AU 1111 Week 3 Prep

Hello all,

We meet again tomorrow for Week 3. Remember to post your Industry Report 2 (Musician/Producer/Songwriter/Agent) and your Reading Reflection 2 as comments to these posts on the Course Blog:

http://au1111.blogspot.com/2010/07/reading-reflection-2.html
http://au1111.blogspot.com/2010/07/industry-report-2.html

I am also giving the class a grace period, so that those of you who missed the first week's assignments can post those reports and not receive a late penalty. But these have to be posted by the beginning of class tomorrow to receive this break.

Here are the links to the posts I've added for these late assignments:

http://au1111.blogspot.com/2010/07/reading-reflection-1.html
http://au1111.blogspot.com/2010/07/industry-report-1.html

This week we will be talking about the Audiobook industry, as well as the Audio Trade industry (music magazines, books about audio, etc.). So, read Touzeau Chapter 3 and 5 to prepare.

Week 2 Follow-up

Hello, all.

I've added a few readings to the list for this week. You will only need to pick one to write on for your Reading Reflection 2, which is due by the beginning of Week 3 on Tuesday the 27th as a comment to this post on the Course Blog:

http://au1111.blogspot.com/2010/07/reading-reflection-2.html

Remember: write your response in Word or Notepad, click on the "comments" link on the post (or click into the comments box) and paste your text into the box.

Industry Report 2 is also due by the beginning of class, and this one will feature the Musician/Songwriter/Producer field. Since there is no chapter on this field in the textbook, write about some of the things we talked about in class, what you could pull from the readings, and your own thoughts on this career. Remember that you are answering the following questions:

1. The name and brief description of the career option.

2. A summary of the pros and cons, personal traits necessary for success, entry-level requirements, etc.

3. An examination of whether or not this career is a good fit for you.

Here is the link to the specific post:

http://au1111.blogspot.com/2010/07/industry-report-2.html

Next week we will be examining the Audio Book/Audio Trade Industry, so make sure to read Chapter 3 from the "Careers in Audio" textbook (your Reading Response 2 can cover this reading).

Have a great weekend!

Reading Reflection #2

Reading Reflection #2. If there are multiple readings assigned for a particular week, just pick one. The responses will consist of three-paragraph statements on a single article or essay, answering the following three questions (one paragraph per question):

1. Identify the article you have selected and why you chose it.

2. What are the main points of the essay?

3. Did the article convince you one way or the other about the feasibility of a career in this field? Please explain.

Post as a comment to this post (click "comments" link below). Due by the beginning of class Week 3.

Industry Report #2

Industry Report #2: Musician/Songwriter/Producer/Agent

You will examine each career option, the pros and cons, the personal traits needed for success, entry level requirements, etc. Your report will answer the following questions:

1. The name and brief description of the career option.

2. A summary of the pros and cons, personal traits necessary for success, entry-level requirements, etc.

3. An examination of whether or not this career is a good fit.

You can format your Industry Report however you wish: a mock interview with yourself as a series of Q and A, a narrative with the answers woven into the text, etc. Post as a comment to this post (click on the "comments" link below).

Grading Criteria and Group Presentations

Hello, all.

I have added the grading criteria for the Reading Reflections and Industry Reports to the Projects page:

http://www.glennbach.com/ai/au1111_projects.html

Or, you can access each one directly:

http://www.glennbach.com/ai/au1111_reading_criteria.pdf
http://www.glennbach.com/ai/au1111_industry_criteria.pdf

These are the spreadsheets I will be using to grade your reports, and so you can read through and see what I will be looking for when you are framing your responses to the questions.

Also, I decided to move back the dates for the group presentations to give you more time to do research and formulate your presentations. I also wanted to slot them in after midterms and before finals so that they will hopefully have a lesser impact on your schedules posed by your other classes.

So, here is the adjusted schedule:

Week 7 : Film Sound (Kevin, Alfredo, Rick, Johnnie)
Week 8 : Broadcasting (Erick, Matt, Jose)
Week 9 : Live Sound (Gerry, Jonathan, Parish, Andrew)

This is also posted on the Projects page and Schedule:

http://www.glennbach.com/ai/au1111_schedule.html

Okay. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Week 1 Follow-up

Hello, all.

You may have noticed (or not) that I removed the link to the Course Blog from the online syllabus:

http://www.glennbach.com/ai/au1111_syllabus.html

I did this because I felt that using the blog was an extra, unnecessary step in getting your assignments to me. So, from now on, go ahead and mail your Reading Reflections and Industry Reports directly to me at gbach@edmc.edu.

A few words about the Reading Reflection. The word "reflection" is defined as "a fixing of the thoughts on something; careful consideration," or "a thought occurring in consideration or meditation." This type of careful consideration is exactly the skill I would hope that each of you practice on a regular basis during your career at Ai and beyond. By consistently ruminating on our current state of being, on our place in the world at THIS moment in space and time, we are able to judge how we are doing and where we still need to go. So, by applying this state of mind to the readings, you can position yourself in relation to a particular field, or even a specific job within that field, to see whether or not you can see yourself pursuing such an activity. Even if you remain steadfast in your determination to make beats, or promote bands, or test gear, or whatever, at least you have spent some time at least considering your options, so that in an interview situation you can respond with confidence and authority about that particular area of audio if it comes up in conversation, especially if you have to interview with a panel and you are fielding questions from several people from different disciplines. It's always good to be prepared, and the more you know about the industry (and the sub-industries, and sub-sub-industries), the stronger you will be.

And for this upcoming Industry Report: we talked in class about the Recording/Music Industry, even though the Touzeau textbook doesn't really cover that field (for reasons which he explains in the Introduction). So, let's look at the standard questions for the Industry Report:

1. The name and brief description of the career option. This is easy. The Music Industry would involve direct involvement of getting music recorded, mastered, printed, distributed, promoted, etc. (We will talk about the actual MAKING of the music next week when we cover Musician/Songwriter/Sound Artist.)

2. A summary of the pros and cons, personal traits necessary for success, entry-level requirements, etc. Here you can simply talk about what you think getting/having/keeping a job in this field would entail. Since the book doesn't offer a breakdown on the Music Industry like it does for the other fields, use your best judgment on some pros and cons, personality types needed, etc. One thing for sure is that internships have always been important ways of breaking into the industry.

3. An examination of whether or not this career is a good fit. This, also, is easy, as it's your opinion.

Here is the link to the Projects page that details the project requirements for both the Reading Reflection and Industry Reports.

http://www.glennbach.com/ai/au1111_projects.html

Okay, that's it for now. I'll be sending another note soon on the group presentations. Best of luck with the rest of your courses.

Reading Reflection #1

Reading Reflection #1. If there are multiple readings assigned for a particular week, just pick one. The responses will consist of three-paragraph statements on a single article or essay, answering the following three questions (one paragraph per question):

1. Identify the article you have selected and why you chose it.

2. What are the main points of the essay?

3. Did the article convince you one way or the other about the feasibility of a career in this field? Please explain.

Post as a comment to this post (click "comments" link below). Due by the beginning of class Week 1.

Industry Report #1

Industry Report #1: Music Industry/Recording Industry

You will examine each career option, the pros and cons, the personal traits needed for success, entry level requirements, etc. Your report will answer the following questions:

1. The name and brief description of the career option.

2. A summary of the pros and cons, personal traits necessary for success, entry-level requirements, etc.

3. An examination of whether or not this career is a good fit.

You can format your Industry Report however you wish: a mock interview with yourself as a series of Q and A, a narrative with the answers woven into the text, etc. Post as a comment to this post (click on the "comments" link below).