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How to Push your Sound Design to the Max

While Not Stepping on your Mixer’s Toes

We get a lot of questions about how much you should do in your sound design pass versus how much to leave to your mixer. So, although I’ve written a few posts on this topic (such as Whose Job Is It: When Plugin Effects Sound Design vs Mix Choices and Five Things I’ve Learned about Editing from Mixing), I thought it was time for another brush-up.

As some of you may know, I’m a long-time sound designer and supervising sound editor, but I just started mixing a few years ago. While attending mixes as a supervisor definitely gave me a window into best practices for sound design success (aka how to make sure your work actually gets played…audibly), I got a whole new vantage point for what to do (and not do) once I started having to dig through sound design sessions myself! So, while I am a fledgling mixer and you should always speak directly to the mixer working on your project before making decisions or altering your workflow, I feel that I am qualified to share my personal preferences and experiences. Take this as the starting point for a conversation—a window into one mixer’s mind, and hopefully, it will spark great communication with your own mixer.

Below, I’m sharing a few key concepts that there seems to be confusion surrounding in the “who does what” debate. I’ve personally come across these questions or situations, and I’m hoping to spare you the headache of doing any work over due to a lack of communication. Here they are!

EQ

What Not to Do

I was recently the supervisor and mixer on an episode that was almost entirely underwater. My sound effects editor EQ’ed every single water movement, splash, drip, etc. that occurred underwater with a very aggressive low-pass filter. While this made total sense from a realistic sound point of view, it completely demolished any clarity that we might have had and muddied up the entire episode. It was very hard to locate the sound effects in the space and even harder to get them to cut through the dialogue, more or less the music! Unfortunately, this was done destructively with audio-suite on every single file (and there were thousands of them probably). Every single one had to be recut by hand from the library, which was an insanely arduous task.

What to Do Instead

I’m going to say this once, and then please just assume that this is step one for everything below (I’ll spare you the boredom of reading it over and over): STEP ONE IS ALWAYS ASK YOUR MIXER BEFORE YOU START APPLYING ANY EQ.

I think you can safely assume that there’s, at best, an 80% chance that your mixer does not want you to EQ anything. Ever. So always ask before you destructively alter your work. With EQ’ing it’s especially important that the right amount is added given what else is happening in the scene, and clients often have opinions about how much is too much for their sense of clarity in the mix.

The better way to approach EQ is to ask your mixer (again, asking because this may require a change to their mix template which requires their approval) if it would work to place any FX that you think should be EQ’ed on a separate food group with no other FX mixed in. Having all underwater movements on one set of tracks clearly labeled UNDERWATER FX gives your mixer the ability to quickly EQ all of them with just a few keystrokes and knob turns. And then he or she can also very easily change that EQ to mesh well with the music and dialogue or to satisfy a client note. It also means that he or she can put all of those lovely water effects on one VCA and ride that if the clients ask for any global changes to the volume of water FX. Win-win!

The same is true for any batch EQ’ing of FX. I like the “split onto a separate food group of clearly labeled tracks” method for other things, too, like: action happening on the other side of a door or wall, sound effects coming from a TV or radio, or any other time that you would imagine EQ should be applied to a large selection of files. So yes, split it out to make it easy and obvious for your mixer, but no, don’t do it yourself.

Reverb

What Not to Do

Don’t add any environmental reverb. Just don’t do it. Keep in mind that your sound design doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It’s layered on top of dialogue, music, BGs, ambiances, and probably more! What sounds right as a reverb setting to you while working only on your FX definitely won’t be the right choice once everything else has been placed in the mix.

What to Do Instead

Let your mixer decide. If you do it as an effect for one singular moment (I’m thinking something like a hawk screech to establish distance), only process individual files and also provide a clearly marked clean version in the track below. That way, your mixer has the option to use your version, or take it as an indication of what the clients like and redo it with the clean one. But before you go ahead and use reverb as an effect in your sound design, always check in with your supervisor first. He or she will be able to draw on all of their experience on the mix stage, and will be able to let you know if it’s a good idea or not. From my experience, the answer is that it’s almost always NOT a good idea.

Trippy FX

What Not to Do

Say you’re designing the sound for a super trippy sequence like the POV shot for a drugged up character. You may be tempted to add a phaser, some crazy modulation, or any other trippy overall effect to the whole sequence. Don’t do it! That takes all of the fun out of your mixer’s job, and furthermore really ties his or her hands. They need the ability to adjust any effects to also achieve mix clarity when the music and dialogue are added. So it’s always best to let them choose any overall effects!

What to Do Instead

Go for it with weird ambiences, off-the-wall sound choices, and totally different BGs to make it feel like you’re really inside the character’s head. Feel free to process individual files if you think it really adds something—just be sure to also supply the original muted below and named something obvious like “unprocessed.”

Panning

What Not to Do

Don’t spend hours panning all of your work without first speaking to your mixer. Your understanding of panning may be wildly different from what he or she can actually use in the mix. I’ve seen a lot of editors pan things 100% off-screen to the right or left, and I just have to redo all of it. Panning isn’t too difficult or complicated, but it’s really best to be on the same page as your mixer before you start.

What to Do Instead

Some mixers love it if you help out with panning, especially if they’re really under the gun time-wise. Others prefer you leave it to them—so always ask first. If you want to be sure that your spaceship chase sequence zooms in and around your clients during your FX preview, just make sure to ask your mixer first about his/her panning preferences. How far to the L/R do they prefer that you pan things? What about how much into the rears? Do they mind if you do it with the panning bars, or will they only keep it if you use the 5.1 panner/stereo pot?

LFE Tracks

What Not to Do

Don’t cut your LFE tracks while listening on headphones. You may not realize that what you’re putting in the LFE should actually go in our SFX track because it is low in pitch, but not in that rumble-only range. It’s nearly impossible to cut your LFE track without a subwoofer, since true LFE sweeteners in your library will look like they have a standard-sized waveform, but will sound like almost nothing in headphones!

What to Do Instead

Keep in mind that any files that live on the LFE tracks are going to be bused directly to the low-frequency effects generator which can output approximately 3- 120 Hz. That is super low!  So only cut sound effects that have only that frequency information in them, or that you only care to hear that part. Any other mid-range “meat” to the sound will be lost in the mix.

 

The Bad Buzz: Finding and Fixing Unwanted Noise

Of all the irritating things that happen when you’re rushing to finish a soundcheck, an unwanted buzz coming through the PA system is one of the worst. There are so many possible culprits, and it seems to happen all the time. Since it’s such a common issue, I wanted to walk through the process I use to find and eliminate unwanted noise, in an attempt to make troubleshooting less stressful.

Finding the Source

To begin, determine whether the buzz is coming from the audio system or something onstage by turning off the PA and monitors. If there’s silence, you know the problem is within the system itself. Turn them both back on and mute the PA system: do you still hear the buzz in the monitors? Use this information to narrow your focus area. If the buzz is solely in the monitors, for example, then you know to examine the channels and equipment that are being sent to the monitors only (such as a click track), and can consider the possibility of a bad channel on the monitor board.

Most likely the buzz is caused by a specific input. If it is unclear from the meters which channel is noisy, mute your inputs one by one until the noise stops. (If you are running monitors from front-of-house, make sure your aux sends are post-fader so that the send is muted along with the channel). Check for a bad channel on the board by hard patching the noisy input to another channel. If the buzz persists, check for a bad channel in the signal path by changing inputs on any snakes or sub snakes in use. Listen for any crackling, pops, or other giveaways that there may be a bad microphone or cable.

Most importantly, talk to the musicians! Ask them to stay quiet while you are troubleshooting and ask about their gear – they will be able to tell you any problems they have experienced at past gigs, and maybe even what solutions have worked.

Troubleshooting the System 

If the buzz is system-only, the issue is probably power. Check where everyone onstage is pulling power from and whether or not the circuit is used exclusively as audio power. Ideally, backline power will be on a circuit used only for the musicians’ gear, but often at smaller venues lighting and audio share power. Lighting dimmers, movers and fans may be audible if power is shared, so see if the buzz changes as lighting dimmers are moved. It may disappear when the lights are at 100%. In this case, there’s not much you can do besides try to reconfigure the power to be as separated as possible.

Next, check for cable crossing. Look at the paths of unbalanced cables. Do they cross paths or run along any cables carrying AC power? Electrical interference often arises when AC cables are in close proximity to unbalanced cables (for example, pedalboard cables), so it’s best to keep them as separated as possible.

There can also be grounding issues at play. If the hum sounds like it’s around 60 Hz, you probably have what’s called a ground loop. Ground loops occur when the ground connections from two or more separate sources (say, the system power and amplifier power) differ. Ideally, both pieces of equipment reference ground at 0 Volts. But nothing is ideal in real life, so it’s more likely that the ground readings differ slightly: say, 10 millivolts and 0 Volts. When this happens, the difference in electric potential can cause a small current loop that flows between the two connections, resulting in noise.

Here the quickest fix is to lift the ground switch on the channel or amplifier (if there is one) or use an adapter that accomplishes the same thing. But this workaround is not ideal since it removes a safety feature. Having the guitarist move around and angle the pickups differently may be enough to get rid of or at least lessen the hum.

Troubleshooting the Stage

If the noise is coming from one of the pieces of equipment on the stage itself, turn the PA system off and start with the simplest case. Here we’ll use the signal flow of a guitar as an example.

To begin, have the guitarist set their amp to clean. Have them unplug and re-plug their instrument cable at both ends – sometimes the problem is as simple as one end of the cable not being completely connected.

Next, have the guitarist plug directly into the amp, bypassing any pedals. Ask the guitarist to move around onstage, to see if the noise changes with location. If so, environmental noise is probably being picked up by the instrument cable, and there should be a spot on stage where the sound minimizes or even disappears altogether.

Connect pedals one by one and see if the buzz reappears with a specific pedal. Plug the guitarist directly into a DI box, and see if the hum disappears with the ground-lift switch flipped. If so, then you know it’s a grounding problem, with either a ground loop in place or an instrument grounding issue somewhere.

A buzz can also be the sign of tubes in a tube amp going bad. If so, there’s not much you can do beyond tolerating the buzz or switching amps. In the rare case that the guitarist is plugged into two amps and sending each amp one side of a stereo pedal, noise can result from a grounding issue between the two amps themselves.

The General Process

Buzzes, hums, and other unwanted noises only have a few likely sources: instruments, cables, and equipment. When unwanted noise occurs, stay calm and determine the general location of the buzz (system or stage). Then, continue narrowing in until you find the source. You may not always be able to find or fix the exact source, but the tips I have given should help you on your way.

 

How Do You Measure Career Success?

 

Written By: Erica D’Angelo

 

I’ve been working as an audio engineer in Australia since 1997.  When I meet young sound engineers starting out, particularly women,  I am inspired by their passion and fearless attitude towards forging a career in this very challenging industry, particularly in a country like Australia where the market for audio professionals is pretty small.  The same questions and fears that I faced working in a male-dominated industry still confront women today. I want to share my story to illustrate how a career in sound can take many paths, but the key ingredients for longevity are the same today as they were 25 years ago.

I started life as a classical musician completing a Bachelor of Music majoring in Clarinet in Adelaide, South Australia.  In the classical world, it was rare to come across audio reinforcement, only on the odd occasion of being part of a recording, but when I finished my studies and started gigging as a sax player and with pops style orchestras I started to notice the microphones, the miles of cables, and how there were only ever guys running the sound.  That all looked way cool compared to hanging out with the middle-aged people sitting in symphony orchestras.

Teaching music in the UK a few years later – the early 90’s, when techno/jungle and drum and bass were coming up from the underground in London,  kids were bringing cassette recordings to the class of pirate radio techno raves and asking how to make that music. I didn’t know, but I wanted to learn.  Each school had bits and pieces of gear – 4 track recorders, microphones, outboard gear, mixing desks – so I started to teach myself. Eventually, I enrolled in the SAE Diploma of Audio Engineering course and embarked on a new career at the age of 26.

Studying in London brought great opportunities.  I was resident FOH at my local Latin bar, mixing salsa bands that actually came from South America, which for an Australian was a new experience.  The guy that owned the PA became my first mentor – a generous Ghanaian man called Tito, who was happy to teach me everything he could. Other opportunities arose in film and TV but overwhelmingly I found live sound to be the most exciting.

Early days at Adelaide Festival

Eventually, the lure of the sun and the beach called me back home, where I landed in Sydney as an experienced live sound engineer, but with no idea of how the Australian industry operated.  I talked to every FOH engineer at every gig or festival I went to and found a lot of great advice was freely offered. It became clear that to be a working sound engineer in Australia you had to mix rock and roll.

So far, I had never crossed paths with any other women working in the industry.

I went and got a job with Jands – who at the time was the biggest PA company in Sydney that provided the production for all the touring acts, had a huge inventory of Clair Bros, Meyer, and JBL, and employed dozens of audio and lighting technicians for both touring and local shows.  Finally, I met two women employed as lighting techs, but working for Jands was as masculine an environment as was possible. These guys were (notoriously) hardcore roadies, in the days when OH&S concerns were laughed at, and you proved your worth by being able to lift the most, party the hardest and work the longest hours.

Despite the prevailing attitudes, I earned respect from my colleagues, and again was mentored by a couple of the guys, gaining invaluable training on large-scale sound reinforcement systems.   I liked the job, the loading in and out, the long hours, the banter – the physicality of it all. I learned quickly that you don’t need to be able to lift as much as the guys – there are plenty of other jobs to do and if everyone is working together no one has an issue.

Jands was going through one of their many restructure, which saw them sack all their permanent staff and invite back half of them as casuals.  I took this opportunity to get out and keep looking / learning. A couple of years in TV followed – working on entertainment shows which showcased live bands, as well as some very well-paid hell in the Shopping Network channels.

My next major achievement was being part of the Adelaide International Arts and Fringe Festivals for eight years.  These gigs were so much fun, working in crazy purpose-built venues, or parks, or rivers, working with international artists, working with crew from all over the country.  These festivals all involved miles and miles of cables, large-scale reinforcement systems, and logistical nightmares – requiring way more than audio skills. Operations and scheduling were organisational skills that I really enjoyed using and the beauty of these Arts festivals was more women on the crew!  The Australian rock and roll scene really was a man’s world for a very long time.

Schools Spectacular

Back in Sydney, the lead-up to the 2000 Olympic games was in full swing.  I was working as an assistant audio director with the Arts Unit of the education department – a department that provides large-scale performance opportunities for public school talent.  We would famously produce the Schools Spectacular every year in the Sydney Entertainment Centre – flying a massive PA, fully miked orchestra, dozens of radio mics, full broadcast split.

The Olympic Committee in conjunction with Norwest Audio was looking for as many large scale gigs as possible to practice fine-tuning the PA they would use for the opening ceremony, so our organisation was kept busy in the years leading up to the main event, staging events such as the Pacific School Games,  – so Norwest could get their specs right. During the actual Olympic event, I was seconded by the Olympic organising committee to be the Audio director of the Team Welcoming ceremonies. This was a great gig – pre-production involved going all over the country recording children’s choirs singing the national anthems of each country, that would be played at the ceremony each country has when they arrive in the athlete’s village.  For some countries, it is the only time they get to hear their anthem played.

In the 2000s I moved to Melbourne and started my own audio services business – Mind’s Eye Entertainment – writing and producing pop musicals for schools, sound design for theatre, and doing whatever else came along to pay the bills.   As much as I loved the life, I have always been an absolute realist with a pragmatic approach to survival, so when an opportunity to start up Staging Rentals in Melbourne came about, I took it. This was not audio, but it was events and high-end corporate events with large budgets.  So, I got to use the operations and logistics skills to full effect, as well as being account manager, truck driver and on the tools building stages as required. Again, the physicality of the job appealed to me. I met my husband at this time and loved working with him on gigs, but the inevitable question of age and babies started nagging.

I was 39 and decided to try and have a baby.  The male-dominated worlds I had been working in were not going to be conducive to a mature woman getting pregnant, so I changed jobs again and got an office job coordinating logistics in the exhibition industry.  At 41 after one round of IVF I produced a baby boy, and again was confronting how to shape my career while being a mother. A great fallback I always had was a teaching qualification, which I did as a matter of necessity way back when I finished uni.  I started looking for new career directions and discovered the world of vocational education – you could complete a Certificate III in sound production while at high school. This was an incredible discovery – all my qualifications and experience were perfect for a job like this.

Six months after having a baby I was teaching sound engineering to 16 and 17-year-old boys at a catholic school.  I loved it.

I continue delivering audio training to school kids at a private school in Melbourne. I teach part-time and spend the remaining time being technical production manager of the school’s large events. The school has a 1000 seat concert hall with flown Nexo array,  a multitude of incredible microphones and a generous production budget.

Discovering Soundgirls a couple of years ago was huge for me.  I was 50 and starting to question who I was – was I a sound engineer, a teacher, a manager?  I was middle-aged, grey hair, and still coiling cables – what kind of role model was I? How do you measure career success in the world of audio – FOH for a touring group?  Or simply having a workplace where you get to work and talk about audio all day?

After getting to meet the Melbourne Soundgirls and share stories, I found my personal story was finally validated – the fact that I am still here 25 years later thinking, talking, working and now inspiring young people to pursue a career in audio defines me as an audio professional.

New goals are to further my knowledge of acoustics.  I love the science of sound, how it behaves in a space, and I’ve taken very baby steps in studying acoustics – logarithms, logarithms, and more logarithms!

Mix Messiah – Leslie Gaston-Bird

Leslie Gaston-Bird is a freelance re-recording mixer and sound editor, and owner of Mix Messiah Productions. She is currently based in Brighton, England and is the author of the book “Women in Audio“. She is a voting member of The Recording Academy and sits on these AES committees: Board of Governors, Awards, Conference Policy, Convention Policy, Education, Membership, and Co-Chairs the Diversity & Inclusion Committee with Piper Payne. She was a tenured Associate Professor of Recording Arts at the University of Colorado Denver. Leslie also is Co-Director for SoundGirls U.K. Chapter and SoundGirls Scholarships and Travel Grants. She has worked in the industry for over 30 years.

Leslie has done research into audio for planetariums, multichannel audio on Blu-Ray, and a comparison of multichannel codecs that was published in the AES Journal (Gaston, L. and Sanders, R. (2008), “Evaluation of HE-AAC, AC-3, and E-AC-3 Codecs”, Journal of the Audio Engineering Society of America, 56(3)). She frequently presents at AES conferences and conventions.

She has been working in the industry for over 30 years: 12 years in public radio, 17 in sound for picture, and 13 years as an educator (some of these years overlap). Her interest in sound for film was sparked by seeing Leslie Ann Jones on the cover of Mix Magazine in the 1980s. She attended Indiana University Bloomington and graduated with an A.S. in Audio Technology and a B.A. in Telecommunications. While she was at Indiana University Bloomington, she signed up for a work-study job as a board operator at the campus radio station, WFIU-Bloomington. This gave her the skills she needed for her first job, which was at National Public Radio in Washington, D.C.

Leslie worked at NPR from 1991-1995 as their audio systems manager. She recorded and edited radio pieces and did a ton of remote recording and interviews on DAT tape.  (Who remembers DAT tape?) From NPR she went on to work for Colorado Public Radio as their Audio Systems Manager.

Although Leslie loved working for both NPR and Colorado Public Radio, her passion was sound for film, and it was not easy for her to get her foot in the door.  It took her over four years to find someone who would take a chance on her. Her gratitude for this opportunity goes to Patsy Butterfield, David Emrich, and Chuck Biddlecom at Post Modern Company in Denver.

Leslie still works as a freelancer in Film Sound and has currently been working on several horror films and thrillers.  “For some reason, I keep getting horror films to work on. I recently did the sound for Leap of Faith, a documentary about The Exorcist which has been selected for the Sundance Film Festival in 2020. Also coming out is A Feral World, a post-apocalyptic tale of survival about a young boy who befriends the mother of a missing girl. It’s not a horror film but there are a few violent scenes. I also did sound for Doc of the Dead, a documentary about zombies and zombie culture. The plot for the current film I’m working on, Rent-A-Pal, is one I’m not at liberty to disclose, but suffice it to say there’s a pattern here. However, I have also done some great documentaries focused on peace and harmony, too! Three Worlds, One Stage featured a woman directing/producing team (Jessica McGaugh and Roma Sur of Desert Girl Films) and told the story of three people from different cultures who moved to the United States and choreographed a dance together, and Enough White Teacups (directed by Michelle Carpenter) which explores the winners of the Index design awards which recognize innovations designed to improve the human condition. Michelle also did Klocked, a story of a mother-daughter-daughter motorcycle racing team. I’m proud to have worked on these woman-powered projects.”

While Leslie was working at Post Modern at night, she was also pursuing a Masters Degree and her professors encouraged her to apply for a teaching position.  She did and ended up as a tenured professor at the University of Colorado Denver, where she taught until 2018 when she relocated to Brighton, England. She was also encouraged by her professors the late Rich Sanders and Roy Pritts to join the AES where she became heavily involved.

“It has opened so many doors. I met Dave Malham at an AES convention in San Francisco and he ended up being my sponsor for a Fulbright Award at the University of York, England. I have done lots with AES, from being secretary of my local section to chair, then Western Region VP and Governor. In 2016 Piper Payne helped me to start the Diversity and Inclusion committee which we co-chair. We have come a long way, most recently partnering with Dr. Amandine Pras at the University of Lethbridge for their “Microaggressions in the Studio” survey. I’m really proud of the changes we have made, the AES Convention in New York was proof of our impact, with high visibility of women and underrepresented groups on panels, presenting papers and workshops, and even in the exhibit floor. In my 15 years of attending conferences I’ve never seen anything like it and we received so much positive feedback. We have more work to do but we have every reason to be proud of these accomplishments.”

In 2018, Leslie and her family relocated to Brighton, England, to be closer to her husband’s family (he is British) and it looks like they will be there for the foreseeable future. In addition to running her own business, her work with AES, writing Women in Sound, a (did we mention she is starting a Ph.D.?) Leslie is the mother of two children.  She balances it all by being highly organized and managing her time well. She says, “Somewhere I read that mothers of siblings are more productive. I think it’s because you have to be focused when you work. I think to myself, “okay, I only have 3 hours to do x-y-x” and I’m on it! No time to procrastinate! It’s not easy but in ways, it’s better because you learn the value of budgeting time and focusing on the task at hand.”

Leslie has a book coming out in December, Women in Audio and she shares the experience of writing it and the importance of it:

“More than anything, I hope this book is a testament to my commitment and indebtedness to the women who have trusted me with their stories. I must say, I have been nervous at times because the weight of these stories is truly immense; women whose stories might otherwise go untold are brought to light here. I have found so many pioneering women throughout history: inventors, record producers, acousticians I’ve tried to cover every field of audio I could. Altogether there are around 100 profiles. It’s really a must-have for women and girls seeking inspiration; for schools who want to add diversity to their curriculum (I took care to seek out women from all over the globe); for professionals who may think they’re the only woman in their area of expertise. I also talk about role models, mentoring, and networking. I’m really looking forward to sharing it with everyone!”

With a career spanning over 30 years, working in several roles as Educator, Mixer, Musician/Talent, Production Sound Mixer/Sound Recordist, Recording Engineer, Re-Recording Mixer, Researcher, Sound Supervisor, and Author; you would think Leslie is ready to rest on her laurels, but no, in 2020 at the age of 51 she will begin her Ph.D. at the University of Surrey.

What do you like best about working in Film Sound?

What I like most about working on films is the meditative rhythm of finding and selecting sounds, shaping the sounds, and giving the film a sense of realism.

What do you like least?

The thing I like least is computer crashes. It’s the rise of the machines – they are training us.

What is your favorite day off activity?

Hanging out with my kids.

What are your long term goals?

I have written a book on Women in Audio, which I hope to follow up with another volume. There are so many amazing women in Women in Audio: 1st Edition (Paperback) all sorts of audio fields, and it is an honor to share their stories. I would also like to continue supporting women to travel to and attend conferences with the fund I set up with SoundGirls.

What if any obstacles or barriers have you faced?

Moving to England and leaving a tenured position at a university was equal parts confidence and insanity. I have always believed in risks, but at age 50 I still feel the need to prove myself. I’m planning to start a Ph.D., but I have a feeling that women – more than their male counterparts – feel the need to seek higher academic qualifications in order to compete in the job market. It’s something I hope will change.

How have you dealt with them?

Well, by applying for a Ph.D.  I’ve been accepted at the University of Surrey and will start in 2020, the year I turn 51.

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

Stay versatile and stay connected.

Must have skills?

You can always train your ears and learn the equipment, but the most valuable skills are creativity, diplomacy and client service.

Favorite gear?

Loudspeakers: Genelec, PMC. Preamps: Grace, Neve 5012.

Parting Words:

I suppose one thing I’d like readers to know about is a moment I had recently, standing in my dining room, looking over some pictures that I had received from a man named Dana Burwell. The pictures were of Joan Lowe, a recording engineer that worked on some feminist albums in the 1970s (The Changer and the Changed, among others). Joan Lowe did not have family, and these pictures were entrusted to me for the purposes of writing the book, Women in Audio. The only reason Dana knew me was because I had reached out to Joan in November to interview her for the book. Joan had emailed me answers to my questions but passed away in February. If I hadn’t been in touch with Joan, I wonder what would Dana have done with those photos?

So there I was, standing in the living room, with pictures of a very friendly woman who I just met, who shared her story with me – and who trusted me with her story – and who passed away a short while later. I now had the duty to share her story.  It’s a responsibility I haven’t taken lightly. On that day it happened to be sunny. I looked up at the sky, and thanked Joan, with an expression on my face that was a combination of awestruck and joyful. I continued writing with a renewed passion that day. Something else in me changed, too, but I’ll leave that for another interview.  In the meantime, it’s an honor and a privilege to bring these stories to our audio community.

More on Leslie

Find More Profiles on The Five Percent

Profiles of Women in Audio

Troubleshooting Ourselves to Gain Perspective

 

Do you ever notice how now and then, a series of annoyances seem to happen one after another? I’ve had a month where it feels like every day has provided something new to test my patience.

When we have weeks like these, it’s so easy for feelings of fatalism to set in – the philosophical belief that life is predetermined no matter what our actions may be. Stuck in a mental slump borne out of frustration and annoyance, I needed to pick myself back up again.

I remember that sometimes it would be better that some things don’t happen the way you want them to. Although this one is hard because it’s human nature to let ourselves get carried away in our imagination, picturing the things we think we want only to be disappointed when they don’t work out. Often we never get to see how that untraveled alternate path would have panned out, but once in a while, life will give us a glimpse of why this wasn’t the best thing for us.

Last year I was turned down for a gig that I was sure would be fulfilling for me both creatively and financially, and I felt like I’d missed out at the time. Not long after, I was shocked to see in the press that there had been an incident that turned into a politically charged legal and PR nightmare and a very real safety issue for those involved in the gig. It was a disaster. I certainly would have been caught in the middle of the crossfire with potentially long-lasting ties to it if I’d landed the job. It’s been useful to have this rejection in the back of my mind to draw upon when times of frustration come around as they inevitably do, and remember that sometimes things not happening can be a good thing.

The second phase of my fatalistic detox was thinking about perseverance and what it means. The alternative to going after what we truly want in life is accepting defeat and ceasing to try anymore. Surely this feels worse than any setback? Kim Liao’s viral article from 2016 Why you should aim for 100 rejections a year beautifully outlines her outlook on perseverance in the creative world of work. But it really can be applied in any area of life where we are losing our cool. Liao theorises that the more times we fail, the fear of failure itself shrinks and holds infinitely less power over us because the act of persevering has become routine. Additionally, Liao reasons that the more we practice at anything, the better we get, including building our resilience.

Most people tend to feel they need something to aim for to grow. I first became aware of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs during my teacher training, as it is heavily referenced in the British education system. Maslow’s expanded model is a motivational theory of human behaviour, though these needs are interchangeable, and some may even supersede others entirely.

  1. Biological and physiological needs– air, food, drink, shelter, warmth, sleep, etc.
  2. Safety needs– protection from elements, security, order, law, stability, etc.
  3. Love and belongingness needs– friendship, intimacy, trust, and acceptance, receiving and giving affection and love. Affiliating, being part of a group (family, friends, work).
  4. Esteem needs– which Maslow classified into two categories: (i) esteem for oneself (dignity, achievement, mastery, independence) and (ii) the desire for reputation or respect from others (e.g., status, prestige).
  5. Cognitive needs– knowledge and understanding, curiosity, exploration, need for meaning, and predictability.
  6. Aesthetic needs– appreciation and search for beauty, balance, form, etc.
  7. Self-actualisation needs– realising personal potential, self-fulfillment, seeking personal growth, and peak experiences.
  8. Transcendence needs– A person is motivated by values that transcend beyond the personal self (e.g., mystical experiences and certain experiences with nature, aesthetic experiences, sexual experiences, service to others, the pursuit of science, religious faith, etc.).

The final part of my troubleshooting process is to mentally file which goals and needs can be met by reassessing my plans and actions accordingly. Henry Ford is quoted as saying, “If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always got,” and I feel like this mantra is so useful when thinking about what we can proactively do to help ourselves.

Over the years, some of our goals and needs will remain the same, while others require tuning into in order to keep their relevance and propel us forward. Even when we are happily travelling down the same road as before, our surroundings or circumstances can change, making our old goals seem outdated. By being rigid, we can close ourselves off to change when it might be helpful to us, and they say that the definition of insanity is repeating the same thing while expecting a different outcome. If we can embrace change, whether in ourselves when it is needed and chosen, or when it feels like it is happening “to” us, we are also building resilience, and whether it feels like just what we need to hear or a philosophical reminder, the only real constant in life is change.

Glossary of Sound Effects (Part 2)

Our first Glossary of Sound Effects post was so popular we decided it would be fun to expand on it. This time around we not only included more specific search terms, but also a handful of modifiers. These terms, such as ‘by’ ‘up’ or ‘quick’ speak to the characteristics of the sound choice you are looking for. Try adding them to other terms (i.e. ‘zip quick’ or ‘violin up’)  to further narrow down your search.

Ambiance – Atmospheric sounds to build the space of a scene. Also look up: background, amb, environment

Beam – A steady synthetic sound. Also, look up: glow, ray, phaser

Beep – The tonal sound of a button press. Also, look up blip

Bork – A cartoonish sound that conveys disappointment.

Brush – The sound of leaves or foliage. Also, look up: leaves, bush, foliage, twig

By – This modifier should be added to searches for moving objects like Jet or Car, characterized by an increase and decrease in volume as the object passes by.

Chatter – A repetitive sound that conveys shaking, commonly associated with cartoonish teeth movement. Also, look up: shake, rattle

Chitter – small animal noise, repetitive and often cute sounding. Think squirrel or hamster.

Doppler – A sound that changes pitch as it passes by. Think truck horn starting from a distance and dropping in pitch as it crosses your path.

Drop – The sound of something falling to the ground.

Electricity – The sound of an electrical current, often wavering in volume and intensity. Also, look up: arc, crackle, spark

Flutter – Any sound with a very fast cycle of volume from low to high. Think of a humming bird’s wings or pod racers from Star Wars.

Ghost – Ethereal, often melodic and scary in nature. Also, look up: spirit, whisper

Hydraulic – The very distinct sound of something propelled by liquid moving in a confined space. Think forklift or fancy door hinges. Also, look up servo

Impact – The sound of a collision, be it small or large. Also, look up: hit, crash, smash

Debris – A cacophonous sound, usually starting thick and eventually settling. Can be used as the aftermath of an event as big as an explosion or as small as kicking up dirt.

Konk – A hollow hit, usually tonal in nature. Also, look up: bonk, coconut, hollow

Laser – The sound of a synthetic weapon. Also, look up: ray gun, pulse, beam

Movement – This modifier can be added to any search requiring both material and motion. Also, look up in short form: mvmt

Old – A modifier for sounds that are typically somewhat poor in quality, as though they were recorded a long time ago. This term is about looking for a specific character in your sound. Also, look up: old, classic, antique

Poink – A short, pointy sound. Also, look up: pluck, doink

Quick – Use this modifier when looking for sounds with very short duration. Also, look up: fast, short, sharp

Ratchet – A repetitive clicking sound Also, look up: crank, pulley, latch, turnstile

Ricco – This shorthand for Ricochet is the sound of a bullet bouncing. Can be used in cartoony moments when a character zips off screen very quickly.

Ruckle – The repetitive, throaty warble character of a sound. Typically emanating from the depths of a large animal or monster. Think of the T-Rex growl from Jurassic Park.

Rummage – Quickly digging through various materials. Also, look up junk

Servo – Short for servomechanism, this is the sound you would typically associate with the moments of a robot or other motorized electronics. Also, look up robot

Slide – This modifier signifies a changing in pitch; a character often associated with violin recordings or whistles to convey emotion in cartoony moments.

Splinter – The sound of small breaking or cracking wood. Also, look up: twist, stress, crack, wood break

Stinger – A musical sweetener that helps place emphasis on a dramatic moment. Also, look up: trailer hit, action

Telemetry – Rhythmic and somewhat repetitive beeps. The sound of calculating technology. Also, look up: computer, scan, beeps, tech, process

Up/Down – Add these modifiers to your search to convey the pitch motion of your sound. Slide whistle Up, for example, would start at a low pitch and end on a high pitch.

Valoop – The sound of something squeezing out of a small space.

Wobble – A repetitive, quick pitching sound used for moments of shakiness. Also, look up: warble, hypno, flutter

Zip – Any fast movement, often with some sort of musical character. Also, look up zing

See the original post here.

 

Creating Suspense 

Recently I’ve been working on a couple of projects that require some suspenseful swells of music. After trying out a few different methods, I decided I would share some of the techniques I used that seemed to be quite effective.

The first method I tried was to bury some long gong sounds leading up to the peak of the suspense. This worked as it was a very classical sounding score. However, if you were wanting to use this in another genre, you could always edit the sound with a pitch shifter, reverb, sending it through pedals. Etc.

My second tip is to just keep layering sounds during a build-up section. The idea of suspense could mean that the first section of your piece can be very controlled but the build-up really needs to grow. A really great way to do this is to add new sounds to every bar. This can be anything from recorded sounds to synths and instruments.

My final tip is to increase the volume automation throughout your build-up. This really helps especially when the music needs to be minimal but you still want the audience to sense some kind of change.

I hope some of these tips can help you create some suspense in your pieces. My advice is to just always keep playing around with different elements of the score, and eventually, you’ll find something that works.

 

 

Sound Design in Another Medium

Sound Design is creating a world or character purely out of auditory vibrations.  We morph mood and meaning through music and sound effects. As showcased through pieces like Peter and the Wolf by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, the aural medium can tell the story on its own.  More often than not, however, sound design is not a monolith and must integrate with visual mediums.  This opens the door for visual style elements to influence sound design.

When I took Sound Design as a course in college our main textbook was Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art by Scott McCloud.  McCloud boils comics down to its essence, choosing to focus on the assembly of narrative and representation rather than technique.  The philosophy behind choosing what to include and not is similar between the visual and the aural. Elements of design (rhythm, focus, contrast, form, movement) are also shared.  Using McCloud as a guide, take a look in the graphic novel section of the library as research for your next project. But why stop at visual, where else can we find inspiration?

The human body was gifted with several senses, and all of them can be used to evoke emotional responses.  Taste is an experience that occurs over time but is remembered as a static moment, much like a song. That particular meal has a temperature, different flavors competing and complimenting, and overall texture.  A song has dynamics, different instruments with melodies and harmonies, and an overall mood. Maybe the character in that particular film has a favorite meal that defines them. How should the accompanying theme add to the character development?  Think of Pippin singing to Denethor in Return of the King from the Lord of the Rings trilogy, a greasy meal, tomatoes popping and gristle squishing contrasted with Pippen’s haunting ode to his comrades in arms.

Another sense, smell, also shares similarities to sound.  While perfume is just as manufactured as a pop tune, it has the opportunity to provide insight into character design.  Imagine a femme fatale adorned with a power suit, her chosen scent is bound to be as bold as she is. Like sound, it also transforms through time.  When she first enters the scene, her interactions with those around her, and what happens in the wake of her absence correspond to the “top,” “middle,” and “base” portions of the bouquet.  Film cannot capture scent, yet, but the sound design can pick up on the “notes” of her cologne.

I recently have had the opportunity to try my hand at mixing mediums.  In August, I gave birth to a new little SoundGirl, and I wanted to share with her one of my favorite stories:  Roverandom by J.R.R. Tolkein.  I want her to follow along with me but also was have the story available if she was babysat by grandparents.  In my copy, the publishers thoughtfully included prints of Tolkein’s illustrations, and I used those as a guide for a fabric book and a radio play.  The mood and style permeate through the scene designs done in felt, while the narrative and characterizations are explored through sound effects, voice, and music.  Together the confluence is grander than the sum of its parts and makes me a better sound designer.

 

Living In and Out of A Big Fat Suitcase

Tips for packing smarter

I love travelling, I love going on tour, but I hate packing. I think it boils down to my inability to make decisions, which is what packing is after all; deciding what you’ll need for maybe months at a time. You might leave home during a heatwave and not come back until the middle of winter, taking in all sorts of weather in between. How can anyone know what they’ll need through all that?

I tried to pack light for years, partly so I wouldn’t put my back out dragging everything around, but partly because I didn’t want to be seen as the clothes-addicted, materialistic woman. As I’ve grown older (and stopped caring what other people think so much) and spend more and more time working away, I’ve come to realise that my suitcase is the closest thing I have to a home on the road. I’m not a follower of fashion or a hoarder by any means, but if having more than one day-off outfit and a bath bomb or two makes a big difference to my quality of life, damn it, I’m going to bring them. I now look for smart swaps that I can make that will streamline my packing while leaving space for a few creature comforts.

I read travel and backpacker sites to get inspiration for lightweight, collapsible, or multipurpose versions of things I need. Some of them can be very expensive, but if you can afford the initial outlay, buying great quality items that will last for years will save you hassle and money in the long run, and have the added bonus of being better for the environment than buying multiple cheaper versions. A lot of the high-end brands also have lifetime guarantees, which can be invaluable. I have a wishlist and keep an eye out for any discounts or sales that will make them affordable. Here are the main changes I’ve made, whether packing for one night or three months:

Water Bottle

An increasing number of festivals and venues in the UK have stopped supplying disposable water bottles, and rightly so. Besides, bringing your own means, you don’t need to waste time searching for the water stash when you run out. Just find a tap. I got a silicone one that rolls up when it’s empty so I’m not losing space in my bag to air.

Coffee Cup

Again, reusable cups are much better for the environment, but they take up a lot of space. I bought a collapsible cup, with a wide foot so I’m less likely to knock it over.

Laundry Egg

I’ve replaced washing detergent and fabric softener with a reusable, eco-friendly laundry egg. They last for months and months before needing a top up, so I know it’s sorted for my whole time away.

Ereader

I know some people can’t be parted from paper, and I love reading real books too, but having the ability to choose from thousands of stories while taking up less space than a paperback is worth it for me. You can also load them with user manuals and catch up in your bunk if you’re struggling to get to sleep.

Coat

Unless you’re touring through the arctic circle, you shouldn’t need a big bulky coat. The key to packing smart while being prepared for any weather is lots of thin, breathable layers. I invested in a super thin jacket from Arc’teryx, which has lots of smart features like moisture-wicking material and a hood that will fit over my hard hat, while rolling up to the size of my headphones. I can use it all year round, and add thermals in the winter to keep warm.

Base Layers

You can avoid having to bring thick warm clothes ever again by getting some good thermal base layers. Merino wool ones are super toasty while staying breathable. Apparently, they also keep you cool in summer and can be worn for a week or so without smelling, but I have too much respect for my colleagues to put that to the test. More and more sports and outdoors brands are making ‘smart’ clothing, which can be super thin, moisture-wicking, breathable and quick-drying and many are made from synthetic material or bamboo, so don’t involve animal products.

Zip-off Trousers

Ok, you’re not going to win any best-dressed awards in zip-offs, but they are really useful. Not only will you save space compared to packing separate shorts and trousers, you have options for when the temperature suddenly changes without having to run back to the bus or hotel. I got a couple of pairs from an outdoors shop that are lightweight and quick-drying, so if I get caught in a downpour, I’m not soggy for the rest of the day.

Safety Shoes

If your role requires safety shoes, it’s non-negotiable. However, there are lots of lighter, trainer-style shoes out there so you don’t have to lug massive steel-toed boots around. I have some great springy, composite-toed, high-top style ones (because I don’t trust people not to push flight cases into my ankles) from Jallatte, which are not only lighter to carry in my bag, they’re a pleasure to wear.

Toiletries

I’m trying to replace as much as possible in my washbag with solid alternatives. They’re more compact, use less plastic, last longer, don’t leak and you don’t need to worry about taking them through airport security. I have solid shampoo and conditioner and use soap instead of shower gel (I was really interested in a major chain’s solid shower gel until I realised that it was just an expensive way of saying ‘soap’). I use stick deodorant, but it’s best not to bring aerosols on tour anyway. It’s rude and inconsiderate to use sprays inside the bus. For liquids, I buy the smallest bottle or decant it into travel containers. Again, this saves space and means I can bring most stuff in my hand luggage if I’m flying. You can always buy more as you go along.

Menstrual cups not only take up way less space than pads and tampons, but they’re also better for the environment, and you don’t need to worry about running out.

I use packing cubes to keep all this stuff organised. It’s quick, it helps you compress your clothes down so you have more space, and it’s an extra layer of privacy while you’re rummaging through your suitcase at the side of the road in front of your colleagues and passers-by. I also bring a smaller canvas bag so I can take everything I need until the next day off up to my bunk and leave the suitcase in the bus bay. If you delve into travel blogs, you can get a wealth of information for packing lighter and smarter, but don’t get too caught up in minimising your luggage. We aren’t on holiday, we do this full time. While it’s a good idea not to have too much stuff weighing you down, we deserve to have a few luxuries or reminders of home to make us feel human.

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