to YOU to figure out how YOU make the best music YOU can make. If that means lots of co-writes and co-productions, then that’s awesome! If that means producing your friend’s bands out of your bedroom studio, alone, then that’s awesome! If that means making beats all day long in your friend’s studio that they let you use, then awesome! Your talent is your business, and you need to constantly be thinking about the things that affect your talent and business.

You are strongly affected by the company you keep.

This statement is made so often I think we have stopped listening. But try listening to yourself say this out loud: You are strongly affected by the company you keep. If you are not genuinely challenged—creatively and professionally and personally—by the people around you, then go somewhere else.

I was surrounded by lifelong friends and some great musicians when I lived in New York City a few years ago. But when I wanted to take my music to the next level, I felt like there was nowhere for me to go. My immediate circle was too comfortable for me to feel like I could take chances, and as a result, I wasn’t meeting new people or trying new things. Eventually, I met ONE professional songwriter, and I decided to move to Los Angeles when they moved out there. I left all of my closest friends and collaborators on the east coast and hoped for the best out west. I almost immediately found myself surrounded by people who were similar to me, but 10, 20, 30 years into their careers. I had found the challenge I had been missing. This new perspective motivated me to try new things and start putting together my skillset in ways I’d never imagined. I also started to take better care of my mind and body, another essential habit to have.

Everything happens for a reason.

No matter where you are on your path, there are always going to be ups and downs. Always. And sometimes your path can feel especially winding and long. But if you keep your heart and your mind open, you will see that everything happens for a reason. Every dumb day job, every bad partnership, every mistake, every ditch you dig for yourself, every delay—there is something to be learned and built upon from each of these, and that is a beautiful thing. You will never stop having ups and downs. Ever. Get used to it. Learn from it. Build on it. See the beauty in it.

Don’t stop doing what got you started in the first place.

Unless you are extremely lucky, are going to be points in your career where you are limited on time and resources. During these times you might find yourself compromising and eliminating things that you maybe shouldn’t. For me, those things were producing and guitar playing.

When I first moved to Los Angeles to pursue music professionally, at some point along the way I stopped producing and playing guitar. Mostly it was because the settings I was in just didn’t call for it. I’d go into a session with a producer and another writer, and I would be the person to write and sing the demo. I had a day job as well, so with everything going on I wasn’t playing or producing much when I got home at night. I felt like maybe I was never really going to be that good anyway, and this negativity toward things I had previously loved made me feel very disconnected from myself. At the same time, I was gaining writing and singing chops. By putting down my guitar and taking a break from the computer, I was definitely opening my mind up to new techniques and genres that I had not previously delved into.

But boy did it feel good to pick them back up again!

Beatz By Girlz – some students in a Beats by Girlz class I subbed last year

I encourage you to find a way to keep in touch with yourself and the things that inspire you, no matter what seems to get in the way.

In conclusion: as my good friend Rob Caldwell always says to his guitar students when they ask him how much they should practice: you get good at what you do.

So let’s go and do it.

*I use the term “non-male” to include anyone that does not identify as male.  Gender is a social construct, and supported by science, and backed up in legal rulings. I believe sexism frequently oppresses people who identify as non-male, especially in tech-oriented industries.

 Gender Laws Are at Odds With Science

What’s the Difference Between Sex and Gender?

Too Queer for Your Binary: Everything You Need to Know and More About Non-Binary Identities

Audio Guides and Creating Intimate Audio Outdoors

I’ve been approached to work on audio guides in the past, but for one reason or another, never actually got to work on one. So when a director at the Arcola Theatre got in touch with me about sound designing an audio guide for their summer outdoor theatre project, I said yes, please!

The project was a community performance-based outdoor installation in East London, UK. Supported by the local council, the experience focused on personal and social responses to mental health and well-being. One area would have pop-up performances and participatory activities like group yoga and dancing. The other was a sixty-minute audio guide that would take audience members through a constructed “labyrinth” that explored the process of “getting better.”

In theory, sound design for audio guides is quite straightforward when compared to standard theatre sound. As you’re designing for headphones or earphones, you don’t have to worry about speaker placement, so everything can be done in the studio and delivered ready to go. Of course, you can always have added layers of complexity such as multiple delivery systems and infrared or RF triggers, but ours was a much simpler setup.

We had hired a single wireless Sennheiser 2020-D tour guide system, which would play a single continuous file from five iPods connected to five different transmitters on separate channels for our five audience groups. Each group would be guided by silent performers through a series of different spaces, including a family birthday dinner, doctor’s surgery, surreal interactive WebMD bingo game, and calm centre.

With any audio guide, the most important element is the voiceover, as the audience relies on this for context, explanation, instructions, and in the case of this project, the narrative thread. Recording clear, high-quality voiceovers was, therefore, my main priority.

In an ideal world, I would always record all voiceovers for a show in a professional studio with a voice booth – usually my own. In the real world, budgets and actor availability often don’t allow for this, which is why I had to record the majority of the voiceovers for this project in a rehearsal space in the theatre. I have a portable voice recording booth for situations such as this, but without time to treat the room further, there wasn’t much I could do about the reflections, nor about the level of external noise. At one point, we were competing with a swing dance lesson in the next room – not the best accompaniment to an emotional narrative about mental health!

I know that it’s often possible (though never preferable) to get away with less high-quality recordings in a theatre because when played out through speakers, the acoustics of the venue will mask a lot of the recording faults. Headphones are a lot less forgiving, however, and I was concerned that the less-than-professional recording set up, not to mention the increased noise floor, would lower the overall quality of the guide.

At this point, I turned to what I knew about the technology that we’d be using – or at least, what I could find out about the technology, as I wouldn’t be able to hear the sound through it until the dress rehearsal.

The HDE 2020-D receivers are known as “stethoset” receivers, presumably because they have a stethoscope design where the earphones are attached directly to the receiver by fixed curved handles. The design has practical merit – without headphones, there was no danger of the audience tangling wires or disconnecting the headphones from the receiver pack – but from a sound perspective, it isn’t the best method to deliver a subtle soundtrack. The earphones don’t block out much external sound as headphones would, and the weight of the receiver pack limited how snugly you could secure the earphones into ears. They also had a frequency response of 100Hz – 7kHz.  This range is pretty limited, but it worked in my favour for this particular project. Given that the frequency range used for speech transmission (telephones in particular) is around 300Hz – 3.4kHz, I could filter off most of the noise from my recordings and still have an intelligible recording. Filtering, plus the use of background music, masked most of the room sound in the voice-over recordings.

After the recording sessions, my main task was creating two sixty-minute versions of the guide – one with a female narrator, one with a male. After clean-up and editing the voiceovers were all fine, but I was conflicted about how loud to make the background soundscapes. Without being able to hear my audio through the receivers in advance, in the performance environment, it was hard to judge how present they needed to be. I did know that the audio guide would be competing with a live sound system in another area of the installation – but without knowing how loud or how far away this would be, it was tricky to know how much this would affect the audibility of my guide.

The dress rehearsal was our only chance to test the audio through the delivery system, in a performance scenario, while music was playing in other areas of the installation. I quickly discovered that for the audio guide narration to be clearly audible through the receivers, the gain had to be set to maximum at each level – iPods, transmitters, and the receivers themselves. Not ideal, but at least the audience could hear their guides!

Unfortunately, the ambient noise of the performance environment (a public square), plus the loose fit of the earphones meant that my more subtle soundscapes were often inaudible. While this didn’t seem to hamper any understanding the audience had of the performance, some of the more immersive moments lost their impact. Although maybe it was unrealistic of me to expect this with an urban outdoor performance!

If I have the chance to design another outdoor audio guide, I know that I’ll push for a more powerful playout system (for more volume!) and to have access to the delivery system earlier. I’ll also agree on a production schedule that allows for testing the finished audio in the performance space ahead of the dress rehearsal. Finally, I’ll have a more realistic idea of how much subtlety you can realistically achieve in a design delivered through a tour guide headphone system, and how much is actually necessary. After all, as long as the audience can follow the story, you’ve achieved your key goal.

 

Vancouver Chapter Production Panel

Sept. 22 ~ 13:00 to 15:00
Little Mountain Sound Studios ~ Studio A
201 W 7th Ave, Vancouver B.C.

Register Here

Industry professionals will share what they wish they had known at the start of their careers. Topics will include:

Host:  Kristina Lao – Nimbus

Moderator: Natasha Tony –  IATSE 891 Film

Panelists:

The Best Response

This week I was once more asked a question that has been a recurring theme during my career. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been asked to comment on why there aren’t more women in the music business, and my answer has always been the same – I’m the wrong person to ask because I am a woman in the music business. I can’t comment on why someone wouldn’t want to be a part of this, for the very reason that I wanted it more than anything. I’m fortunate to be able to say that after 23 years in the industry I’ve done everything I set out to do and quite a few things that I didn’t. I’ve toured with numerous theatre, arena and stadium productions; mixed monitors for bands whose albums I had as a kid; run sound for the Queen at Buckingham Palace; been paid to travel the world; and been in charge of monitors at the world’s biggest greenfield festival. It hasn’t all been smooth sailing, but neither has it been the sexism-infused nightmare that some people seem to imagine. Indeed, some people seem almost disappointed when I tell them it really hasn’t been that bad, and it has me wondering: is it this idea of victimisation that puts some women off?

Now it’s possible that I walk around with my head in the clouds and don’t notice sexist behaviour, but I think it’s more likely that I’ve simply learnt to pick my battles. If I called a tribunal every time someone made a sexist crack I’d be in court for the rest of my life; but there’s a world of difference between sexist cracks and true misogyny. Tribes of people (i.e. a crew) naturally seek out what is different about a newcomer and zero in on that to test them. A smart newcomer will give as good as they get in return, show themselves to be a valuable commodity to the existing tribe, and in doing so establish common ground and become accepted. It would be a mistake to think that cracks are made simply because I’m a woman; anyone who’s heard crew banter will know that it can be brutal between guys, and the only reason gender is raised is because it’s the most obvious difference.

I can count on one hand the number of times that I’ve encountered true misogyny. Whilst I did speak up for myself at the time, in every case, I also found that the best possible response is simply to prove them wrong.

One odious production manager told me I’d never make it unless I learnt to open my legs. My satisfaction upon seeing him at an industry event many years later, wearing a badge stating my position at the PA company I worked for and having very much made it without doing any such thing, was immense. I didn’t need to say anything – the look that passed between us said it all.

Not long ago I ran into someone who bullied me for a period of time in my early days. Back then he was senior to me (though not by much) and was fond of telling me how useless I was. But now, many years later, the status quo was reversed, and I was in a very much senior position to him. It made me realise just how far I’d come, and that bullies are, as we all know, just fearful cowards. I considered taking him to task in defence of my younger self but decided against it. He now cut such a pathetic figure that I felt no need to make explicit who was the winner here – it was obvious.

And the sorry behaviour from a couple of local crew whom I encountered in the States just seems laughable now, as it did then – how sad, to have to get your fun by trying to tear others down. I’ll bet their lives aren’t a barrel of laughs – after all, people who are secure in their own talents just don’t do that. How small they must feel, in their quieter moments. Not to mention having the entire visiting crew now think you’re a complete idiot. (Wait, you didn’t think I’d keep their nonsense to myself did you? Oh, their cracks were far too amusing not to share them with my compatriates – and the guys on a tour soon become like brothers who are very much on their sister’s side!)

So my point is this: if a young woman likes the idea of a career in live music, she shouldn’t worry too much about being in the gender minority, because she’ll quickly get used to it, and most guys are decent folk. The things for her to concern herself with are working hard; learning all she can about her chosen field; forging alliances; and yes, building resilience and comebacks to wisecracks. Learning to tell the difference between crew banter and abusive behaviour is important because the former is far more common than the latter. On the (hopefully) rare occasion that she does experience abusive or inappropriate behaviour she should always call it out, whilst also knowing this: that the best response she can ever give to her detractors is simply to prove them wrong.

This is Why I Do This Job – Caroline Sanchez

Caroline Sanchez works in Broadcast Audio as an A2, RF Tech, and Pro Tools Op on recording trucks. She also works in live sound as an A2 and AV work. Sanchez is freelance and regularly works for ABC, NBC, MTV, and Music Mix Mobile. Caroline got her start in audio during college, working FOH for a local coffee house and numerous “Battle of the Band” style events She got her first real television paycheck in 2013.

Caroline started studying music in the third grade when she started playing the flute. With the support of her parents, she participated in every music ensemble and event she could, and assumed she would become a band director as “I honestly thought it was the only music-related career someone could pursue.” At the end of her freshman year in high school, her band director approached her and asked if she would be in interested in shadowing a senior student. The senior student happened to be a young woman and was the department’s sound engineer.

The school had a small PA, a little Mackie and a few 58’s, and after the first rehearsal, Caroline says “I immediately realized that there was way more to the gig than simply plugging in the mics and turning on the system. I found myself on the internet reading about ‘doing sound’ and trying to figure out what that even meant. I was hooked. From that moment on, I knew I had found my pursuit – a technical and music-related field that allowed me to create musical performances in a way I had never considered”.

The seed was planted
The first concert she attended was Streetlight Manifesto at Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, NJ. She spent most of the night jammed up against the railing around FOH, unable to see the stage; she found herself watching the FOH engineer mix. “My thoughts were something along the lines of These people get to go to concerts for a living?! Sign me up! That night, mixed with the experience I got from my high school band program, is what planted the seed in my mind to pursue audio in the future.

Caroline says It took a bit of convincing to get her parents on board with a career in music, particularly audio but she did and enrolled at William Paterson University in Wayne, NJ. It was the only four-year college in the state that offers an audio program. She graduated with a Bachelor of Music in Sound Engineering Arts. Caroline says “the program was a perfect fit for me because of how music intensive it was. I was taking classical music performance classes along with my audio lectures and labs. Without the people that I met through college, I wouldn’t have the jobs I have today, so I’m grateful I chose such a well-established program.” Her parents now realize she made the right decision and are beyond happy.

Caroline was introduced to Broadcast audio during an internship for Bonnaroo 2012, the head of the audio department at the college put her in touch with Music Mix Mobile (M3), and before she knew it, they were driving down to Tennessee for five days. Caroline knew she wanted to work in concert audio, but Bonnaroo opened her eyes to the different audio positions involved in concert production. She remembers thinking “These guys get paid to record and mix concerts from a truck behind the stage?! This is so freaking cool”. M3 would ask her to intern/assist again through her junior year, and she would work with them for her required internship for her senior year.

After graduation, she would continue to work with M3 and keep making connections. She was offered work as an A2 from another engineer at her school for Good Morning America. She said “Yes and set my alarm for 1 AM, and the rest has been an ongoing journey. One gig leads to another and before you realize it, you’re working five days a week ‘making TV’!

Caroline works for several of the large festivals Bonnaroo, Outside Lands, Made in America and various iHeart Radio festivals, usually working on stage. For the more intensive TV productions such as the Mark Twain Prize and Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of fame, she works in the truck running the Pro Tools record and assisting with other aspects of the job, such as playback, re-record, file transfers, video record, etc. Last summer she worked in the RF tent at the Good Morning America Summer Concert Series at Summerstage in Central Park where she assisted with RF and comms. She has also done some live recording jobs for VH1 and MTV as the recording engineer. Her most recent gig has been on Late Night with Seth Meyers as the Music A2, where she works with the house band and guest artists.

The gig at Seth Meyers is a perfect example of how work leads to more work; she met the Seth Meyers crew while working with them on a remote gig. A few months later she got an email about filling in. Caroline is enjoying Seth Meyers and working with the house band and artists and says “there have been many moments in the 8G studio that make me think “this is why I do this job,” and it’s always because of a fantastic artist performance that went off without a hitch. It’s so cool having that feeling, and I’m thankful to work at Seth whenever I can”.

Working for ABC and NBC requires Caroline to part of NABET CWA, Local 16 the union, Local 16. Caroline says “becoming a member is a pretty streamlined process that involves enrolling and then paying the initiation fee. In this case, there isn’t a test or mentor period as there are with other unions. The added benefits (401k, health, training, scholarships, etc.) the union provides are a great thing to have access to, especially since the work I get from either company is consistent.

Caroline loves that each day is different, a different band, genre, crew, and challenges. No two days are the same. She also loves that she gets to travel and experience and see new places. She always tries to sample the local cuisine or specialty and finds traveling broadens her perspective on many levels. But traveling disrupts her daily routine. “I’m a runner, and sometimes it can be very difficult to maintain my training schedule when I’m in a different place and working for most of the day. Eating the way I would at home can also be a challenge, and sometimes it’s a real bummer. But the gigs are always fun and definitely worth the slight annoyances.”

Caroline’s long term goals are still in the works; believing that computers and networking are the domain where all audio is going to be soon, so it makes sense to work in systems engineering. For the short term, her goals include expanding her knowledge of comms and RF and doing some monitor teching or mixing. She also thinks if she is ever going to tour this is the time. Remember “there are a lot more audio jobs out there than you may think, and part of the journey is finding the one that works for you, both lifestyle wise and skill set wise. You also don’t have to do only one specific job. It is possible, in this industry more than any other perhaps, to have multiple skill sets and create a career out of those skills”.

What if any obstacles or barriers have you faced? / How have you dealt with them?

Interestingly enough, I think I have faced more obstacles because of my youth than because I am a woman. In a field where so many people have been working at their craft for so long, I can see how youth can be perceived as a liability. Most of the gigs I work, I am the youngest person on the crew, and there are definitely moments where I feel like people don’t trust me because of it. I cannot change how old I am, or what era I was born in, but I can work hard and be smart about my work. It is my hope that by doing good work, I can ease others’ worries. So far, working hard and paying attention has been the best way to deal with some of the weirdness I’ve faced. Avoiding the question of how old I am sometimes helps too, at least for the time being.

Advice you have for other women and young women who wish to enter the field?

Remember that the quality of your work is genderless. Even in situations where you sense some resistance or uncertainty, how well and how professionally you handle your job is your most important asset. Be on time, ask thoughtful questions, take notes and do your own research. These are the things that truly define your work and will get you called back.

Must have skills?

Definitely patience and the ability to stay calm in situations where other people are freaking out. A good grasp on a logical workflow and troubleshooting is also a must have. But I think above all else, be personable and friendly. In the end, everyone is working toward finishing a job well done, and a friendly face on the crew makes all the difference.

Favorite gear?

Is it cheating if I say “fiber”?  But really, I think digital connectivity, in general, is incredible. My first Bonnaroo, we used a Riedel RockNet at FOH to grab the six audience microphones and get them back to the truck on a piece of Cat5. Since then, I think I’ve run some form of Cat5 at every remote gig I’ve ever worked. It’s amazing to think about how technologies like audio over ethernet, MADI or Dante are the backbone of some of these massive productions. It’s really cool stuff.

Is there a certain gig where you learned a valuable skill?

There are so many moments where you learn, all you have to do is pay attention! My approach is to try and learn something new on every gig, even if it’s only one small thing tech-related or otherwise. The best engineers in my book are the ones who turn dealing with people into an art, especially in less-than-ideal circumstances. There was one festival I worked where a band’s monitor engineer was so unnecessarily nasty to the stage crew; it was uncomfortable. But the house monitor engineer, serious kudos to him, was so calm, so polite and helpful, it diffused a potentially horrible situation. Everyone on stage was super impressed, and I made a mental note to remember to handle stressful situations with as much finesse as that guy did.

I also try to take notes while I’m on the job as a reminder to research things when I’m home – mostly the names of gear or concepts I’ve never worked with or heard of before. This has proven to be a useful habit since it helps me feel more acclimated the next time I come in contact with a piece of gear.

There have also been a handful of moments where I realized that asking a question – even one that you think might be trivial or silly – is better than guessing. It is easier to laugh off a silly question than it is to laugh off a mistake – especially an audible one that could have been prevented.

What is one of the more challenging shows you have worked?

Any show that is going to feature an A/B stage setup – where one side of the stage is performing live, but the other side is setting up the next act – tends to be the most challenging. Examples of these setups that I’ve worked are a number of one-night arena festivals (iHeart Music Festival, iHeart Country Music Festival, JingleBall, etc.) and award type shows (Rock Hall of Fame, Fiesta Latina). The challenge comes from the “marathon” mentality needed to get through the day. Many times there are several hours of rehearsals scheduled for the morning of the show, so the days are long. Then during the show, while an artist is performing on the A side of the stage, a strike, setup, and line check is happening on the B side in preparation for the next act. This makes the work seem almost constant, going from performance to line check, take a 5-minute breather, then rinse and repeat for four hours of show. No matter what the position – A2, Protools, Mixer – this is a lot, especially if there are issues.

What is the most challenging aspect of working broadcast?

Workflow! The most challenging part for me when I started was getting used to the workflow/dynamic of being part of a television production. There are a ton of moving parts – graphics, video, audio, writing, production elements, props – all working for the same end goal while doing their own independent work to make the show a success. Finding where and how audio fits into all of that can be a challenge that certainly changes from show to show.

What do you feel is the most important part of being prepared for Broadcast?

Staying flexible and planning ahead. A television production is ever-changing, and the show run-down always has the potential to change. Anything that can be done to increase the flexibility of the job is a good thing to do. Is my spare hardware in a good spot if it needed to be used? Do I have a spare microphone in case they add someone to this segment? Are the backup machines functioning as expected? Do I have a couple of extra tracks record enabled just in case something gets patched into that hole? These are just a few things that can be looked at ahead of time to make the last minute inevitabilities more manageable.

Can you discuss the various roles and jobs that happen for a broadcast in the truck? It always seems so peaceful in the truck – while there is chaos going on out on the stage.

It’s a different kind of chaos, I assure you! In the music truck, there are usually three main jobs – an EIC (engineer in charge), a Protools Op (the modern day equivalent of the tape op), and the mixer. Outside of the truck is the stage A2 that takes care of the truck’s preamps and interfacing with the house splitters. The EIC takes care of the infrastructure – powering up the truck, connecting to the video truck, connectivity to the stage, making sure the console is working, etc. The EIC is the person running around and troubleshooting problems and finding solutions for anything related to the gear and connectivity inside and to/from the truck. The Protools Op is, as the name implies, responsible for the recording machines, formatting/organizing hard drives, making sessions, keeping logs and hitting record! The mixer gets to sit in the hot seat and mix the show, play along with line checks and rehearsals and, depending on the show, is usually the person that does a post remix if there is one required.

As with any position in a live show, the chaos comes from the last minute “unknowns,” whether that means technical issues or production issues. When you are as far removed from the stage as the truck, information doesn’t always travel at ‘chaos’ speed, and sometimes we’re left playing catch up. This makes the A2’s job super important since they are literally the backstage “eyes and ears” for everyone that’s working in the truck. Another element that might not be so prevalent on the stage is the production aspect – meaning that at any given time during a rehearsal or performance, there could be multiple people visiting/sitting in the truck, varying from artist production managers, artist audio crew/mixers, television music producers, etc. There’s always something going on, and you have to stay sharp, even on the longest days. It’s a fast paced environment and a hell of a lot of fun!

RF and Comms – Can you walk us through what is involved for this and how challenging is this in New York with a crowded RF spectrum.

Trying to find a clean frequency in Times Square is probably the worst place on the planet to look. Luckily, as you can imagine, there is quite a bit of planning that goes into the frequency coordination that goes beyond the day-to-day operations that I handle. For example, Good Morning American has a specific list of frequencies that are assigned to them and that list can be compared to the frequencies that are assigned to other companies adjacent to the studio (MTV, Thomson Reuters, Nasdaq). This kind of planning ensures at least some kind of consistency when it comes to usable frequencies. Because of how crucial these frequencies are to the success of the show, the coordination aspect is key, especially when there are artists coming in with their own equipment. We typically re-freq artist’s gear with known good frequencies and take a full inventory of their auxiliary equipment, such as crew radios, to avoid any conflicts.

When working on remotes, which is pretty much any shoot that isn’t taking place inside the studio, analyzing the nearby RF traffic and staking claims on frequencies as soon as possible is the way to go. And similar to any kind of hardware backup, having good, clean backup frequencies is a fail safe for when things get “stepped on” and aren’t usable anymore. What I think it ultimately comes down to is knowing what frequencies you have to work with and monitoring your environment for changes so you can act quickly and accordingly.

What do you need to know for RF and Comms?

Everything you would need for an audio gig – troubleshooting, signal flow, workflow – and some specifics about the gear you’re working with is essential. What frequency band does this operate in? What gain setting is on my antennas? How long is my antenna cable run and is that going to be a problem? Working in this area is specialized, and there are some highly intelligent people I have met who have made entire careers on RF alone. For me, it’s a constant learning process, especially as the technology (and FCC policies!) change.

As for comms, I would say all of the above plus an extra helping of patience. Comms is slightly more “customer service” oriented, especially if the “end users” (directors, producers, camera crew, etc.) aren’t familiar with the equipment you provide them, such as belt packs or panels. Besides knowing the real technical connectivity stuff, it’s important to be able to explain the equipment on a level that’s understandable for someone who has maybe never seen it before. A show cannot function without communication, so you’ve got to have a level head and be able to stay focused if people start freaking out about comms issues.

What do if any do you prefer Broadcast, Recording or A2?

Someone asked me this question the other day actually, and I’ve been thinking about it ever since. The simple answer is, if I’m working with music on any level and can be a part of making a show sound good, I’m happy. The longer answer would be, working in broadcast. So far the field that has won me over. I first started becoming interested in audio because of live concerts, and I promised myself that I would pursue a job in this field because I wanted to help foster concert experiences like the ones I had (and still have!). It’s almost like helping people make memories, whether or not they are aware of the role audio played in making it happen. The ability to work in broadcast gives me the chance to give massive audiences a killer live show. It’s a cool feeling. The environment is a good fit for me too, considering how technology heavy the broadcast side of things are. Overall, I’m thankful that I got a start working in Broadcast and I look forward to the years to come.

We caught up with Caroline in Sept 2019 to see what she’s up to… A LOT!

“Since the time of my SoundGirls profile, I have a few more credits under my belt and have had the chance to do a decent amount of travel work, which has been a lot of fun. California, Seattle, Vegas, Philadelphia – I’ve been bouncing around on various events enjoying the ride as much as I can. At home in New York, I landed the Music A2 position at Saturday Night Live in September 2017 and am about to start my third season. When the Grammy Awards were held at MSG in January 2018, I was hired as the record op in one of M3’s music trucks. Most recently, I just got done working at the MTV VMAs at the Prudential Center as part of the ProTools playback team.

I’ve also had the opportunity to do some professional development and mentoring; I have given talks for SoundGirls, Women’s Audio Mission and interviewed with TA2’s Sisters of Sound podcast. I’m taking a deep dive into the audio-over-IP world and see myself working more and more on the network systems design and implementation part of the industry. On a more personal creative note, I’ve been writing quite a bit and started actively publishing poetry to various online and print outlets. It’s been kind of a trip to even think about how much has happened since that initial profile interview – so thank you to everyone at SoundGirls for taking the time to reach out and keep the community connected. Cheers!”

 

 

NAMM 2019 Badges for SoundGirls Members

SoundGirls has a limited number of NAMM Badges for Members. Passes are on a first come – first served basis. Please do not ask for a badge unless you are 100% sure you will be attending. NAMM takes place in Anahiem, CA – Jan. 24 thru Jan. 27.

The NAMM Show is a TRADE-ONLY event and not open to the general public. SoundGirls has been generously granted several badges from our friends and sponsors in the industry. If you attend, you will be attending as a guest of one of these companies and representing SoundGirls. Please review the SHOW POLICIES and make sure you agree to the terms before accepting the badge.

SoundGirls will be hosting events throughout the week and hope our members can join us for some or all of the events. Stay Tuned.

Badges will be given on a first come first served basis.  Please register your request for a NAMM Badge. Registration will close on Nov. 20, 2018. You must be a member of SoundGirls.  SoundGirls is not responsible for any travel, lodging, or other expenses.

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