Gift moved from New York City to Stavanger to study Music Production and Recording

• Name and age: Gift Pratoomvieng, 29 years old
• My home is: Thailand (Bangkok) and USA (Nyew York City) 
• I'm currently studying: Music Production and Recording (MPO)

I chose this study because:

I chose to come to Norway in search of a change of environment. When I lived in New York City, it was great, but it was also overwhelming sometimes. So, I thought it would be nice to go somewhere calm and to live close to nature. This programme appeared to be very international with students coming from all over the world. I thought it would be great to get to know other sound engineers from different parts of the world, allowing us to share ideas and experiences within the audio industry.

How is the everyday life for an MPO student?

We have a day of discussion - we talk about everything in the audio field, a day of mic shooting to try out different microphones and new techniques, and a day of listening to our current works or works in the past and then giving each other feedback. Other than that, we have plenty of opportunities to record a concert or a demo for an audition or a competition from fellow students. We also have a project to do (it can be anything that we are curious about) and present it to the class before the semester ends.

We have plenty of opportunities to record a concert, or a demo for an audition or a competition for fellow students.

How is the atmosphere at the faculty and how did I get to know my fellow students:

This year we have a small class, so we get to know each other pretty well. It is a good mix between local and international students, I never feel alone.

This is my dream job:

I dream of touring with my favorite jazz musicians, Joel Ross, Aaron Parks, etc (there are so many artists that I'd love to work with!), as a sound engineer and a tour manager. I like doing live sound because I like energy and the feeling when the room is filled with interactions between the artists and audiences. And with jazz music, even though they play the same songs/setlist - every performance is so different. I like the freshness of that.

My favourite activities at Campus Bjergsted:

I like walking around the campus, it has the best view!

This is typical Stavanger:

My best description of this city would be a beautiful, hip street arts, clean, and rainy.

This is what I like to do in my spare time:

I like walking around the city and also I like going to our studio at the University and just sitting there listening to new release albums, or my all time favorites.

These are my tips to the future students:

Start thinking and doing your project early on, because it gets busier towards the end of the semester.
Don't forget to check out the library, there are so many great resources there. I enjoyed the books I borrowed so far! And again, time flies really really fast, just try your best to have some plans for the day/week. Also find time to enjoy the beautiful view this city has to offer.