Sound Engineers Scheme

Joanna Popowicz (Polish Radio)

WDR studio

Radio is all about sound: our goal is to achieve flawless audio in the 2,500-plus concerts exchanged each year over the Music Exchange.

In keeping with the ongoing development of the Music Exchange and the EBU Music Workplan, the Sound Engineers community leader Huw Robinson (Head of Operations, Sound, BBC Media Operations; Chair, Euroradio Contact Engineers) and the Classical Music Group are pleased to announce this year's Sound Engineers Scheme. This knowledge-exchange programme, initiated in its current format in 2016, seeks to emphasize the crucial importance of sharing expertise in the field of music recording across all genres, giving high audio quality the place it deserves – at the heart of the music.

Whenever relevant, the programme will build bridges with the successful Concert Evaluation Initiative, which, since February 2019, has created a Sound Engineers community of more than 60 people and provided detailed peer-to-peer concert recording reports to more than 40 organizations. One of the consequences of these reports is that depending on their results, specific organizations might now be automatically be invited to engage with the Sound Engineers Scheme.

How does it work?

The scheme offers 2 types of visit:

Mentor visit

An experienced sound engineer visits another EBU radio organization as a mentor with the aim to offer new skills and experience.
The sound engineer (mentor) travels to another EBU radio organization for up to 4 days. Ideally, they will be on site for at least two events or sessions and for discussions and meetings with peers, planned and agreed ahead of the visit. The content of the discussions will include the two events recorded with the local team as well as any other relevant projects linked with an EBU offer.
The host organization’s sound engineers team is responsible for setting up a precise schedule – tour of the premises, concert recordings, debriefs, discussions, listening sessions, etc.
The host is responsible for organizing and planning the schedule as above and providing lunch each day.

You can offer to be a 'mentor' or apply to 'host' a mentor, as you would like to learn from their skills and experience.

EBU Music will cover travel costs of the visiting sound engineer, plus accommodation (up to three nights) and pay a daily allowance of 80 EUR. Travel and accommodation are to be booked by the visiting sound engineer (costs will be approved beforehand by the EBU).

Discovery visit

This part of the scheme is for sound engineers wanting to visit another organization to learn more about their techniques and workflows.
Should you wish to apply, you should explain what you would like to ‘discover’ and what this will bring to your organization.

The EBU will cover the cost of travel and accommodation for a maximum of 2 days (one night).

The programme is open to all EBU European radio organizations: Members and Approved participants.
In addition to potential participants’ wishes and the outcomes of the Concert Evaluation Initiative, any pairing will also take into account environmental issues.

Train connections are strongly encouraged over short flights, where possible.

Please note that EBU Music may not be able to satisfy all requests.

«Opening-up sound quality borders, learning from each other’s aesthetics, leading the way to creating and promoting knowledge exchange opportunities for the benefit of all radio organizations: these are the Sound Engineer Scheme’s goals.» – Huw Robinson, Head of Operations, Sound, BBC Media Operations; Chair, Euroradio Contact Engineers

«I would like to highlight how profitable, interesting and pleasant it was to have Marvin (BBC) as our guest. The concomitance of the visit with the Radio and TV production of Rusalka, made it possible to analyze with him all production processes in detail and in the various aspects that an audio/video production like this requires. (...) It was a great opportunity to have been able to exchange ideas, information and skills on our work, equipments and operating techniques which we both really appreciated.» – Walter Lori, Chief Sound Engineer, Rai Radiofonia Milano