The Placement Year

For each student on the Tonmeister programme the third year of registration is normally a Professional Training Year (PTY), during which they will be working for an employer in the audio industry. The PTY scheme has advantages for employers and for students...

For Employers

This leaflet explains the gist of the placement scheme, gives some examples of how it might help you as an employer, and mentions a few of the other employers who use it: TonmeisterPlacements.pdf

Employers who have registered their intention to offer a placement this year can view shortlists of candidates plus CVs on our Members Only Website.

For further information please contact the Tonmeister Senior Professional Training Tutor.

For Students

The placement year forms an important part of your education and aims to develop your professional, practical, interpersonal, organisational, and creative &/or technical skills, and to allow you to apply some of the theory that you have learned in the first two years of the programme. Full placement scheme details for current students are available in the programme handbooks and module descriptions but, as a taster, here (in no particular order) is what some of the students on placement in 2020/21 thought were the 5 'coolest' (i.e. most useful, interesting, remarkable, exciting, impressive, enjoyable, etc.) things about their placements...

Adam : The Premises Studios : Assistant Engineer

• Recorded Cate Blanchett reading lines from Lord of the Rings during a podcast on climate change
• Drank £200 whiskey with Dermot Kennedy
• Engineered 'Who We Be Talks' which won the UK's No.1 music podcast
• Had to kick Professor Green out of his rehearsal room because he overran
• Engineered sessions which got me repeat work with clients

Aidan Knox : BBC : Technical Producer

• Edited at home and heard it go out on national radio the same day.
• Mixed a set live at reading in one of the BBC sound trucks.
• Worked the Proms + got free tickets.
• Worked on live radio with shout-outs on Radio 2 and 3.
• Worked through celebs' laptop audio settings with them.

Alex : BBC : Trainee Studio Manager

• Worked at Reading Festival
• Met Thundercat
• Worked at the Proms
• Could work from home in pyjamas
• Worked with friendly colleagues

Annie : Guildhall School of Music & Drama : AV Intern

• Worked with a super friendly and supportive team
• Technical lead on an opera livestream
• Co-produced/engineered Guildhall's first ever Live Lounge
• Learnt loads about video and camera operation
• Lots of responsibility from the get go

Barney : Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance : Studio Engineer

• Laid down some sick harp tracks with John Ashton Thomas
• Asked Stephen Fry if he liked my mic placement
• Idolised 'big dog' Dominic Murcott of High Llamas fame
• Rolled with vegan superstar Ben Leigh-Grosart
• Yielded to the temptation to go to the nearby Old Brewery (> Spoons)

Barra : Royal Academy of Music : Studio and Recording Work Placement

• Livestreamed the Symphony Orchestra concert conducted by Sir Mark Elder
• Recorded the cellist Josephine Knight
• Was camera switcher for 'Dido and Aeneas' Opera production livestream
• Was camera operator and switcher for 6-cam string orchestra livestream
• Mixed a large variety of jazz ensembles back to back for final recital livestreams

Carla : Tileyard (Gearbox Records / North Seven Studios) : assistant sound engineer

• Cut a lot of records which now have my name on them.
• Got to go to Abbey Road and Real World Studios (where I took photographs of Binker and Moses)
• Managed to land myself a monthly radio show on Soho Radio.
• Met some really cool artists.
• Got my radio edits and mixes aired on the radio.

Fred : ALM/Busycircuits : Company Intern

• Learnt how to code in C.
• Wrote code for a dual voice drum Eurorack module named 'Tyso Daiko'.
• Saw 200 units of 'Tyso Daiko' manufactured, released and sold.
• Wrote code for a multi-effects Eurorack module which included: reverb, compression, distortion, digital glitch.
• Tested and packaged thousands of Eurorack modules.

Ioan : Real World Studios : Studio Assistant

• Met lots of great musicians.
• Learned about the music industry.
• Learnt to run tape recording sessions.
• Mix-prepped for successful producers
• Built a patch-bay.

Isaac Ellis : Pinewood Studios Group : Junior Sound Editor

• Was editorial team leader on a major feature animation
• Saw my name in the credits of a film released in cinemas
• My parents saw my name at the cinema
• Nodded at Guy Ritchie
• Made an Oscar-winning re-recording mixer a terrible cup of tea

Isa : Pinewood Studios : Junior Sound Editor

• Worked with Oscar winning mixers
• Received a credit on a real film
• Worked on big Disney releases
• Watched films all day
• Developed coffee addiction

Joey : The Dairy Studios : Intern

• Jammed with Ezra Collective
• Earned my first professional credit on Elbow's album
• Ran a professional studio on my own, and became a professional engineer
• Fell in love with London
• Drank lots of wine with lots of lovely, inspirational people!

Joshua : Floating Earth : Assistant Recording Engineer

• Worked backstage at the BRITs
• Met famous musicians, conductors and producers
• Recorded at the Royal Albert Hall
• Edited string stems for a TV show
• Edited Beethoven 5 for an installation in Dubai

Mack : Royal College of Music : Trainee Recording Engineer

• Recorded opera scenes in Hyde Park
• Recorded the RCM symphony orchestra, in London, being conducted by Jac Van Steen, in Holland, via a low latency video connection (LOLA)
• Balanced FOH for a masterclass at the RCM with Maxim Vengerov also via LOLA, with Maxim being in France
• Mixed the graduation live streams
• Monitored the stream for a Classic FM live stream and met Classical Kyle!!!!

Matt : ICP Recording Studios : Assistant Engineer

• Worked with French singer Angèle on her new album
• Played Trombone on a couple of sessions and received performance credits
• Lived and worked abroad in Brussels
• Improved my French massively
• Worked every day with classic gear and got to play some cool guitars

Mimi : Guildhall School of Music and Drama : AV Intern

• Co-created and co-produced an annual event at Guildhall.
• Designed technical plans for a jazz session orchestra
• Worked with the best team an intern could ask for
• Got trapped inside the Barbican Centre
• Got a plaque in memory of co-intern and me on the mastering desk

Patrick : Chandos Records Ltd : Assistant Engineer and Music Editor

• Ate lots of great food on the company
• Gained 28 professional credits on classical albums
• Recorded at St. Pauls Cathedral after hours
• Worked on an album that recieved 4 stars in BBC Music Magazine
• Didn't have to make too much tea

Seraphin : Focusrite Audio Engineering Ltd. : Quality Assurance Placement Engineer

• Got to play with lots of audio equipment during quiet hours and find out how it worked.
• Worked on lots of cool products before they were released to the public.
• Barely had to cook for most of the year, thanks to office lunch and frequent leftovers.
• Made full use of the office coffee machine and daily 3 o'clock biscuits.
• Had a great relationship with my boss, which helped with keeping each other sane during lockdowns in an eerily quiet office.

Seth : ICP Recording Studios : Assistant Engineer

• Learnt loads of French street language.
• Co-curated impromptu listening parties with Colin Greenwood.
• Engineered a 10-track LP for a client.
• Played drums and synths on visiting clients' songs.
• Drank lots of delicious Belgian beer.

Tom : BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra : Trainee Audio Supervisor

• Mixed an orchestral concert live on BBC Radio 3
• Edited around 30 orchestral pieces to be broadcast
• Met lots of famous orchestral musicians
• Worked with people of many many years experience in the BBC who wanted to share their knowledge
• Got properly acquainted with haggis, whiskey, tattie scones and the Scottish countryside

Tommy : Abbey Road Studios : Runner

• Saw my name on the credits of a Netflix Movie.
• Learnt the difference between a Latte and Cappuccino.
• Sang with Bono.
• Recorded a Drill song.
• Listened to an orchestra almost every morning.

Will : Focusrite : Hardware Design Placement

• Worked on upcoming Focusrite, Focusrite Pro, Novation, and Adam Audio products
• Designed PCBs and wrote firmware that will be used to test the next generation of Focusrite equipment
• Was in a meeting with Dave Smith
• Jammed on Novation's collection of classic synths and drum machines
• Tracked down the cause of a problem that had halted a production line

Will : Zen Broadcast : Assistant Broadcast Audio Engineer

• Performed playback and recorded Will.i.am.
• Ran 200m of fibre in the snow.
• Ran plyback of virtual instruments at the Royal ALbert Hall.
• Built a broadcast truck in the back of a van.
• Fell asleep under the stage at the Royal Albert Hall