While I am yet to hear how my applications for the bigger degree pathway scholarships have fared (blogged about in very dodgy terms here), I've received a letter from RMIT advising me -- 'Congratulations!'

My application for a Student Support Scholarship has been successful!

The University is giving me $1,000.00 toward the expense of materials and general study costs while undertaking the Diploma in Music Industry (Technical Production).

This is great because the debt I've racked up studying so far this year is $1,010.00.

I actually don't expect to get the bigger scholarships, as I know without re-reading my applications, I hit some wrong notes. The structure of those submissions is a lot more confused. Maybe that has no bearing, but I just don't think it'll go through.

But "Yay!" for the Student Support Scholarship.

RMIT. What a contrast to the other place, huh?

Event Management is one of the (more sensibly named) subjects I'm taking this year at RMIT. In many ways, I could probably teach this class, but it's part of the diploma, so I'm doing my hours as a student must do.

We're putting on a fairly big gig in June - an album launch for Nicky Bomba and The Drummers Of Katoomba. As a precursor to that, we have two fundraiser events - and I've put my hand up to write the publicity materials, and get the info to the media. (I know a bit about that too.) I've already penned my share of professional Media Releases - but the one for this gig is kinda nice and shiny, so I thought I'd blog it here.

Bad publicity writing is really easy, and good publicity writing is really hard. It's supposed to be accessible, and punchy, not highbrow, yet not moronic. (The above is easily as good as anything I get in my in box as a journalist - a comparison by which I do myself a disservice, given the grammatical backyard abortion that is most metal press releases.)

One of the difficult things about the above PR is that the gig is one I'd try not to book (if I were working as a venue booker). Putting those styles together makes it hard to promote - the only thing the bands have in common is guitars and difference. I'm sure it'll be a fun night, but it's not an easy thing to plug. It's not about anything.

I couldn't resist sneaking in a literary horror reference, and thus it smacks of Lovecraft meets Absolutely Fabulous! Now those are two things that I never imagined I'd lump together... not even in the name of ROCK. Just goes to show, coffee is evil.

I had a test on Thursday, on Synchronisation -- which is the technical stuff that occurs to get audio and video (analogue and digital) devices locked together in various kinds of audio/visual production facilities.

At RMIT these competencies are covered in a subject called
Audio For Media. My tutor for this subject is Tim Johnston, who also teaches the EMT (Electronic Music Technology) subject.

Tim was a house engineer at Metropolis, which until recently (when it closed doors for good) was the Mecca for big music production values in Melbourne. Tim has a pretty neat CV from what I could find online when I was researching which course to do in 2008. This is his very short career blurb from the 2006 Ausmusic/Metropolis/3PBS Masterclass series website.

From here.

Not bad, huh?

I mention this because technically I already completed the competency in Synchronisation at THAT PLACE, where I actually had to stripe analogue tape with timecode, and lock it to both Protools and two Umatic video playback/recorders. The "gentleman" who took that class has no notable production credentials in industry outside those sponsored and facilitated by the TAFE. Whatever that means - something that ain't nothing.

The way the Diploma in Music Production is structured, all the competencies have to be covered, but the training providers can package them into subjects any way they want. It was easier to just slot into the RMIT course structure, than try to pull apart individual parts that I have/have not covered.

Also, at RMIT I'm getting far superior written support materials, and a lot more experience in Protools and Logic, which are of more application than analogue chops. Not sorry I've played with vintage equipment (although it certainly wasn't worth the headfuck of THAT PLACE.)

So, test in Synchronisation - Tim graded the tests and emailed the results out THE SAME DAY we took the test. He didn't give us any student names - just student numbers, which is kinda cool as I can see how I fared in terms of entire class performance. I've further cut the doc to protect the anonymity of those students who didn't go so great.

I didn't get 100% - but then no one did. Four students got 18 (92%), and I'm one of them. Getting the highest grade given is OK by me.

I actually wrote "trick question?" next to one answer, and a "?" next to another -- so I reckon those are the ones I got wrong. One of them was a small boring math thing (unlike a lot of the interesting math things), and the other was nowhere near my study notes. Anyway, so far I am still in A or A+ territory with all my results, which is not a bad place to be.

Today was a return to Tuesday classes, after two weeks off.

Event Management -- I started to get a headache in Event Management, and by the end of class my skull was pounding horribly.  Jill cracked the shits at the class today - which to be perfectly honest is EXACTLY what I wish had occurred about 100 times at Box Hill. Testosterone ego bullshit and disruptions - not only is it disrespectful to the teacher, but it is disrespectful to the other students. To see it NOT tolerated with a boys-will-be-boys disclaimer on basic courtesy - gold!

But my head was ouchies, and I could have lived without the yelling and aggression while in such pain. Self-medicated with lots of water and a couple of extremely nice soy cappuccinos in Lygon Street - and got some sweet sympathy sms' from Scott -  this took the edge off, but I was still flat by the next class.

Apply Music Knowledge & Artistic Judgement -- My teacher for this subject is a bloke called Paul Thomas. Paul was sporting some very dark sunglasses as he sauntered to class, because as we all know (and forget) alcohol is initially fun, and subsequently excrutiating.  He played a few gigs over the weekend in Perth with his band Weddings, Parties, Anything. According to punkrocker1991 they were worthy of repeat patronage (which by the way I reported back to Paul - you gotta love repeat customers). This semester is going to be increasingly amusing as the WPA associated staff members slide ever deeper into Reunion Tour Dementia.

A student gave a presentation today, on the production techniques of Mastodon's Colony Of Birchmen. The usual guff about the band being technical and progressive. 

Paul commented, 'I don't really know that much about metal, to comment on the band - anyone who knows their metal have an opinion of that?'
I chimed in, 'Overrated!'
The presenting student gave me a tight-lipped, 'I do not share your opinion.'

When I related it to Scott later, he was stirring me, 'Making enemies!' *
To which I replied, 'Nah - but any guy who can't cope with someone not agreeing with their opinion of one band... who cares? Besides, Mastodon - there are other bands who paint with that dirty palette who are more authentically technical and progressive. Their songs are actually simple.'
'Yeah, it's like saying my mum makes authentic Italian pasta.'

I liked that.

[Wish the guy had given the presentation on what I think musta been Re-Anaconda by Zimmers Hole - which he played as an April Fools joke.]

There was a music managers forum panel on at The Laundry tonight, which if it were not for the headache of doom - I might have gone. I know the booking agent was from Premiere Artists, so they'd be good. But I don't know who they were featuring in the way of a manager or publicist -- since there are some practitioners out there who are great, and some whom one could only describe by damning with faint praise --  OK, I could damn with something stronger --  the gist of the thing is, it wasn't worth a blind punt with a sore head.



OK -- I'm turning in early, to give myself a chance to sleep off the headache before the codeine wears off...

Random Addendum: this Guide to Grammar and Writing is really neat.

* I already have enemies. They also fall in the WHO CARES category.

Today I gave a 15 minute presentation on the pre-production and production of the Alarum song Remote Viewing, for 20% credit in the Apply Music Knowledge & Artistic Judgment subject. (There's a pretentious subject name.) I based my talk on a combination of research from secondary sources, my existing published writing about the band (interviews and review), the Eventuality recording, three pre-production demos, and primary sources -- interviews with Scott, Mark, and Theron. (Theron answered his phone, despite my calling from a private number! Which takes string-pulling!! Thanks, string-puller!!!)

I got 20/20. Which means for this subject, I haven't lost any points yet! (Which means I kicked arse, just quietly.)

Must send little thank you cards to my interviewees, who tolerated a lot of detailed questioning.

Add that to my massive backlogue of "shit to send out to the world".

But today I got my 20%, and that's OK. And it's enough to flog in the blog for today, because I saw every hour roll by on the clock last night. Couldn't switch off after all those interviews. I am wiped tonight.

I had a Protools assessment this morning -- stressful, as I'm *really* not up to the same knowledge level as the RMIT continuing students. I spent two and a half hours in the library last night, cross-referencing any unfamiliar phrases in the practice assessment against a stack of books. Which doesn't really work as a catch up, but it's better than doing nothing. (I did learn a few totally new things, and figure out how to do them in the program.)

Really trying not to stress out about it, but it's something of a final insult that Pog Hill doesn't prepare their students to go elsewhere at any exit point. But that would be putting the students before the almighty $. Why do that, when you can divvy out the knowledge into as many small packets as possible, and attach simply huge price tags to them? For a lark put some goon at the front of each class. A goon who can cross his arms. And flap his lips. Flap. Flap. Flap. It fills the duration of the class up with SOMETHING all right, but is it really teaching?

The great excuse is held up, again and again -

"O, you do end up teaching yourself - but that's what it's like in industry."

The industry of completely pox teaching, perhaps? Or the industry of being a money-grubbing arsehole? Aren't those related disciplines?

Anyway - I struggled through the Protools assessment today, barely.

My teacher for the Create A Final Sound Balance subject -- John Phillips -- invited me to sit in on a first year subject called Digital Editing, which I've just done. This is kind of the equivalent of the subject a certain goon made gestures toward teaching at Pog Hill. Completely inane gestures - babbling at rapid-fire pace, in an unbelievably boring un-modulated voice (which makes one seriously question the depth of the guys musicality), and prefacing his very first verbal info dump with, "Now I only want to say this once, and I don't want any stupid questions when I finish." (Because that would be no reflection of his pedagogical shortcomings.)

When I requested print learning materials from the goon (because he was so horrible to follow verbally), I got the *genius* answer, "No, I can't write anything down, because that would imply there are no other ways into the program."

It's the Fahrenheit 451 approach to music education.

I'm getting a fresh perspective - this is going to mean some purgative rants. To clean out the gunk and trauma. I really hope I can kick off the censorship vibe - because if I write this shit out, it'll be easier to write other things.

Anyway, the class today on Logic was awesome. Coherently structured, intelligently articulated, and with sufficient support material in both prac exercises and written learning materials to - you know - be an actual lesson.

How refreshing.