Recording School: Los Angeles, MI, SAE

[arpodthegreat]

Please i am looking for answers from people who have experience either attending or employing grads from SAE in NYC, Los Angeles Recording School or Musicians Institute in Hollywood. i am considering attending one of these schools and would like to know if they offer good programs. from what i can tell SAE is a pretty great program that doesn't take too long (9 months) and is a good deal (under $20G with Laptop + software, etc...) Los Angeles has a flashy website and brochure that looks really nice but that's what i'm kind of afraid of. MI i only know as a music school. PLEASE don't tell me to go to Arizona or Ohio or Boston i live in NY now and i'm from LA those are the only places i want to live in the US. here's some background 411:

I'm in college and set to graduate in the spring. my plan has been to move back to LA (home) and continue a career in the recording industry. i've pretty much dismissed recording school for all the reasons that have been discussed in depth. don't waste your money, intern, learn on the job, hands on experience, they don't teach you anything, etc... well now that i'm that much closer to being finished with school i'm starting to think twice about things.
I've been recording on my own since i was in high school and have a good working knowledge of protools. i've made some really good recordings and feel pretty comfortable recording a band and getting good sounds. what i don't feel so great about are more technical skills. i've pretty much only recorded in home studio situations so i don't feel like i know how to operate a large console that well. i'm not that experienced with midi, programming, editing, advanced pro tools, etc... so now i'm wondering if i should fill in the gaps by going to recording school.

thanks for all the great advice that i've gotten on GS hope i get some more....

[illiummusic]

Well, I work at MI and I know people going to SAE in Hollywood(and have been there visiting and recording) and this is what I can tell you.

The RIT program at MI is pretty good, not the best but better than SAE, in LA at least. It has gotten a lot better in the past few years. They have a well rounded program, engineering, mixing, pro tools, etc. They also have a studio etiquette class. Sounds kind of dumb and at first I laughed at it but I have realized that it's actually a very important class. I took it for granted that people learning to be engineers would just naturally understand that they shouldn't do things like talk while the artist is tracking, and so on.

SAE in LA, I wouldn't recommend. Basically like everything else that's Hollywood, all flash and no substance. But SAE's are not built the same. I almost went to the one in Nashville years ago(that's where I'm from), and it would smoke the LA campus, well at least from what I remember. Every time that I have been there to record something has been wrong. Console is broken or is in the wrong mode and the assistants aren't too helpful. Can't comment on the NYC campus.

LARC- Can't comment too much on this school except only from what I've heard. Probably has the best environment of all the LA schools, i.e nicest studios and best gear. Don't know anything about the curriculum or quality of teachers.

Even though you don't want to hear it but you should seriously consider the Recording Conservatory in Arizona. If you're truly serious about going to school to be an engineer, than you should be willing to move to where ever the best school is and from what i have gathered, Rec. Conservatory is one of the best. You can always move to LA or back to NYC when you're done.

[AudioFocus]

I went to SAE. Not in NYC but in Nashville. It's not a bad route to go if you are willing to put time into it. The classes are not difficult, and neither are the concepts they teach. I watched some complete ****ing morons graduate from there. The problem is that the instructors don't go as deep as they should on certain topics. If you take it seriously, spend as much time in the studios as possible, and dig a little deeper than the teachers go it is totally worth it. I learned a lot from my teachers there when we went beyond the classroom instruction to conversations at the Tin Roof after class.

Just Remember...

1) knowing how means nothing without knowing why

2) you are only as smart as what you realize you don't know.

Go for it dude. Have fun. Learn. Just put twice as much in to it as you think you have to and you'll come out allright.

Cheers,
Creston

[mixerguy]

you said:

....i don't feel like i know how to operate a large console that well.....

i have bad news for you.... many, many studios with large consoles are closing fast and furious.

No matter what you do, or where you end up - i suggest you check out http://homerecordingbootcamp.com/

[arpodthegreat]

Originally Posted by mixerguy

you said:

....i don't feel like i know how to operate a large console that well.....

i have bad news for you.... many, many studios with large consoles are closing fast and furious.

No matter what you do, or where you end up - i suggest you check out Recording school for real recording education

why is that bad news. shouldn't that be good news? i mean from the standpoint of not knowing how to use a large format console.

not sure home recording boot camp is what i need, it looks nice but i'm not interested in learning how to get a good kick sound or how to record loud guitars. to me that's the easiest part.
i just need a little help with some "commercial" techniques like chopping drums and tuning vocals. i've always tried to get the best performance possible and work with that but i know that sometimes that just isn't going to cut it.

Nashville looks cool, i would consider moving there. i want to be able to have a life apart from school and probably some kind of a job or time to do my own projects so no way am i going to arizona. i f***ing hate arizona. don't even get me started.
thanks

thanks illiummusic and Audio Focus for the helpful advice. from what i've heard MI is a pretty good program. maybe i should just take a couple classes or find some people that would be willing to teach me what i need and get PT certified and that'll be a lot faster and cheaper than recording school. i mean how useful are those degrees anyways? it always seemed like it was more useful for people who want to do more commercial, TV, Film, Advertising, live sounds, etc... work. nothing wrong with that kind of work, someones got to do it and they've got to do it well and fast but it aint gonna be me.

[big country]

is your goal to be a pro tools jockey or an engineer?

[arpodthegreat]

you can't be both? i always believe that the better you know how to use your tools, the more you can get out of them. by being really good at PT you don't have to think about it anymore and you can be more creative and use it more artistically, or organically.

[Gregg Sartiano]

Originally Posted by arpodthegreat

i just need a little help with some "commercial" techniques like chopping drums and tuning vocals.

someones got to do it and they've got to do it well and fast but it aint gonna be me.

Chopping drums and tuning vocals have little to do with engineering chops and waaaay more to do with musical chops -- especially tuning vocals.

With the ever shrinking marketplace, don't assume that there's a job out there for you just because you can do the "busy work." Even if you have the engineering ability and musicianship of the person you're trying to work for, when it comes down to it, if the budgets are low, the person who GETS the budget is gonna DO the work and KEEP the money. Sorry, but that means that the notion of "division of labor" has less and less to do with typical projects and budgets.

learning how to get a good kick sound or how to record loud guitars. to me that's the easiest part.

1) You're right -- achieving good sonics IS easier than things like running your business, getting people to pay bills they rack up at your studio, getting "good" work, getting your rates up, and "moving up the ladder" career-wise, but...

2) It takes years and years of listening AND years and years of experience to get killer drum & guitar sounds. It's like chess -- easy to learn, a lifetime to master. And the best folks on this board will admit that they are "still learning," even if they're getting radio-ready sounds.

Are you a "music" person interested in audio or an "audio" person interested in documenting and editing music? Are you a self-promoting businessman or a "worker" interested in looking for a "job?"

[mixerguy]

Originally Posted by Gregg Sartiano

Chopping drums and tuning vocals have little to do with engineering chops and waaaay more to do with musical chops -- especially tuning vocals.

With the ever shrinking marketplace, don't assume that there's a job out there for you just because you can do the "busy work." Even if you have the engineering ability and musicianship of the person you're trying to work for, when it comes down to it, if the budgets are low, the person who GETS the budget is gonna DO the work and KEEP the money. Sorry, but that means that the notion of "division of labor" has less and less to do with typical projects and budgets.


1) You're right -- achieving good sonics IS easier than things like running your business, getting people to pay bills they rack up at your studio, getting "good" work, getting your rates up, and "moving up the ladder" career-wise, but...

2) It takes years and years of listening AND years and years of experience to get killer drum & guitar sounds. It's like chess -- easy to learn, a lifetime to master. And the best folks on this board will admit that they are "still learning," even if they're getting radio-ready sounds.

Are you a "music" person interested in audio or an "audio" person interested in documenting and editing music? Are you a self-promoting businessman or a "worker" interested in looking for a "job?"

+1!

best post ever

[arpodthegreat]

music person interested in audio. i am humble enough to know that i will never stop learning but i wanted to make the point that i am not a beginner and have been pleased with my results so far. it's always fun to listen to what i did 3 years ago and go "wow!" i've come a long way.
as far as worker vs business man, personally i don't see that big a distinction. i am willing to work but i know that the market is leaning more and more towards freelance work so being a business man is inevitable. really my goal is to make great records and instill a little bit of an old world work ethic in my projects. hard part is finding bands that are willing to go along with it and do a few more takes to get it right instead of fixing it later.

[rcm]

Some of the Berklee online courses might fit what you are looking for.