The Blog

iZotope – Iris 2 Synth – FREE!

We love free stuff here at Sound Training College, we hope that you do too! For the entire month of November, you will be able to download a fully free copy of iZotope’s flagship synth Iris 2. The sample-based synth comes equipped with Leads, Bass, Pads, Rhythms and much more and you will be able to create your very own patch! The free download also comes with a whopping 11 GB sound library! The synth is normally available for $149 can be yours for $0! Thanks to Plugin Boutique & Beatport, simply head over to Plugin Boutique website, add the synth

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Graduate Interview Series – Phillip Magee

Graduate Interview Series – Phillip Magee Phillip Magee is a world renowned music producer, STC graduate Phillip, has worked with many international artists during his career. He has been the brains behind some chart toppings songs, and we were delighted to have the opportunity to catch up with him! We got to hear what he has been up to and his opinion of our brand new degree course (BA) Hons in Audio Production & Music Project Management run in collaboration with Dublin Business School! Focusing on aspects of the music industry that were lacking in other courses, Our BA (Hons)

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Graduate Interview Series – Alex Borwick

Alex is a graduate of our Sound Engineering & Music Production diploma course and he was kind enough to take some time out of his very busy schedule to meet us and have a quick chat! He talked about his time here and also gave his expert opinion of our brand new BA (Hons) Audio Production & Music Project Management course! Ran in collaboration with Dublin Business School, students can experience the best of many different aspects of the music industry and in particular, focusing on ‘real-world’ industry projects. Since graduating, Alex has been going from strength to strength in his

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Piracy & The Music Industry

Piracy within the music industry has a long and arduous history, from trying to record songs from the radio to portable tape machines, to illegally downloading an artists entire back catalogue in under 5 minutes! As many of us are artists in our own right, we all known the damage that piracy and illegal downloading has done to the music, recording, TV and film industries. Many bands have had to go back on tour and push their merchandise on us to make a living as there is little money anymore in making a #1 album. Also, with the creation of

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Graduate Interview Series – Owen Lewis – Class Of 2006

Here at STC, we’re always keen to find out what our Graduates are up to. We recently got a chance to talk to one of our Graduates from 2006, Owen Lewis. Originally from Limerick, Owen now lives in Nashville, Tennessee “The Home Of Country Music”! Check out Owen’s journey in the recording industry, from placements in studios in Ireland, to moving to the United States, and the contacts and experience he had while studying here! We would like to thank Owen for taking the time out of his busy schedule to chat to us!!    

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Live Sound, Lighting and Stage Production Graduates 2017

We recently had the opportunity to catch up with the graduates from our most recent Live Sound, Lighting and Stage Production course. Keeping in touch with graduates and seeing how their careers are progressing is a major component of our ethos in the Sound Training College. Naturally we were extremely interested to see how our most recent class were faring in life post-STC! You can check out both video interviews and written accounts of the student experience below : Lauren Geary I had just finished a BA (Hons) in Music Production and was looking for a pathway into the live industry,

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“Sound Check” – A Weird and Wonderful Showcase of DIY Audio Makers

Are you an analogue synth head? Then you will definitely want to check out the Moog Sound Lab currently set up and awaiting visitors at Dublin Science Gallery (head for the Trinity Pearse street entrance)! You can walk in and play with a room full of Moog synth goodness. Alongside that are a couple of dozen other sound and music-focused exhibits on display at the Science Gallery’s current “Sound Check” exhibition. Don’t expect to find the traditional audio tech here, it’s all about novel ideas and weird inventions. The Moog Sound Lab is probably the most mainstream of the offerings

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Game of Thrones Theme – Carina Guitar Duo

We were so blown away by the latest series of Game of Thrones, we invited the very talented Carina Guitar Duo into Sun Studios in order to record their version of the iconic theme music. Check it out below!

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5 Best Microphones under €400

As nice as it would be to have a studio full of top-end expensive and classic microphones at our disposal, for many of us it is just a pipe dream! But thanks to the ever-developing technology these days, there are so many affordable mics available to us that you don’t have to break the bank to get a decent sounding recording anymore. Even when buying them brand new, many microphones will be quite affordable and again even cheaper if bought second hand. Weather you are a home-studio hobbyist or a seasoned professional, many of the mics mentioned in this blog post

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STC Graduates – Class of 2017

Here at Sound Training College we do our utmost to keep up-to-date with what our graduates are up to. We feel it is very important to see how their careers are developing and this year is no different. Recently, we got to talk to a number of our Studio Engineering & Music Production and Live Sound, Lighting & Stage Production graduates to see what they thought of the course, what their experience was like and what they are doing with themselves now! Both our Studio Engineering & Music Production and Live Sound, Lighting & Stage Production courses prepare our students for work

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STC Student Showcase – Modem Button Factory Takeover

Many will tell you that the ability to read a crowd and keep people on the dance-floor will, more than likely be one of the top skills of any DJ or producer. With many of the DJ’s there are in the world at the moment, there has been massive scrutiny around some performers just pressing play and letting the software do the work, or playing to a supposed backing track. But with the invention and development of equipment such as Push from Ableton or Maschine from Native Instruments, it has only added to the creative and energetic side of a live performance.

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A Brief Guide To Compression

Compression Many people say that it is possible to have too much of a good thing. Compression is a perfect example of this. One of the most used and most loved dynamic effects and fundamental tools we have at our disposal whilst mixing, recording and mastering music. When starting out producing, usually with electronic music, people will want their music to “pump” or “sound thick” and many will try beef up their elements by using a compressor (probably after a quick Google) without actually knowing how to achieve it or what device to use. This article is going to hopefully try

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Graduate Interview Series – Jamie McEvoy

  Jamie McEvoy is currently working as the resident in-house Assistant Engineer at The Pool Recording Studio in London, the studio is jointly owned by Miloco and producer Ben Hillier. He has worked with countless big names including Noel Gallagher, Placebo, Years & Years, Emeli Sandé, The Wombats, Skepta, Mumford & Sons as well as Stephen Street, Catherine Marks and James Ford. Jamie graduated from the Sound Training College in 2012 and has worked in a number of different studios across Ireland and the UK. We recently got a chance to chat to Jamie about his experience in STC and

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Synthesis : A Basic Understanding

Synthesis Many of us will know what a synthesizer looks and sounds like through our experiences with both the software and hardware versions, whether it was bashing away at your brothers keyboard or fiddling around with your first synth VST! They have been around the music industry since the first early concepts began to take shape in the late 50’s early 60’s by a German engineer, Harald Bode. Bode was a pioneer in the development of electronic music instruments, and ended up developing a modular synthesizer and sound processor and in 1961. After this development, he wrote a paper on

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Mix Series Session Webinar – Overhead, The Albatross – Time (Hans Zimmer Cover)

Thanks for joining us! Please check out the full webinar below!

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Mix Series Session – Overhead, The Albatross – Time (Hans Zimmer Cover)

Welcome to the Mix Series Session! We were recently joined by Certified Pro Tools Expert Aidan Cunningham, and broadcast a live webinar from Studio 1 in Sound Training Productions. Aidan walked us through how he approached his mix of the track “Time” by Overhead, The Albatross. The song itself is a cover version of Time by Hans Zimmer, taken from the soundtrack of the movie Inception. You can check out the full song in the link below. P.S. If you don’t already know the band, do yourself a favour and check them out. They’re awesome! Now that we know what the song sounds like,

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New Music Monday – 17th April 2017

Kendrick Lamar – DAMN K.Dot’s latest effort, DAMN was released a week after it was rumoured and of course it did not disappoint. Kendrick ticks all the boxes with this both lyrically and musically. Also this is his second appearance on New Music Monday so must be doing something right! Check out : D.N.A, Loyalty & Element. Royal Blood – Light’s Out Alternative rock from Brighton, England. The two-piece create a fantastically dense sound with only the two of them. Their tight drums and distored guitars remind one of Wolfmother or Priestess. The lads also have a new album coming June

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Dublin Gig Guide – 17th -23rd April

  Dublin Gig Guide – 17th -23rd April We’re back again with our weekly instalment of the Dublin Gig Guide! All the best headline shows from around the city all in one place! After the mania that was Ed Sheeran in the 3 Arena, this week is substantially quieter for big name acts, but none the less we have a number of fantastic shows throughout the week for you to sink your teeth into! Kicking us off on Monday we have Mutefish, an amalgamation of musicians from Ireland, Poland, Portugal, Lithuania and Ukraine. They categorise themselves as Progressive/Techno/Folk, so make of

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New Music Monday – 10th April 2017

TINIE TEMPAH – FIND ME (FEAT. JAKE BUGG) With a new album scheduled for release later this week, “Find Me” is the latest single from the new album, with additional vocals from Jake Bugg this for me is one of the best singles from the album so far. BLAENAVON – THAT’S YOUR LOT Great debut album from British-trio Blaenavon. Indie guitars and emotive vocals that remind one of Bombay Bicycle Club, could an indie/alternative revival be on the cards? Check out : Alice Come Home, Swans & Take Care ASTRID S. – BLOODSTREAM Norwegian Astrid S has a number of

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Dublin Gig Guide : 10th – 16th April

Dublin Gig Guide 10th – 16th April It’s that time of the week again, our weekly instalment of the Dublin Gig Guide! This week we have a varied selection of gigs for you to sink your teeth into! It’s Easter this week so Good Friday means no pubs or clubs will be open but fear not as the people behind one of the best one day festivals are putting on the BD festival again this year. A huge variation of artists will be performing at the Glendalough location, including Huxley, Format : B, Heroes In Hiding, Smash Hits, Jimmy Rouge to

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Making a Difference: Student Charity Albums

  As the end of the year approaches, our students are preparing for this year’s charity album launch! Producing and recording a charity album has been a major aspect of the second year of our full time Sound Engineering & Live Sound courses. Students take control of all aspects of the album from concept and choice of charity to artist recruitment and recording, album art, PR, fundraising, artist liaison, showcase promotion and more. It’s a very involved process! It’s a highlight of the course for a lot of students, because not only to they get to be involved with some amazingly talented

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Plugin Presets

So you’ve just bought a brand new shiny plugin and you can’t wait to start using it in your tracks, so where is the best place to start? Loading up a preset and seeing what the plugin can do of course! This is all well and good but from experience I know that people can get very comfortable with using presets, I know this because I myself am guilty of it! Many will find it the simplest solution to getting a sound that they desire instead of doing what we all really should be doing as creative artists and dissecting

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Festival Management

Festival Management Graduate Wins Prestigious Award

Irish Festival Awards: Best New Festival We’re always delighted to hear of our graduates achieving success in the industry, as so many do. So we were particularly happy to hear that one of the graduates from our Festival Management & Sound Production course had won the prestigious “Best New Festival” award at the Irish Festival Awards for 2016, announced just recently. The festival in question, Lúnasa was in good company, with the likes of Electric Picnic, Longitude & Rory Gallagher Tribute Festival all picking up awards too. Lúnasa is a Gaelic festival marking the beginning of harvest season, taking place

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A Guide To Buying A Computer For Music Production

Be sure to check out a full list of Sound Engineering & Music Production courses we offer both online and in a classic classroom environment at Sound Training Online & Sound Training College! At the heart and soul of every recording studio is of course the computer. Some people may argue that we rely too much on computers these days but the way technology has developed and is constantly developing it is hard to shy away from the need to keep on top of computer changes and upgrades, it is in the best interest for you as a music producer. The brainchild

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Stereo Recording Techniques

Stereo microphone recording techniques are commonly used in the recording process and can offer great flexibility and advantages to recording specific elements. Imagine you have landed a session in a church recording a 15-piece choir for example, you are hardly going to set up 15 individual microphones and lug along a desk or interface with enough channels for the session, it’s unrealistic, unnecessary and a huge amount of work. Employing one of the many different stereo recording techniques can be much simpler, faster and you can achieve high quality recordings with minimum mics. Below we are going to go through some

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Dublin Gig Guide : 23rd January – 29th January 2017

Dublin Gig Guide : 23rd January – 29th January 2017 I’m not sure about you, but I have got that Friday Feeling! That means it’s time again for our weekly Dublin Gig Guide! We’re here to give you all the information you’ll need to plan the weeks gigs accordingly! So let’s get started! Kicking off the week on Monday evening, we have four-time Grammy award winner Olivia Newton-John performing with special guests in the National Concert Hall, doors for this one are at 8PM so make sure to get down early! Tuesday night the Sugar Club hosts a very special

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Dublin Gig Guide : 16th – 22nd January 2017

Dublin Gig Guide 16th – 22nd January  We’re back with our weekly instalment of the Dublin Gig Guide brought to you by Sound Training Online! Fairly busy week for gigs around the city, and we have all the info you’ll need to plan the week accordingly! First off we have Kentucky rockers Cage The Elephant performing in The Academy on Monday night, followed by singer-songwriter Martha Wainwright playing Vicar Street the following night. Two different styles of music but both should draw big crowds and both gigs will be great! Wednesday night is one for fans of the heavier style

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Dublin Gig Guide 7th – 15th January 2017

Dublin Gig Guide 7th January -15th January   First off let me wish everyone a happy new year! Hopefully 2017 will be one to remember as 2016 was one to forget music wise 🙁 Anyway not to dwell on the past lets crack on, as the case can be with this time of the year there is a number of gigs on over the next week but the quality is not what is to be desired, but there are some good things happening so let’s get into it! Kicking off the weekend we have a big double header for the

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Guitar Amp Emulation – Software & Hardware

Guitar amp simulators, loved by many, loathed by many. You can not be a guitarist in society today without hearing names such as Kemper, AmpliTube, Guitar Rig, the list goes on. As many of us have delved into recording at home with our own reasonably/not so reasonably sized bedroom/garage home studios, the idea of having a room dedicated solely to building up a collection of high quality tube and solid state guitar amps and heads, loads of effects and rack mounted gear has for the most part, been dashed. Many of us, can find solace with the number of hardware

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Dublin Gig Guide : 19th – 31st December 2016

Dublin Gig Guide 19th December 2016 – 31st December 2016 We are back with our final chapter of the Dublin Gig Guide for 2016, brought to you by Sound Training Online! Over the month there has been so much going on around the city it’s been tough to decide what to pick. Plenty of music, comedy, theatre shows and musicals over the Christmas period for all the family and we are sure that there will be something on for everyone of all ages! Kicking us off for the Christmas period we have the always fantastic Christy Moore playing in the

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Expect Delays – A Brief Insight Into Delay

Delay In today’s ever growing realm of technological advancements, Delay has maintained its crown as one of the most effective and versatile audio effects there is. Delay, at its simplest, is a delayed or repeated audio signal that is fed back into itself. The sound is recorded, stored and then is played back after a certain length of time, which is determined by the setting on the Delay unit. Delay units possess many parameters that can help alter and manipulate the sound. Delay is commonly used on multiple elements including, but not limited to, Vocals, Guitars, and even Drums! Delay

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Dublin Gig Guide : 12th – 18th December

Dublin Gig Guide 12th – 18th December It’s that time of the week again! The time where we create happiness and cheers amongst you all with our weekly instalment of our Dublin Gig Guide!  Your weekly supply of all the best gigs happening in Dublin for the next week! Quiet enough this week early on, but as the weekend draws closer there is a huge amount of stuff going on around the city! Again, this week showcases quite a number of home-grown Irish acts proving that Dublin is continuous with its support of Irish music! Monday kicks off with a

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Dublin Gig Guide : 5th – 11th December

Dublin Gig Guide 5th – 11th December We’re back this week with our Dublin Gig Guide! This week sees a large number of homegrown talent as well as international starts gracing our shores! Starting off the week we have punk-rockers Pierce the Veil performing the first of two shows in Dublin this week before the head back to the States for a number of shows before Christmas. Also on Monday night english rock outfit Ocean Colour Scene play the first of their two shows as well this week, and both gigs are on in the Olympia which is the perfect

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creative audio tools

Students and Lecturers present their Creative Audio Projects

Here at Sound Training, we love our recording studios; nothing excites us more than a fancy new piece of analog gear! However, we also appreciate and embrace the opportunities that technological developments are bringing to our industry. Producers, engineers and composers can now develop their own new creative audio tools as synths, effects and plugins. CSound Conference This potential was highlighted last weekend at a conference hosted by NUI Maynooth (thanks to Iain McCurdy for organising), celebrating the audio programming language Csound. A number of our students and staff presented their work to the world’s best Academics, Composers, Sound Designers

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Christmas discount

Christmas Deals on Intro Courses

With Christmas fast approaching, we’re offering a 20% discount on some of our introductory courses. Gift the gift of learning this Christmas! We’re getting into the Christmas spirit here in Sound Training College, and to spread the Christmas cheer (and education), we’re offering 20% discounts on our introductory courses. We have a wide variety of courses on offer with something to suit all interests (provided they’re interested in music!) Our gift voucher range is the perfect way to start someone on the path of learning more about something they love, discovering a new hobby, or maybe even a new career! Range

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Dublin Gig Guide : 28th November – 4th December 2016

As December creeps into our midst, we can still delay the entire Christmas shenanigans for another week or two at least! Thankfully you can distract yourself from the big fella’ in the red suit with our next instalment of our weekly Dublin Gig Guide! Easing us into the week on Monday night we have a sold out performance by Glen Hansard and his full band in none other than Vicar Street. The performance will include strings and brass so you can expect it to be a different gig in comparison to his solo shows! Always giving everything in any performance the

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Dublin Gig Guide : 20th – 27th November 2016

This week the Sound Training Online Dublin gig guide brings you an eclectic mix of all things live! First off, on Monday night Paul Simon will follow hot on the heels of Rod Stewart, and will be performing at the 3Arena in promotion of his newest release “Stranger to Stranger” which has been available on shelves since June. Tuesday night sees the 3Arena play host again but this time to Jess Glynne as she brings her familiar style of indie pop to Ireland for her biggest headline show on the island to date, be sure to check out both gigs if you can! On Wednesday night, *The Helix

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Understanding Reverb

Reverb is an essential tool in the arsenal of both the Sound Engineer and the Producer alike. It wasn’t until the late 1930’s that the first artificial reverb was created, which finally enabled the Sound Engineer to control and shape the sound of reverb. Skip forward to 1976, where the next big milestone in the history of Reverb belongs to EMT, as they created the world’s first digital reverb unit, the “EMT 250″. As the years went by, more and more companies began to develop and release their own styles of reverb units, each one with its own unique sounds

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Dublin Gig Guide : 14th – 20th November 2016

  Rod Stewart rolls back into town this week with two headline shows on Friday and Saturday evening at the 3Arena, both kicking off at 6.30pm. Be sure to get in early as no doubt it will be packed once those doors open! This week also sees French cover specialists Nouvelle Vague take to the Button Factory stage on Wednesday night. The Button Factory also plays host to Dublin-based duo We Cut Corners on Saturday night, who will be performing their own take on alternative indie rock. Be sure to check them out if you can! It was a tough one

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Expanding your Education – Stories from students and lecturers alike

Here at STC we primarily deal in teaching students about the practical and theoretical aspects of the music industry, but it doesn’t stop there. We encourage students and staff alike to continue on their educational journeys, and strive to facilitate this as best we can. Over the past year we have helped numerous students and lecturers achieve a diverse range of fantastic opportunities to improve both their education and career options. Education can be costly, so we provide help and guidance to students researching and applying for any financial scholarships and programmes that we can. Here is an excerpt of

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The Best Music Production Software

Music Production Software, known as Digital Audio Workstations (or DAWs for short), come in many shapes and sizes, and at a variety of different prices. When starting out a Music Producer, selecting a DAW can be quite a daunting and intimidating experience. After all, this is potentially your future livelihood we’re talking about here! Selecting one as your creative outlet is a big decision. Therefore, one of the most frequently asked questions within the music tech industry is : “What is the best DAW on the market?”. The question has led to many a debate, and sometimes even arguments (seriously,

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songwriting basics

International Student Experience

Dublin is one of the best places in the world for International Students. Culture, atmosphere, live music and a wide range of festivals make Dublin the city it is. But while all of these are great reasons to study in Dublin, the quality of education and experience is of course the most important. Here at Sound Training College we offer a range of courses for International students, tailored to provide the knowledge and experience necessary to start your career in the music industry. “I don’t think there’s another course in the world that gives you more hands-on experience on a

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colm-s6-cropped

Student Experience Update – April 2016

Updates on the latest goings on around Sound Training College including Searchlight 2016, moving home, launching of the Music Academy and guest lecture masterclasses.

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songwriting class

Melody

The Melody of a song is what sets it apart from all others. Melodies often contain the Hook of the song, which is essentially a memorable musical phrase designed to peak the listeners interest. Where certain Chord Progressions have been used in countless songs throughout the years, the various Melodies in these songs is what makes them unique and stand apart from one another. In the following video, professional Songwriter and Sound Training Online tutor Richey McCourt, takes a look at the extremely popular song “I Really Like You” by Carly Rae Jepsen. We will see how a relatively ordinary

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fergal-in-studio-for-blog

Graduate Interview Series – Fergal Davis

After a hectic few months getting ready for the new academic year, moving into the new building, upgrading the old building and just generally being really busy, we’ve finally gotten around to putting together the next entry in our Graduate Interview Series with the accomplished and very talented Fergal Davis, highly regarded Mastering engineer and STC lecturer.

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pro-tools lessons

Parallel Processing

Parallel Processing has been used by both Sound Engineers and Music Producers in search of the perfect mix for many years. Its uses vary from subtly adding more presence to certain elements within a mix, to creating bold new sonic textures and effects.

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maschine-course

Creative Use Of White Noise

“Through the creative use of Envelopes, Filters and Effects, we can shape White Noise in order to create lots of different sonic textures.”

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side-on-desk

Graduate Interview Series – Philip Magee

We continue our series of interviews with Sound Training College graduates this month with Philip Magee. Philip graduated in 2002 and has gone from strength to strength since then. We caught up with him to discuss freelance engineering, hard work and water fights.

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warp-modes ableton

Warping in Ableton Live

In the pre-Warping era, altering the tempo (or playback speed) of a piece of audio would also alter the pitch. Slowing down audio would lower the pitch, where speeding up audio would raise the pitch.

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mick sound training

Graduate Interview Series – Michael Heffernan

This post is the first in a series of interviews that will be conducted with alumni of Sound Training College over the coming months. The interviews are a great way to catch up with former students and see what they are doing now. There really is an interesting diversity of paths that have been followed, which we intend to showcase with this interview series. So if you’re wondering about where Sound Training College can bring you, make sure you check out each edition of this series. Michael Heffernan is a Sound Engineer / Producer from Dublin, who has been working

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music courses

Second Term STC Student Experience Update

Live Sound, Lighting & Stage Production It’s a busy time for the live class students as the pre-production rehearsals for Searchlight 2015 get under way in The Button Factory. They have been mapping out the venue for the main and acoustic stage set-ups. Over the next few weeks leading up to the Searchlight Show on March 25th, each band will come in and spend 2 days with the students working out their stage show, both audio and visual. One of the bands Luna Luna are pictured here making use of the BRAND NEW SOUND TRAINING DRUM SKIN! (Which we’re very excited

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Music Production Course

First Term STC Student Experience Update

It has been a busy first term here at the Sound Training College! Here is an idea of what our students get up to day to day here in Temple Bar…

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music-keyboard-modern

Music Theory – It’s Important To Know The Basics

Music Theory is an often over-looked area of Music Production. I know this because I have been guilty of overlooking it in the past myself. One of the most frustrating aspects of Music Production is developing a track that you are really happy with, but then hitting a wall and not knowing how to progress the track further.

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electronic music production

Hit Song Deconstruction – ‘Hey Brother’ by Avicii

What makes a song a hit? There are a whole host of factors to consider, however there is no definitive method. You can talk about production techniques, larger than life artists, endless marketing budgets etc., but at the end of the day if the song doesn’t sound good musically then it’s never going to get off the ground. The Track Deconstruction series by Sound Training Online is stripping back popular tracks by well known artists and having a look at how they are put together. The series will focus on Music Theory, as opposed to Production Techniques in order to

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