Soundcraft Inaugurates Going Live! Seminar in U.S.

Soundcraft, a leading British manufacturer of live sound mixing consoles, is set to host the first North American Going Live! seminar at the Soundcheck rehearsal facility in Nashville on November 4 and 5.

This unique event combines training in sound engineering techniques with opportunities for close-up equipment assessment. The tips and techniques come from leading sound professionals usually found on the international touring circuit. The equipment comes from Soundcraft and fellow members of the Harman International group of companies: AKG, BSS, Lexicon, and Spirit, among others.

The Going Live! seminar operates on a non-partisan and non-profit basis. Soundcraft 'sponsors' the event in terms of organization, provision of equipment and underwriting its costs, but it is not a sales exercise. Tutors are independent sound engineers or product specialists, not salesmen! So far, the instructors for the US event include 'Big' Mick Hughes and Robert 'Cubby' Colby, with a number of other high-profile front-of-house and monitor engineers currently making commitments to help with the program. Hughes, of course, is best known as Metallica's long-time front-of-house mixer, as well as for his live work with Ozzy Osbourne and Def Leppard, prior to that. Colby's resume is equally impressive, having run front-of-house for acts like Phil Collins, Janet Jackson, The Cure, Bob Seger, and Genesis, in addition to serving as the Grammy Awards' house engineer for the last two years.

Only 100 places are available on the weekend course, which runs Saturday morning through Sunday early evening, so interested participants are encouraged to register early.

Tickets are $350 per person (plus taxes), with a $50 discount for bona fide students. This fee includes lunch and coffee throughout the course, as well as extensive printed information and course notes.

History of Going Live!

Since 1992, almost 1000 aspiring and working sound engineers have passed through Soundcraft's Going Live! program, some of who are now working on the international touring level. The format has, on occasion, been extended to more specialized subjects such as 'Theatre Sound' and the 'Monitoring Masterclass', and has been exported to Germany and South America. Candy Davies, marketing manager of Soundcraft, explains that "students come because Going Live! is a unique set-up; the opportunity to gain personal experience with new high-quality PA equipment under the guidance of some of the best engineers in the world."

The formula is a simple and proven one. Soundcraft provides professional PA gear for the event, including a wide variety of mixing consoles for front-of-house and monitoring. All of the course instructors are working engineers who tour with the biggest acts in popular music. And, to complete the picture, real musicians are provided for the live experiment - one of the rare occasions when the band is working for the sound engineer!

By presenting professional touring sound engineers in the role of teachers, Soundcraft saves its student body of aspiring live engineers the horrors of the tour bus but enables them to tap into the real-world experience and practical knowledge that months of book-learning might not provide.

Professional engineers find it surprisingly seductive to be on the stage, in the spotlights, wearing the microphone. The cast list has been incredibly diverse over the years, including Roger Lindsay, Chrys Lindop, Jim Ebdon, 'Big' Mick Hughes, Chris Beale (SSE), Mike Spratt (Wigwam) and Andrew Frengley (Canegreen); several have signed up for repeat engagements.

All the usual topics - from how to operate front-of-house and monitor consoles to microphone placement and outboard electronics - are covered in a packed two-day agenda. An important addition to the usual program is a session dedicated to digital mixing.