During my time as a student at The Omega Studios’ School, I had more than few interesting and amazing experiences. From getting to work with some of the best professionals in the Music, Film, and Television industries, to putting in studio time with some of Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania’s best artists, I’ve had my fair share of learning experiences. However, one of my truly amazing encounters with Omega Studios was actually the first one: The Omega Studios’ Open House.
The Open House was on a Saturday, around twelve o’clock in the afternoon. From the outside, I couldn’t really tell how big the studio was or how many people were inside. As I approached the door, it became clear that there was quite a commotion inside! People were going from studio to studio, laughing, with excited expressions on their faces. I checked in at the front desk where they gave me a list of events going on in the different rooms. As I was deciding, my attention was drawn to a large room with multi-colored lights shining through the doorway like a spaceship landing pad. Inside, there was a full stage set up with dozens of lights, speakers, and microphones. It looked like the kind of stage set up that I would see at the 9:30 club in D.C., so I knew the engineers weren’t messing around. On the stage, there was a full rock band, and they sounded amazing. I could tell the speakers and set up were professional quality, just by how great the band sounded. After listening for a few minutes, I decided to see what else the studio offered.
Directly parallel to the large recording room with the band, was a smaller room with what looked to be a small DJ set up. Little did I know that this would be my favorite room of the entire event. Inside, there was a professional DJ, DJ Unknown, doing a workshop on beat making. I listen to a good amount of hip-hop, both old school and new. I didn’t realize, however, that the process of beat making is tedious and requires a very high level of technical expertise! DJ Unknown was working with a lot of gear from the heyday of hip-hop, and it was facinating to see him work. DJ Unknown was using old vinyl records to pull samples from, and the classic MPC 2500 to edit and make them into a beat. I wanted to see more, so I hurried out of the room and down the hall.
At my next stop, I witnessed what was being called “MIDI MADNESS!”. I had no idea what MIDI was at the time, but it sounded fun. Inside of the classroom, the instructor was working with a huge array of synthisizers and outboard processors! He was showing us how MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is used to compose and create music in a digital environment. We were able to make really interesting effects from scratch and it was really fun to see how that is done in a professional environment.
Overall, the event was filled with useful information. There were even different seminars about financial aid and different programs that were offered a the school. It got me really excited to start school at Omega!