By: Malle Kaas
I remember last summer, “shadowing” a dear friend of mine doing monitor on a CL5. This was my first active step back into the industry – and my first encounter with a digital console. When I think back at that day, I remember thinking: “I know absolutely nothing”.It was the beginning – and now, one year later, I’m going to take my final practical exam on a Midas Pro 6 and it feels good.
In that last year, I have gained so much knowledge in the world of sound and with mixing. I now feel comfortable getting behind a desk. I remember a day a year ago, when one of my co-workers said to me: “now you do the mixing”, pointing at the two vocal channels and the two keyboard channels on a A&H live digi console. I was terrified! Today, I can just get behind the board and feel comfortable. The three months at Britannia Row’s production training has really given me the confidence to mix.
Awhile ago, a friend of mine had me mix a couple of tracks in his studio, and I was able to to see and hear what happens when I did this or did that. I think this helped and allowed me to lose the fear of the console and mixing. Looking back, I think what scared me off was the fact that I was left alone with a console way too early. That can only be a disaster when you don’t have a clue in what you are doing. It’s like giving your car keys to someone, who hasn’t driven a car before, and asking them to drive your car across the town.
Something that I have gained through the course at Brit Row is a great amount of theoretical background. Now, the second step will be to go out and put this theory into practice, because it’s not just about reading books or asking questions. It’s mainly about stepping up, going out, and just doing it. The “Ten Thousand Hour” rule is a term worth using in this context, It states that it takes roughly ten thousand hours of practice to achieve mastery in a field. By now, I have less than a thousand. However, I feel so excited about obtaining the next nine thousand hours.
Week 10 at Brit Row
This week started with rigging. However, I wasn’t there. I was in Denmark to hand in an application for a three-year bachelor course in live sound engineering at the Music Conservatory in Copenhagen. I hope to be one of the four out of the 80 or so candidates that will start August 2015. Nevertheless, rigging is a part of your job as a sound engineer, so I’ll just have to catch up on that later. I was able to get practical experience on Smaart & Lake, which are useful tools for turning a PA. We were introduced to the Soundcaft’s Vi3000 and the Midas Pro 6. Both are very nice consoles to work on. The Midas is the console that I’ll be doing my final practical exam on, wish me luck.
