The University of South Wales (USW) has launched a postgraduate placement scheme with the world-renowned BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales, offering students the opportunity to learn from a professional symphony orchestra as part of their degree.
As part of the programme, students on the MSc Music Engineering and Production course are given the opportunity to undertake a 12-week placement with the orchestra, shadowing its sound engineers and technicians as they work with professional musicians at a variety of live music events, including concerts, broadcasts and studio recordings.
The scheme is the brainchild of Stuart Jones, senior lecturer in Music and Sound and course leader for the MSc, and Lyndon Jones, part-time lecturer in Media Production, after speaking to sound engineers at the BBC about providing opportunities for students to gain experience in orchestral music recordings.
While on placement, the students are able to use what they learn at the orchestra as part of their studies, generating high quality audio material for specific modules and assignments.
The majority of the orchestra’s recordings take place at its base in Hoddinott Hall, which is part of the Wales Millennium Centre building in Cardiff Bay, alongside regular outside broadcasts, a tour of Wales and the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall.
Stuart said:
“Being able to collaborate with the BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales on this placement scheme – which is the first of its kind in Wales – provides invaluable opportunities for our students.
“By working so closely with the orchestra, they are gaining practical, hands-on experience in the field and are learning from some of the best musicians and sound engineers in the world.”
Jessi Hope, 23, from Swansea, is currently on placement with the orchestra. She decided to study the MSc Music Engineering and Production at USW due to the variety of routes into the music industry that the course offers.
“I decided to apply for this placement because it seemed like a massive step up from anything I’ve done before. I love a challenge, so being able to dive into something as grand and complex as orchestral music was a really exciting prospect for me.
“It’s also really important for me to take up this opportunity as a woman, as the field of sound engineering is not as diverse as it should be. I’m the only woman on my course, and the only female sound engineer at the BBC, so I want to prove that we can fit into this industry just as well as anyone else can.
“The placement has been an amazing learning opportunity for me. It’s been wonderful to experience first-hand how the sound engineers at the BBC operate, and get to grips with the specialist equipment – their mixing desk is one of the best around. I’ve also been able to observe sets on location in the audio broadcasting van, and get hands on with rigging and de-rigging for events.
“Sound engineering for an orchestra is completely different to the rock/pop productions I’ve done before, so it’s turned the way I view music production on its head and provided me with new skills and knowledge that I never could have learned otherwise.”
Jessi has recently returned from a tour of North Wales with the orchestra, which has involved moving equipment to and from concert halls, setting up and taking down before and after, and helping to record and mix all of the live performances.
She added:
“In the future, I’d love to work with the BBC in an official capacity, either in sound engineering or production. I also have a love for sound design, composing, and audio implementation for video games. I think my ideal career would be working on both sound engineering gigs and sound design jobs for TV and games. As long as I get to work with sound somehow, though, I’ll be happy.”
Lisa Tregale, Director of BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales, said:
“The BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales is excited to team up with the University of South Wales on this innovative postgraduate placement scheme. Students from USW’s MSc Music Engineering and Production course are getting valuable, hands-on experience working with our sound engineers and technicians.
“This partnership helps students build essential skills and gives them the chance to contribute to real audio projects that are key to their studies. It’s been an absolute pleasure working with Jessi. From day one, she has brought a wealth of creativity and fresh ideas to our team.”
