2+2=5

My arrangement of Radiohead’s 2+2=5.

Letting Go

Live @ the Lily Pad. Composition by Steve Wilkinson.

Dirty Water Sound Internship

Last semester I decided to pursue an internship. Jared Mooney at Dirty Water Sound was kind enough to let me join him over the course of the semester. The following article was written for my school and has been posted on their blog at http://necentrepreneur.posterous.com/. The Fontaine Brother’s album is now available on iTunes at http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/4u/id511512746 or at http://www.reverbnation.com/fontainebrothers

We all know of the problem that one cannot get work without experience and experience only comes from working. I recognized this problem for myself and thought that doing an internship during my final year at NEC would be a valuable tool to help me transition into the real world after gradutation. As it turns out, my internship experience exceeded my expectations. Not only did it give me the valuable experience I was looking for, but also provided me with excellent networking opportunities.

My internship journey began at the end of the semester in May of 2011. My musical interests lie primarily in composition and I felt a desire to learn more about recording to add to my bag of skills. I was also very interested in the business aspect of the music industry and as a result I was looking for a smaller company that would let me have a glimpse into their day to day operations.

It just so happened that I knew a guy named Jared Mooney from church who had his own studio called Dirty Water Sound and Music. I approached him about the possibility of being an intern and he told me to contact him when I get back to school in the fall. When I returned to school I set up an internship with Dirty Water Sound with the help of Phil Bravo.

My basic responsibilities at Dirty Water Sound were to help setup and takedown microphones, stands and other recording equipment. Jared was always available to answer any questions that I might have about miking, recording or whatever he was doing. I don’t have a strong background in recording, and Jared was always patient and helpful when I was unsure about something. On slower weeks, all the interns would get together and Jared would hold a studio lab where we would go over various miking techniques.

Then something unexpected happened. One of the groups that we recorded, called the Fontaine Brothers, was in need of someone to write string arrangements for a couple of their songs. The usual guy that Jared worked with for his arranging needs was unavailable so he recommended that I work for the Fontaine Brothers. Together we made an agreement with the record label owner, Charles of Mad River Productions that let me work directly with the band and arrange their pieces.

Over the next couple of months I continued my internship duties at Dirty Water Sound while I worked with the Fontaine Brothers. Not only did I help with the setup and takedown, but I also provided creative input, helped with vocal harmonies, and wrote string arrangements for their songs – and made a little money as a result.

One of the highlights of my experience came after I completed the string quartet arrangements: Hiring a string quartet to come into the studio and record my arrangements. It was an amazing experience seeing my work come to life. Everyone loved it.

My choice to pursue an internship through NEC was one of the best things that I have done during my graduate studies. It turned out to be a far more valuable experience than I expected. Not only did I learn about miking, recording and small business practices, I also gained experience composing and arranging along with developing great relationships with people that will be part of my future career. If I hadn’t pursued an internship I would never have had the opportunity to meet these people. I’m excited to see where my experiences will lead me next.

CPP Holiday Fellowships

In December of 2011, I was involved with the New England Conservatory Community Performances and Partnerships program. My group included Neha Jiwrajka on voice, Jon Kenney on trombone, Ehud Ettun on bass and myself on piano. Durning the 2011 Christmas season we performed Christmas music around the Boston area. It was a very rewarding experience. This video up of clips from the different Holiday Fellowship groups.

Christmas Songs

This past Christmas a group of my friends got together to record some Christmas songs to give out to friends and family as a nice home made Christmas gift. Jon was nice enough to post it up on the internet to all to download. Please enjoy! Merry Christmas.

Here’s the link: http://jonkenney.bandcamp.com/

Neha Jiwrajka – Voice, Jon Kenney – Trombone, Devin Roth – Piano, Ehud Ettun – Bass, Zack Para – Drums