By Kaitlin Carman Asst. News Editor Can you please describe your position?
I'm the Campus Events audio visual lead technician. The lead tech basically just means that I take care of it all. I work under campus events, because my job is basically to take care of all the technology needed for all the events on campus. … Currently, I'm in charge of three student techs.
What got you interested in this field?
I've always been a musician since I was a little kid. I've played at my dad's church since I was 12 years old. I played piano. Piano is my main instrument. When I was young, I was getting involved in music and playing with little bands here and there. But then at some point in my teenage years, I started getting an interest in what it is putting music together. I listen to music, and I hear all the different pieces of what's happening in the music. I just was curious about how whoever did this put it all together, and the levels of all the instruments and the voices. I was listening more intensely - hearing what’s happening in all the music. I've always loved different genres of music. Knowing about that career, which is a music producer or recording engineer, is how I started getting an interest in wanting to do that more. I visited my first recording studio, probably when I was, like, 13 or 14. At the time, we didn't even have computers - there was no recording with computers. They had these big machines in the studio and it just really fascinated me. Also, I was helping - because I always had that real technical mindset - at my church, [where] my dad was a pastor. When they had issues with microphones, I'd step in and figure out what the issue was, and just help out as much as possible.
What is your educational and professional background?
My background is - I am a music producer and sound engineer. I went to Berklee College of Music to study music production and sound engineering, or audio engineering, and that was my major. After graduating, I set up a recording studio in Boston and I did that for a while. But while I was doing that as part of my services, I was also providing sound for live bands all over New England. … So between my company and working freelance for other companies, I [got] my hands into the whole AV world of setting up projectors, lighting, and all kinds of stuff. During COVID, my business kind of suffered because there weren't any events out there. During that time, I actually saw a posting from the University looking for an AV tech. So I was like, ‘You know what? I haven't done a regular job in a while. Let me just give it a try.’ And I applied, came in for the interview, and that's how I got the job. I've been here for about two-and-a-half years now.
What are some challenges you face?
So the thing about being an AV tech is, you always have to be alert and aware of everything that's happening during an event. Like, an event can be very interesting, but you can’t be so swallowed up by what's happening at the event that you forget that you're there to do the job. So you always have to keep that in mind. As interesting as what the presenter is doing, if the mic stops working or something, you're the first person that has to be aware of that. The challenge is just trying to always be aware of all the technical stuff that's happening at an event, not even just on top of it, but ahead of it - trying to think of what could happen before [it happens].
What hobbies do you enjoy?
My hobby is still kind of related to my career, because I love going to concerts. Some concerts I go to, I go in to do the work, because I'm a sound engineer for that concert. But sometimes, I like to go and just enjoy the show - just kind of see what the bands have to do. I went to a Santana concert just a few months ago, and it was great. It's a great show because it was Santana and Earth, Wind and Fire - great music. Being a musician. I definitely like a lot of shows that have good musicians. I've been to several shows, but Dave Matthews Band - they’re great. Maybe … it's because of my age, but I definitely tend to prefer a lot of the older bands that have been around for a long time. I've heard some of the new stuff, but I tend to gravitate more toward the old school kind of bands and the sound because more of them [include] live instruments and they don't use too much programmed … music.
What is your advice to students and those interested in AV?
Take advantage of everything that Framingham State has to offer. I mean, there's a lot of opportunities for you as a student. There's a lot of clubs. With me being an AV Tech, I go to a lot of meetings, even with the administration, and everybody - the faculty and staff - seems to be doing everything they can to give the students a better experience while they're here. So I'd say, for the students, try to take advantage of that and just make it the best that it can be while you're here. And then now for the [student] AV techs, I try my best to teach them as much as I can - what kind of equipment they can use when they're here or even when they graduate. So, coming through the AV tech position, you get to experience working with different pieces of equipment that eventually can help you in your life after you graduate.