Live Sound Diploma

What is the business of entertainment? What is the relationship between creating music and art, and earning money from that art? What are the elements that make up this industry, and how do they connect and intersect to create the vast array of entertainment content that we watch, hear, and experience? During this course, students will be introduced to the music, broadcast, motion picture, game, and live event industries, and their various subsidiaries. Students will examine the nature of intellectual property and copyright, discuss the often conflicting relationship between art and commerce, and examine the relationship between content creators and consumers.

As the size and scope of concerts and other live events continue to grow, the live events industry faces ongoing challenges in maintaining the health and safety of workers, performers, and fans at these live events. This course will delve into some of the health and safety issues inherent in the live event industry, including crowd management, temporary staging, working at heights, working with electricity, and other important safety elements. We will examine important case studies of past tragic incidents in the performance industry, and look at how such incidents can be avoided in the future.

This hands-on, workshop course will allow students to build on the knowledge of signal processing effects and devices learned in the Audio Signal Processing course. Through in-class exercises and projects, students will learn how to use vital effects and processors, such as equalization, compressors, expanders, gates, reverbs, and delays, and how those effects are utilized in live performances.

How are recorded sounds processed in today’s digital environment? How are vocal and instrument tracks altered and changed to produce the sounds we hear in our headphones and at live shows? In Audio Signal Processing, students will be introduced to the many audio signal processing devices used by today’s producers, and how those devices are used in a live setting. Students will learn about popular effects and processors including compressors, gates, reverbs, and delays, and how those effects are applied during live performances.

The Digital Technologies Workshop introduces students to the practical skills of recording and editing music using digital applications, and builds on knowledge gained in the Digital Technologies course. Students will hone and develop their recording skills using digital technologies, and will undertake a comprehensive exploration of Pro Tools, and the techniques involved in recording and editing music on a Digital Audio Workstation.

The use of Digital Audio Workstations has become the norm in today’s digital world. It’s vital that today’s music creators understand the nature of Pro Tools, Logic, Ableton, and other popular DAWs. In our Digital Technologies course, students will learn the fundamentals of recording and editing in a digital environment. Students will explore digital audio basics, including hardware, software and interfaces, via a combination of class lectures and in-class exercises and demos, and learn how to record and edit music like the pros.

Resistors, capacitors, inductors, transistors...? The study of electricity and electronics involves a sizeable menu of terms and terminology that can leave many people baffled. Our Principles of Electricity & Electronics course will provide students with a step-by-step introduction to those basic terms and concepts which are vitally important to anyone working in the live events industry. Students will learn about electric charges, electromagnetic fields, electric currents, circuits and fields, and how electricity is used in the live event industry. Our course will explore analog and digital electronics, including the basic circuits found in most electronic instruments. In the end, students will be well-versed in the meaning and uses of resistors, capacitors, inductors, and transistors.

Top audio engineers must know more than just microphones, consoles, and monitors. Being a good engineer also means being able to understand the fundamental properties of sound and acoustics, and how acoustics affect the quality of sound in a studio or live environment. In this course, students will learn how sound works, why we hear what we hear, and how our ears receive and conceive of sounds. This exploration of sound will involve a comprehensive overview of physics, allowing students to understand the important principles of acoustics, wave propagation, and auditory perception.

The house lights go down, the audience roars as the artist appears, and suddenly the crowd is moving to the booming rhythms sweeping through the arena. But where are the sounds coming from, how do they go from the stage to our ears, and who’s responsible for making it all work? The Show Production Systems course will provide students with the foundation for the production of live sound in a concert setting. Students are introduced to microphones, signal flow, cables, connectors, consoles, amplifiers, and speaker systems, and learn to understand how sounds are conveyed from the artist on stage, to the audience in the seats. By the end of this course, students will begin acting and thinking as live sound engineers, and further develop the strong communication skills needed in the production of live events.

This course will provide students with comprehensive insight into the technical, creative and artistic principles of sound and show production systems through practical application. During this course, students will apply theoretical knowledge to live practical applications of microphones, audio signal flow, cables, connectors, consoles, console operation, amplifiers, and speaker systems. Students will also be encouraged to begin acting and thinking as live sound engineers and to develop strong engineering communication skills.

We all wince in pain when we hear that hair-raising microphone feedback during a live show. The sound is usually followed by the sight of dozens of heads turning and shooting a puzzled and angry look at the sound techs. For the live sound engineer, the urgent question is, where did that sound come from, how can I fix it, and how can it be avoided in future? In Show System Maintenance, students will learn how to troubleshoot and repair any number of problems that can arise during a live event. Students in this course will learn how to properly test and maintain live show systems, and how to quickly deal with issues that may arise during a live show.

We see them every time we go to a concert, those men and women climbing rope ladders and catwalks to handle the lighting and sound systems. Without them, there are no concerts, but few of us understand the important, and sometimes dangerous, work that they do. This course will explore the basics of production rigging for live events, while placing particular emphasis on the safety practices required in this risk-filled occupation. Students will explore the common types of rigging systems and components, the methods of flying stage elements, and the use of various types of knots in stage rigging systems.