Interested in turning my DJ-ing gigs into shows that actually featured my own music, I was recommended Langara’s Electronic Music Production program by a fellow DJ and friend, who was currently in the program. My decision to enroll, I must admit, was fairly ill-informed as I did not spend much time looking into what other students had said. Despite this, I decided to take the plunge.
Prior to starting at Langara I would say that I was nothing short of a blank slate. My musical knowledge was minimal to non existent, but I had a good ear and a strong desire to learn. I felt that as a strong learner and an intelligent individual, I would overcome any challenges that I would arise. My initial expectations of the school were very high and the interview process made it seem like the school was selective of its participants. I was actually concerned that even with my academic credentials, I would not necessarily be admitted. This was not the case at all, and I will explain more about that in detail later on.
Financial Commitments
The program requires that each student purchases a Laptop (Mac or PC) with a selection of recommended software. You shouldn’t worry too much about it; they know what they are talking about. The bundle of software and hardware you acquire at the start of the program, for its quantity and quality, is very affordable. As far as breaking into the music industry goes, it is an excellent set of tools for the beginner and advanced musician alike. While from the get go, you might not have everything you need to be the next Armin Van Buuren or Hans Zimmer, you certainly have enough tools to make commercially viable music, and a handful of options in doing so.
This all being said, in my opinion, the $10000 in tuition on top of buying equipment, isn’t that bad.
My one criticism though is the requirement to buy a laptop. While the program is substantially less expensive than schools like AI (which is robbery according to AI instructors who also teach at Langara), Langara does not provide you with a workstation in class. As such you are required to buy a laptop, and that is what you use at home and at school. While at first this might seem convenient – it’s a total waste of money. I do not produce on a laptop, and the vast majority of people cannot, and should not, seriously produce on a laptop. Laptops today are still simply not powerful enough for music production, and you will find yourself limited the second you start to push the processor with bigger synths or the hard drive and memory with more samples. Furthermore, carrying around your laptop and a external hard drive constantly gets to be a pain in the rear, constantly trekking around your gear can also wear down some of the internal bits (a few student’s hard drives simply stopped working mid semester). Had the school simply equipped the classrooms with moderately powered desktops, students could instead have spent their money creating home studios, instead of wasting cash on a laptop which has no long term value as far as production is considered. This all being said, in my opinion, the $10000 in tuition on top of buying equipment isn’t that bad. The value of the instructors for the most part, gives you what you pay for if you make the best of it. Which leads me to….
Instructors
You will have either 4-5 or instructors, and what classes they teach and how many you have will vary across your three semesters. I think it’s in bad taste to openly criticize or praise each instructor individually in this review, but I’d like to get into some examples of the strengths and weaknesses of things I saw in the instructors at Langara.
The first thing you need to know is that like with any real academic institution, they care very little if you succeed or fail. It is entirely up to you to decide whether or not you want to make the most out of each instructor, and what you choose will have a strong impact on the quality of education you receive. If you do not do assignments, they wont hassle you – the most you’ll get is an “okay man”. Some instructors show more disappointment, but with how low the bar is set for acceptance, I would be surprised if they even expect to not be disappointed after a few more years of teaching. My hope is that their spirits will be rekindled through the varying amount of gifted and or genuinely interested students that grace the program each year. Instructors attempt to recreate real world scenarios by having “strict deadlines” and reminding you that if you’re late that you would have “lost the gig”, but there’s so little repercussion for making deadlines, that it really doesn’t instill a sense of responsibility at all.
Just remember that this isn’t a big school pushing out 200 grads a year, so you can expect to really get to know your instructors.
Quality of instruction will range from excellent (sitting in a studio actually watching a recording being made live, or speaking with one of the finest mastering engineers in the city) to embarrassingly poor (watching an instructor click through links and teach you how to use WordPress for 5 weeks). Sometimes instructors give you so much value per lesson that you would be insane to miss a class, while others will leave you scratching your heads wondering why on earth you would pay for this crap. Fact is: you get all of them, so don’t worry that you aren’t going to get a better or worse experience than the next guy. It’s an overall “good” experience lecture wise. Soak up all you can from the instructors that inspire you, and let them help you fulfill your aspirations and goals. Like with any school, there are winner and dud instructors. I would say the winner to dud ratio is about 60-80%, so you should be mostly pleased. Just remember that this isn’t a big school pushing out 200 grads a year, so you can expect to really get to know your instructors, and regardless of their instructional aptitude, they are all very talented and great people who will return the same kind of respect to you that you offer them.
Environment
The program runs one year full-time in the evenings, and is conveniently situated at Broadway and Cambie St. While it was a bit of a jaunt all the way from SFU for me, it’s at a fairly decent location, and central to most students. Classes take place in a building that actually contains two classrooms: one for your class and one for the class that is either one semester ahead of you, or one semester behind you.
The classrooms fit about 15 people; that’s about the max number of students you can expect to see in your group. Hopefully you like at least a few of the people you’re with, as you’ll be seeing a lot of them over the next 12 months. The classrooms are unimpressive, with grey desks wired (sort of) with cat-5 ethernet and power bars. As I mentioned earlier, the classrooms are computer-less aside from a sub-par workstation for the instructor. There is however midi keyboards for each student as well as a vocal recording booth on site, which is all one really needs in my opinion. Many of the other programs out there have tons of gadgets and expensive studio equipment, but I can tell you that this just costs you overhead. In my opinion, you don’t need to be spending money so early in your career; it is entirely possible to make commercially viable recordings in your bedroom with the software you purchase for the program. Why as an amateur musician should you pay huge overhead to use a studio that will provide you with no utility upon graduation? It should be noted as well that the recording booth is available to Langara graduates; however your bookings are prioritized below current students.
A note for those offended by a lack of on site equipment: if you want to spend all your time in a real studio, then this is not the program for you.
While Langara’s minimalism at first may seem like cheaping out, some of it is actually thoughtful towards the students budget, and realistic on the path to success in the industry – you make due with what you’ve got. A note for those offended by a lack of on site equipment: if you want to spend all your time in a real studio, then this is not the program for you. While you will learn basic skills that would enable you to work in a studio, and even get real time at renowned studios like Mushroom or The Factory, this is not an applied learning experience for the studio technician or engineer. Langara’s program focuses on producing commercially viable recordings whether musically adept, or green in the gills. It gives you tools to be able to do all these things, but it does not train you to work in a studio.
Program and Classes
You progress through three semesters with a brief break in between, and while they may have changed the program since I was there, it generally goes as follows.
First semester is getting comfortable. You will take courses in basic music theory (which you can skip if you’re already musically talented), basic use of all the software and hardware you have purchased, learn about various types of hardware used by producers, and write your own first few songs. This is mostly an introductory semester and you will be spending most of your time getting “comfortable” with the world you have just entered. Other skills you will learn such as proper recording techniques, will aid you in your second semester when the amount of songs you have to write ramp up considerably.
Semester two is based around advancing skills from the first semester; prepare to be thrown into the deep end. Some people love this, others hate it. Quite frankly I think this is the only way to learn in this industry. For those of you whom are fast learners, the second semester will be both frustrating and rewarding – while topics like advanced music theory are very useful, students who struggle with this and other courses will hold the class back much more than they did in the first semester. It felt at times like instructors idled on certain topics for far too long due to some students not picking up things. I hope this has changed as it’s not good for anyone. Expect to spend more time mixing, writing quite a few more songs, and taking your hand at learning how to write for orchestras. You will even get to visit some studios and observe live recordings.
The final semester is based around putting your skills to use in a much more applied manner. Music theory becomes writing for film and television, and you will also be expected to put out demo kits, learn music marketing and advertisement, as well as advanced songwriting. Expect to write quite a lot of music in a variety of genres. If you are committed to doing your very best, the third semester can be quite challenging, as it will test your scholastic merit across the board. Music business class can drag out a bit, but it provides you with a wealth of information on getting started. You will also spend time honing the final tool in making your music sparkle: mastering.
The Good, The Bad, And The Absolutely Terrible
By the time I had gotten to know everyone in my program, it began to feel like Langara was desperate for anyone they could get their hands on – the bar for entrance had clearly been set very low. It would be an understatement to say that many of my peers in the program did not have musical experience; the program was rife with completely incompetent human beings. I can recall instances where grown students (everyone was at least 18), had to be thrown out of the classroom for misbehaving. These were things like throwing footballs in class, talking loudly during lecture, students arguing amongst themselves, etc. For someone who takes their musical career seriously, it can get to be a bit much.
While I have been assured that this is not the norm, (and I know that it is not), I can certainly say that the process for accepting applicants in the program certainly leaves room for this to happen in any given semester. Be warned. That being said, there is also a handful of talented and mature students in the program who you can find solace in, thus avoiding all the people who don’t take their education seriously. I’ve come to realize since starting my work in the arts, that these kind of people exist everywhere, and it’s how you make due that is going to decide your success.
Langara’s program has been constructed by pros, for people who want to be pros, and it does not fall prey to the bureaucratic traps that many large institutions succumb to.
The Verdict
Since I have never attended another institution for music, or any form of the arts, I cannot compare Langara directly to much else, but I can make a few general conclusions. Firstly, Langara is a college, not a university, so don’t expect an academic atmosphere. Combined with a fairly low bar for acceptance, whether you will be pleased or disappointed with your peers will depend largely on luck. Despite this, your path is your own and ultimately, your success will ride on your own desire to succeed and work hard. Secondly, the program at Langara has been architected by industry professionals who actually work in the industry. You will not be wasting your time learning curriculum that isn’t necessary in your path, studying for useless tests, or researching material that is outside the scope of your interests; Langara’s program has been constructed by pros, for people who want to be pros, and it does not fall prey to the bureaucratic traps that many large institutions succumb to. Rest assured that almost everything you do at Langara will be to make you a better composer, producer, mastering engineer, mixer, songwriter, and not a test writer, or master historian. That being said, prepare to be a jack of all trades, but a master of none. Focusing on one thing in particular will be entirely up to you, and the program certainly does not cater to focusing on one area, as you are expected to do a variety of musical projects from scoring to songwriting, to foley and sound design as well as voice dubbing.
Despite being disappointed overall with my peers in the program, I went from knowing absolutely nothing about music to being fully versed in music theory and capable of creating anything I put my mind to. This program is for individuals who are passionate about their craft, need no hand holding, and will not be sidetracked by the odd poor experience. Those who give their all with no expectations other than self improvement will find this program tremendously rewarding and an invaluable resource for guidance along their path.
If you’re interested in any of the things I’m working on post Langara, check out my computer science and music blog that can be found at http://www.promalus.com.
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
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Mandolin
Clayton
It is really useful to learn how to do home recording on a budget using the sounds and technology of today. Once you learn the basics, as you get more money, it is pretty easy to wrap your head around higher level gear. But, if you don’t have 10K to spend on it, you’ll have to educate yourself via forums and youtube etc. Be careful when you go to buy gear for the first time… research.