Sound Reinforcement for Live Performance (4 courses, 264 hours)
There is a great demand for the talents of skilled audio engineers wherever there are live performances and presentations, as in auditoriums, concert halls, churches, nightclubs, theme parks, sporting events, convention centers, cruise ships, resorts, music festivals and hotels. Delivering the full experience of a truly inspiring live performance to a listener just can’t be downloaded or automated. And with all the changes in the music industry, recording artists have rediscovered touring and live performance as activities vital to their livelihoods. As a result, sound engineers who are ready to take on the challenge of perfecting a mix under the glare of the stage lights are in serious demand.
The Sound Reinforcement for Live Performance program prepares students for this challenge, and for careers as live engineers. It borrows the basic and intermediate parts of the Recording Engineering and Studio Techniques program to educate students in the concepts, skills, and equipment common to all areas of audio engineering. It then applies these, with fourteen weeks of additional training, to the job of engineering for live performances.
Omega’s Sound Reinforcement for Live Performance program teaches the behavior of sound in reinforcement situations, and continues through all of the special concepts unique to the live performance environment, from the theory and application of principles of electricity, to the inner workings of speaker/amplifier systems, wireless systems, outdoor acoustics, zone control and time alignment. As a Live Sound student you will learn the theoretical and practical aspects of sound system design, and master the use of live sound consoles, amplification systems, specialized signal processing, feedback control, stage monitoring, DJ systems, and stage lighting.
This program includes an eight-hour “gig,” where you and your classmates will re-create actual concert conditions for a live band, which will perform a concert. You will design the sound system from the ground up, setting up all of the equipment for the gig—consoles, microphones, monitors, outboard gear, everything needed for a fully professional performance. You will make and check all connections, set sound levels and feedback suppression, and mix for both the front of house and the back line in an actual live concert.
The myriad of subjects discussed and hands-on training received throughout this program will not only help you become a highly qualified live engineer, it will substantially increase the versatility and the employment status of broadcast and studio recording engineers. The Sound Reinforcement for Live Performance program can be taken individually, in combination with other Component programs, or as part of Omega’s Comprehensive or Audio Engineering for the Music Industry programs. The program duration is approximately 44 weeks for daytime students and 44 weeks for evening students.
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