Recently, the question was asked of me, “How do I get into The Big Time?” How indeed? Although I understand the person’s desire for success, and I certainly do comprehend what is meant by “The Big Time,” I seriously have no absolute viable solution to the query. The good news is that, for any neophyte seeking a job in the audio business, there are many available avenues to “The Big Time.” The bad news, on the other hand, is that, once you arrive at your destination, it may not seem as glossy as “The Big Time” you once expected. Therefore, I must say that it’s not as much the destination as it is the journey, because if one keeps seeking the big gig just around the corner, then it becomes increasingly difficult to see that they may have finally arrived. (That’s right; I spent my New Year’s Day watching the Twilight Zone marathon).
Important, Yet Unseen
Most every live engineer I know is either a musician (of varying degrees) or is a fan who wants to be as close as possible to the music they enjoy. Mixing a band, whether it is at the Front of House or monitor position, gives any engineer the enviable status of being part of the show. Just like the musician on stage, the engineer is there at that one singular moment in time, reveling in the glory and excitement of the live performance. You, as the engineer, are capable of making or breaking the show, and yet the cheers are never really for you. Even though you may be appreciated for your talent, you are never called back for an encore performance to once again show off your brilliant usage of effects or your mastery of compression and noise gates. No. Your amazing command of preamps and equalization will never be adored or cherished in the same way as the guitarist’s every lick, the vocalist’s soulful turn of a phrase or the drummer’s remarkable groove. You may get a random compliment here and there for your work, but no audience will ever show their appreciation for the sublime way in which you rang out the system or so perfectly set the delay stacks. This is it; you have finally arrived at The Big Time.
That’s right! You have reached your destination, and the irony is that in “The Big Time,” you are toiling unnoticed in the dark, just as you did in the “small time.” Nothing has changed, except that, now that you have reached “The Big Time,” your coffers are being filled with gold and jewels instead of the meager pittance you were receiving in “the small time.” Yes, and you finally have a bunk on the bus and now live in the lap of luxury. Again, this is it! But while I am able to describe “The Big Time,” I have as yet to explain how to get there.
Getting There
There is, of course, the standard method of reaching The Big Time by going to school and learning how to be a studio engineer. Then, after four years, you can graduate and get a job in a studio as an intern and make nothing as you wait your turn to actually utilize your skills. The realization that everyone ahead of you will have to die before you get a chance to engineer impels you to take a job in a small club doing live sound for the local bands that pass through. While the money isn’t great, it is a vast improvement over your wage as an intern, as you have now elevated yourself to an income bracket and you are at least working at doing something you enjoy. Before you know it, you’re making a living and hooked on the lifestyle. Pretty soon, your reputation as a live audio engineer blossoms, and the local band you’ve been working with gets a recording deal (or something like it) and they invite you to tour with them. You are not there yet, but you’re on your way.
In a parallel universe somewhere, some young bright kid, with dreams of being a famous musician, graduates high school and joins a band. The band is great and they are on their way, but unfortunately, while they are waiting for the big deal to come through, the kid needs to make a little cash to pay the rent, so he takes an entry-level job with a local sound company. He catches on quickly, and before long, he’s mixing small shows. One thing leads to another, and the shows get better, the bands get bigger and the next thing he knows his band has broken up and he is an engineer mixing bands for a living in “The Big Time.”
Transparency and Transcendence
No matter the scenario, most live engineers learn their trade by working in a club, a sound company or for a band and, more likely than not, it’s a learn-as-you-go situation. Gain structure, frequencies, Ohm’s law, delays, routing, signal flow, soldering and truck-driving are all important skills that one must master to get to “The Big Time,” but, grasshopper, the most important thing one needs to know and master if they are to make it to “The Big Time” is how to be invisible. Unlike the band on stage that needs to exude personality and to be bigger than life, the engineer needs to be transparent. His job is to open all the channels (literally and figuratively) and allow the energy to flow. Being transparent, he lets the power of the performance pass through him and into the room without any distraction for the listener.
Performers, such as actors and musicians, need to make a statement with their personalities and are required to communicate with an audience by creating bigger-than-life characters that can dominate a stage or screen. Even a good lighting show requires personality, and many an LD will still illicit “Oohs” and “Ahhs” from a crowd, even if their skills are only mediocre at best. Audio, on the other hand, is best felt and not heard (old Zen audio saying). Every audience, regardless of the venue, expects the sound to be perfect, and the only time that they will take notice of the engineer is when there are errant frequencies, feedback or lack of clarity in the mix. Once one has mastered the physics of sound, then it is time to become invisible and translucent, put your ego aside, and let the sound pass through you. Stop mixing and be one with the performance. Do not color the sound with what you think the sound should be, but instead allow the sound to dictate to you its own essence. Then become invisible as the perfect sound passes through you to be consumed by a blissful audience. By quieting the inner voice, shutting down the ego and becoming invisible, you will never need to seek “The Big Time” again, as you realize that “The Big Time” is within you, and not a destination to be sought after. Remember grasshopper, be invisible, and when you no longer seek it, “The Big Time” will find you.
