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Kim Watson- You Have to Learn From the Best

UK-based sound engineer Kim Watson has been a freelance audio engineer since 1999.  Kim’s foray into live sound started with a love of music and a desire to work in the music business.  “I always knew I wanted to be in the music industry, I just never quite knew in what respect.”  Although having started her training in recording school, she found recording sessions boring and monotonous.  Kim was attracted to the challenge of live sound, “having one chance to get it right and then, that moment is gone.”

It never hurts to ask

While she was at a show, Kim approached the FOH engineer to whom she expressed her interest in live sound.  Luckily for her, he was the owner of a local PA system and gave her a call the next week to show up for work.  Kim recalls how she was the 3rd person on the show and was ‘paid in pizza and information.’   It was a proper sound company, and Kim spent the next three years learning as much as she could.  “First thing he showed me was how to coil cables.  Then how he wanted mics plugged in Stage box end first, roll the cable to mic stand, so it lies flat, coil left at the bottom of the mic stand in case it needs to move, etc…” She got on very well with the crew, earning their respect by getting her hands dirty, asking questions, and learning how to not get in the way if a problem arose.  Her fellow crew guys became very protective of her, jumping in if anyone gave her a hard time.  One bit of wisdom she retains to this day, ” If a mic goes down on stage, you have 30 seconds to fix it before everyone notices, and the band stops the song and kills the flow of the show.”  Kim paid close attention to the crew guys when they were talking tech, ” At first I didn’t understand much, so I picked up on words- ‘Crossover,’ and would then go home and research what it does.  The next time I would ask questions. I made it my mission to read the Live Audio Boards every day, even if I didn’t understand it, things would sink in.”

Festival FOH Four years later while she was working with another company, Kim would get her big break as a monitor engineer, when she got drafted to replace a co-worker who didn’t show up for a festival.  It was a 50’s Rock and Roll weekend with ten bands a day and a crash course in mixing monitors.  “First time on the monitor board was fun.  Feedback wasn’t so much an issue as we set up the day before, and Barry, the guy I was working for, had me ring the monitors out, teaching me as we went.  Barry introduced me to the principle of subtractive mixing, pulling back something that’s in the way of the item they want more of, be it through EQ or nudging the aux back a touch”, she says.  Kim’s been doing monitors ever since.

She is currently the monitor engineer for The Subways.  When she isn’t touring, Kim works freelance for PA companies, such as ESS (based in Mansfield), and is also an audio tech for the O2 Academy in Newcastle, UK.  Having a sweet house gig at the Academy is a huge advantage for Kim, being that she can always find work in the downtime between tours.

Kim is an experienced system/fly tech and more than capable of mixing FOH when required, but most often finds herself at the stage end of the snake.  “Primarily I tend to end up being Monitor Engineer and these days specializing in mixing IEMs.”  The close interaction with the band and the on-stage shenanigans that the audience doesn’t see is one of the things she enjoys most about doing monitors.

FestivalmonitorsNever stop learning

During her school years, Kim went to careers meeting with her parents where she was told that being a “sound engineer” wasn’t a real job.  While her parents tried to guide her to a more reliable career as a music teacher, she knew it wasn’t for her.  “It wasn’t until after I had started work experience with the PA company, that they realized it could be a job, but I would have to MAKE my way job in the industry.  For me, it was all or nothing.  I got into the habit of giving 110% on every show.  People are always watching, and that is what gets you up the ladder.”

Her educational background includes; studying music throughout her school years, Technical college, which included education in Music Tech, Math, Computing, and Physics, also getting her HND* in Music Production, while she was cutting her teeth working at the PA companies.  Kim also plays several instruments and has a background in music theory, which she finds very helpful in mixing.

Kim continues educating herself to this day.  To keep her chops up, besides working and mixing as much as possible, Kim also makes an effort to attend manufacturer’s training seminars.  “I did the Meyer Sound Comprehensive System Design (5 days) and the SIM3 (5 days) courses a few years ago.  I learned so much from both.  Understanding a lot more about the physics behind the sound system, audio interactions, and system measurement has helped a lot.”  Kim is also grateful for having studied Physics at College; she says it “made understanding the principles of phase and wave interactions (in wave theory) very easy.”

She has done training on every digital console she could get her hands on.  “I have always been a computer nerd and got my head around digital desks very early.  I am one of those engineers, that even though I have never used a certain type of board, I can make the show happen the same as I would on analog.  This makes festival walk-up gigs really easy.”

EmiliSande monsystemtech Royal Albert hall

Emili Sande at Royal Albert Hall

For The Subways, who she’s been with for going on two years, Kim is mixing IEMs.  The band usually carries their own LS9 and Sennheiser transmitters, and she’s hoping to have them fully self-contained on stage by next year’s tour.

Kim has been working for the O2 Academy since it opened in 2005.  Recently, she was Monitor System Tech for the two UK legs of Emili Sande’s tour, Monitor tech and Fly tech for Brit Floyd UK and Europe, and Monitor Engineer for “Wow- A celebration of the music and artistry of Kate Bush.”   Kim loves the people she meets on tour.  Familiar friends of The Subways will show up at their local gigs, sometimes joining band and crew on the bus for a few days.  She is also lucky enough to work with a band that enjoys organizing days off in towns with something interesting to do or see, such as visiting a castle or museum.

Lack of sleep is the hardest part of touring for Kim.  “There have been a few tours where hours of sleep at night are very minimal, with lots of back-to-back shows.  That nearly killed me, pushing me right to my limits and making me quite ill.  It’s learning to get the balance.  When you are on tour and you have the option of one of- shower, food, or sleep – choose wisely as it can be your undoing.”
While she admits to having difficulty picking a favorite piece of gear, since gear is always changing, she says, “ My favorite piece of gear is the one that works when you plug it in, and it’s right for the job at hand.”

From the start, Kim’s long-term goal has been to be in the top 10% of live engineers.  “I was told early on by one of my mentors, to be the best you have to learn from the best.  I went out and found out who the top engineers in the world were and read everything I could online that they had written, (through prosoundweb.com and other sites).  It’s been awesome over the years meeting, working with, and hearing the engineers I looked up to.”

Britfloyd Systemandmontech

Brit Floyd

When she first got started in the business, Kim asked another female engineer for advice which she quickly adopted as her own rules.

And one final word of advice: “The most important skill in this job is attitude.  Do it all with a smile and your day will be very easy.  Become a ‘yes person.”

*An HND is roughly the equivalent of two years of university and generally vocational in nature leading to work in a specific industry and entry into advanced levels of the university, somewhat similar to an Associates degree in the USA

Grace Royse – Rock & Roll Not a Pipe Dream

 

Rock and Roll was no ‘pipe dream’ for Grace Royse. Despite all of the discouragement from those around her and closest to her, Grace fought her way through to a touring career as a live mixer, never giving the negativity an ounce of energy.

“I was always obsessed with music for as long as I can recall. I still own the mixtapes I dubbed in my garage as a kid. In high school, I discovered Punk Rock and made some brilliantly terrible recordings.”  Once she was old enough to drive, Grace started following bands around and working her way into recording sessions where she met a few engineers and learned whatever she could.  “I ended up in the beginning stages of CRAS (Conservatory of Recording Arts and Sciences) in Phoenix. Back then the school was taught mostly by working engineers and the classes rotated through local studios, some of us even landed internships while in class.”

While attending CRAS, Grace met David Nichols, who was the owner of Livinghead Audio Recording and a talented engineer himself.  “Livinghead had amazing vintage gear and the best of the new digital platforms. I worked with Jazz, Classical, Rock, Rap, Country, and Indie. We attended several AES’s as a studio, and after graduation, I worked with David for three years before opening my own studio in Tempe.”

Grace and her business partner built their studio by at first, providing PA and live multi-track recordings. Maintaining her own clients and running shows, even on a small scale, is where she really learned the most.   “A few years after the studio opened, a Production Manager friend called and said his engineer had quit and he needed help. That very day I ran my first real touring show as a favor to my friend. I worked at that venue for the next 6 years, meeting hundreds of Engineers and Tour Managers was eventually scooped up by a Fat Wreck Chords tour, and have been touring ever since.”

When she was first getting started in the business, Grace faced a lot of opposition from family and friends who believed touring to be an unsafe environment and bought into false rumors that she had fallen prey to drug use and promiscuous sex.  Learning to stand up for what she wanted was her biggest obstacle, but one she has overcome.  “I never gave in to what others thought was best for me, pushing forward with my own voice in my heart.  It’s a technical job.  It’s no different from any other career with a long learning curve and long hours. You must prove yourself, starve for a while, stick to your guns, and love what you are doing, even when it gets really, really hard, even if you stand alone in your vision. ”  “As a doctor, it takes 12-14 years to actually get anyone to call you “Doctor” with an ounce of respect, and though being a Doctor is looked on with reverence in our culture, with the long hours, and travel schedules, not many people can maintain relationships with them. The struggle feels similar to me, though we aren’t curing cancer out here, some days it feels just as hard.”

Touring life can be brutal on relationships, which Grace experienced recently with both a supportive significant other, who was unhappy and wanted her home all the time, and a very old and close friend who, overcome with jealousy, told her touring would make her ugly.  To make things easier, Grace started actively seeking out like-minded people.  “I continue to build an expansive network of colleagues who support me and have big goals of their own. It’s kind of like growing up in a small town where everyone becomes a farmer, and you are the outcast who wants to be an artist, then one day you move to San Francisco and find amazing, happy people to create with. Touring was my grand move. Over the last nine years, I have met the most amazing teammates. We push each other to succeed, believe in what we are doing, and offer this rare comfort: You aren’t crazy to have such wild dreams and I believe you can do it! “

Over the last nine years Grace has had an exciting career in a variety of roles:  FOH engineer, Monitor Engineer, Stage manager, Production Manager, Recording Engineer, Pro Tools Op, and Broadcast mixing, with a variety of bands:  No use for a Name, Useless ID, Pour Habit, Dirty Heads, Cypress Hill, Pennywise and the Descendants.  She is currently the Monitor Engineer and Stage Manager for Sublime with Rome, and FoH/Production Manager for Rome.  That’s a lot of hats to be wearing.   When asked how she handles all of the responsibilities Grace replied, “I love working within a company that has me doing lots of different things. There is no chance of getting bored around here, that’s for sure. There’s huge comfort in that. I’m kind of an organizational freak and to be able to steer my own ship is awesome. To be able to work with people who trust me is awesome.  I hope in the future, they continue to give me even more responsibility, because not only do they know I can handle it, it’s a benefit to the whole project and everyone involved to have me at the helm, and that’s one of the biggest compliments in the world. I don’t mind that my hat changes and I don’t mind that they lean on me for just about anything.”

“I remember the first time one of my Artists introduced me to someone as simply “my Engineer.” I really took that as a huge compliment. I’m going on four years with these guys, and we have done just about everything you can imagine. Fly dates where I’m mixing them in this little room, with scarcely a PA and I’m the only one there, to these huge arena tours, where I’ve got several semis trucks, tons of local hands, and my own PA to fly.  I think in that time, my whole network has learned that they can come to me with just about anything and I’ll make it happen.”

Her favorite day off activity is hiking to a swimming hole, as long as the destination permits, and being a huge foodie, she likes to seek out the best cuisine around.

As for advice to other women who wish to enter the field: “Hold your own. Set boundaries and stick to them. If you are not true to yourself, your goals, and your own professionalism, you won’t make it, not in Rock n Roll, not anywhere.”  “You’re a technician but also an artistic performer. Passion drives art. If the passion is in your heart for that chilling silence right before the first note hits, and the thunderous applause after the last, proceed.”  Grace’s future plans include the goal of FOH/TM.  “As long as I stay with people and projects I care about, I know it’s within reach.”  “All the amazing people I have met and grown with over the years are invaluable to me. I am beyond grateful for their years of guidance and support. Lapping the globe with your best friends is beyond amazing.”

Grace’s favorite gear includes Digidesign, Neuman, Shure anything, and D&B. I have a huge lady crush on AKG 4050’s, Neumann KM184’s, anything Manley Labs, API or Great River.

“I am totally a closet gear junkie.” She’s quick to add, “I have worked with the worst gear you can imagine over the years, having to duct tape together a PA for a show, and repair things on the fly has made me a better engineer. I feel really bummed when I think about the privileged kid that gets to buy all the really nice gear right out of school or goes right into a super clean gig. They are totally getting jipped out of the struggle that will make them amazing. I laugh now, thinking about this disgusting club me and my friends worked in many years ago. I had to repair an NL4 that got stepped on in the middle of the show because we didn’t have spares. There I was on stage, right there under the lead singer, who was spraying fake blood all over the crowd and me. That club taught me to repair, maintenance, and really down to the point physics of sound and electrical science of what we do. You will never learn that if you walk in, flip a switch and it always works. Get your hands dirty and make it work when it won’t.”

Grace’s Recommended “Must Have” Skills

People Skills!

It is unreal, the broad spectrum of people you will work with. Be ready to have thick skin for that loud tough boss. Be open to the quiet, humble tech who doesn’t speak much, he likely knows more than anyone. Get along with everyone. You never know where you will see them again on your journey

Technical Aptitude.

You’re a super dork now. Read the books, hit the conferences, get in the blogs, and nerd down with your gear head friends. Stay on the edge of the coolest and greatest. Someday, when you are a really big deal, they’ll give it to you for free! For now, do what you can to put your hands on the gear and read anything you can find.

Organize, Prioritize and Be Prepared.

Learn to be the neat freak. The cleaner you are, the smoother the show will go. I make lists. I lay out my gigs in my head on the airplane. And I anticipate a million scenarios.

Stay Calm.

As the saying goes, “anything that can go wrong will go wrong.” If you live by #3, you are already, ready. I tell my interns, the people I respect most are calm amidst the storm. A pillar, the one you go to when the sh*t really hits the fan, and there they are, calm and with the answer in hand.

Have a good sense of humor.

Number five should very likely be number one.  If not for my ability to laugh, I’d never have made it this far. Humor, when you make mistakes. Don’t beat yourself up about it. That’s how anyone gets great at anything, by getting it wrong first. Laughter, when you are too tired and too busy to think. Humor is vital to the ability to brush off stress. Laughing with my friends is the #1, hands down, the greatest part about this career.  Laugh lots.  Laugh that you are blessed to wake every day to a career you love, that you followed through with what you started, and now your dreams are chasing you around the world.

More on Grace

Grace on The SoundGirls Podcast

Grace Royse on Roadie Free Radio

Grace Royse on Signal to Noise

Grace Royse, Virtual Congregations

The Right Balance: The Diverse Career And Life Of Grace Royse

Grace Royse on Mixing Sublime with Rome with VENUE | S6L

Grace Royse Website

Find More Profiles on The Five Percent

Profiles of Women in Audio

Proving Yourself

By: Michelle Sabolchick Pettinato
 
Although I am focusing this article on live sound as this is my area of familiarity, I am sure that those of you working in other areas- audio for gaming, post, broadcast, etc…

I think it’s safe for me to say that most, if not all of us, women feel incredible pressure to work harder, smarter, and faster than our male peers, especially when first starting out.  This is a male dominated business and there are still some men out there who feel women have no place in it.   It’s hard for anyone to break into live sound and the music business in general, but possibly harder for a woman. (more…)

Mudhoney Inspires Career in Sound

From Mudhoney to Monitor Engineer Christina Moon

 

Mudhoney over their twenty-five + year career has inspired and influenced many musicians and fans. One night in 1998 they inspired a young woman to become a sound engineer.* Christina Moon found herself at a Mudhoney show at Summer Nights at the Pier, and walked up to their soundman and asked him “What she had to do to be him?” He gave her great advice recommending classes in music technology at Shoreline Community College and to get involved in the local club scene”. Christina followed his advice and started interning, and within the year things started to click for her.

Christina says she has worked at every club in town (Seattle) and got her start at the Central Saloon. Having met a gentleman named Purple Perry at the infamous Crocodile Cafe who invited her to come hang out with him at the Central. She took him up on his offer and pretty soon she was working a few nights on her own. Unfortunately, for Purple Perry, he made a singer cry, and Christina soon found herself working all of the nights. Christina worked at the Central for five years while working any other gigs she could. Corporate shows, stagehand, small runs of the Northwest with local bands – Anything and Everything. Christina says she learned “soooo much from being in the clubs. You don’t know as much as you think you do until you are thrown in the fire”. The most valuable skills she came away with were how to troubleshoot and how to handle different temperaments from artists.

Soon Christina found herself interning and working at Studio X and with a recommendation from the studio manager landed a gig at Carlson Audio. She worked at Carlson for about six years and during her time there honed her professional skills. She learned how to fly sound systems and was able to gain valuable technical skills. Christina says of her time at Carlson “I thought it was all about being able to put up a great mix, but no, it is so much more.”  A moment of accomplishment came when Carlson trusted her with a truck and PA and sent her alone with a broken arm to Portland for a Queensryche show.

IMG_1118Christina has been working in the industry for fourteen years and works with some of the most prominent alternative acts today. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Death Cab for Cutie, Cat Power, and LCD Soundsystem to name just a few. Christina mixed FOH for a long time but over time became known as a monitor engineer. While she did enjoy FOH, she has no desire to return. She prefers working on stage trying to figure out “people’s quirks.” Christina spends anywhere from eight to eleven months a year on the road and enjoys dining and spa-ing her way around the world. Australia is her favorite place to tour and hopes to get to Russia and Africa eventually. She has no advice for balancing tour and home life – other than she knows who her true friends are.

Christina has her favorite tools – An Avid Profile, D&B M2 or M4 Wedges, and Ultimate Ears for IEM acts. Christina’s acts all have specific needs, and she finds that the Avid Profile and the snapshot feature allow her the most control to manage changes during the show. For acts using IEMs, she throws an external time clock on the console to tighten everything up. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs and LCD Soundsystem only use wedges, and with both bands volume is essential. She works closely with the FOH engineer to make sure “we’re not stepping on each other’s toes and leaving frequency holes, so we both have a good time.” A huge fan of D&B Christina uses M2 wedges and C7 sidefills for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Christina elaborates “The biggest challenge with this band is Karen’s vocal mic. She goes from being a quiet, demure singer to swallowing her mic with her face buried in her wedges. With the M2’s “I can get the volume that I need, and the double 12’s have an edge that I feel manage to poke through stage volume”.

LCD Soundsystem used 20 mixes of M2’s and M4’s with Q1’s and C7’s to get a club sound on stage. James Murphy singing thru a vintage Sennheiser 609 had an exact vision of the sound he wanted, and Christina used a combination of M2’s and M4’s to get his sound.

Death Cab For Cutie – A challenge as all of the guys in the band are producers with their own studios and can hear EVERYTHING. Christina does appreciate the fact they can tell her exactly what they are hearing and want. DCFC are all on IEMS.

Cat Power – Christina helped them to make the transition to IEMS. They were afforded the luxury of a month of production rehearsals to make the transition. Christina points out that time to make the transition is so important “I would say time is a big aspect of a band feeling comfortable with the switch. I feel unsuccessful attempts happen when bands try them for the first time on a show day and don’t have a great experience, then don’t want to try again”.

Q&A

Digital or Analog? Both have pluses and minuses. Nothing beats the warmth of an analog preamp. But the footprint of outboard gear is a bummer. So I’m going to have to say digital because you have everything at your fingertips.  I’ll take the extra ins and outs, comps, and eq’s. Digital preamps are getting better, the new Midas’s sound great.  Also, I could not go back to a day without snapshots. My setlists used to be covered in cues and some days you just didn’t get to them all. Now at a click of the mouse, all of my changes are made. Love that! So do the bands, it’s the same every night.

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What if any obstacles or barriers have you faced?

I would say that I’m my biggest obstacle. Making myself face situations that are new and uncomfortable, always good to do that. Every time I start a new gig, I’m not 100% sure I can pull it off. It’s not just about your skills; you never know if you’re going to fit into the new scenario. I always come away a little more confident though. Advice you have for other women and young women who wish to enter the field? Get out there and get involved in anything and everything you can. That really helped me find what role I would be best suited for.

Must have skills?

Patience, sense of humor, and thick skin

Would you recommend Shoreline Music Technology program for young women starting out?

Yes, I think it’s a nice place to start. I don’t know if the program is the same, but you had to explore a lot of the different aspects of music production.  Analog recording, digital recording, live audio, with two years of music theory.  I feel it was a well-rounded learning experience.  Was I ready to get a job after this?  No, but I think it was a good foundation for me and gave me the opportunity to figure out what I was interested in.  It’s not for everyone.  I think that most of what you learn comes from on-the-job experience and interning.  Until you actually experience something, I don’t think it sinks in.

What discrimination if any have you faced? How have you dealt with it?

Sure you’re going to run into some dudes that just wanna be around dudes.  I really don’t care, and you deal with it by going out and killing it at your job.  Usually, by the end of the day, they wanna be your friend.  But for the most part, people are really nice and supportive.

Best show ever? And why?

I think my best show ever was the last LCD Soundsystem show at Madison Square Garden.   It was the band’s last show before retiring, and everyone worked really hard to make that show great.  Lots of dancing, champagne, and tears.

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Christina has continued to tour the 2017 season with LCD Sound System

Claudia Engelhart – Attention to Detail

claudia_engelhartClaudia Engelhart has been working in live sound for the last 30 Years. Her parents were artists and musicians, and she grew up in Berkeley, CA, Claudia began her live sound career at the legendary jazz room Keystone Korner in San Francisco. The Keystone Korner hosted legendary jazz acts such as George Benson, Grover Washington, Bill Evens, Stan Getz, McCoy Tyner, Art Blakey and Miles Davis. The Keystone Korner left an enormous legacy of live recordings.

In 1983, Claudia moved to New York and started working at another legendary club CBGBS. By 1985, Claudia was touring full time and has been Bill Frisell’s FOH engineer since 1989. Claudia has toured with several renowned artists during her career including Ryuichi Sakamoto, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Michael Brecker, David Byrne, Laurie Anderson, David Sylvian, John Patitucci, Dave Holland, Grover Washington Jr., John Scofield, Medeski Martin & Wood, John Zorn, The Kronos Quartet, Don Cherry, Cecil Taylor, Fred Frith, Eddie Palmieri, Willie Colon, Airto Moreira and Flora Purim, among others.

Growing up, Claudia was surrounded by working musicians and that perhaps has given her a deeper appreciation and understanding of music. The musical environment is natural to her, and she understands both music and musicians. Having studied the cello, piano, and voice for over ten years, Claudia always knew that she did not want to become a performer. “I played in the orchestra a little, but I wasn’t interested in that. I just loved the sound of the instruments, cello specifically, and how it felt to play”. Being surrounded by all those musicians, Claudia wanted “to find something of her own, which nobody else did.”

Through a family friend Airto Moreira, the Brazilian percussionist Claudia was exposed to the touring life. His band would stay with her family when they came to town on their West Coast tours. Claudia says “ there was something romantic about being on the road, seeing them all, hanging out with them, and going to the clubs to hear them play.” It was then that she knew she wanted to tour.

After graduation from high school, she traveled to Brazil for a year and coincidentally ended up staying with two live sound engineers. They had reel to reels of every live concert they had done, and Claudia believes they helped switch the light bulb on as it became clear she would pursue sound.

Luckily, she knew where to turn, her second home the Keystone Korner. Her parents were friends of Todd Barkan, the owner and attended many shows for free. Claudia and her sisters got to see many of the Jazz greats and often sat in the sound booth. She approached Milton Jeffries, the sound man, and he would give Claudia her first gig and become a teacher and mentor. He passed his knowledge down to Claudia teaching her to be patient, making sure she took her time to listen and then to make changes sonically. How important it is to talk to and get to know musicians, establishing the trust that is the foundation of live sound. Claudia says to this day she still heeds his advice “Just move slow, take your time, and record everything.”

From Keystone, she would make her way to New York and soon found herself mixing Audition Nights at CBGBs. Claudia says it was “a perfect place to learn. You could do anything, and it wouldn’t matter. It was crazy – like a garage band factory”. She also learned to work quickly with seven bands a night and 20 to 30 minute set times. CBGBS was at the height of the hardcore scene a complete 180 from the Jazz scene Claudia came from but says she did not meet any resistance to her gender and felt it often worked to her advantage. She was not alone either as both the head sound engineer and LD were women. Hilly Kristal, the owner, was very supportive, and Claudia says if there ever was a problem “ he would scare the shit out of people. Nobody would get in Hilly’s face. That’s for sure. He was a total puppy dog in real life. I think he was proud to have women on his crew”.

Claudia has fond memories of CBGBS, reminiscing that it was the best sounding club in New York, and bands would take the gig seriously. Bands could also get good sounding board tapes or 16 track recordings that they often used later. The sound system consisted of a 16 channel Soundcraft, an Apex 16 track recorder, and a large P.A. of JBL boxes. The system was designed and built by Norman Dunn. The best thing was that the mix position was in the middle of the room, where you could hear the P.A. Claudia says “CBGBS was a stepping stone – I think I might have been too young to realize how important it was. I wasn’t really focused on who would be there. In retrospect I was really lucky to cut my teeth in a room like that, I learned a lot”.

After CBGBs, she moved onto SOB’s, also known as Sounds of Brazil, a premier venue in NYC for world music. SOB’s hosted music Claudia loved, and she was able to connect with many talented musicians during her time there. It was also a challenging environment, with interesting instrument configurations and figuring out how to mic unusual instruments while achieving a rich and natural sound. Claudia says every day was a new experience and her launching pad for getting out on the road.

In 1989, the Knitting Factory called her in to mix Naked City, whom she had never heard of. The quintet included John Zorn, Fred Frith, Wayne Horvitz, Joey Baron, and Bill Frisell and Claudia spent a week mixing their improvised set of Thrash Metal, Free Jazz, Americana. Claudia says it was a blast and from then on John Zorn hired her for sound. She would tour with them through the early nineties and toured with Frisell’s, Frith and Horvitz’s bands. Since Naked City was the central band, there were never scheduling conflicts. She has been with Bill Frisell since.

Working with a musician or artist over several years has both pros and cons. Working with Frisell for over 25 years, Claudia finds it is important to work with other groups and styles of music that all bring fresh ideas and knowledge about sound. “There is always the danger of falling into a comfort zone when working with the same people all the time, that being said it does allow the ability to get really inside what is happening with the music.” Claudia elaborates “ It’s a deep place [to be] you become an integral part of their experience, and it is powerful for [both the artist and you]. Not everyone has that chance, in any workplace, to know and understand whom you work with at such an intense and intimate level. It’s a great thing.” Luckily Bill offers Claudia the chance to keep her mixing skills sharp as the band configurations change often. The most positive aspect is the bond Claudia and Bill have. They know and understand each other on a very deep level. Claudia explains that Bill knows he “can do anything [onstage] and he knows I’ll be right there to make sure it’s going to be heard. Ninety percent of it is about trust”.

Often interpreting an artist’s vision and translating it into the sound mix is a difficult task and Claudia spends a good deal of time talking with the artist to find out what they want to achieve sonically. When she was with David Byrne and his 55 piece orchestra, she found David to be incredibly articulate and able to convey how he wanted it to sound, working with her at FOH, making suggestions, she was able to get it closer to his vision. While on tour with Laurie Anderson she focused on the underlying sounds that might be overlooked or get lost in the mix. Establishing the trust for the artist to communicate with you is so vitally important. That trust allows room to experiment and get the best sound for that day, for that venue, that artist. While working with pianist Ryuichi Sakamoto on his solo piano tour, they experimented daily on the piano sound. Taking into account the venue sound, the piano, even the humidity. Microphone placement could change daily.

Sometimes less is more, as is the case with much of the music Claudia mixes.

The idea with Jazz and instrumental music is to let the band control their own dynamics as much as possible. In a Big Band situation, they have sections of instruments allowing them more control of their own volume as a whole. Smaller ensembles might be more dependent on the sound person. The term “reinforcement” really applies here – it’s about adding minimally what is missing – piano, acoustic bass, instruments that can get lost in the midst of the band, or follow a soloist to make sure they can be heard. There is a fine line to reinforcement and over amplifying that one has to be careful of. The acoustics in a venue play a considerable part in the performance; I try to use the room as much as possible to mix the band, and only add what I feel is missing. There is a lot left to interpretation, but in my experience less usually is more. A sound person can really make it difficult for a band to play if they are over amplifying them. The band no longer has control of their sound and dynamics. You really have to pay attention to the music, it is never a set it and leave it situation, even if you think you are not doing anything, small changes here and there can go a long way to making an acoustic band sound natural, amplified.

Monitors can play a huge role in how a musician plays their instrument. I work with a lot of bands that do not use monitors at all. They set up close together so they can hear each other naturally. If monitors are needed, usually they are very low volume, just enough to fill in what might be missing, not a whole band mix. Monitors can really determine how an acoustic band plays. If they are competing with loud sound onstage, they will have to play over that. It’s a very sensitive position to get a good monitor mix, and it can be very minimal. In this situation set it and leave it can apply. Letting the band
handle their own dynamics onstage is crucial to how they play. Remember though you always have to stay awake and pay attention to the band no matter how little mixing is going on in Monitor World! Things always change.

One Woman Crew! Claudia acts as road and production manager, FOH and Monitor engineer, and deals with backline equipment, lighting, and merch. Claudia says she pretty much “does everything except play onstage.” If she is on a tour that has a crew or road manager she is on vacation. She fell into road managing out of necessity as the acts did not have a budget for more than one crew person. She tries to do whatever is needed so the bands can focus on playing music. Her days are spent advancing shows, dealing with travel and transportation, driving the van, and finally getting to do what she loves mixing the show. The key to making this work is advance work, making sure all the bases are covered.

Even with all the advance work, there is often one variable that is out of her control; monitors and this can have a significant impact on the show. Claudia makes sure that the band and monitor engineer are introduced and that the band knows where monitor position is. She also takes time to explain to the ME what type of music they will be mixing and anything that is important to know about each musician. Communication is the key and so important. Sometimes the monitor mix is from the FOH console, and Claudia finds herself making several trips to the stage. She makes sure she eqs the wedges and determines the parameters she is dealing with. Is the sound on stage bright, dark, or mid-rangy, how will the sound of monitors affect the house mix, and getting the musicians confident for the show.

Claudia stresses that monitors are just as important as mixing FOH, and monitors often can make or break the performance. The ME needs to be on top of their game at all times, being sensitive to the needs of the band and FOH engineer, as well as taking into account the venue acoustics. When the ME knows what they are doing and giving their full attention to their job, Claudia knows she does not have to worry, and they will have a comfortable and fun day.

There are days though when the ME doesn’t understand the needs of the musicians, does not communicate or pay attention and forces Claudia into survival mode – getting the absolute minimum mixes going for the band so they can perform and get through the show. Hoping that the ME won’t change anything during the show. “SO MANY TIMES THE BAND HAS HEARD ME SAY, “DON’T TOUCH ANYTHING!”. SAD BUT TRUE”.

Claudia has many favorite venues but prefers the small theaters and intimate rooms where the audience is close to the band. The energy to audience brings to the band adds to the performance. She loves the festival circuit and has many favorites – Montreal-Newport-Umbria-San Francisco-London-Copenhagen Jazz Festivals. With sound technology continually changing, she does not get too attached to specific pieces of gear and finds that sound systems today are at such a high level that even the “bad” systems aren’t that bad. She does her best to make anything work, even if it’s not perfect. “I like the challenge! It’s a live performance – It’s Live.”

Claudia’s advice to young women starting out:

I think you have to be passionate about doing live sound. It’s a lifestyle that may not be for everyone. It takes endurance, patience, selflessness, and love of music and musicians. You have to be ready for the longest days, hard travel, no sleep, and hard work. But it is very rewarding and fun. Remember the show isn’t about you, it’s a team effort. Don’t be afraid to ask for help; it’s the best way to learn. Trust your instincts

More on Claudia

Sharing The Long Road: The Career Of Claudia Engelhart & Inside Her Unique Partnership With Artist Bill Frisell

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Profiles of Women in Audio

Kathy Sander- The First of the Five Percent

In 1974, America was caught up in Watergate, Robert Redford’s Great Gatsby was in theaters, bar code scanners were just being introduced in supermarkets, and Elton John was touring his recently released “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” album. At 18, Kathy Sander accepted an invitation to join the tour which eventually led her to a career in live sound, touring with some of the world’s biggest acts and most memorable concerts.

While on vacation in England, Kathy found herself being introduced to Elton’s tour manager who offered her a position as the ‘tea girl’ (translation gopher). Not wanting to cut short her trip she declined but had second thoughts after returning home and decided to show up in Texas for the start of the tour a few months later. Rather than being the tea girl, Kathy ended up assisting the sound and lighting crew during set up, learning from the band’s crew how to set up and tune their instruments, even lending a hand in wardrobe when needed. After testing the waters in the various departments, she learned that sound was her true love.

Clair Bros. crew chief Randy Weitzel took note of Kathy’s hard work and taught her the basics- how to mic a stage, run power, do soundcheck and run the board, etc… He observed that Kathy worked harder and was doing a better job than the newly hired Clair employee on the tour and lobbied Gene Clair to hire her. When the tour ended Gene knew Kathy could handle the road but thought she needed more experience in sound and suggested a studio job since in those days, there was no formal education for this type of work. “Most engineers came from bands, studios or bar gigs, and systems people were trained by the company they worked for.”  Her next step was to move to LA where she finally found a job at Conway Recorders and again jumped right in doing whatever was needed- assisting the engineers, being tape op, setting up the instruments, running sessions, answering phones, etc.. After attending many concerts, Kathy was sure that live sound was where she wanted to be, and when the studio was sold a year later she was ready to approach Clair Bros again for a job. “The excitement of one chance to get it right in concert contrasted sharply with listening to take after take in the studio.”

Persistence paid off. Kathy made her way to Lititz, PA and showed up at the Clair facility on a Friday in late June 1976. The shop foreman, Dave Hendel told her to come back after the weekend, and when she did they seemed surprised. “For most of the day, I sat on the lawn outside and talked to the other employees,” which became the start of many great friendships. “Later in the afternoon, Hendel came walking up and said what are you doing sitting around? Get to work.” That was it, and she was hired.

Yes tour sound system mid 70s

Yes tour sound system mid-70s

Turning 21 with Elvis and No Women Allowed

It was 1977, and I had my 21st birthday out on Elvis, which was my first real tour for Clair Bros. The tour was easy, two weeks on, two weeks off, we flew in a private plane from city to city, stayed in hotels had a leisurely 10 am call. “This tour was the first time I worked with Bruce Jackson. Bruce was Elvis’s monitor engineer and he EQ’d the FoH. He taught me many things including not to take myself so seriously. He was a great kidder, an excellent teacher, and his audio skills were beyond a simple compliment. He was the first of many that taught me how and what to listen for and what sounds meant and how the systems interacted.

” The thing about Elvis’s tour is they did not want women on the crew but Clair Bros. and Bruce talked them into it. One day Colonel Parker (Elvis’s manager) decides to ride on the crew plane, and he is talking to Bruce when I walked by. I had hair down to my butt back then; the Colonel looked surprised, he turns to Bruce and says “that is a girl.” Bruce gets this big grin on his face and tells him I have been on the crew for six months and he (the Colonel) had given permission. That was the end of that controversy. Bruce and I did several other tours together after Elvis died including a Carly Simon Tour where Bruce flew us from gig to gig in his private plane. He was such an irrepressible teacher that he would have taught me to fly if I had asked.

Elvis PA Hang

Elvis PA Hang

At the time, Clair Bros. was growing rapidly, and while they had women working in the office and in the electronics shop building the Clair console, there were no other women on the road. “They made me pay my dues. I worked in the shop, speaker repair, painting, learning to solder, testing and packing the equipment for tours, eventually getting to do shows on weekends and big stadium shows. I drove equipment and was an extra hand for big stadium shows in the summer of 1976. But let me be clear, I was doing what many rookies did at Clair at that time. I did ask to go out on tour, but they were worried about one woman on a tour bus with 11 guys, and if I could handle the physical demands of lifting speakers, etc. I remember some of the roadies told me I had to lift a double horn over my head, as a test. I later found out it was only partially a joke. After a while, I guess it became moot. I could and was lifting those horns in the shop anyway. They knew I could handle the demands of life on the road because Gene had seen me work that Elton tour. I think it just took some time for the idea to foment within the ranks.

Being one of the first women in what was considered a man’s field came with its own challenges. “Just getting my foot in the door was probably the biggest challenge. Getting them to send me on the road, that took a while.” “It took a while for me to prove I could do the job, and even after I was valued enough to be requested for tours, some clients still had reservations. Clair stood up for me with our clients, and other times decided it was not worth the fight. I understood it. One particular tour was with a new woman artist, and Roy Clair wanted me to start mixing FoH for her but, although she didn’t even know me, she insisted on a guy to mix FoH. That was a big disappointment being shot down by someone who should have understood.” During the 1970s, no other companies had women roadies. It was commonplace not to hire women for the road. At Clair Bros. Kathy was given the chance to make mistakes and learn and had the support of not just management but fellow roadies who taught her, stuck up for her, and at times looked out for her. But she notes there was no special treatment, all Clair employees were treated this way. Back then doing sound was much more a physical job than it is today, gear was heavy and not always on wheels. “I always believed I could do the job; they {fellow crew} helped me figure out how I could do it.” “For most challenges and/or barriers all it took was doing the job well, and my gender became less an issue.” Most clients were open-minded about her being on the crew although her presence was usually a surprise at first and random curiosity. The men were surprised at her strength and to see her tackling a dirty and challenging job, pulling cable and loading trucks with the best of them. “Occasionally but rarely, it took some time for them to get used to me. They learned that I knew what I was doing and I earned their trust. After a while, I was just another crew member. Some clients became friends; there was a real camaraderie between the crew and artist in those days.

“At the time, it was definitely a boys club where generally the only other women on tour were artists and groupies; even stagehands were all men. “In some ways, I had an easy time. I have seven brothers, all younger. I was used to being around guys all the time. There was nothing unfamiliar about living with all that testosterone for me.” “I was respected as a female by the crew, and I was never mistreated. They always managed to find a separate shower for me, but everything else was the same. My crew bosses cut me slack for any poor decisions/mistakes on my part and continued to have faith in my abilities just like anyone else.” She found herself routinely asked back by crews and clients that she had worked with. Mike Stahl, former president of ATK states, “She was one of the best, if not the best engineer that I have ever worked with.” “I took Kathy on every tour that I did for over five years knowing that with her help, it would sound as good as humanly possible.”

When she started out, with female live sound engineers being a rarity if not unheard of, Kathy’s mentors were all men. She learned from her colleagues but mostly any FOH engineer that would teach her. Once she gained their trust, they let her EQ the system or try new things to make it sound better. There were a few-Jo Ravitch, Mike Stahl, and Roy Clair who encouraged and pushed her, giving her opportunities to come into her own. “Kathy was one of the most conscientious employees that worked for Clair Bros. She always strived to do her best. She was an asset to the audio industry. Kathy made the industry realize that gender was not an issue and that people were the only thing that mattered. She proved that” recounts Roy Clair. For most of her career, Kathy was a system tech and FOH tech.

“I really enjoyed EQing the FOH system and running a complicated live show. I thrived on a challenge. From them, I learned that there was always a way to solve a problem, I was only limited by my ability to figure it out. A very useful lesson even now.”

During the 1983’s US festival with 34 different acts performing, Kathy’s job was handling the master stage chart list and making sure that each act’s inputs came up as needed and were mic’d as requested. In 1985, she was in charge of the U.S. half of Live Aid at JFK stadium. Keeping the rotation of the extensive number of acts running smoothly and on time while coordinating with the TV people in both Philadelphia and London was not an easy job to handle. The JFK show ran extremely well, sounded fantastic and is something she is very proud of. Kathy did her share of unique and memorable gigs from presidential inaugurations to the Moony wedding in MSG. From the Amnesty International tour to Jackson’s Victory tour where the audience, parents, and kids, were singing louder than the PA. Other highlights were being on a Queen tour in South America with 100,000 Brazilian fans singing in English, and sitting behind Elton John’s drummer in MSG on Thanksgiving night 1974 when John Lennon appeared on stage with Elton and sang ‘Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.’ “Slowly and for the first time, people in the audience started to light matches and lighters. From the stage, it looked like a sky of stars; both Elton and John were visibly moved by the audience gesture.” One of the engineers Kathy frequently worked with was Mike Stahl who acknowledged Kathy’s skill with tuning the PA system during an interview with a leading industry magazine at the time. He relayed how on Jackson’s Victory tour she took a stadium system of recently changed components that sounded terrible and by physically changing the crossover points and EQ she made it sing. “I can’t say enough superlatives about her, her attitude and her ability.”- Mike Stahl.

The equipment and technology of the 70s and 80s were quite different from what is being used today. “When I started the S-4 and the Clair console was relatively new. Many systems still had single component speaker boxes that were stacked or hung differently every gig to “splay” the sound specific to each venue. But in a matter of a few years the idea of stream-lining load in/out and set up, efficient use of truck space, consistency, and durability of equipment became driving factors in equipment change.” “The thinking in those days was that the system had to point at the entire venue. Now of course we have a different understanding of venue acoustics and the physics of sound projection, hence the line array…..etc. But in the infancy of this industry what we saw was a gradual increase in the sheer number of boxes as bands requested more and more gear. It was all about the volume, and quality even then. Monitors were small (and heavy for their size) wooden boxes that sat on the floor with a speaker and a horn. I loved EQing the house system, setting the delays, getting it just right. I always walked the venue with and without people. I used to dream about walking around with a pad to EQ from the stands instead of using walkie-talkies. Now it is common practice to use an iPad to do just that. I hoped the systems themselves would change as they have, although I have to admit I did not see fiber-optics, wireless ear monitors and digital coming quite so fast.”

Kathy worked at Clair Bros. from 1976 until 1989 during which time she was told repeatedly by the local crews that they didn’t see any other women on touring crews that came through. Toward the end of her touring career, she would occasionally hear about women in lighting or wardrobe but no other sound engineers. Things have improved since then, women engineers can be found on a wide variety of tours and at venues. Clair Bros now has a number of well-respected women engineers and even more women working in the shop. When asked what advice she would give to young women considering a career in live sound she replied, “One thing I might do is make sure she understands what life is really like on the road. Anyone wanting to work on the road should understand the pros and cons before committing. It may not be what they think. I would suggest she contact Clair or any other company she thinks is doing great work and ask the company what they would like to see from her by way of any formal training or experience. Today I’m sure it is different, there are degree programs and other opportunities to get a knowledge base and some experience. I have been told Clair now has a more formal training program for their road crews. And of course, there is always the tried and true method- Find a great band and work for them. Easier said than done, as always. It is my understanding this is still the way most FoH engineers will get to mix. ”

“For me, there has always been an underlying belief that you find the best people working in any field and lobby like crazy to work and learn from them. Clair Brothers were/are the best in the field.”

“In closing, most of your colleagues, crew, staff, and clients will not think twice about having a woman on their crew anymore. That is some small measure of progress. In any job where men have been the principals, it is doing a job well that changes attitudes. The music business was not as sexist as one might have thought or expected in those days. In many ways, it simply came as a complete surprise to everyone that I could do the job. Being surprised is not all bad. There are so many experiences and people that encouraged me. The list is very long, but I would most like to say thank you to the ones that never blinked when I turned up to work. They are the real heroes of any story about opening this door. I was lucky to have had all those opportunities, lucky to have made so many good friends. It is the people I miss when I think about those days.” After leaving Clair Bros. in 1989, Kathy made a complete career change and became a geologist. She is currently living in Denver and has recently retired. She encourages any of today’s women live sound engineers passing through town to contact her. “If you would like to show off your rig, I would very much welcome connecting with the women of live audio, visiting, seeing, and hearing the state-of-the-art in both monitors and FoH.”

We here at SoundGirls.Org would like to express our gratitude to Kathy for opening the door for the rest of us.

 

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