My studies at Uni

[Volitions Advocate]

Hey guys.  I didn't know where this would be most appropriate to post, but since we're all musicians I figured this would be an interesting topic to share and discuss.  So I figure this would be the right place.

I've been having some conversations with my peers about our studies, and frankly several of them whine a lot about having to do stuff they don't want to learn about.

My response is to suck it up and stop being a baby, because you're in university dammit...  but some of them see it differently, and have managed to get some things changed by whining to the right people.

So I decided to email the chair of the program.  Our program is new.  I'm a 2nd year student, in the 2nd year it has been offered and already some things have changed. thankfully nothing changed in a negative way when you read my letter, but I'm worried it might.

I'll just skip explaining my issues and let you read the letter I wrote, I'd like to hear your thoughts and get some feedback.

Note: Rolf is the chair of the program, and Ian and Thilo are professors that are teaching me.

Dear Rolf:

I'm really glad that the 2nd year of studies has finally started.  All summer I was really itching to get back into the work and I can really tell that we're starting to get into the thick of it.

I'm happy that you have such an open door policy with concerns that all of us students have and I'm emailing you because I've got a concern I wanted to share with you and some of the faculty,  Although I'm not sure if you can even really call it a concern because there isn't really anything I'm asking you to do or change.  So thank you for humoring me and listening to my thoughts.

Since coming back this fall for studies I have had a handful of conversations with fellow students about the nature of our degree.  These weren't planned conversations or debates but they came up while discussing some of the things we are learning in our classes this semester.

Everybody is excited about the new Studio, and I am no different.  But I've been hearing a lot of comments such as "why would you take an audio engineering program if you're not going to be an audio engineer?" and the like.  Today in class helping some classmates with a MaxMSP patch I was met with a bit of frustration and questions like "how does this help me write music or be a better musician?"

I realize that the physics and the math and the computer programming is difficult and I sympathize with the students who don't have much interest or background in those areas.  But I think this program is so much more than simply making us into the next batch of audio engineers for recording music that just happen to have a university level understanding of Music theory.  The music conservatory part of our degree is important and will be useful to us in the future both in terms of using our expertise and gaining employment, but I'm sure it was not intended to be the ONLY edge we have on people who can go to Vancouver to get a 2 year audio engineering diploma.

The reason I am bringing this is up is because I really enjoy the math and the physics and the computer programming, and as excited as I am about getting the chance to learn about the equipment in W700 and using it to record school related projects as well as some of my own projects, I know that my best work in the program will probably be done elsewhere.

I've been working on some software prototypes which I've gotten some help from Ian and Thilo, and I think I am most definately a student who has joined the Digital Audio Arts program to be something other than an Audio Engineer.  And I think the classes available reflect that direction.  And even if somebody here wants to go full bore into the Audio Engineering side of things where they are producing music and recording bands, ensembles and artists, they still need to take other important aspects involved, even if it isn't something they will use practically in their field, Just like Math students have to take Computer Programming which is Computer Science, and Logic which is Philosophy,  Or Political science students who have to take Sociology.  We are a university after all and these are the things which make us the best of the best when we graduate, to prove that we put forth the effort rather than just doing the minimum for what we feel we need to know.

I'm assuming for the most part you would agree with me, I just wanted to share my feelings because I feel a little bit isolated in that I may be the only person in the program that is absolutely interested in the math formulas, and the physics, and the computer science involved, and I'd really hate to lose out on opportunities for being the minority in the program.  I would assume you wouldn't cancel classes that I would be interested in taking, but I know that a lot of students want an easier and more "relevant" course load to their interests, and I suppose I'm just writing to ask you to stand firm in what the program should represent, and not allow complaints of difficulty or supposed irrelevance to derail the program from its intended purpose.

To be told by a classmate that if I want to "take a physics class then go take a physics class, because this is supposed to be a music class" greatly discourages me if most of my peers feel this way and have even a small amount of sway over the faculty that continues to plan and organize this program for the future.

Obviously I can take what my classmates say about this with a grain of salt, I just wanted to voice my concern about it because if enough voices get together about a subject, they can usually make a change, and I'd hate for a change in that direction to affect my education adversely.

Even though I don't plan on being the next Quincy Jones or Peter Gabriel, I'm still taking the studio and audio production classes.

Thanks for listening, I hope I wasn't too bland or presumptuous.

Curtis

Please, discuss your views.

 

[mayfly]

Yea, there are whiners out there.  I took Computer Engineering at the U of A and the program was capital 'H' HARD with some really tough math.  But I liked that - it was important to me to learn the best stuff because I didn't want to be limited when I got out.

However, there were people in the class who had the view that Fourier transforms, discrete math, differential equations, were a waste of time because they figured they were not going to use them in the jobs they were planning on getting.  Well excuse me - but I didn't plan on getting those lame jobs - I was not about to be brought down a peg in my education because someone lazy ass thought it was hard.  Won that battle, but they changed the program a few years later.  Guess what - if you stepped into DSP after school (and most everything became DSP around that time) you needed that stuff really bad.  To make matters worse, my degree is now considered second rate because of the changes to the program that happened after I graduated.  That bugs the hell out of me.

So keep rattling the cage.  Get the degree you want - not what some lazy bastard that just wants to do scales and get chicks wants.

 

[Volitions Advocate]

   To make matters worse, my degree is now considered second rate because of the changes to the program that happened after I graduated.

THIS is what scares me.  This program is heralded as something so much more than a diploma course.  It isn't a technical diploma like APRA or some of those other *COME BE A RECORDING ENGINEER* BS programs that teach nothing but what gear and software you should spend your money on (the biggest sponsors of course). 

But most of the other students figure the simple fact that it is a music degree rather than a tech diploma is enough.  It isn't.  Big deal.. you took 2 years of conservatory theory, can sing a Dorian mode,  and you know who Hildegaard von Bingen is.  It isn't enough.  When I'm finished I'm going to be able to build my own gear, develop my own software, and do the same for others WHO WILL PAY ME.  Maybe I can work for the military even, who knows, they may need some less lethal weapon invovling sound that gives the enemy diarrhea or something.  But if all I know how to do is put a $10,000 microphone in front of a $5,000 guitar amp using a $300,000 mixing console in a $6,000,000 studio that I will not ever own (aside from the guitar amp),  then I don't have a lot to offer ... hmm.....  anybody...  do I?

 

[OzziePete]

I can only relate my adult studying efforts which are minimal, in an effort to provide some feedback..

I did an early SAE Recording Engineering (1980 or so) course and the Sydney College did not have it's act together very well. Things were haphazard with some lecturers not turning up, supposed learning recording sessions being nothing more than being required to get coffee or go across the road to get some more beer from the pub. I know that Tom Meissner has sharpened things up a lot since those days.....

But despite all that there was theory involved, you simply couldn't get away from it if you wanted to work in a studio, control a  desk and complete a decent mix. Ohm's Law, theory about decibels and other related theories were taught to us (sadly I have forgotten a lot of this)  -and we were tested on them too. Lots of whingeing, but you couldn't progress to working on sessions unless you did them.

I also did a Human Resource Management Certificate in 1997 & what surprised me there was the amount of psychology being taught, and us having to comprehend. Organisational Behaviour, Jung, Freud, a lot of the basic stuff you'd probably expect to see in the first semester of a Psych degree. Funny thing was the whole class sat there for probably 3 lectures, saying nothing because we didn't understand a thing (we had one Psych lecture a week)! Then bam! it all suddenly sunk in and we were waffling on about the debate on the Sexual Personality vs. the Social Personality within minutes of the fourth lecture.....and once the majority of the class understood the subject matter a bit better we were able to gain a lot from the theory. But before that epiphany lecture (where we all suddenly took hold) a lot of the students were arguing why we had to do all this and were considering pulling out.

I guess your class has to see the logic behind learning obscure theory that might not be directly related to the real course nuts and bolts. No doubt though, the mathematics and other theory work might be necessary in the future for peripheral work associated with music.

 

[Jusatele]

Did you know the guy working the main controls of the catapult on an Air Craft Carrier is a Pilot, and one from that trips pool of pilots. They call him the shooter and all craft taking off on the catapult during his shift he is responsible for.
His job is to set the catapult for each launch, according to the payload and type of payload of the plane on the catapult and it's type and launch speed needed.
Now why would they need to train someone to be a experienced pilot to launch the planes? Seems like a lot of training to set a few gauges doesn't it?
Because they want the best, and the best is someone who has studied  and understands avionics on a personal level. No mistakes and smooth operations.

I imagine you could see it the same way. After all music is sound waves, part of the same spectrum that light is, and that is physics.
The best will be those who studied it, how they apply that knowledge is up to them.

 

[AndyG]

When I was at school to learn audio engineering, we had to take to take all kinds of classes that weren't directly related to audio, but turned out to be really worthwhile.  Classes such as : math, basic electronics, music history, and computer programming (which was nowhere near as complicated/sophisticated as it is today).  Those classes, along with my background in college physics, really helped me understand what I am doing today.

Mind you, when I was at school, DAW's were still in thier infancy ... which was a good thing because rather than learning software, we learned concepts.  Most of the studio work was done with an old Ampex MM1200 2" machine, which I had to learn how to align properly as well.

It sucks that some students want to take the "easy way out".  I was a studio lab instructor on behalf of the studio I used to freelance at, and it was incredible how many students simply wanted to learn how to "cut beats" ... they could care less about signal flow, impedence, gain staging, or even simple mic techniques.  Needles to say, none of those students (to my knowledge) are working in the industry today.

Stick to your guns.  There is nothing wrong with ANY type of extra knowledge, no matter how irrelevant it may seem at the time.

 

[MikeW]

@Advocate: You'll get out of your education as much as you put into it.

It's encouraging to see that someone has not only the interest, but the drive and determination to put the time into learning the theory behind the gadgets. People that truly understand what's going on are few and far between. There are tons and tons of people who have a degree, but few who are capable of really doing more than the task at hand because they don't have the ability to think of a system in terms of "how does it work" instead of "what does it do". You'll find in your career - whatever it is you choose - the people that truly stand out from the rest are the ones that have put in the time and effort to really understand the Hard Parts. And it's the ability to do more with what you have at hand that will make you stand out in your career.

I've got degrees in music, mathematics and computer science, and put a lot of time into keeping up with what's new in the field as well. It's easy to tell the people that don't spend the time; they'll be the ones covering their mistakes with ego and rhetoric and will think that "good enough" really is good enough.

Long story short: Stick to your guns about learning the theory. It will pay off big time later down the road.