Fletcher wrote on Sun, 25 April 2004 04:32 |
Hey... we're talkin' $300+ worth of price of admission here... the least y'all could do would be to write a serious, or at least quasi-serious plea... or we could drop the whole thing if you'd prefer...
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It looks like Jon and I are the only ones so far who have given serious entrees. The instructions
did say 50 words or less. Had that restriction been looser, I know I would have written a more thorough essay. Judging by Jon's intelligent, thoughtful and more lengthy second attempt, I think he would have done the same.
But anyways... Regardless of who ultimately wins, I would like to thank Fletcher, J.Hall, PSW, TapeOp, and anybody else involved for the opportunity to attend for free. Somebody is going to be lucky.
My essay v2.0:
My name is Dan Costello; I'm a recording student at a small community college south of Rochester, NY. After being laid off last year from a large defense contractor, I chose not to return to the software industry, because that's not where my heart was. It's easy money and I was good at what I did, but it bored me, and I had no interest in what we were producing. What good is a big paycheck if 80% of your waking hours are spent doing something you either hate or see as pointless? I realized that my hobby of music was really where my passion lay, and that audio engineering would provide a good balance for both my technical and artistic interests.
So at age 22, I'm taking a chance on a second career. I want to become a good engineer. If this is going to be a viable career, I have to be a good engineer. I love what I'm doing, and I'm working harder on this than I have on anything ever before. (my GPA last semester was 3.96) I entered school with a fair amount of prior knowledge gleaned from reading and studying everything I could related to recording including books, magazines, internet message boards, instruction manuals, and online tutorials. After 1 year of school, I'm running sound at an area jazz club and am in the process of setting up my first studio internship.
My school's recording program is primarily set up to convey basic technical concepts and provide a vehicle for learning how to put them into practice. The program is good for what it is, and the faculty is great, but being able to set up a board will only take you so far. I want to learn the
art of engineering. Why does this mix or this master sound the way it does and how do I recreate it or avoid recreating it as the case may be? According to the
schedule, this year's panels are exactly what I'm looking for.
Why do I want to go to TapeOpCon? Probably the same reasons anyone else does - education, networking, and a bit of fun. There's so much to learn in this field and TapeOpCon affords a nearly endless supply of knowledge and experience that anyone, especially a rookie like me, can draw upon. Also, I'll need a job once I finish school. Where better to meet potential employers than at an industry conference?
My <=50 word answer to the question of why I should get the free pass:
I'll make the most out of my time there.
-Dan.