Dynamic range compression

Dynamic range compression (DRC) or simply compression is an electronic effect unit that reduces the volume of loud sounds or amplifies quiet sounds by narrowing or "compressing" an audio signal's dynamic range. Compression is commonly used in sound recording and reproduction, broadcasting,live sound at music concerts and in some instrument amplifiers (usually bass amps).

Audio compression reduces loud sounds which are above a certain threshold while quiet sounds remain unaffected. In the 2000s compressors became available in audio software for recording. The dedicated electronic hardware unit or audio software used to apply compression is called a compressor. In recorded and live music, compression parameters may be adjusted to change the way the effect sounds. Compression and limiting are identical in process but different in degree and perceived effect.

A limiter is a compressor with a high ratio and, generally, a fast attack time. Limiters are common as a safety device in live sound and broadcast applications to prevent sudden volume peaks from occurring. Limiters are also used as protective features in some components of sound reinforcement systems (e.g., powered mixing boards and power amplifiers) and in some bass amps, to prevent unwanted distortion and/or speaker damage.

Dynamic range

Dynamic range, abbreviated DR or DNR, is the ratio between the largest and smallest values of a changeable quantity, such as in signals like sound and light.

Definition

Dynamic range is the difference between the smallest and largest usable signal through a transmission or processing chain or storage medium. It is measured as a ratio, or as a base-10 (decibel) or base-2 (doublings, bits or stops) logarithmic value.

Dynamic range and human perception

The human senses of sight and hearing have a very high dynamic range. A human is capable of hearing (and usefully discerning) anything from a quiet murmur in a soundproofed room to the sound of the loudest heavy metal concert. Such a difference can exceed 100 dB which represents a factor of 100,000 in amplitude and a factor 10,000,000,000 in power. A human can see objects in starlight (although colour differentiation is reduced at low light levels) or in bright sunlight, even though on a moonless night objects receive 1/1,000,000,000 of the illumination they would on a bright sunny day: that is a dynamic range of 90 dB.

Berklee College of Music

Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as the world's foremost institute for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including rock, flamenco, hip hop, reggae, salsa, and bluegrass.As of 2015, Berklee alumni have been awarded a total of 253 Grammy Awards. Since 2012, Berklee College of Music also operates a campus in Valencia, Spain.

In December, 2015 The Berklee College of Music and The Boston Conservatory Agree to Merger, Set the Stage for New International Standard in Performing Arts Education. The combined institution, located in Boston’s historic Back Bay and Fenway neighborhoods, will be known as “Berklee,” with the Conservatory becoming “The Boston Conservatory at Berklee.”

Accreditation

Berklee College of Music is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). NEASC is the regional accreditation agency for schools and colleges located in the New England region of the United States.

Music school

A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger institution), conservatory o conservatoire. Instruction includes training in the performance of musical instruments, singing, musical composition, conducting, musicianship, as well as academic and research fields such as musicology, music history and music theory.

Music instruction can be provided within the compulsory general education system, or within specialized children's music schools such as the Purcell School. Elementary-school children can access music instruction also in after-school institutions such as music academies or music schools. In Venezuela El Sistema of youth orchestras provides free after-school instrumental instruction through music schools called núcleos. The term “music school” can be also applied to institutions of higher education under names such as school of music, such as the Jacobs School of Music of Indiana University; music academy, like the Sibelius Academy; music faculty as the Don Wright Faculty of Music of the University of Western Ontario; college of music, characterized by the Royal College of Music and the Berklee College of Music; music department, like the Department of Music at the University of California, Berkeley; or the term conservatory, exemplified by the Conservatoire de Paris. In other parts of Europe, the equivalents of higher school of music or university of music may be used, such as the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln (Cologne University of Music).

Record producer

A record producer (or music producer) has a very broad role in overseeing and managing the recording (i.e. "production") of a band or performer's music. A producer has many roles that may include, but are not limited to, gathering ideas for the project, selecting songs and/or session musicians, proposing changes to the song arrangements, coaching the artist and musicians in the studio, controlling the recording sessions, and supervising the entire process through audio mixing (recorded music) and, in some cases, to the audio mastering stage. Producers also often take on a wider entrepreneurial role, with responsibility for the budget, schedules, contracts, and negotiations.

In the 2010s, the recording industry has two kinds of producers with different roles: executive producer and music producer. Executive producers oversee project finances while music producers oversee the creation of music.

A music producer can, in some cases, be compared to a film director, with noted practitioner Phil Ek describing his role as "the person who creatively guides or directs the process of making a record, like a director would a movie. The audio engineering [person] would be more the cameraman of the movie." Indeed, in Bollywood music, the designation actually is music director. The music producer's job is to create, shape, and mold a piece of music. The scope of responsibility may be one or two songs or an artist's entire album – in which case the producer will typically develop an overall vision for the album and how the various songs may interrelate.