I am now moving into my sixth week of school online at Berkleemusic- which means I'm halfway done with the quarter. So far, things have been pretty interesting. I'm taking four classes this semester in order to prepare me for the Orchestration for Film and TV Certification program. I'm currently in Music Theory 1, Getting into Harmony (yes, that is the actual name of the course. Terrible, isn't it?), Desktop Music Production for Mac and Arranging 1: Rhythm Section.
Thus far, it would seem that the classes I'm breezing through are (surprisingly) Music Theory and Harmony. I imagined that both of those courses, being theory-based, would be a little more taxing. Oddly enough, I'm getting A's on the majority of my work. Desktop Music Production (hereafter referred to as DMP) and Arranging on the other hand are a little different.
DMP has me learning a totally new digital audio workstation- Reason. I'm finding that Reason seems to be more for sequencing as Logic is for recording (though I am not going to switch to Reason because I am only able to use my PLAY sample libraries with Logic). This is not to say that Reason has impeded my success in the course, but I feel like Reason's learning curve is steep. You certainly can't do a whole lot unless you really spend some time with it.
Arranging on the other hand, is the most taxing course; I have many assignments due in a week and often I will have to go back and revise my assignments for this reason or that reason. It's a lot of work in my opinion, especially since I don't normally notate music visually (in Sibelius, an equivalent to Finale), but just go ahead and sequence it in Logic. So I have to work backwards in a way. Most rewarding is the glowing reviews I've gotten from my peers in that course, and that reminds me that it isn't all for naught.
This leads me to my rediscovery of the music network GANG. I remember I'd heard of it, but I never investigated as to what it is. Sure, I have a commercial presence with iStock Audio, but perhaps GANG is an opportunity as well- it is specifically for video game audio. Hallelujah. While I don't expect to be immediately noticed, it's surely a possible avenue for future jobs.
That, then, lastly brings me to jobs in the present. I've been struggling to get a job- and I'll be honest, sometimes out of fear and sometimes out of reluctance. However, I did just send 4 applications each to 4 Apple stores in the Bay Area, and I did happen to get one to respond to me. While I am not one for putting all my eggs in a basket, I sincerely hope that this works out. I'm getting a little desperate as the bills stack up and I have but a limited non-art/music resume- I'm not incredibly marketable as a potential employee in this economy, but I have hope. Rejection and failure are often hard to deal with when searching for job- at least to me. I've sent out numerous applications and gone to outlets here and there but to no avail. Keep your fingers crossed, boys and girls. I could use a little luck.
