I had an exciting chat with my friend Paul Brewer. He was looking for an overview of the teaching of Sound Production at Degree level in Ireland. If you’re interested in music production check out his podcast. I think it’s the best Irish one out there and gives unique perspective on the field. He’s a great interviewer and he kept me on topic 😁

We explored the ins and outs of teaching sound at degree level in Ireland, for both music and film/ broadcast students.

We talked about:

• The invaluable skills of critical thinking, reflective practice, and teamwork that are embedded in Irish degree courses.
• Collaborative team projects that give students hands-on experience in various roles: we call them Integrated Projects.
• The work of Jason Corey, whose research and software modules provide an excellent resource for teaching critical listening and ear training.
• The differences between music and TV/ broadcast/ film production, and looked at the realities of working in both fields and the technological distinctions between them.
• The importance of using the right tools for the job and the need for equipment that doesn’t get in the way.

Finally we talked a bit about referencing classic productions and also microphones.

It’s something students struggle with and I would’ve liked to say more about it. In their responses or self-evaluations students will often say “this is good pro sound” but they don’t have a concrete example or definition of what that is, and often they don’t reference other works even though they are often huge fans of film or music.

Getting them to channel that love of their favourite musician or film maker can be a very enjoyable process. Sometimes they are not even familiar with “the classics” and it’s fun seeing their reactions when they hear the good stuff.