March 24, 2015 Is the future for audio professionals in games?
Finding paid UK music jobs as a creative audio professional has at times been an uphill struggle. Just like musicians, audio professionals (sound engineers, sound designers, mix/mastering engineers etc.) are often highly skilled and highly under paid. It is difficult to think of another industry in which highly educated and skilled workers are routinely expected to work for free or in unstable or very low paid positions. Audio professionals are usually highly passionate and driven about their work and often take on unpaid projects or jobs, especially early on, in the hope of building a portfolio strong enough to find regular income. Getting a well-paid UK music job is tough and demands patience and determination to succeed.
Over the past few decades the music industry has profoundly changed and there remains a degree of uncertainty regarding future distribution models and monetisation strategies. We have all seen the rise of home recording consumer technology and the decline of the traditional studio. Modern Digital Audio software is increasingly produced as much for the hobbyist as for the professional.
This changing landscape has put a downward pressure on job growth in traditional audio professional roles. Getting a junior position as an assistant sound engineer in a physical studio is increasingly rare, and opportunities for young composers or mix engineers in a traditional sense is limited. There are some amazing jobs out there still but there simply aren’t enough to go around!
However, for the shrewd and ambitious audio professional, the UK music job market has never looked better. The massive growth in the video game market and app development market has given rise to a high demand for audio engineers, audio programmers, and sound designers. If you have the right skills, the opportunities right now are staggering and employers are often jumping through hoops to get the right person on board. Take a look at the current job listings on http://violetjobs.com/find-a-job/ and you will find some great opportunities for audio professionals with the right skill set.
For example, if you have a solid background in music composition/mixing/sound design and don’t mind learning the ropes of adaptive audio and a little bit of scripting, the game audio world is your oyster. Or get involved in the Web Audio API. Or specialise in small app audio. Or procedural audio for the super ambitious! Whatever direction you want to go in, there are some wonderful opportunities for audio pros who have great tech skills. That dream music job might not be too far away. And when it comes, we will list it!
violetjobs.com is dedicated to sourcing the best UK music jobs and will allow users to search and apply for jobs for free
Reader Comments (3)
"Bat" from the defunct industrial band, Xorcist, has been doing game sound design for awhile. Kurt Harland, who just rejoined Information Society, has as well. Trent Rezenor of Nine Inch Nails did it, as has Bill Leeb from Front Line Assembly. I'm sure they're not alone.
Nice written! You discovered the positive particulars of the topic and meet with the productive techniques
Was just talking about the idea of doing some licensing to games, film and tv. My music and sound design is well suited.