How I arrived at PAVI
Prior to my enrollment at PAVI I had been a professional musician for a number of years, having spent many hours in the studio as a session guitarist and singer, and as a songwriter. I had dabbled in home recording and became fascinated with all aspects of record production. When I moved to Vancouver, I decided go to recording school for two reasons: first, to indulge this fascination with recording, and second, to plug myself into a network of like-minded people. When I read a testimonial from an old high school friend who had coincidently attended PAVI, I made my decision.

My Initial Experience at PAVI
I really had no preconceived idea about what recording school would be like. One thing I noticed right off the bat was that, at the ripe old age of 26, I was quite a bit older than the average PAVI student (who is usually fresh out of high school or a year or two into their “year off”). I was by no means the oldest student in my class, but certainly in the top 5 or 6. I also did not expect the range of interests of my classmates. For some reason I expected a class full of indie rockers (like me) but people were into everything for Hip Hop to Hair Metal. Some wanted to become DJs, some producers and beat makers, some just wanted to be straight up engineers.

However, those initial career goals changed remarkably over the course of that year. Our time at PAVI certainly opened our eyes to the huge variety of work in the Audio spectrum. I, for example, ended up working in the TV and radio industry, when all of my experience prior to PAVI had been in music production and recording. I know folks with similar backgrounds who have gone to work in postproduction, production recording, and live sound as well. Some guys have even started their own custom audio cable business. Looking back, it’s quite interesting to see how some of our futures changed from what we thought they’d be on that first day at PAVI.

The Courses
The year was split into three semesters, each containing 4 courses. I started in September, which I think is the best time to start. This is because within the Audio Engineering and Production program, PAVI offers 3 Audio Engineering classes (AE–A, AE-B, AE-C). These classes are not really cumulative, and you can start at PAVI in the fall, spring or summer semester. But, if you start in September (like me) the first Audio Engineering class is “Audio Engineering A”. This course covers some pretty basic principles about microphones, signal flow, and the properties of sound in general.

The material is all pretty fundamental. It’s not that you need know this stuff to take the next two classes, but by the time third semester rolls around, you will have probably figured out the difference between a dynamic and a condenser mic and taking that class at the end I think feels like a waste. Also you really should know about polar patterns and the different kind of mics before you start using them.

The other courses covered many disciplines. They ranged in difficulty as well, depending on your background. For me, the music theory course was not much more than a nice refresher on stuff I already knew. That is not to discount the value of the class though, I think knowing music theory is a huge asset when producing and engineering too. I also think it was one of the hardest classes of the year for those with no background on the topic.

On the other hand, the toughest course for me was studio maintenance and design. As it had been 7 years since high school, my long division and fractions were more than a little rusty. I really had to buckle down and practice in order to get a good grade. There are no specific prerequisites to getting into PAVI, and so, the huge variety of past experiences in the classroom makes it impossible to create a curriculum that will challenge everyone on every topic.

The workload at PAVI was moderate. I rarely felt overwhelmed, except during project days (which I’ll discuss shortly) and I got the sense that you could do well at PAVI without burning the midnight oil on too many nights. That being said, like anything in life, you get out what you put in. I applied myself (most of the time) and finished with an honours diploma.

"In my opinion, Studio A at Blue Wave is almost enough of a reason to go to PAVI. The live room is phenomenal and the API console is an extremely sweet thing to behold."

As I mentioned earlier each semester finishes up with “project days”. This is usually two or three weeks before your exams, where you work on final projects. Attendance is mandatory even if you have a full setup at home, and initially I thought nothing good could come of such a long time of independent work. I was pleasantly surprised though. Although these are not group projects, having other people around who might be running into the same snags or issues was invaluable.

It also helped to remind you of anything you might have forgotten to include in your project. I mentioned earlier that I only felt overwhelmed during project days, this is because the assignments are usually many hours of work, and managing your time effectively is absolutely necessary in order to get them all finished within the allotted time. Another time management issue is that your final projects are due the same day as your final exam, so have fun studying and working for the last month of each semester.

The Faculty and Administration
The teachers at PAVI were all extremely knowledgeable and generally skilled instructors as well. I can easily say that I had fun in every class. Though sometimes the class size made it difficult (about 30 students), they always did their best to pay attention to individual questions and concerns. Our TAs were always patient and helpful as we got a grasp of signal flow and consoles. The administration was professional and would always respond promptly if I had any questions.

The Facility
In my opinion, Studio A at Blue Wave is almost enough of a reason to go to PAVI. The live room is phenomenal and the API console is an extremely sweet thing to behold. That, combined with 24 hours access (not the case when I attended) is really a great opportunity for young engineers to develop their skills. You could conceivably get an entire record done for some lucky volunteer artist. It’s really an amazing way to work on your chops as a producer too, with enough studio time to bring in and develop an artist or group over the course of the year. The gear selection at PAVI rivals many pro studios in town and the Cunningham plate reverb will always have a special place in my heart.

Life After PAVI
I am currently an engineer at a sound house that primarily does TV and radio commercials. I have had the chance to compose music for some ads as well. I acquired an internship there prior to graduating from PAVI. Many of the skills I learned at PAVI were directly applicable at my new job. The emphasis PAVI put on signal flow really helps down the road when attempting to solve any kind of signal chain weirdness. Working in a specialized environment means learning lots of stuff that might not have been covered at PAVI but that generally involves company protocol and industry standard issues.

One thing I definitely realized was that every studio is different and one of the biggest challenges coming out of PAVI is adapting to each new studio’s idiosyncrasies. Although I work quite a bit at this studio, I am still considered an independent contractor; I invoice the studio for my engineering fee. The availability of work has its highs and lows and I would sleep much more comfortably at night if I was one of the two full time engineers employed at the studio, but for now I am thankful to have my foot in the door.

Conclusion
Ultimately, I enjoyed my time at PAVI. The facility is amazing, and part of an ever-diminishing number of big budget studios. If you decide to go to PAVI, take advantage of the studio as much as humanly possible. It will be really tough to work in a studio that nice once you’re out of school, especially if you move away from Vancouver. If you take it seriously, ask questions, and work hard, there is no reason why you shouldn’t be ready to get into the Audio industry at the end of your time at PAVI.

I hope this has been mildly informative.

Cheers,
Dave