Salt Lake Community College partnered with KUER to bring audio recording technology to the masses at the Utah Arts Festival this past weekend.
“As a longtime community partner, it was great to work with KUER to put together this interactive experience for festival patrons,” says Josh Elstein, coordinator of the SLCC Center for Arts and Media.
Many visitors braved the record-breaking heat to enter the sound booth, which included a large eye-level monitor, cardioid microphone and instruction sheet.
“The microphone is like one used in a real studio. It’s something fun to do for your 12 minutes of fame. You can see what it feels like to be a DJ,” says KUER volunteer Zana Anderson.
One objective of the booth was to give festivalgoers the opportunity to appreciate the power of the human voice.
“We were hoping to showcase how people’s voices can be powerful tools for sharing their insights, stories and messages,” Elstein says. “The SLCC-KUER sound booth really combines classic audio recording techniques with modern technology to open up strong pathways for communication.”
The booth also gives SLCC a way to promote its audio and radio production programs.
“As the School of Arts, Communication and Media, we felt we should be involved in celebrating this artistic community, as well as making sure that the digital art and media fields are well represented at the festival, since they are components of many of our school’s program,” Elstein says.
Salt Lake native Drew Maggelet put on a performance during his 12-second recording.
“I just basically said my name and pretended I’m a reporter, like some people pretend they are singers,” Maggelet says.
Guests received a copy of their sound bytes via email, and all audio files will be stored in the KUER archives.
Brook Cummings-Arnold, SLCC student and president of Club Resonance, says she managed a steady stream of people waiting to record during her volunteer shift.
“Those that participated had a great time,” adds Cummings-Arnold.
When asked if broadcasting is in his future, Maggelet says, “You never know where life can take you.”
