UMA Audio

The UMA Audio Playback Session got iced! oooOK, let's just enjoy the Holiday on Ice, and push the Playback back. AUD 319, Advanced Audio meets on Jan 15th/Wed at 6PM. Let's make that the Playback session, write comments & reminisce. And have refreshments. About 10 of you are in the class anyway. The others have been or should consider being.
Those enrolled: I'll expect thorough critiques. That will be your first assignment.

Enjoy! ... chip, chip, chip!

Bill: (207) 621-3267

Please visit UMA Audio in Facebook, and contribute something.

RECENT SESSIONS AT UMA AUDIO

Abe Fast brought in a really good group from the Western mountains of Maine: PARADOX. Very good tracks!

Gary Clancy's ensemble (see the vid clips 1&2) gave us some very tasty rock and ballad playing.

PUMA, Bill Moseley's ensemble were brave enough to charge thru SPAIN and ATTYA. Good job.

PANTHER, Bill's other feline friends, were in with some Miles & Memphis funk.

Tim Johnson's INTONES were in the groove in their session of a capella vocals.

Massabesic H.S. Choir dropped in with a few songs in June. Very good group led by Peter Stickney. Lots of good music and sense of humor!

In May, Bill & James of the Forest went to Cony H.S. loaded with gear to record the Cony Band, lead by Maria Sleeper: Cony Fight Song & National Anthem, plus a string of spirited R&R classics. A great time was had by all.

UMA Audio SUMMER UP-DATE & REVIEW

Some of you have seen, and used, a group of new microphones available at UMA Audio. It all starts with the mike! I especially like the "Bluebird" because it looks so cool. It's also an excellent mike. The Neumann TLM 102 is my favorite for flute & vocals. And there is the Sennheiser e609, designed for guitar amps, a cousin of the MD 504 & e604 drum mikes. And just as good. Relatively inexpensive; their answer to the SM 57, I guess. And another Sennheiser MD 421 - ya can't have too many 421s!
The other new member of the studio family last semester is the Avid C-24 "console." Some of you have used it or have been recorded through it. Not really an audio console, it is a "controller" for the Pro Tools system. [Huh? What's a controller?] Don't panic, all will be made clear in AUD 219.
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Speaking of AUD 219, it has changed a bit. We have scheduled it for Monday night only, 6 to 9PM; Fall Semester only. This should work better for those snow & ice periods, and for the folks with long day schedules. Yes, the old 7 to 10+ PM was wearing on even the most hardy and passionate audio geeks. The coverage will be essentially the same: a non-technical how-to course in studio use and operations. That is, how to use the modern studio for superb recording and creative production. And, of course, you will complete two audio projects.

The current blurb:
AUD 219 will provide a solid foundation in principle areas of audio technology, including:
The Pro Tools system
Studio session procedure
Signal processing (compression, EQ, FX, CD/DVD preparation)
Microphones - all you need to know
Recording, mixing and mastering
Recording of drum kits
Recording of voices
Sound reinforcement
Field recording
Making of super stars through creative engineering

AUD 219 serves well as preparation for the other audio-related courses: Digital Music 271 & 300, Sonic Arts courses and Electronic Arts courses. And Auntie Anita says: "AUD 219 is a great course for MUS. Ed. students. You'll need to know how to mic your school jazz ensemble, how to record, and how to set up the P/A system in the auditorium!"
There ya go - sign up before midnight tonight and get free copies of all UMA Music promo CDs!
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While AUD 219 is the fundmental course, one can go far in audio via our current offerings in audio:
AUD 219 in Fall
AUD 319, Advanced Audio and Production, in Spring
AUD 220, Audio Production, anytime as Independent Study
AUD # # # Audio Independent Study, concentrating on specific areas of production and engineering.

For further info or observations, call or e-mail Bill. ([email protected] - 621-3267)

Check out the featurette preview of the coming feature film Phantom in which Jeff Rona talks about using different elements around the submarine to help compose the score to the movie:
http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/independent/phantom/

Phantom - Movie Trailers - iTunes Ed Harris plays the captain of a Cold War Soviet missile submarine who has secretly been suffering from seizures that alter his perception of reality. Forced to leave his wife and daughter, he is rushed into a classified mission, where he is haunted by his past and challenged by a rogue KGB group (l...

OPEN INVITATION to UMA grads who teach.... we will provide an educational session at UMA Audio for your students, including Show & Tell Lite or Show & Tell Heavy or just a recording of your students. This is a free community service. Many Middle & High schools have been here for an afternoon of audio & music experience. Please contact Bill at [email protected] for more details.

FYI- An excellent statement starts off a review of a now available video (dvd/blu-ray) PRODUCED BY GEORGE MARTIN: “There’s a quote by Degas where he says, ‘Drawing is not what one sees, but what one must make others see.’ And in a way, that’s what we do in sound. The recording is not what one hears, but what one must make others hear.”
http://www.prosoundnetwork.com/Default.aspx?tabid=69&EntryId=623

Prosoundnetwork Blogs - Film Review: Produced By George Martin Home of ProSound News and ProAudio Review

FYI - New Documentary on Sound City recording studios. Check out the trailer.http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HQoOfiLz1G4 #!

Sound City Official Trailer Roswell Films Presents: Sound City. A Film by Dave Grohl. Coming February 2013. Preorder available now at http://soundcitymovie.com

SoundStories - For those of you who are interested in sound designing for film/video here is an article on creating the sounds for Steven Spielberg's War Horse film.
http://carpetbagger.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/03/war-horse-sound-tricks-otters-stand-in-for-horses-and-other-trade-secrets/?scp=3&sq=war%20horse&st=cse

'War Horse' Sound Tricks: Ice Skates for Bullets and Other Trade Secrets The "War Horse" sound crew used household items like vacuum cleaners and water bottles to recreate the sounds of battle, and otters and walruses for the horses.

SoundStories - Keith Richards interview with NPR about recording "Street Fighting Man" back in '68... Upcoming interviews with Mick, Charlie, and Ron...
http://www.npr.org/2012/11/13/165033885/keith-richards-these-riffs-were-built-to-last-a-lifetime

Keith Richards: 'These Riffs Were Built To Last A Lifetime' : NPR Celebrating 50 years with a new compilation and tour, the guitarist and songwriter calls "Street Fighting Man" one of his favorite Rolling Stones songs.

Here is the full post on GE's website. http://www.gereports.com/how-loud-is-a-wind-turbine/

How Loud is a Wind Turbine? | GE Reports How Loud is a Wind Turbine? November 18, 2010 Because wind turbines are such a great source of clean, renewable energy, they’re usually greeted with a great deal of enthusiasm. But some complaints have been made that they can cause too much noise for residents living within a mile of t...