We highlight some of our favourite guest speakers from our history and discuss why exposing yourself to different perspectives is an intrinsic part of the higher education experience.
When you’re looking at your options for university there are a lot of variables to consider, especially at a specialist institute like dBs. Are the facilities and equipment to a high standard? Will the course you’re looking at cover what you’re most interested in?
Fortunately, we actually have pretty comprehensive answers to those first two points, which you can read in our recent facilities and course highlights articles. There are many other variables you’ll be thinking about, too, but the one we want to talk about today is guest lectures.
Guest lectures are a fantastic way to introduce you to a diverse mix of perspectives and voices from within the creative industry. They are also a great opportunity for you to network and start building connections with the wider creative community, and we’ve seen firsthand how students have taken advantage of this.
As a student at dBs Institute, you will not only have access to an array of guest lectures - plus a video archive of unreleased ones - you’ll have the chance to share your thoughts on who would be a dream speaker to invite.
Here are just a few of the highlights from over the years.
The trailblazing audio engineers
Andrew Scheps - Catching us at our most starstruck, Andrew delivered an extensive session in our Dolby Atmos suite in Bristol, showcasing a variety of Atmos mixes to our students and answering all their questions in a long-form Q&A.
Sylvia Massy - An absolute icon in the recording industry, Sylvia has delivered multiple guest talks from her studio in Ashland, Oregon, spending hours at a time for extended Q&A sessions with our students.
U.D.O Audio - The Bristol-based synth manufacturer gave an amazing talk on the company, going into detail about what it takes to build a business, the ins and outs of synth design, manufacture and marketing.
Honourable mentions: Christian Wright, Will Reeves, Bruno Ellingham, Simon Gogerly, Gordon Raphael
The masters of music production
Philth - Delivering several guest lectures over the years, Philth has imparted his wisdom on everything from creative workflow, organisation skills, mental wellbeing and so much more.
DJ Krust - In a very special guest lecture, Bristol legend DJ Krust delivered an inspirational talk on understanding your personal goals and the mindset needed to achieve them.
Hospital Records - Label co-founder Chris Goss and former HR Partner Emily Akanimoh shared the history of Hospital Records, as well as providing great insights into what the label looks for in new talent.
Honourable mentions: ELPHNT, Hodge, Yushh, Manami, Culprate, Emperor, Amoss, Pop Roberts
The beating heart of live music
Scott Wilson - Composer and electroacoustic expert Scott Wilson opened our eyes to the world of experimental multichannel audio, and the boundary-pushing work he was conducting as director of B.E.A.S.T (Birmingham ElectroAcoustic Sound Theatre).
Shan Hira - FOH sound engineer for The Chemical Brothers, New Order and Basement Jaxx (to name a few), Shan Hira made his dBs debut in 2024 at our Manchester campus to talk about 35 year experience in the touring and production industry.
Paul Connaughton - Formerly a student and tutor at dBs, and now Product Support Engineer for Martin Audio, Paul has visited dBs multiple times over the years for day-long workshops in our bespoke live sound hall.
Honourable mentions - Fiona Riches, Chris Drew, Bill Brooks
The sonic storytellers
Adiescar Chase - Earlier this year, our students were treated to an in-depth guest lecture from the composer of ‘Waterloo Road’ and Netflix’s ‘Heartstopper’, Adiescar Chase. Holding nothing back, Adiescar shared everything from her approach to scoring, the nature of working with big clients, and where to invest in your equipment and software.
Bjørn Jacobsen - Sound designer for Hitman (2016), DARQ and Cyberpunk 2077, Bjørn has delivered two guest talks for our students. The first, an amazing deconstruction of his approach to sound design, and the second, a candid Q&A about working in the games industry.
Olivier Derivière - Delivering a 3-hour masterclass on interactive game audio, Olivier Deriviere pulled back the curtain on his career as a video games composer, and at the time, gave us a sneak peek at reactive systems in A Plague Tale: Innocence before its release.
Honourable mentions - Geoff Barrow, Bashart Malik, Richard Jacques, Reuben Armstrong, Mary Crisp, Paul Honey
The game-changers
Louise Andrew - With decades of experience, Louise Andrew (Head of Art, d3t) has spoken to dBs students on multiple occasions, shedding light on how a co-development studio such as d3t operates, the many roles of a game artist, and how aspiring artists and developers can find their way into the industry.
Ben Byford - Game designer and AI specialist Ben Byford has been a frequent collaborator at dBs Institute. Co-organising the annual Global Games Jam in Bristol, he recently spoke with our students about indie game development and what it takes to bid on work and make a studio successful.
Stephen Hey - Embedded in the games industry for almost 30 years, Stephen has been a fantastic source of inspiration and insights to our students. Specialising in PR, marketing and publishing, his most recent talk walked us through the entirety of the game development cycle, and the key players that make everything come together.
Honourable mentions: Liliana Pita, Mathew Hill, Simran Whitham, Lukas Genever
Excited at the prospect of seeing some of your creative heroes? We still have Clearing spaces available across several of our courses for September 2024.
Find the perfect course for you.