Computers

Being a musician and going to school at Benedictine Univerity in Springfield is tough. The computers that are available to the students are out-of-date. Last year, I tried to make a music video on one of the computers and it was impossible. The processor was way too slow, and it couldn't detect the audio that I used. If we had newer computers at Benedictine, students would have so much more opportunity to do "real world" projects for our portfolios. Also, it would be really nice to have a computer that had video and audio recording software built in to it. This way more than just musicians would be able to benefit from it.

I know that Benedictine offers video classes here in Springfield. I know from experience that the computers are not compatible with the class, Television Production. The video class was a complete and epic failure, because all the video that we shot in that class had to be edited and processed at home because the computer processors are too slow at Benedictine. If Benedictine wants to offer classes like these, they need to update the computers, so people can actually work on the projects in class. Being a communications major, I would like to be able to take what I learn in the classroom and apply towards my portfolio in order to get a good job when I graduate. Working with computers that were made in 2004 puts me at a disadvantage in the competition for communication jobs. David Cain owns UMEDIA. UMEDIA is a video and audio company that uses state of the art Apple computers. David Cain said, "Most employers in the communication industry prefer potential employees to have experience using Apple hardware and related multi-media software." Here is a link to his site www.umedia.net. It is essential for the communication majors who go to this school to have computers that have up-to-date multi-media hardware and software so we can better our chances of landing the job of our dreams.

I've done some research and Apple computers come with a program, Garageband, that is excellent for audio. The sound quality that you get out of it is amazing. John Mayer did a demonstration on it and it blew my mind. The link to it is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MRDDJjTwTw.

For video production, Apple computers offer a software program called iMovie. This also comes free with the computer and it works like a dream. It shows detailed audio waveforms for all of your clips. The editor is able to mix the volume of the movies and the user has complete control over sound effects, voice over, and music! For further information check out this link http://www.apple.com/ilife/imovie/.

Updated computers and software are essential for the students at Benedictine University in Springfield to increase their skills for the job market.

Red Sax

My teacher brought out a red sax in class today, which tends to be his trademark in the music industry. He had his friend paint it candy apple red, and although it looks cool, it sounds even better. David Cain, my teacher said that each person who plays a sax have different sounds. He said that it is caused by the player not by the instrument. I heard him play it and wow, my face was melted. He could make this thing scream. He even muffled the sound coming out of the sax against his leg and it gave it a completely different tone. The sound that came out of it was very jazzy and was more than pleasant to listen to. Trademarks for any musician are cool, but it is all about how well they can play and David Cain can slay.

Velvet Revolver

Velvet Revolver is the greatest hard rock band in the history of music. They formed a group by taking the superstars of rock and meshed them all into one band. Scott Weiland, from Stone Temple Pilots, is the singer of the band. They have the 29th best guitar player of time according to guitar one magazine. Along with Slash, they have also taken Duff McKagan from Guns 'n' Roses as the bass player of the band. Their drummer also includes the well established Matt Sorum, who is the former drummer of the Cult. The rhythym guitar player, Dave Kushner, who has been well recognized from the band Wasted Youth. If playing in a band was an Olympic sport, this band would be representing the United States. They have an all-star line-up involving people who have the best talent around right now. Their songs are amazing and the lyrics, my opinion are highly regarded. On top of the music, they were voted the best rock band of the year.