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Ova Music Studio – Feminism and Female Music Production in 1970s London

One of the most rewarding aspects of being involved with SoundGirls is hearing about (and learning from) the experiences of other members. At the most recent meetup for London and UK members back in January, I met members at all different stages in their careers, working across everything from theatre sound to podcasting. From members who had just graduated and were deciding which career path to follow, to members like Jackie Ord, who has recently started to work as an engineer and producer after decades of working as a musician.

It was through Jackie talking about her experiences as a young woman interested in sound and music in the 70s and 80s that I found out about Ova Music Studio and the fascinating story of the women who wanted to empower other women and girls to create and produce their music.

Rosemary Schonfeld and Jana Rumells established The Ova Music Studio in Highgate, north London in 1984, after had forming the radical feminist band Ova in 1976. As well as providing facilities to record and produce their music, the stud offered workshops for women on sound recording, voice, drumming, and percussion. Ova wanted to control their music production and recording outside of the commercial music industry, and the institutionalized misogyny that surrounded it and help other women to do the same.

Rosemary met and fell in love with, Jana in 1976. Both singer-songwriters started playing and writing music together, living in various squats and playing at lesbian and feminist nights across London. After their romantic relationship ended, they continued to create and perform music together as the Ova, first as a group, then as a duo. They released their first full-length album Ova in 1979 on the label Stroppy Cow, which was set up by fellow feminist group Jam Today.

The Women’s Liberation Music Archive (WLMA) describes the aim of Stroppy Cow as “to encourage women to make their kind of music in their own time and space without the counterproductive pressures of commercialism. The music industry often restricts creativity by pre-determining images and roles that women have to conform to be heard. The policy of Stroppy Cow Records is to encourage women to define their own musical output and to be involved in every stage of production.”

As Rosemary says in this interview with WLMA from 2010, this policy encompassed everything from to women owning the rights to their music to the position of how women’s voices in the mix. As she says “in the commercial music industry women’s voices were often being mixed right back, [it was] male choices for the final sound and production.”

Rosemary and Jana were introduced to recording technology by sound engineer Mike Trim during the recording of their first EP (released on cassette). Their new skills gave them the confidence to be able to hire recording studios and work with, as Rosemary puts it in the WLMA interview, “sympathetic sound engineer[s]…you had to find the ones that were helpful and encouraging…willing to share their knowledge”.

In 1983 they received a grant from the Greater London Council to establish their studio – Ova Music Studio –  as a resource for women to record demos and learn about sound recording. One of the conditions of the grant was that they had to offer workshops, and so they did outreach work, travelling to schools with a 4-track recorder, as well as holding music and sound workshops at the community centre in Highgate, north London, where Ova Music Studio was based. They had a resident female sound engineer, Livvy Elliott, who also toured with Ova and taught the sound recording workshops.

Rosemary eventually left the studio in the late 1980s and moved away from London to study music. Livvy went on to establish Studio 9 in Brixton. Ova Music Studio continued for a while, eventually becoming Overtones Studio. It appears to have closed sometime after 2007.

The full interview with Rosemary is available here and you can read more about Ova and listen to recordings in their Women’s Liberation Music Archive entry here (scroll down to find their listing).

The interview is well worth a listen – it’s a fascinating journey through feminist music-making from the mid-1970s – early 1980s, taking in the London squatting scene, touring, the lesbian and feminist movements in the US, UK and Germany, intersectionality, musical influences and working in music and music production as a woman.

Thirty years ago, these original “SoundGirls” were facing many of the same challenges as women working in sound and music production face today. It’s an interesting and sobering thought to consider SoundGirls as part of the same history – a lineage of (in Rosemary’s words) “agents of social change.”

Sistemas de Grabación Estéreo

Para poder seleccionar la técnica con la que trabajaremos, primero, debemos considerar algunos detalles como son: presupuesto, equipo disponible y estilo de música, teniendo esto claro podremos tomar una decisión del sistema que mejor se adapte y funcione a las circunstancias que nos enfrentemos.

Hay 4 elementos básicos para poder escoger una técnica:

De allí surgen algunos de los sistemas de grabación estéreo más conocidos, como son:

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Existe una relación de la posición en la que una fuente virtual aparece entre un par de parlantes y la diferencia de intensidad del sonido (en dB) para una señal estéreo. Esta variación  se logra en los sistemas de grabación estéreo mediante los cuatro elementos anteriormente expuestos: patrón polar, posición, ángulo entre los micrófonos y distancia a la fuente. (Recordemos que estamos hablando de técnicas de grabación estéreo)

Por ejemplo, sabemos que para lograr que una fuente virtual se sitúe 100% hacia uno de los parlantes la diferencia debe ser de 18dB (1.5 ms), para 75% es de 11dB, para 50% es de 6.5dB, para 25% es de 3dB y 0dB para estar completamente al centro.

Estas diferencias de nivel (dB) o en tiempo (ms) se pueden lograr manipulando la distancia y/o el ángulo entre los micrófonos, esto, para que el sonido que llega a cada una de las cápsulas de los micrófonos del sistema, se traduzcan en imágenes diferentes en los parlantes, con distintas posiciones y anchos de imagen de las fuentes virtuales.

Por ejemplo, al acercar los micrófonos a la fuente, la imagen se hace mayor en los parlantes. O si se reduce el ángulo entre los ejes de los micrófonos de un sistema XY la imagen disminuye debido a que el área de grabación se hace mayor. De la misma manera podemos observar diferencias de imagen entre cada uno de los sistemas AB vs. XY vs. equivalente.

La imagen de la orquesta representada anteriormente, muestra un ejemplo extremo de cómo pueden variar los resultados según la configuración escogida, sin embargo, esto no significa que siempre que seleccionemos un sistema de grabación estéreo AB se obtendrá una imagen que proviene de los extremos izquierdo y derecho de los altavoces, o que al escoger un sistema coincidente se obtendrá una imagen concentrada en el centro de los parlantes. Todo depende de los parámetros seleccionados (patrón polar, ángulo, distancia entre los micrófonos y distancia entre la fuente) para cada configuración.

Específicamente si comparamos un sistema XY con patrón polar cardiode vs uno AB podríamos escuchar:


Les invito a escuchar y seleccionar su sistema de grabación en estéreo preferido, realizando variaciones en los patrones polares, distancias y ángulos de los sistemas de grabación.

Aprovecho para agradecer a la persona a quien le debo estos conocimientos, a quien aprecio y admiro enormemente, Thorsten Weigelt.

Notas adicionales:

A continuación encontrarán una lista con las especificaciones de los sistemas de grabación estéreo establecidos más conocidos.

 

Andrea Arenas: Soy ingeniero de sonido. Mi primer contacto con la música fue a los 10 años cuando comencé a tocar percusión. Me gradué de ingeniero electrónico y desde el 2006 me dedico al audio. También tengo estudios de composición y un loco amor por la música.

Nizarindani Sopeña: Journalist by the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), specialist in subjects of the cultural field. Publisher since ten years of Sound: check Magazine, a Mexican publication aimed at professionals in the entertainment industry in Latin America and the world.

 

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Stereo Recording Systems

In order to select the technique with which we will work, first, we must consider some details such as budget, available equipment, and music style; having this clear we can make a decision on the system that best suits and works to the circumstances that we face.

There are 4 basic elements to choose a technique:

From there arise some of the best-known stereo recording systems, such as:

 

There is a relationship of the position in which a virtual source appears between a pair of speakers and the difference in sound intensity (in dB) for a stereo signal. This variation is achieved in stereo recording systems through the four elements previously discussed: polar pattern, position, the angle between the microphones and distance to the source. (Recall that we are talking about stereo recording techniques)

For example, we know that to get a virtual source to be 100% towards one of the speakers, the difference must be 18dB (1.5 ms), 75% is 11dB, 50% is 6.5dB, 25% is of 3dB and 0dB to be completely at the center.

These differences in level (dB) or in time (ms) can be achieved by manipulating the distance and / or the angle between the microphones, so that the sound that arrives at each of the microphones’ capsules of the system is translated in different images in the speakers, with different positions and image widths of the virtual sources.

For example, when the microphones are brought closer to the source, the image becomes louder in the speakers. Or if the angle between the axis´ of the microphones of an XY system is reduced, the image decreases because the recording area becomes larger. In the same way, we can observe image differences between each of the systems AB vs. XY vs. equivalent.

 

The image of the orchestra represented above shows an extreme example of how the results may vary according to the chosen configuration; however, this does not mean that whenever we select an AB stereo recording system we will obtain an image that comes from the left and right ends. The right of the loud speakers, or that by choosing a matching system, a concentrated image will be obtained in the center of the loud speakers. Everything depends on the selected parameters (polar pattern, angle, distance between the microphones and distance between the source) for each configuration.

Specifically, if we compare an XY system with a cardioid polar pattern vs an AB one, we might hear:

 

I invite you to listen and select your favorite stereo recording system, making variations in the polar patterns, distances, and angles of the recording systems.

I take this opportunity to thank the person to whom I owe this knowledge, whom I greatly appreciate and admire, Thorsten Weigelt.

Additional notes:

Below you will find a list of the specifications of the most well-known established stereo recording systems.

Andrea Arenas: I’m a sound engineer. My first approach to music was through percussion since I was 10 years old. I graduated electronic engineer and dedicated to audio since 2006.  I also have composing studies and crazy love for music.

Nizarindani Sopeña: A journalist by the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), a specialist in subjects of the cultural field. Publisher since ten years of Sound: check Magazine, a Mexican publication aimed at professionals in the entertainment industry in Latin America and the world

 

Bay Area – Working w/ RF – Lisa Woodward

Bay Area SoundGirls Chapter Presents – Working with RF – with Lisa Woodard

Lisa Woodward is an audio engineer with 20 years of experience, working in live sound reinforcement for corporate events like keynote speeches and product launches, as well as theater and music events. She works as a FOH engineer, monitor engineer, A2 and RF coordinator. She is an expert in wireless radio frequency (RF) devices. Lisa will demonstrate usage of and tips and tricks in working with wireless microphones, In-Ear Monitors (I.E.M.s) and communication systems.

VIVA LA MUXER – Volunteers Needed

VIVA LA MUXER 2018 will take place on March 10 at Plaza de la Raza, Los Angeles, CA.  SoundGirls has been invited to be involved – all positions are volunteer only. This is a great way to obtain work experience. Upon successful completion, SoundGirls will provide you a letter of recommendation.

If you would like to be involved – please email soundgirls@soundgirls.org and provide a cover letter, resume, and position you would like to apply. We look forward to working with VIVA LA MUXER to make this Festival a success.

4th Annual Viva La Muxer
A Benefit Event Presented by Las Fotos Project
March 10, 2018, 5-11 PM
Plaza de la Raza, Los Angeles, CA

Viva La Muxer is an annual International Women’s Day celebration uniting and empowering women artists, entrepreneurs, and changemakers from across Los Angeles. Presented by Las Fotos Project, the 4th annual arts and music benefit event features live performances, 100+ curated arts exhibits, family-friendly workshops, and more!

100% of Viva La Muxer proceeds will support Las Fotos Project, a nonprofit organization and brave space for teenage girls to collaborate, learn and inspire.

Freelance or Full-time?

I was recently offered a full-time position, and although I turned it down — it got me thinking: Freelance or Full-time? Which path should I pursue?

Ever since I read the line in a cheesy Arthurian lore novel, I’ve been a huge fan of the idea that our best decisions are made when our head and our hearts agree. But what happens when there doesn’t seem to be a compromise? My heart screams freelance, and my brain desperately wants me to just go full-time. On the one hand, freelancing is exciting, and I’ve worked hard building contacts that I’m scared would all but disappear if I chain myself to one company. On the other hand, full-time means security. Full-stop.

I could spend most of next year working as a stagehand, a pusher, doing neck-down work, or I could spend the next year getting awesome gigs and further pursuing relationships. Getting experience, I would never have gotten with only one company. Since I can’t predict the future, how do I even begin to decide what route I want to take?

Luckily, I get to work with people that have been doing this as long as I’ve been alive (literally, in some cases). So I spent some time asking my coworkers about their experiences with being full-time. I have found that there are three basic categories:

The takeaway that I see from these responses is that their reasons are much more emotionally driven than I had initially though

Maybe making decisions based on our emotional needs is the logical thing to do. And maybe making rational decisions is good for our emotional health. There is a balance somewhere in there. Finding a way to pursue your career dreams and goals while also balancing the stresses that come with finances.

What I have found myself doing is working part-time, on-call for an in-house hotel AV company in addition to the freelancing that I do. The pay isn’t great, but it is work that is somewhat consistent and doesn’t add to my tax stresses. Of course, I’m young, I’m fortunate enough to be on my parents’ health insurance, and my only dependent is my cat. So this not-so-compromise works for me. My thoughts and feeling on this all might change in a couple of years.

“What do you want to do when you grow up?” is a question that everyone answers a thousand times; it can make you feel as though when you become an adult, you pick a career and that’s your job. The end. However, the reality is much more complicated. Life happens, and things change. I think the most important thing I’ve learned is that when the situation changes, don’t be afraid to change your approach. People are constantly changing their paths. Some even have said that they ask themselves the question of freelance or full-time on a yearly basis  We are fortunate to work in an industry that has many options, and many paths to success.

Compromising with your head and your heart is a daunting task, but I think seeing them as intertwined gives us clarity. The dichotomy of the logical or emotional decision is a false one. We are emotional beings, and every decision we make will have an emotional facet to it. At the end of the day, you’re the only one that can make this decision, so go forth and know that your path is not set in stone.

Work hard, do your best, and make yourself proud.

Tia Azimioara interest in live sound engineering began while studying the clarinet at the Orange County High School of the Arts, where she took a class on music technology. She would go on to double major in Anthropology and Classics at Lawrence University while working as a sound tech. She googled and YouTubed her way through shows and concerts. She fell in love with the fast-paced, trial by fire world of live production. After graduating she began working any live events that she could. After two years she has completely fallen in love with her varied and fast-paced life; today you can find her doing anything from slinging deck at a concert venue in Doc Martens, to working in IT specialist for a corporate event in a suit. She is not sure what the future holds but would like to use her training in anthropology to help make the industry more inclusive for everyone. 

Read Tia’s Blog

SoundGirls Launches SoundGirls Productions

SoundGirls was formed in 2013. Veteran live sound engineers, Karrie Keyes (Monitor engineer for Pearl Jam) and Michelle Sabolchick Pettinato (FOH engineer Gwen Stefani, Melissa Etheridge, amongst others) participated in a six women AES panel called “The Women of Professional Concert Sound”. Keyes remembers being amazed that in 2013 the industry was still hosting “Women” panels instead of simply showing the diverse talent that our industry has.

That being said, the panel was incredibly powerful for the panelists. “We had all been in the business for 20 years or more, yet most of us had never met before that day. Within minutes we bonded like long lost sisters. We were struck by how similar our experiences, work ethics, and passions were and wondered how our careers would have been if our paths had crossed earlier and we had been there to support each other throughout the years. Each of us had been asked hundreds of times during our careers: Are there other women doing sound? How did you get into sound? How would a young woman go about getting into sound?” related Keyes.

Thus was the first step in creating SoundGirls. “We set up SoundGirls as an online community for primarily women, but we are not exclusive, welcoming all to come and share their experiences, ask questions and find a supportive community. Since that time SoundGirls has grown and moved in directions we could not have envisioned when we started. The support of our industry has been overwhelming, from both the level of the various manufacturer’s and other sound companies, through industry engineers and enthusiasts. Currently we have over 4,000 members worldwide with a member base of approximately 65% women and 35% men. SoundGirls features monthly engineer profiles, publishes weekly blogs, educational workshops and seminars for rookies and veterans alike of all genders. We offer scholarships, internships and mentors for those working in music production.”

“One of SoundGirls long-term goals has been to provide career advancement, real world training, and jobs for our members by establishing an intern program.” continued Keyes. “Daniella Peters a long term friend, colleague, and SoundGirls supporter was aware of our desire to start such a program and had herself produced a music production workshop for the at risk teen girls of “ Step Up Women’s Network.” She has been working in professional audio for over 17 years with Rat Sound Systems and had, in her spare time, been providing sound systems and engineers for fundraisers and charity benefits in the Los Angeles area. She thought maybe there was a way to enable the women and girls at SoundGirls to intern at these gigs bringing her two passions of women and audio production together. Thus SoundGirls Productions was born.”

The overall vision of SoundGirls Productions is to inspire and empower the young people starting their careers in the world of professional audio and music production. With a range of gear available for rent and a roster of experienced engineers, for every production we send out a professional audio engineer and, upon the client’s approval, a mentee will provide on-the-job support to the professional. This has a dual purpose of providing the opportunity to have hands-on training while offering invaluable support to the mentor on a real life show.”

For more information: SoundGirlsProductions.com

My Journey into Live Sound – So Far

Some of us are lucky to know what we want to do when we grow up and can go to college and study our chosen profession.  When I was 15 years old, my interest in music began, from a very technical point. I started to listen to electronic music and was delighted by the effects like flangers or delays. Then I found out they were not a big thing, but I was amazed at that time. In that moment, I knew I wanted to know how to make songs but not as a composer. Then, I discovered gigs. I loved the energy coming from the performers to the audience, and I was impressed with how I felt during those two hours. Then I discovered the job of an audio engineer what I wanted to be a live sound engineer.

I enrolled in sound school when I was 20; I was in a class with a varied group of people: singers, composers, guitarists, bassists, drummers, pianists, DJs, and people who wanted to learn audio. The first day of class was complicated: my teacher, a live sound engineer was talking about things I’ve never heard of before. He talked about digital consoles (a Tascam DM 4800), and channels, aux sends, inserts, solo types, effects, master fader … and all of my classmates seemed to know what he was talking about but me. I remember that when I got home and reconsidered my choice for a moment. Was I in the right place? Did I choose the right thing? Is this what I really want? It was overwhelming! But my argument was solid and straightforward: “I want to learn how to work and mix concerts, and it’s okay if I don’t understand everything yet. That’s why I am going to school.”

There were three women out of the twenty students the first year and four in our second year. When I told people I was studying audio engineering they would say things like ‘that’s a man thing,’ ‘there aren’t many girls doing what you do,’ or even ‘are you a lesbian?’  I also received comments like ‘that’s so cool! ‘that sounds like so much fun!’ or ‘ there should be more women in here’ … eventually, I got used to this two sides.

As the time passed, the students started to choose different disciplines; recording, mixing, mastering, post-production, DJs, producers, marketing, and live sound. My teachers and mentors were always so real about the pros and cons of working in live sound. The lack of sleep, the fast-paced travel, battling the elements, this just fed my enthusiasm. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy and I also knew I would need to put in years of hard work before I would get the chance to be on an international tour.

I love preparing for an event. Learning the console, prepping my gear, choosing microphones all to make the performers comfortable onstage and do to provide the best sound possible to the audience. The journey is complicated, especially when you are a beginner and (though I refuse to accept this) being a woman. Every show teaches me something. I still have a long way to go in front of me, and I want to keep this excitement and drive to learn.

Brenda Oyola is a sound engineer who was born in Colombia and now living in Spain for the last 12 years.  She studied Audio Production at SAE Institute in Madrid and graduated two years ago. Though she’s happy working in recording and post-production, her true passion is Live Sound.  Brenda has been working around the country as an assistant and technician. She also has a deep interest in acoustics and enjoys listening to music. Though she has a long way in front of her in this spectacular industry, she hopes to keep the same passion that took her into this business and will keep working hard to make herself a great sound engineer.

Read Brenda’s Blog

 

The Heart at the Beginning

How did you know you were a SoundGirl/Soundperson? How did that spark make you feel? Do you carry it with you still?

For some of us, our lives feel somewhat planned out. For others, spontaneity reigns. I fall into the latter! No matter how I try to decide the path to take, life loves to throw me as many curveballs as it can muster. (Most likely chuckling at me as it pitches) I used to fight it, but in the last few years, I’ve been able to get in the game and get excited about how I’m going to handle each new surprise as it explodes into my life. When it comes to sound, if I am completely honest, I had no idea it was even a thing until it was presented to me. Not even exaggerating! I’d never plugged in an electric guitar, rarely thought about music as being more than vocals, and never thought about the fact the there was a human at a booth making all my favourite shows possible.

Now, you may be thinking, ‘Well that’s not cool, our honorable profession deserves musical aficionados, dedicated by many years of developing our trade and skills!’. To that I say, kill the elitist inside your head! We all start somewhere. Some are born so very lucky to be within a musical family or surrounded by people who teach and demonstrate the magic of music at an early age. Me, well I guess I am just a late bloomer! And this is exactly what my blog series is about. Do you ever see phenomenal natural talent, or technical genius and wonder how did I get here?! Is this really what I should be doing because I don’t feel like I can compare. Have you just started out and felt as though you are entering a race 12 years behind everyone else? Do you get overwhelmed at all there is to learn so intensely that it makes you feel like you know nothing, so you decline gigs and hide in bed? Me too. For real, me too. However, these thoughts are rarely helpful! I aim to reconnect you with the magic of it all. The passion that brought you here and the character that will make you persevere, so you can realize it’s not a race at all. It’s a marathon where you decide the start, control the pace, and have full reign to choose the finish line. Those competitors can be your best allies if you keep your head in the game, ignore the sour Sally’s, and push out that useless self-doubt. We all have skills that brought us here, and sometimes the subtle ones that seem small, are the ones that can get you ahead.

My moment came after a tumultuous spring. I was planning on hitching to the Yukon from the Kootenays in British Columbia. A friend offered a ride but had to make a stop because they were working a Festival, for which they offered me an ‘in.’ I went with the intention of slacking hard and partying to great music, but in true character, I took to my job of driving a box truck easily and quickly and ended up ditching parties to re-strategize the camper shuttle load in the parking lot. At the end of the weekend, I was considering moving to the states to work with this company full time. Thankfully a friend told me about a small-time bc festival in 100-mile house called Hootstock. I was unsure if I was taking the right course of direction as I nervously attended, and my life was forever changed.

I found the magic under the last night’s moonlight. We were meant to jam by the fire, but we weren’t finished our shift, so we started a song under the canopy of the artist’s kitchen. Musician after musician trickled in to join, and before we knew it we had nearly every instrument imaginable! An electric fiddle, upright bass, a saw, a whole brass section, a melodica, and no joke someone was playing the stove and cast iron pans with metal utensils. It was so monumental that the wood stove campfire was dragged to where we were, and we danced and played until we no longer could! We tried to take video, but it was futile. That moment can never be fully depicted. That moment was for us, that was our magic, our cosmic message telling us we were okay, that THIS is what life is about, and that we were all on the right path. From here I went on to volunteer at six more small-time festivals working every and any job they would give me. I was hooked, that music sang me a song I’d waited my life to hear. That magic was taking me somewhere, and I had to find out where!

Janna Dickinson aka JDog broke into the industry last year, when she accidentally worked nine festivals! At the Last-ival, having worked every volunteer role through to stage-managing, she watched the techs and realized that she had finally found a job where her varied skill sets could finally all work in unison. She spent nearly two months couch hopping while hitching to every tech across BC that she had met at festivals who were willing to teach her anything. Her first gig was waiting for her when she returned! With a childhood free from live music, she had never played in a band or plugged in an electric guitar. She was learning it all from scratch! So, learning WHAT an XLR cable is called, let alone what it’s for! She returned to the same festivals this year with a new role and received honorable mentions at each one. Follow her on her journey of navigating such a complex industry as a complete novice, working solely on instinct, an ear and the drive to work at her passion no matter the odds. Unafraid to ask embarrassing questions on her quest for excellence, she carries with her goals of touring, teching/tuning, tv and teaching. Her freelance company is Penny Lane Audio & Production.

Read Janna’s Blog 

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