Blog: Archive

Today we did our final preparation for the Live Sound Reinforcement Proficiency Test as a class. We set up the MH 2 and worked around every possible problem that could possibly be faced. All the best!

Apr 3rd

Today the class finished recording all of the Vocal Tracks for the Jonathan Leong Recording Sessions. In the beginning, we set up three microphones to AB them and find out which microphone suited Jonathans voice best. I was in charge of the Tracking Sheet today. Check it out!

Mar 25th

Today the Sound Reinforcement Class learned how to set up a typical stage and control the Front Of House with the Soundcraft MH 2 Console. I think that the reason we did this today was to practice for the Live Sound Proficiency Test coming up.

Mar 20th

Today my group, Group H had our Sound Alike Recording Session. We chose the song Video Killed The Radio Star as we felt that it had a very Raw quality to it. And we wanted to try to recreate that. Anyway, we would like to thank Asyeeqah, Gabriel, Lam and Doe for their help with Group H.

Mar 19th

Today we had the chance to work with LASALLE’s Star Student Jonathan Leong. If you did not already know, Jonathan Leong was the Runner Up in the first season of Singapore Idol. We recorded his band today. I was really interested in the Guitar Recording Technique we used today. We used two microphones directly in front of the Fender Twin and one microphone placed in the middle of the room....

Mar 18th

This week, Esplanade presents Mosaic Music Festival. I really like this festival as the Esplanade brings in many bands from the region to perform. I am looking forward to watching the rest of the bands throughout the festival.

Mar 8th

I helped Group F with their Sound Alike recording today. I played the drums for the track Wonderwall. Overall, I felt happy with a few of the drum takes I managed to record. Hopefully everything goes smoothly with their Sound Alike and I look forward to starting on my Groups’ session. We will be doing the song Video Killed The Radio Star. Watch This Space!

Mar 5th

We started recording the final Guitar tracks with Rick today. Here is a picture of the cool guitar he brought in to record with today.

Feb 12th

We continued with Rick Smith’s Jazz Recording today. We used the whole session today to track Guitar. Check it out!

Feb 5th

(Artistic shot of what went down during Lunchtime Concert today)

Feb 4th

Over the past few months, I have been building up my Home Studio. And I am pleased to announce that the Rock Wool Floors are complete. I have also installed these Studio Monitor Speakers in the room. However, I am only using the speakers together with my iPod at the moment. I cannot wait to get the room done.

Feb 2nd

This is another post dedicated to my band, the Mannequins. I just came back from the Second Round of the Baybeats Auditions held at the Esplanade this year. The Audition went down with each band playing two original compositions for the Judges to judge and see if we have the potential to perform at the festival. Anyway, I have been told that the results will be released tonight. Fingers...

Feb 1st

CLASS TRIP! We visited the wonderful Theaters in School Of The Arts (SOTA) for our Acoustic class today. We got an inside look from the designer of the theatre herself, Mandy. Overall, it was a good experience. Also, this was the first time I have actually been to SOTA. So.

Jan 27th

We had a really simple set up for the Lunchtime Concert today. A Hip Hop act came to the SIA Theatre this afternoon and performed a few songs. Anyway, I said it was a simple set up because it was basically just a DJ and a few boys with Microphones. Cool.

Jan 21st

The Avengers embarked on our Jazz Recording today. We started our Recording Sessions with Rick Smith and Sunshower. Basically, over the next four weeks, we have to record and produce a complete TRACK. This is going to be tough. But we will get through it. Together. Bracken.

Jan 15th

The Lunchtime Concert hosted one of Singapore’s biggest Rock/Pop bands, The Summer State, today. I was really excited to work with them. Anyway, I wrote a review on that concert HERE. Check it out! http://www.tumblr.com/blog/concertreview3

Jan 14th

We usually had our Thursday classes at 9 AM last Semester. So we showed up extra early for class this morning not knowing that it has been shifted to 11 AM this Semester. Basically James went through a few of the topics he will be covering with us this Semester. Meh.

Jan 9th

It is January and I am back in school. So here is a very cool photo of it. Bracken

Jan 7th

Happy Holidays! I want to use this post to wish everyone a very Happy Christmas and a very Merry New Year! God Bless!

Dec 19th

http://fourmannequins.bandcamp.com

Dec 9th

*UPDATE* We recorded the Vocal tracks for the Demo in my bedroom. Check out the Homemade Pop Filter done with a Hanger and a Sock. Bracken

Dec 6th

This one is a follow up to the earlier post regarding my band and the Yamaha Asian Beat Competition. So today my band used one of the music practice rooms in school to record our Demos. We brought in our own equipment and managed to complete a recording today. I will be posting it up online soon so, WATCH THIS SPACE! Bracken

Dec 5th

I know this has nothing to do with school but I just want to let you know that my band, The Mannequins, made it to the Yamaha Asian Beat Grand Finals this year. And earlier tonight, we represented Singapore against 7 other bands in Kallang Theatre. I have got to admit, it was a Rush. Unfortunately, we did not walk away with anything. However, it was a good experience for both me and my band....

Nov 10th

It is the End of the first Semester in my Second Year in LASALLE College Of The Arts. I would just like to say that I feel that I have become more disciplined in Audio Production and I understand the concept of Signal Flow now. I did not really get it as much last year than compared to this year. Anyway, I also want to add that my group, Group H, is attached to the Dance Production called SEE...

Nov 1st

We have come to the last Lunchtime Concert for the Semester. Todays concert featured Catalogue V. I was placed onto the Stage Crew for this concert and I figured that since it was the last concert for the semester, I had to go all out. The Stage Crew raised the standards today by setting the stage VERY professionally. Just see for yourself in the Picture above. I am Proud. Bracken

Oct 22nd

Today, Eric from Marina Bay Sands came in and shared some of his knowledge on Metering in Audio Production. He also brought in some Meters to show us. And explained how it works. It was interesting to me as I did not really know how to set my Levels for my recordings before, but after today, I know that I should “Trust The Meter”. Bracken

Oct 21st

Today was a really good day as The School Of Contemporary Music managed to get the Yamaha CL3 Mixing Console in. We used it in class this morning and it was Magical. We learned how to use it together as a class and figured out that it was pretty similar to the other Yamaha consoles we have worked with before. Bracken

Oct 17th

I was back on the Monitor Console during the Lunchtime Concert today. Well, it was a Jazz Trio. So there was not much to do on the Monitors as most of the Jazz musicians that I have worked with SO FAR, would rather listen to themselves on stage than through speakers. I was quite comfortable being on the Monitor Console today as it was my second time. By now, I fully understand the Signal...

Oct 15th

Tonight my friend and classmate PANG JH booked an Open Studio slot for us to work on some original tracks. Since it was not a class, I really had the time to study the SSL Duality SE we have in C201. I think that the whole idea of the Open Studio is really good as we as students get to run our own Recording Session and learn from it. Anyway, I am happy to say that we successfully recorded a...

Oct 14th

Its Thursday and today we had a final review on the Yamaha M7CL Mixing Console. Adarsh joined the class today to share some of his knowledge of the console with us. All in all, it was a refreshing class. Bring it on Proficiency Exam! Bracken

Oct 10th

Today we started on our Classical Recording. We moved the piano nearer to the wall in the Live Room today as we did not really get a good Bass Response last week. This was a suggestion from the other Group, The Scavengers. So we recorded the piece using the various stereo miking techniques and got the musician to pick the best sounding technique during the listening session thereafter. Right. ...

Oct 9th

The Lunchtime Concert today featured Shimona Kee and her band. I do not really have a lot to say. So here are some of the pictures I took. Bracken

Oct 8th

Today we went through a little bit of the Yamaha M7CL Mixing Console together with James. Apparently we have a M7CL Proficiency Test coming up. (Y) Bracken

Oct 3rd

Today The Avengers set up a few Stereo Miking Techniques for the Pre Production for our Classical Recording. I was assigned by Justin to research on the Spaced Pair or AB Stereo Miking Technique. Here is a picture of what went down in C201 today. Bracken

Oct 2nd

Today, we set up the Monitor Console behind the Red curtain of the Proscenium Arch in the SIA Theatre instead of the side stage of the SIA Theatre during the Lunchtime Concert. There was a particular reason as to why we did this. James wanted to create a Monitor Mix purely through the Auxiliary Monitor Speaker we had set up. I found this quite challenging as we could not really communicate...

Oct 1st

(RAD PHOTO BY: ME) Today we did a little bit of Reverb Convolution in the Acoustic class with Mandy. Basically she explained to us the concept of Reverb Convolution and how to get a RT Reading using the ROOM EQ WIZARD application. Bracken

Sep 2nd

Today my class, The Avengers, had a Recording Session with Justin in the C201 Studio. I have got to be honest with you, the class was really unprepared and unprofessional on this one. Sorry. Anyway, I set up the drums for this session. I went for a more minimalistic approach to the set up as well as the miking. I did not use a Rack Tom and only miked the Kick, Snare and Overheads. We recorded...

Aug 28th

Today, the Audio Production class was introduced to a new toy, also known as, the Soundcraft MH 2. I really liked using this console as it is an Analog console. I love anything Analog. I also found it easy to use as the Coloured Knobs made it so much easier to understand the Signal Flow. I really look forward to using this console more often. Bracken

Aug 27th

The Lunchtime Concert presented the School Of Contemporary Music with a Jazz line up again this week. The Audio Production Class had to set up the Stage, the Monitors as well as the Front Of House. This week, my Group was in charge of the Monitors. We had to set up the Yamaha Console as well as the Yamaha DSP on Stage Left. This was the “Side Stage Monitor Control Area”....

Aug 20th

Today we had to set up for the Lunchtime Concert. The Lunchtime Concert today featured a Jazz Duet consisting of a Traditional Drum Kit as well as a Traditional Indian Instrument also known as Tabla. It was interesting to watch two almost completely different instruments forming almost completely perfect pieces of music. After the Lunchtime Concert, The Scavengers Group recorded The...

Aug 13th

August 2012 - Level 2 Summer Vacation has come to an end and the School Year has come to a start. Firstly, I am definitely looking forward to gaining knowledge this year. I have to admit, I have become a bit of an Audiophile over the holidays. At least research more into Audio Production. Secondly, I have been told that the Audio Production class has new Modules this year. For example, an...

Jul 31st

Okay here are some of the thoughts and experiences I have had over the past year in LASALLE College Of The Arts. When I first entered the school, I really had no idea how to use an actual mixing board. I don’t think any of my classmates did either. But after weeks and weeks of practice, we managed to get the basics down and now we are actually able to work on most mixing boards by...

May 1st

Remember that post about the Sound-Alikes assignment my group did? Well, today we had to present the song to the class, together with some information of the recording techniques we used. Anyway, I hope the class liked the final mix we presented. I know Brandon did. He gave us an 8.5/10. Awesome. Peace out, Bracken.

Apr 29th

Today we had a Pop recording session in the studio. Which I also believe was the last recording session we have this semester. I think. Anyway, we recorded a total of 5 bands for this recording session. One song each. I think that it was a good experience for me as I got to work with the Music students from the other levels. Hey, its all about the connections you have man. Peace out, Bracken.

Apr 26th

Okay this is going to be a long post. Here it goes. So this morning, we had the Live Sound Reinforcement Group Proficiency Test with James. This Live Sound Reinforcement Group Proficiency Test involved the setting up and operating of various audio equipment which would actually be used in a practical live sound situation. Each group were given a series of tasks to complete within a stated...

Apr 25th

Today was one of the more scary days of my life here in LASALLE College Of The Arts because of the SSL Proficiency Test we had in the morning. Of course, I was super nervous before it was my turn to enter the gates of C201, to do the practical exam. But after I was done, I felt a tremendous amount of relief, after Justin had told me I passed. Hooray. Peace out, Bracken.

Apr 8th

Today some of us had to take the Live Sound Reinforcement Proficiency Exam with James in the afternoon. I was really nervous before going in to take my exam. And it also did not help that I was the last on the list today. But as my friends finished the exam one by one, I gradually felt better as I knew that if most of them could do it, I would be able to do it too. After the exam, I obviously...

Mar 31st

Today we had a review session with Hector regarding the SSL Proficiency Exam coming up. It was really useful as I did not really know much about the SSL before but now I feel that the force is with me. Time to study up. Peace out, Bracken.

Mar 29th

The Wanderers. Wanderfest. 28 March 2012. 7:30 PM. Home Club.

Mar 27th

Today we went through Wireless Microphone Technology with James. Here are some of the things that we learnt. We learnt that there are TWO MAIN PARTS to a wireless system. The Transmitter and the Receiver. We also learnt how to tune the microphones to the correct frequency and use it with a speaker. After going through the basics, David volunteered to show the rest of us how a basic wireless...

Mar 1st