THE BEGINNING
  Eric came to my attention when we were moving stored files in the building and he volunteered to help without being asked.  Eric had been doing a lot of lab time with another student from his class, so he was a familiar face.  We had an internship opening coming up January 1st in our Golden Section control room and he looked like a person that possibly would do well on an internship.
      I notice students that do a lot of the optional lab hours in the program and those that are interested in being a instructor's assistant in exchange for lab time.  These are the committed students, the students who really want to make it in the field.
     In his first week as an intern, I got Eric doing several playback sessions on a 24 track production where a multitrack edit and transfer was needed. He actually earned some tips from the client.  The main thrust was for him to get an "OK to Engineer" status in Golden Section so he could begin getting paid sessions.  He had to complete the "02R Quickstart Manual" training and do an automated mixdown for a grade/critique by me.
     It only took a few days for me to realize that I wanted him on a 6 month full-time internship program and to mentor him into the field.  By January 9th he was on a full-time schedule and doing daily reports on his activities.  By January 20th he had gotten his OK to engineer, and got hired for a weekly Saturday session as an independent engineer - the gig starts by the end of the month.
     Eric is on his way as an independent recording engineer before he completes the full RID Recording Engineer Program.  I thought it could be interesting to see his comments on how his internship was going as he completed his requisite training accepting paid clients in the studio.

THE REPORTS
January 9, 2004
  Friday was an exiting day for me at the studio.  A portion of the time was spent continuing the Quickstart and learning the applications of it in Golden Section. So with all that I got done it felt great.
     After, I helped unload the office supplies [and other things] I didn't get much more time in the studio [with the Quickstart manual]
     The main accomplishment of the day was done in [helping with] the transferring of Muruga's tapes. I was not sure what to expect, but now realize that there is a lot of engineering that goes into a simple transfer of digital audio, much more than I was thinking, which was to just copy to a blank tape. There is a lot more.  Working with Daniel I learned how to set up a transfer using offset options on the tape machines.  The need for exactness was stressed. By the end of the day I had a better understanding of what it means to be an engineer.
    After this, I felt to be a more "well-rounded" engineer, going into other aspects of the audio world, not just routing and mixing and faders, etc.

  MENTOR COMMENT:  Eric's humming along on his hands on training with the Quickstart Manual.  I check to make sure that he is exactly following the steps rather than just "reading" or "experimenting without guidance.  Getting 100's of students though this training has convinced me that strictly following the "read a little and then do a little" technique in the manual is the fastest way to get good with a complex piece of equipment.  I want my interns to be good potential employees and know their tools inside out.  Learning that recording engineering is a precise craft is a essential to development in this field. 

January 12, 2004
  Today, when I arrived, I started to take out all of the trash ... some clean-up of the studio ... [and] I swept all the tile floors from the front door all the way to the back...  The corner of the carpet in the studio ... I found it was a leak [which] Daniel and I took care of that while I finished transferring Maruga's music to new tapes.
     [After] you made me clean more ... I decided that the white board ... could use a cleaning. So I used the water/bleach mixture and got it to look brand new. I vacuumed all the carpet areas to keep busy while I answered the phones. We had several calls so I had the opportunity to practice answering phones and handling clients and all the messages. The use of a message log proved to be a useful idea.
     A customer/potential student who called stopped by requesting info. I gave him a tour to the best of my ability. I was happy to find out that I was much more informed than he expected, and when he left he had an understanding about how the school could really help him in the industry. It also seemed to give him a general idea of what could be expected of him and what to expect. He was very excited to sign up and he knew that he had found the school he was looking for!

  MENTOR COMMENT:  Eric gets a day of grunt work, learning more about how the school functions behind the scenes.

January 13, 2004
  [Asside] from being in the cold in back doing alphabetical filing into the student files, I do feel that my career advanced a big jump today. I am very excited about training the new interns now that I am confident about my mixing skills. But I can't lie. My main excitement as of the last couple of days was a song I finished. It's just the vocal layout as of now. But I generally know how it should be sung give or take a couple of octaves. But I am devoted to completing it and sending it off to Nashville. Yes, it does happen to be a country tune, no ties to my (cowboy) hat, the hat is a novelty!
     I must also say that I am very relieved that Muruga is happy with the work that Daniel and I completed recently. I took great pride in working on that project. Working with his music gave me extra time in Golden Section as well, which is killing two birds with one stone.  
     Working and learning all with my friends and people I adore and respect... I'll never forget where all of these opportunities came from!

  MENTOR COMMENT:  Eric learned today that he would be helping coach other interns through the Quickstart as soon as he get his OK to engineer status. 

January 14, 2004
  When I came in Matt asked me to help with clean-up...  [Then I resumed my Quickstart]
     Dynamic automation was the main focus of the day. I learned the theory of fade times as well. Marty gave me a tape with several instruments that are different than what I am used to. This helped me to learn how to mix a different style of recording and play around with how to get the most out of each instrument, so that I am not limited to a basic 3-piece recording.
     Shawnee also asked me to take a nice picture of the front of the school because of all the snow. We also moved items back into place after some electrical work was done in the back. In the office I helped label a lot of postcards that the school is sending out to new students and other people.
     I learned today the difference between scene and dynamic automation and more importantly how to use them to enhance the mix. I understand the general concept of why one tune will not be mixed the same way throughout the song and that not only do parameters change throughout the song but what parameters should be changed and why. I've learned how to program smooth fade-outs so that the song isn't too inconsistent. All of this information makes an engineer's skill more applicable and resourceful to today's audio industry!

  MENTOR COMMENT:  After a day of mostly training, Eric is getting close on finishing his Quickstart and getting on to the final assignment that will get him the OK to engineer status in the studio.

January 15, 2005
  Today was routine cleaning at the start. I vacuumed the carpet and helped clean a bit. Once the cleaning was all through and up the mother standard, I then started to work on mixing and studying in Golden Section.
     There was a fix error clock message that I tried to fix, but I didn't realize that the sync cable between the 2 DA-88s had been removed. I was working on completely the wrong cable. This is one way of learning but I should have read the section in the book before. If I had known, I would have realized the simple solution to the problem.
     Today was very exciting for me. I have been wanting to get keys to the studio for a while, for the convenience of not having to bother anyone else, and I got a key today. I kind of rushed into it I apologize if I didn't handle it the way it was supposed to be handled. I wanted to impress by doing what needed to be done without have to be told several times. Patience is a virtue and I realize this every day.
     I am now ready for advanced 02R training, referring to the manual rather than the Quickstart, to fine tune the fundamentals that I do have. I want to have a very competitive mix with all aspects ready to critiques by the real pros!

  MENTOR COMMENT:  After we work awhile in a studio we can start to get a big head. Then it happens - you do something that makes you feel like a bumbling fool.  Not realizing that a sync cable was missing is basic stuff and Eric should have caught this quickly. - But we're all human and this kind of thing happens to us all.  Eric has his goals in place for succeeding in the field.

January 16, 2004
  Today, when I arrived, I began working on a mixdown of the song "Trippin on Shrooms."
I spent the time getting a good mixdown through all the sections of a static mix. Using Techniques I am familiar with I got the best sound I could get with the knowledge that I have. Once I completed the panning, levels, EQ and dynamics I began to automate the mix.
     I used basic scene animation to recall scenes at certain times based on the tips in the book (Yamaha 02R Quickstart). I used a 2 1/2 second fade time on all channels so that when the chorus kicked in or other changes occurred throughout the song the changes weren't abrupt. They were noticeable but not out of place.
     Once again I used changes in level in accordance with the things I have learned to bring the Electric Guitar up when the solo rings out. I also programmed a good fade-in and fade-out.
When the mix was fully-completed, I helped Matt with the catalogs. It was a very rewarding day as far as knowledge went. I learned the proper mixing techniques and what a real demo of a song should sound like!

Eric M. P...
1-19-04
Intern Supervisor
Daily Report

  Today was a day with a lot of responsibility on my mind. I introduced my self to Dustin and gave him a thorough understanding of everything that will be expected of him as an intern. This included the up keeping of the building, studios and equipment using the mother standard as a guideline for how the Rooms should be maintained. I stressed to him the importance of his internship and how everyone benefits from the learning and teaching of another Engineer. I explained how important is to follow the quick start as it is laid out, and the real reason it’s designed the way it is. He realizes that it starts with the fundamentals of the console and that doing the Practical precisely how its in the book will not only show the engineer how to do well with that console but mainly, the correct way to learn. This makes it easy for the intern study and receive internal knowledge while learning the actual working with a professional console. Which makes the engineer employable to the modern Audio Industry. The [reality] of the matter is that the more that engineer can provide with his physical mixing skills and what he knows will decide how much income can be made from the job.
     My personal trophy for the day was the absolute privilege to sit down with Bob Dennis, and have him tear my mix apart! Literally! The knowledge I had the opportunity to absorb in that one hour session is a lifetime of his Recording wisdom which truly brought out the best in me as an Engineer, and an artist. Bob knew everything that was needed to bring the music to the listener and to get this Particular Rock Song to actually have the song be heard with the potential that was originally intended. His skill and feel for Engineering can only be explained by watching him achieve such a “FULL” mix in the time it takes to normally do a “static” or “rough” mix!

  MENTOR COMMENT:  Hats off to Eric - he got his OK to engineer and now will get some intensive mixing training over the next 30 days. Here's some comments: 
1.  He's suddenly calling himself the "Intern Supervisor" while he's still an intern - interesting.   I did something like this by raising my title at Motown to "engineer" and then to "supervisor" by my own authority.  As long as no one said "no" I became in the position that I asserted I had already.
2.  His mix was bad, by my standards anyway.  But in looking over his parameter changes and menu manipulation, I could see he really knows how to operate the console.  Mixing ability comes from experience and Eric will be assisting a major mixing project in February, where he will learn a lot.
3.  Notice the PR blitz on the mentor - it certainly doesn't hurt.  PR gets you in the door, but I doesn't really need to be quite as thick as Eric lays it on (hee, hee)