Reina's Thoughts on Sound Mixers

In our last class we were introduced to a sound mixer. I listened to Prof. Beyer’s presentation, I took notes on what he was saying, and I even had the opportunity to interact with it, and I still have no idea how it works. Getting sound in and out of the mixer is for me all trial and error. I turn every dial hoping this will be the action that will produce the necessary sound and every time I was wrong. Thankfully I am not the sound technician for our March 20^th showcase, but that does not make feel any better that I have no idea how to operate a sound mixer. In addition, I am bothered that for the performances on March 20^th each collaborator is taking on a familiar role rather than expanding his/her skills and trying something out of his/her comfort zone. At the same time, I remind myself that there is a time constraint and we want everything to run smoothly. In addition, we are getting assessed on how well we work together so it is natural that we want everyone to contribute with his/her strengths, enabling the best possible outcome. In short, having experienced technicians running audio and video is the wisest choice. 

These thoughts reminded me of why I disliked “So you think you can dance” when I saw it for the first time during its inaugural season. I remember initially thinking to myself: This is fantastic, dancers are being pushed to learn new styles and genres of dance! When it came time for the final performances my initial reaction soon changed to disdain. Dancers reverted back to their original style of dance, hardly anyone incorporated something new that they learned while on the show. I remember thinking to myself what is the point of this show? The final performances are almost a replica of the auditions. What are these dancers learning from their experiences on the show? Well for starters the show is entertainment that is its objective, not learning. But our class is different and learning is part of its intrinsic value. I do hope that over the course of the next month in preparation for the final performance we take on roles that were originally unfamiliar to us, showing ourselves and one another that we are not just relying on past strengths, but new ones.