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How to Avoid Over-Editing Podcasts

You may have heard the basic tips and tricks of podcast editing, or editing any kind of speech audio. Remove ‘ums’ and ‘ahhs’, breaths, mouth noises, pops and clicks, silences, etc. But sometimes we can take it too far and actually end up over-editing a podcast in pursuit of the perfect sound (tip number one: there’s no such thing as perfect). Here are three things I’ve learned which have helped me avoid doing just that.

Don’t get rid of all ‘ums’ and ‘ahhs’

Yes, they can be very distracting, particularly if there are too many of them. If they’re littered throughout a person’s speech and are of no value to what’s actually being said, go ahead and get rid of them. But I really think it’s okay to leave the occasional one in. Maybe the person in question speaks quite fast and it’s difficult to remove an ‘um’ without cutting into the next word. Maybe they’ve started an answer with an ‘um’ because they’re considering what they’re going to say, or they’re reacting in the moment to an unexpected question or statement. There can be various reasons, but if it isn’t excessive (as in every other word), there’s no harm in a couple of ‘ums’. Sometimes we have to make allowances for someone’s natural speech patterns.

Don’t get rid of all breaths

You may have heard that this is the thing to do, but I personally would argue against it. Again, if someone is a really heavy breather and it’s a very distracting sound, by all means, remove it (or at least quieten it down a bit). But for the most part, it’s perfectly natural to hear someone take a breath while speaking, so much so that we usually don’t even notice it. So if it’s not overly noticeable, there’s no need to take it out. If you are removing a breath, just make sure you do it by reducing the dB rather than deleting it, or the edit might sound too sharp. It all comes back to the idea of trying not to mess too much with people’s natural speech patterns. You want your audio to sound as clean and polished as possible, but you also want your guests to sound like human beings and not robots.

Silence can be a good thing

Everyone has different editing styles, and those styles will suit different types of podcasts. Some may be more fast-paced, others more reflective. There is a tendency for some editors to take out every pause or every bit of silence, but decisions like this should be made based on the pace and style of the podcast. One of the most valuable pieces of advice I ever got from a tutor was that silence can be an incredibly important storytelling device. If you’re editing a particularly emotive or thought-provoking conversation, leaving in pauses gives the podcast more breathing room and allows time for the listener to really process what they’re hearing. So before you take silence away, always stop to consider what it might add.

Make (only) Some Noise: Noise Regulation at Live Events

 

Noise regulation is a necessary part of our live events family getting along with the wider community. We want to put on great, big, all-encompassing shows, and our neighbours want to work, play and sleep without being disturbed. Some sort of compromise needs to be reached to keep the peace between us. This is where noise regulation comes in: it varies depending on the nature and location of the gig, but an agreement to keep to a certain average volume (more on that later, for the pedants, reading this) is usually a condition of the event’s licence. Breaking that agreement can result in fines, but even more importantly it can lead to the licence not being issued the next time, or even revoked from the venue. If you have any respect for the wider live community you’ll do your bit to stick to the noise limits. Even if you don’t, someone else will probably turn you down or switch you off anyway.

How are the limits decided?

There are several different approaches to setting limits. It starts with consulting your country or region’s guidelines on noise at work (because it is a workplace, for us technicians and bar staff, security, etc.), and adapting these sensibly, for example offering free ear plugs to staff and guests if recommended limits will be exceeded, rather than making it unfeasibly quiet. There don’t tend to be government guides specifically for live performances, so licence providers deal with applications on a case-by-case basis. Third-party noise consultants, colloquially known as the noise police, can help with this aspect of planning as explained by UK consultancy Vanguardia’s Roly Oliver in this guide (https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/blog/noise-management-for-events-ds00/). Factors like the location, time of day, length, and nature of the event, as well as how often it’s due to occur, contribute to whether a licence is granted and what volume is agreed. For example, a one-off community event in a park on a Saturday afternoon might be given more leeway than a rave every Wednesday night in the middle of a residential neighbourhood.

The limits are usually based on how loud the sound from the event is at the nearest residence (or sometimes it’s really the house with the person rich enough to retain a lawyer for noise complaints), so both modelling and real-time measurements concentrate on this area. When the PA system is first set up, music is played through it and measured at that residence. Seeing as it will be heard by the general public, it is recommended that the song doesn’t have swearing in it, but for some reason, Rage Against the Machine is a perennial favourite. The licence issuer will usually do the off-site measurements but noise consultants are often hired to do their own measuring alongside this, for verification and as a backup for the promoter if there are any disagreements. The consultants or venue staff also measure within the venue, usually at FoH for convenience. The music is turned up until it hits the off-site limit, and whatever the measurement is at FoH at that point becomes the maximum level for mixing (again, for any pedants, we’ll come back to this). There might be several off-site recording points of interest, so depending on how many microphones are available they’re either recorded all at once, or the process is repeated for each location. If there are multiple sound systems at the event, for example at a festival, each one will be measured in turn. This process is called noise propagation and can only take place at a previously agreed time, to minimise disruption to the community. When setting up one-off events, the PA takes priority over other aspects of audio in order to be ready in time for propagation.

What exactly do we mean by average volume?

Of course, what is meant by ‘volume’ and even ‘average’ isn’t completely straightforward. As sound engineers, we most often think of volume in terms of the sound pressure level (SPL), measured in decibels (dB). SPL measurements are usually taken through filters that account for how humans perceive this pressure, as we are more sensitive to some frequencies (centering around human speech) than others. These filters are known as A, B, C, or Z weighted (https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/decibel-d_59.html). A-weighted measurements are roughly the inverse of equal loudness contours (see figure 1) at lower SPLs, so if we were to hear sound that we perceived to be equally loud across the spectrum at a lower volume, the meter would register it as equally loud as well. The C-weighted filter is flat across much more of the spectrum. As the sound gets louder, the equal loudness contours start to resemble C-weighted filters more closely. B-weighted measurements are in between A and C, and Z-weighted ones are completely flat, but these two are almost never used for live sound. Luckily for audio engineers, most SPL limits are set in terms of A-weighting, so there is more room to play with lower and higher frequencies than if it were C-weighted. However, low frequencies travel further than higher ones, so they can still cause issues at off-site monitoring locations.

Depending on the budget for noise monitoring, the equipment may or may not be sophisticated enough to record which frequencies are the loudest. A lot of venues have simple handheld sound meters that give you one overall SPL reading so there’s not much that can be done about it, but bigger gigs and festivals use software that includes a real-time analyzer (RTA) so one can see which frequencies are causing issues. The engineer can then decide whether notching those frequencies down will be worth a corresponding increase in overall volume, or whether it’s better to leave them in and mix at a lower level.

Whatever the limits end up being, they’ll be described in terms of a time window, for example, “95dB(A) Leq15’ ”. The Leq (technically LAT for the pedants) is the mean value of sound energy over that time, on a rolling basis. So the example limit is an average of 95dB, A-weighted, over a continuous 15-minute window, measured throughout the show. You might also see reference to “fast” or “slow” measurements. These are settings for sound meters that are traditionally used for regulating noise at work, for example on factory floors, so are only averaging over a few seconds. They aren’t that useful when applied to something as dynamic as a live performance, but if the event organiser has based their noise regulation plan directly on occupational noise documentation or they only have a basic handheld device, that might be the parameters that you’re left with. If you’re given a proper Leq value you can get away with a much louder performance by interspersing songs with chatting from the artist or alternating louder songs with quieter ones. Even the changeover can help bring the measurements down. As long as it averages out ok, and you don’t go above any peak limits that are set (these tend to be much higher than the average limit and measured as C-weighted), you’re fine.

But my band needs to be mixed LOUD!

Cool story. If you’re given a low limit (and admittedly they can be upsettingly low, especially at outdoor festivals in the middle of cities), you have two options:

  1. Learn to mix well at a lower volume.
  2. Have a bad show.

Unless you’re with a very rich headline act who doesn’t care about the gig renewing their licence, and you have a big stick to keep the system engineer away from their gear, there is no third option just to be loud because you’re cool. No matter how much you turn it up, the system engineer will turn it down further along the signal path and all you’ll achieve is making your mix sound worse. If you really push it (or there isn’t a separate system engineer) you might get switched off completely. Some small venues even have an automated ducker or kill switch which will kick in as soon as you go over the set limit. There are plenty of tricks out there to get more out of your mix at lower volumes. Jon Burton, university lecturer and front-of-house engineer for EDM act the Prodigy, is famous for making their shows sound massive while sticking within noise limits. In fact, he wrote his master’s thesis on one of his approaches (https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/83934715.pdf).

The sound of the noise police

Due to the large fines and reputations at stake, there is often quite a lot of distrust between audio engineers and noise consultants, but we are on the same team. They are not just killjoys who don’t like music; by monitoring at FoH and letting the engineer know whether they’re within the limit in real time they’re actually making the process easier for everyone. By asking engineers to stick within the agreed limits, they are protecting the event from fines and complaints and ensuring it can take place again next time. It is in everyone’s interest to work together to leave both the audience and the wider community feeling positive about live events by reaching a compromise while delivering the best show possible.

Further resources:

Speaker manufacturer d&b offers free noise prediction software for their systems:

https://www.dbaudio.com/global/en/products/software/noizcalc/

Guidance on noise at live events from the UK Goverment’s Health and Safety Executive: https://www.hse.gov.uk/event-safety/noise.htm

Live DMA working group’s inventory of various sound regulations across the region: https://www.live-dma.eu/sound-regulations-in-europe/

AES’s white paper Understanding and managing sound exposure and noise pollution at outdoor events: https://www.aes.org/technical/documents/AESTD1007_1_20_05.pdf

ProSoundWeb article based on this white paper and other research, outlining the what has informed the World Health Organisation’s stance on noise levels and potential future global standards, and how to approach mixing within these limits: https://www.prosoundweb.com/live-event-sound-levels-rising-above-the-insidious-undercurrent-of-aural-incapacitance/

 

Lisa Machac: Founder of Omni Sound Project

Lisa Machac is a musician and entrepreneur based in Austin, Texas who, in February of 2020, founded the audio education platform Omni Sound Project. Through Omni’s virtual member mixers and other educational opportunities, she has brought together women+ artists, engineers, and producers from all over the globe while maintaining an essential intimate quality.

Committed to music education and empowering folks from marginalized genders, Lisa has forged partnerships with a multitude of audio companies to offer powerful incentives to Omni’s workshop attendees and participants in their popular Four Track Challenge (being held August 1st-6th, 2022). She has also begun contributing to the popular recording magazine Tape Op, and has thus far interviewed audio legend Lenise Bent as well as the songwriting/producing duo NOVA WAV

Lisa answered the following questions via email.

Had you played a role in developing an organization prior to founding Omni Sound Project?

Yes, I have always been self-employed/entrepreneurial. I opened a wine bar that I operated for a few years (and then sold) and after that, I owned a business hosting yoga retreats. I love working for myself and the creativity it allows!

What has been the most difficult aspect of maintaining an online audio organization?

As you know, Omni was to be a local, in-person organization but the pandemic immediately forced us online. Looking back, I’m so glad! We are now a global organization with members on every continent. (Well, not Antarctica… yet!) The one and only downside of being an online community is that we have not yet gathered in person. The relationships that have developed in the Omni community are deep and genuine, and we can’t wait to finally see each other at a live event someday.

What are your hopes for Omni as it grows?

2023 will be Omni Sound Project’s FOURTH year and we have very big plans. In addition to our free intro classes and workshops, we’ll be finally hosting in-person events. I’ll be sharing more about that in 2023, but it’s my intention that the in-person events will be immersive education experiences that build local communities.

It’s my hope that over the years, Omni becomes the go-to educational community for anyone interested in audio engineering and music production, but especially for marginalized folks who may not feel welcome in more traditional settings.

Can you tell us a bit about the Four Track Challenge ⏤ what it is and how it came to be?

The Four Track Challenge was inspired by repeated requests from our members for actual hands-on practice. I wanted to keep the challenge accessible enough for brand new producers/engineers but leave space for those with experience to really go crazy with their skills. Basically, we provide prompts to challengers and at the end of the week, we gather for “Hear and Tell,” where participants are invited to share their creations and provide positive feedback to other challengers. It’s basically a really big creative love fest, and we all look forward to it all year!

How has the Omni community ⏤ faculty and members ⏤ influenced its growth and current form?

Oh, wow. Well, quite simply: Omni wouldn’t be Omni with our teachers, members, and allies. When I look back at all the incredible folks who have been drawn to this community over the years it’s really obvious the imprint they’ve had. In our events, the teachers and I create a lot of space for socializing in addition to education. We host regular member mixers where people can meet for support and encouragement and our Discord is a super safe space to ask questions and form friendships. The types of people who are drawn to Omni tend to be really optimistic, kind, and encouraging.

What is your relationship with audio ⏤ personally and as a collaborator? As mentor or mentee?

I consider myself a musician with an interest in audio. I took a basic class with Women’s Audio Mission back in 2012 or so and quickly realized that I am far too impatient to be an engineer. However, as a musician, I wanted to experience a less intimidating and more welcoming atmosphere in the recording studio. I also know how important it is to receive encouragement when creating. Omni is basically a big audio cheerleader: trying to give marginalized folks more confidence to be themselves in the studio because that’s what will make the studio a better place to be!

In terms of mentoring, I rely a lot on several mentors. My good friend Josh Thomas (of Rupert Neve Designs) has never turned away a request from me for advice and guidance. Our sponsors have guided me through program creation, and our teachers mentor me with curriculum development. I haven’t yet actively mentored anyone, but do consider my work with Omni to be a form of mentorship for sure!

What dreams have arisen for you as a musician and creative since beginning Omni Sound Project?

I’m still exploring my next evolution as a musician. I was a performing musician for many years and right now my lifestyle is a mismatch with performing live gigs. I’d like to get back into performing at some point.

In the meantime, I have been learning how to play the piano. This is definitely helping me finally uncrack the code of music theory in a way that’s more visual than playing guitar or mandolin (my previous instruments). It’s really challenging but really fun, and I could play for hours.

Who would you most like to involve in a future event that you haven’t yet worked with in that capacity?

There are so many incredible engineers that we have not yet worked with! I’m always excited to connect with new teachers that want to share their knowledge with the Omni community. There are also a lot of companies that I want to partner with to aid their efforts in reaching marginalized genders.

I hate my job. What do I do?

I’m going to go deeper this time around and combine some of the things I’ve discussed in previous blogs. I’ve mentioned you should always be willing to take the job on the table, even if it’s not the one you thought or dreamed of. But what happens when you do that, and you absolutely hate that job and it’s a toxic environment? There are ways and there are ways to deal with this.

My Story

I’ve only once ever completely walked away from a job because I couldn’t take it anymore, but I stayed there for a year and a half. I knew when I signed the paperwork that it wasn’t for me, but I needed a job. And I needed an in, and this was it. In fact, I kept going to job interviews after I signed the papers. I hated the hours, the corporate structure, and I had a really, really horrible relationship with the executive producer (I wouldn’t find that out until later). Up front, I will say, I wouldn’t change the experience since I got my next job because I had that on my resume. I also was trying to conceive, they had full fertility coverage, and I was struggling to get pregnant.

Things came to a head several times. I had ambitions to grow and do other things, and this person was not letting me do that aside from being a person who really had to micromanage every little thing you did. I tried really hard to move to another department, to get away from the EP, and to also have better hours. It was considered a no-go because it would look like “poaching” within different departments. I spoke to my manager about it; I was not the only one who had issues with this person, but it was deemed we were both adults and we needed to find a way to deal for the good of the show.

I went on job interview after job interview and got no after no. So I stayed with it and worked every holiday. I focused on the work itself, and I did things I was proud of. After a while, I made friends with the hosts and some of the other folks on other shows. One of the hosts let me start writing the box office reports on Sundays, and another producer right towards the end let me put together a story (which aired on my last day there). But after one year and a half of stress, migraines, difficulty getting pregnant, and several SEVERAL conversations with management, I quit. I did it elegantly. I wrote a great resignation letter, offered more than the expected notice, and left on a high note.

I’ve never left a job with nothing on the horizon. I had enough money to get by for one month, and I was fortunate because I had a partner who also had a job. We didn’t have kids at that point, and we were in an apartment in Queens, so let’s say the stakes weren’t that high. It was terrifying, but I also knew I couldn’t take it anymore.

I sometimes believe that there’s an energy that keeps us from attracting the things we need, and for me, after I left this place, it felt like I’d liberated something. I received 2 offers within the month I left and actually had to choose. I landed at Futuro Media (home to Latino USA, etc) where I still work, and got pregnant like 3 months later.

I’ve made it a point not to burn bridges throughout my career and because of that, I’m able to check-in with old bosses and companies if I need work. Remember the audio world is small – everyone is connected, so don’t burn the bridge unless you plan on never looking back.

Tips for dealing with toxic workplaces

I hate my job, but I need the money.

First off, you should always give yourself some time to get used to a job. Don’t decide on the very first day or week that this job isn’t for you and you need to go. Every change in life needs time to adjust. For me, that’s about 6 months (could be less for you). It may seem like a long time when you’re miserable, but maybe you just need a minute to get in the groove. I came home from the first day of a new job crying; you may know it’s not for you, but you need to give it time to see how things play out.

So what do you do? Buckle down and focus on the job you were hired to do – you will inevitably learn something there. Try to find things outside of work that fills you with joy and helps you to decompress. Money is unfortunately an important factor, and unless you are able to just walk away, you need to put blinders on and just stick with it until you can find something else.

If after 6 months (or whatever number that is for you), you cannot fathom another day at this place, time to start thinking about your next move.

The environment is toxic.

A toxic work environment will wreak havoc on your mental (or physical) health. Whether it’s a specific person, being overworked and burnout, or physically damaging to your health, there are cases where you have to evaluate what this job is doing to you and figure out the quickest way out.

Some of these issues can be handled by being open and having conversations with your manager. If it’s a person, can you request to be moved to a different department? Ask to work on a different team? Have you had a direct conversation with this person as two adults willing to find a way to work together? Is your team understaffed, and you’re super burnt out? Do you work overnights and it’s affecting your health to do so? Those conversations are difficult, but you need to have them – especially if like point one, you need the money. It’s in your interest to find an immediate solution to make things better.

But, never have a conversation in the heat of the moment. (Or write an email for that matter). When you’re angry, your emotions get the best of you, and we end up seeming less professional. You need to have a plan of action, documentation, and propose different solutions to the issue. I’ve often written emails when I’m angry addressed to no one, saved them as a draft, and then come back to it the next day. It serves as a way to get things off my chest, without potentially having a falling out with its intended subject. I’ve written a lot of angry emails and have never sent them. No matter how #&*#$^ a place is, you have to manage things calmly and as a boss. A boss has a plan and a solution to everything, and that often comes from time to cool off so you can see things from another perspective.

The job is affecting my physical health

In this case, it’s important to find solutions quickly. No job is worth risking your physical (or mental) health. Be familiar with your company handbook and see what options are available to you. Can you take a leave of absence? It is really important to have some savings. I say this as a person who is horrible with finances, but you really need to have a small, humble cushion. Not talking about “retiring at 40” type savings, just enough to keep you safe during emergencies. Can you walk away and stay afloat for a month while you have time to find something else?

Overall advice

No matter what the issue is, make sure you find someone outside of work to talk to. Is that a therapist? best friend? Family member? You want to be careful of not sounding like a broken record on how horrible something is without actually doing something about it, but you do need to find someone to be able to unwind and let go. Sometimes just talking things out helps provide you with your own solutions. Otherwise, your fuse will burst a lot quicker.

Live System Engineering Shadowing Opportunity

Systems Engineer Michael Lawrence is accepting applications from members of SoundGirls to shadow him on his upcoming tour in August – September.
It’s a big Meyer Panther rig and he will use Smaart v9. It’s a good opportunity for learning as he does not use any auto EQ, auto splay, auto solvers, beam steering, etc his workflow, it’s all Real Science. No clicking the magic button and letting it do your job for you.

One person per date and will prioritize people who have an interest in the systems engineering /measurement/ tuning side of things.

You will have to bring a bag lunch and show up at call times TBD. 18 and over.

Apply Here

 

Why I Don’t Use Plug-Ins When Mixing Music Live

I talk a lot about how I don’t use plug-ins.  I want to clarify a few things, and in this blog, I’ll explain why I don’t use any plug-ins when I am mixing live sound and how I use plug-ins when working in a DAW.

MIXING LIVE SOUND

If I’m mixing on an analog console, I’ll have a rack of outboard gear consisting of some gates and compressors, reverb, and delay.  I’m less is more kind of gal and I like to keep things simple.  If I’m mixing on a digital console, unless it is by the artist’s request, I use only the EQ, gates, and compressors on the console.

I do not use sound-shaping plug-ins to create the sounds I want.  I focus on using the right tool for the job starting with choosing the right microphone, using a great-sounding console, and minimal processing in the signal path. I rely heavily on good gain structure and proper use of EQ. I also work to make sure what I’m mixing sounds great before I put a mic on it.  When you start with great sounds from the source, it makes mixing that much easier.

I want to be able to mix my show on whatever console and equipment I have and when I’m touring all over the world with an artist, there is no guarantee that I will be able to have the exact gear that I request in every location.

When your show is built around layers of plug-ins, you will inevitably run into a situation where your server is down, your licenses don’t work, your console won’t speak to the waves rack, or there isn’t enough DSP to handle it.

I’ve watched so many sound people at festivals frantically on their phones with tech support trying to resolve issues with their plug-ins not working. They are super stressed because they cannot mix the show without the plug-ins.

They never learned how to properly use EQ or compression and rely on the plug-ins to do what they can’t.  Without plug-ins, their mix completely falls apart and they have a terrible show.

As the sound engineer for a band, you should be able to walk in and mix your show on whatever equipment you have.  Of course, some shows will sound better than others due to the quality of the sound system and equipment available, but you should never be in a situation where you can’t make the guitar sound good without your Maserati ACG or GTR3 ToolRack or you can’t get any warmth or thump from the PA without your OneKnob plug-ins.

When we start to rely too heavily on the tools, we lose our skills.  If you want to master your audio skills, make sure you start by learning the fundamentals.

MIXING IN A DAW

When I talk about mixing music in the studio without using plug-ins, I’m referring to sound-shaping plug-ins.  Things like OneKnob, Maserati, Clarity, etc.  Plug-ins that do things that you can do with proper EQ and compression.

When using a DAW it’s a given that you will need to use plug-ins.  Most DAWs come with basic EQ, dynamic, and effects.  These are all integral components of a mix.  Beyond the basic plug-ins available in your particular DAW there are many higher-quality options available.

The Neve, API, or SSL EQ plug-ins will sound better than the generic EQ included in your DAW.  Listen to compare and choose the one that sounds best to you.

As well, the UA audio, Empirical Labs, CLA, and SSL compressors will sound better than the ones included in your DAW.

Take your time in choosing what works best for your music and mix.

But when it comes to finding clarity in the vocal, getting that extra punch on your drums, or fattening up a thin acoustic guitar, etc. these are all things that can be accomplished with proper mic choice, good signal level, and EQ.

If you want a great-sounding electric guitar, take the time to dial in the sound of your amp before recording it.  Tuning and recording great-sounding drums will prevent the need for doctoring up with multiple plug-ins.

There is nothing wrong with using plug-ins to enhance your mix but it’s important to build a great-sounding mix with the basics first.

The skills of using critical listening to choose the right mic and position, tweaking the sound of the source to make it as good as possible before recording, setting proper input gain, and using EQ and compression properly will serve you far better than a toolbox full of single-use sound-shaping plug-ins.

If you’re getting started in Live Sound, CHECK OUT THIS BLOG, and if you’re recording and producing from your home studio READ THIS.

By: Michelle Sabolchick Pettinato MixingMusicLive.com

 

Hybrid Careers: Balancing Audio Work with Other Skills and Passions

We’re often advised to choose one career path, specialise in one field or skill set, and stick to it until we become a master in it. But what if you’re a polymath with several diverse interests and want to pursue them all? In the audio world, it’s quite common for people to wear many hats – the audio engineer who is also a musician and composer is a common example. Or perhaps you’re a person who needs a lot of variety to focus and maintain passion for your work – whether it’s working in several audio fields, or in completely different fields. Or your life circumstances might mean you’re not able to work full-time, or you have hobbies or commitments that are important and central to your life and wellbeing. How can you combine several interests and skill sets to create a satisfying career that also pays the bills?

In many countries around the world, the norm is changing: in past decades, many people stayed in one job or company for several decades or even for their whole career; now it’s common for workers to change jobs every few years, or retrain later and work in a different field. The rise of remote working gives us more options for different working styles and freelance businesses, opens up more opportunities globally, and gives some people the opportunity to be location-independent. For those of us who want to combine audio work with our other skills and passions, this climate gives us more possibilities than ever to survive and hopefully thrive, with income from various streams. Here are some ideas and examples of possible work modes and methods:

Project-Based Freelancer

Freelancing on a project basis allows you to take on different projects that interest you and have a fixed duration so you know you’ll have a lot of variation in your work. For example, you might mix an album for some weeks, record film sound on location for the next weeks, edit a podcast series for a couple of months and then take on a non-audio project. Challenges: you’ll always need to put time and energy into finding work and arranging your calendar to fit everything in, and there may be periods of abundant work and periods of not enough. Advantages: you are your own boss, you have more control over your work hours and time off, and the types of projects are only limited by your skills.

A Business that Combines All of Your Interests

Starting a business that enables you to wear several hats can be a satisfying way of combining all your skills. Perhaps you write and play music, engineer recordings, do graphic design and marketing, and could start an all-in-one music production studio that takes care of all elements of a client’s album release. Or find another way to combine your audio skills with a different field of knowledge. Challenges: you’ll need to have a solid business plan and know how to reach your target clients to bring in work. Advantages: bringing all your skills into one unique business, never having to feel that you’re putting one part of your identity or skill set on the backburner.

Several Part-Time Jobs

A solution for a more stable income could be to have multiple part-time roles. You might have an administrative job in the music field three days a week, teach instrument lessons one day and do live sound mixing in the evenings or on weekends. Or have one role in the mornings and another in the afternoons. Challenges: finding jobs that are part-time and juggling your schedule to fit everything in, being able to switch quickly between completely different mindsets/skill sets/workplaces in a short space of time. Advantages: an amount of financial stability, and possibly other benefits that come with fixed part-time roles.

Switch Jobs Every Few Years

Another approach is taking fixed-term full-time contracts (year-long for example) or having the intention to change jobs every few years. This could be more of a mindset rather than a fixed plan – just knowing that you won’t be “stuck” in a job forever and have the freedom to pursue another job or career if you desire is exciting. You might like to switch between diverse fields of audio over the years or change careers completely down the track. Challenges: not having as much variety in your work daily or weekly, not advancing further in a particular field. Advantages: the opportunity to develop deeper skills in one area, and the financial and other benefits that come with full-time roles.

A “Day Job” Plus Side Projects

Some people thrive on having a full-time job that allows them the financial freedom to pursue other projects, work, or hobbies in their free time. This option could be appropriate if the stress of trying to make money with your passion is overwhelming or causes burnout, and you start to lose your passion for it. Or perhaps you have one passion that will allow you to make a good living, and the other passion can be a side project. Challenges: finding enough time and energy to work on your other projects outside of your main job. Advantages: financial stability and money to spend on side projects or businesses.

Role Models

The concept of a multi-skilled polymath, generalist, or Renaissance person – a well-rounded individual who has knowledge and skills in many areas – has been around for a long time, and in Renaissance Italy was seen as the height of accomplishment (Leonardo Da Vinci was revered for his incredible skills and achievements in the fields of a2rt, music, science, invention, and writing). Some more modern-day polymaths in the audio world who are hugely inspiring are Ethel Gabriel (record producer, A&R representative, company executive, trombonist), Kira Roessler (dialogue editor, bass player, singer, songwriter, former computer engineer), and Leslie Ann Jones (recording and mixing engineer, producer, publicity/artist relations, guitarist, board member).

Resources

A great website to check out is puttylike.com – while not specifically audio-related, it has useful career and productivity ideas and advice for people with multiple interests and skills.

 

Ham Activities 

Here I am back with my Amateur Radio Technician License. Now what? Where will my radio take me? Amateur radio enthusiasts often explore several niches without limiting themselves to one genre of radio. However, their activities can be broken down into five categories: radio contesting, research, public service, digital and computer networking, and technical experimentation.

Contesting

Contesting refers to radio operators contacting others like a scavenger hunt. These can be at events, where the most contacts at the event is a winner, or collecting contacts of a certain category. Ongoing contests include getting all 50 states in the United States or contacting all the National Parks. Field Days are annual events that occur in June and October where contesting happens, but also many clubs set up in local parks to show off their gear to the public. I attended my local one a few weeks ago and one radio operator contacted a Park On The Air in New York. While these contests can be purely for verbal bragging rights, there is a tradition of QSL cards. These postcards show the call signs of the conversation participants and are exchanged as proof of contact. The most unusual are displayed as trophies. As a fan of postcards, I made a stamp of my call sign to create my own QSL card.

Research

Amateur radio enthusiasts are already science-minded individuals, so citizen science research naturally shoehorns into the hobby. By using a variety of equipment and transmitting in all weather conditions, radio operators can observe the propagation of radio waves in less than ideal conditions or even during rare phenomenon like auroras. Also by communicating with amateur satellites, radio operators can monitor weather patterns and gather data.

Public Service

To take this altruism further is public service. In the United States, the two major organizations for emergency communications via amateur radio are RACES (Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service) and ARES (Amateur Radio Emergency Service). These two organizations set up networks of volunteers who facilitate communication between the government and other groups. When cell phone towers are down and power is out amateur radio can still get messages through. There are even protocols in place to get messages from survivors to their families around the country.

Digital and Computer Networking

While amateur radio as a hobby is more than a century old, there are a variety of digital avenues to use for communication. Software-defined radio is an inexpensive way to use radio integrated into a computer. Other formats are Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), radio teletype (RTTY), and packet radio. Some of these can be used in conjunction with the other categories.

Technical Experimentation

As with other hobbies, amateur radio enthusiasts try to push the boundaries of the craft. There is the fairly obvious homebrew or do-it-yourself aspect of building your own equipment. For low power and high noise situations, radio operators use Continuous Wave (CW) and Short Wave (SW). CW often employs morse code instead of vocal communication. These modes can even be used to bounce waves off of the moon! Audio is not the only medium that can be transmitted either, there is Fast Scan television to send amateur signals short distances.

Currently, I have a handheld transceiver and an RTL-SDR dongle (for passive listening to software-defined radio). However, that is only the start of my amateur radio journey. I hope in the future to take you through some of these different categories of radio. This is Nicole KQ4BHO signing off.

A Producer’s Tarot Reading

I consider myself an exceptionally slow producer. I’ve been working on this one original song since January, and I’ve made four other versions of this song in the past three years that I didn’t like. Typically when I sit down to work on the song, I start to pick at a certain aspect of the track (recently I’ve been mulling over the specific bass sound) and I sit with it for the day and try to get it to a place I’m happy with. I wouldn’t wish this method upon my worst enemy because it gets me stuck in the process and makes it difficult to move forward with the next steps.

Typically I might take a more scientific approach to overcome this slump, like applying psychoacoustics to my dilemma. Is there some prospect of my own listening capabilities that I’m ignoring? Perhaps there is an interesting sound design or mixing technique I learned in college that I can test out. Maybe I can explore a niche genre of music that I might find inspiring. Most likely, I’ll discover that the song is fine the way it is, and I’m overthinking. Any number of approaches might thaw my frozen creativity block, but I think a less empirical approach could help me find some answers and ease up on being such a perfectionist with this track.

I started teaching myself tarot this past week, and as part of this practice, I’m going to do a reading for my song and apply it to my current music production challenges. If you share any related struggles with feeling stuck creatively or trying to perfect your latest track, then I invite you to interpret this reading into your own process. I’m going to pull three cards that will apply to the following: what the song already has, what it is or represents, and what it needs. It’s possible that I’m breaking some rules with this, but one of the first things I learned is that there is no one way to use tarot cards.

Before we begin, I want to make a few notes. My deck is cat-themed, so a lot of the guide uses many feline puns that sometimes don’t make sense to me, a human being. I like to use this website as a reference for interpretation instead. I’m asking an open-ended question so that I can interpret this reading with my own song, and you can also consider how it applies to your own project!

The question I’m asking is, “How can I help my song to reach its full potential?

I pulled the Three of Cups, reversed Five of Swords, and Two of Wands. I’d also like to note that all cards come from the Minor Arcana which, from what I’ve learned, typically deals with day-to-day challenges and individualized experiences. These are simplified and generalized interpretations for this blog post’s sake, but there is plenty of insight to offer some perspective on my creative process. The first card (what the song already has) is the Three of Cups, which savors celebration, highlights human connection, and encourages creative collaboration. The Cups suit symbolizes water and embodies relationships and creativity. When I think of collaboration in this context, the various musical influences of this song come to mind. I listened to a lot of references from Pop artists that inspired me like Maggie Rogers and Sylvan Esso to channel the vocal style and synth accompaniment of this song. I made some changes to my process in order to more easily embody these artists: I switched to using Ableton Live for this song, I re-recorded the vocals multiple times, and I changed a lot of how I processed the vocals to fit these artists’ styles. While influence from artists is always a great place to start, I think the Three of Cups in this position is telling me it’s time to move on from my influences and focus more on harnessing my own sound. I need to listen to my track again and take note of which parts of the song most align with my story and myself. Before all its influences, this song was just a simple chord progression with lyrics, and my first instinct for recording was to layer up loads of harmonies. The next steps I can take are making sure the lyrics and harmonies are the highlights of the song.

The second card (what the song is) is the Five of Swords reversed, which represents settling past conflicts, reconciling relationships, and learning from failure. The Swords suit symbolizes air and embodies intellect and communication. As I mentioned before, I have produced four other versions of this song, and this most recent attempt is the closest version of what I envisioned. I think that right now, this song represents my growth as a producer and my capacity to learn from all the times I was unhappy with the creation. Getting stuck with this production is hiding what I’ve achieved since I first started producing. I think this card is also telling me to re-explore the emotions that charged this song in the first place. I’ve designed some cool vocal samples and other “ear-candy” in Ableton Live, but I think it’s important for me to re-evaluate how those moments serve the raw emotion of the song.

The third card (what the song needs) is the Two of Wands, which represents clear planning, making steady progress, and aspiring for long-term goals. The Wands suit symbolizes fire and embodies passion and creativity. I feel like this card speaks most clearly to my creative slump. I’ve been studying the short-term goal of finishing this song for release and ignoring how this song will speak to future productions and releases or the discography I want to showcase as an artist. While it feels like I’m moving slowly with this song, I think I need to realize that I am not just working on this song but my overall sound. As tedious as it can be, it is probably a good time for me to put together a small library of the sounds I’m using in this song so I can build on my sound design for the next songs or a large-scale project like an E.P. This card is also telling me to be decisive, which is something I am literally struggling with since I’ve tested out a ridiculous number of bass sounds for this song. Like most art forms, it can be hard to tell when a song is done with production or the mix is finished, so I think this is an important reminder for me to trust my instincts and follow my initial decisions.

All this interpretation is rather subjective and maybe not something you might believe in, but it gave me the chance to let go of my grip on a perfect song. Getting stuck in creating can be a frustrating experience, and sometimes there is an obvious next step to overcome the obstacle. I hope that if you’re facing a creative block, you take it easy on yourself. Be forgiving of your process and trust in your instincts. In my last several days of learning tarot, I often found that I knew the answer to my question all along, I just needed to understand it in a different way.

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