About the workshop founder

BENJ KANTERS
faculty member and associate chair of the Audio Arts & Acoustics Department,
Columbia College Chicago.

Seven years ago, while studying for my master’s degree in music technology at Northwestern University, my advisor Gary Kendall suggested that I might enjoy taking a course in hearing physiology with Jon Siegel in the Department of Communicative Disorders. I had never considered studying this subject, but found this course among the most stimulating of my academic career. Thoroughly entranced by the biological functions of the ear being described in my own language of audio theory and technology, I continued to study in the field and have since developed a course in hearing physiology for the Department of Audio Arts & Acoustics.

I suppose I shouldn’t be so shocked to find myself here since, in retrospect, 35 years in the audio field have led to this point. I have worked in the music and audio industries since 1973, in live concert production and sound reinforcement, studio recording, record production, and consulting. I have been teaching since 1979, and in 1993 became a full-time faculty member of Columbia College directing the Audio Design & Production Program, which covers all areas of audio recording and post-production for aspiring audio professionals. Many in education speak of “giving back” as a primary motivation for teaching. I feel I am now in a position to give back, not only to my students, but to the music listening public through those who are or will be audio and music professionals.

In the description page, you will read about this new venture – the “Hear Tomorrow” touring workshop to promote hearing conservation. After all, good hearing is of crucial importance to any practitioner/artist in audio or music, and I believe the success of my course at Columbia College is indicative of the success I will have illustrating this very significant problem to an eager and influential audience. Eventually, I hope that these “first responders” will become role models for the general public, since musicians and audio professionals are often regarded as experts in “all things aural.”