Many have tall dreams of making it big as a musical artist, but shy from the learning curve. As it turns out, San Diego Mesa College may be the place to start.
Students from all ages and walks of life can come to Mesa College and begin their musical journey at the Electronic Music Production Program. Instructional Assistant of the Music Department, Alan Goodman, assured that if students come open-minded when entering the classes, they will succeed, “An interest in music and a willingness to learn, but you are going to put in some time learning the industry standard computer program.” No prerequisites are needed to get your foot in the door with this opportunity, and the first course to take is Music 190, “The Electronic Music Studio.”
These MacOS computer based courses are designed to teach students the most up to date software in relation to industry standards. To ensure this standard, recent renovations were made to the Electronic Music Production studio to update all of the software. In Music 190 students are educated on basic and essential skills, while still allowing time for personal creativity during the assignments. Goodman explained the different ways the students utilize the class, “There’s the recording side where people are really focused on recording instruments, then there’s singers/songwriters who want to record their acoustic guitar and their voice, then there’s the electronic music side where people want to use beats and samples and remix things. There’s a little bit of everything in that first class.” Studio interns and tutors are available to support the students as they grow and begin to learn the equipment.
Students are also given the opportunity to perform in front of a live audience. Each Wednesday is recital hour at 4 p.m. in room C-119, where students represent their work and display their artistry for others to enjoy. All are welcomed to come and enjoy the young musicians at work! Professional musicians play for the first half of the semester, while students enrolled in the music courses take the second half of the semester. All different genres are showcased as their respective courses take the stage. The diverse group of producers ranges from Concert Jazz Band, World Ensemble, Classical Guitar Ensemble, and Applied Music Program. While the students are performing, the Large Console Audio Recording course is recording the concerts and doing the back end work. Goodman pointed out how beneficial these performances can be with building real world skills, “Some people are the engineers behind the board, and others are the musicians. This is kind of an introduction to that.”
Musically interested and imaginative students are encouraged to join these courses to take the next step into their musical career. It can be a daunting task to leap into musical production, but it all starts with dulling that learning curve. Goodman asks you to remember, “What can start out as dry notes on a piece of paper, can come alive through these programs.”
