Lately I've been getting more and more into audio tech and sound engineering - or rather I've become more interested in said field. Yes, it's very male dominated. Whether there are reasons for that or whether it's just that there aren't enough females around who bother, I don't know, but this female right here has found herself finding interest in various technical and mechanical things.
It started from me wanting to understand what goes on behind the board, rather than merely making demands for things to sound a certain way. There are limits to what machines can do, and a soundboard is no exception. The little taste I got during that one module in college was not enough to satiate me. As I find myself growing less fond of being onstage, I find myself growing more fond of being behind the scenes.
Six days ago, I was given an opportunity to be part of a team for an event that was happening at one of the concert halls. Naturally, I jumped at it. I don't claim to know a whole lot about how things work - much of my learning of the soundboard has happened just like my learning crochet. I dive right in and figure things out as I go along. Most of the time, I don't know what exactly I'm doing. I don't have the ground knowledge and I don't claim to have it. It doesn't stop me from wanting to learn.
We started out by having to write a channel list based on the equipment we had and whatever else we needed. This was an email assignment. Having no clue whatsoever but my own deductions, I ran a quick search via the 'net and read up about what a channel list was. Better to be a fool for five minutes than a fool for life, right? I wrote up my channel list and emailed it to Boss along with a note explaining that I wasn't sure if what I had done was what he wanted, but for him to please do correct my work. Boss was nice enough to reply positively, attaching the channel list of one of the other guys on the team.
Following that was a songlist, and we were told to listen to the tracks and make notes that would help us when mixing. This was much like the analyses I had to do back in college, but on a less complicated scale.
Then things got professional and intercom apps were talked about...this is when I semi-panicked. I don't have a smartphone. Yes, I could probably stick with someone else...I dropped Boss a message. Boss was super cool about it and told me not to worry, just make sure I'm there on time. I still tried to think of a solution though, and thank God for little sisters and mums and friends. My friend drove me back home, I borrowed little sister's iPhone because she wasn't using it for the day, and mum's powerbank. (Sidenote: Time to upgrade my phone? Still debating on this one.)
Getting to the venue was no problem, and soon the intercom app got set up and I was feeling a little bit (okay a lot) professional. Duties were designated and I got to play at being a stage manager. Again, I freaked, because 'what on earth does a stage manager do????'
By the end of the night, I had learnt so much and was wiped out from the whole 'being on my toes the whole time' thing. With the help of one of the other guys, I wound up a really long Cat-5 cable and that was that. Cat-5 cables make things so easy to manage.
Days later, I'm still thinking about the whole thing. It's always interesting to play different roles and understand why each is needed. Having majored in music performance, I know what it's like onstage. I discovered in the course of my studies that I don't like being in the spotlight. I much prefer collective work - orchestral work is among that. I like things that work in teams. Perhaps that's also why I'm taking a liking to sound-related stuff. Not only do I get to understand what goes on behind the board, but I get to work with others to produce the results. And it requires me to use my ears and troubleshoot. Being a stage manager requires a lot of attention to the program flow and the managing of people, whether it's a team of crew or telling to performers to get onstage and being alert to anything and everything that could go wrong onstage. My role in this event was the former and the latter. Not so much the middle. I don't know if I would repeat the experience given a choice, but at the same time, I don't dispute that I learnt a lot from getting to see things from a different angle.
DY, the guy on the board, was pretty cool to work with also. He was extremely encouraging, and willing to share software that will be helpful in running sound for events or services. I'm actually really really looking forward to more that I can learn, which Boss is currently arranging for.
Needless to say, I'm excited.
On a different note, I hit my 50k. Thanks TC for setting the pace. Frankly, I don't think I would have made it if not for wanting to keep up with you. And you went at breakneck speed. =.= But really. Thank you. :)
Also, I now have 29 days.
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