Preparing my talk for PLASA in Glasgow, it has struck me how once again I have managed to pluck out of the air what I thought would be a simple subject. I was approached a month or so ago to speak, and as I have now spoken at PLASA a few times, a new subject was again needed.
If, like me, you have only really done one thing since school, well maybe a few, but primarily one, you can run out of subject matter! So I cunningly decided to do what I normally do, and talk about myself, albeit in generalised terms.
“What kind of sound engineer are you?” asks a very real question, and one I have pondered over the years. This has seen me work in the studio, TV and live. Well that’s about it, I thought, all bases covered. Except that is only scratching the surface.
Enrolled, as I currently am, doing some study at York University, I have come across audio engineers with a breathtaking array of interests. From the study of vocal tracts and artificial speech and 3D acoustic modeling to binaural and psychoacoustic studies. We are all sound engineers, and I am in awe of their interests and skills. I think however I will stick to my small world, but what a fantastic rich and varied world that can be!