It was back in August 2010 when Nick Rowse, a deferred Audio Technology student at AIM, embarked on an internship at Trackdown Studios, one of Australia’s leading studios in the audio post and music industry. Now, Nick has taken on a bigger role as a junior engineer.

The transition from learning at AIM’s own Q Studios to working at Trackdown has been an overwhelming experience for Nick, “From the comfort and safety of recording and mixing projects at AIM Studios to working on national and international projects at Trackdown … the learning curve has been fairly intense so far.” But Nick is no stranger to hard work as he advances his career with ever growing opportunities, “I’m really enjoying the process of becoming an audio engineer. It is both challenging and rewarding as I take on more and more responsibilities each week.”

Most recently, Nick worked on Channel Nine’s hit talent show The Voice as a Live Engineer for the mentoring sessions, “I provided fold back for the band and The Voice, and also assisted the Recording Engineer.” He has also been involved in a heavy amount of postproduction work including laying up atmospheres for a cartoon series and dialogue recording and editing. Nick ran his first recording session as the sole engineer for a Chevy advertisement overdub a few weeks ago, it was his first time in working independently. “It came as a shock to me when I realised I was going to be flying solo, however, I performed well thanks to my training at AIM and education from the highly skilled engineers at Trackdown.”

Through their accredited team and quality facilities, Trackdown studios have provided Nick with countless learning opportunities, “It’s great working at Trackdown! I’m learning a lot from some of the best people in the country. The staff are extremely helpful and always take the time to help solve any problems. They have also recently stepped up my training and it’s exciting for me because I am being put on a number of different types of jobs and gaining invaluable experience. The Trackdown facility is fantastic and it has been an honour to be allowed to work here.”

Like Trackdown, AIM has also provided Nick with the right knowledge, experience and enthusiasm in training to become an audio engineer; “The support I have found at AIM through the staff has been amazing.” Head of Audio, Jason De Wilde, along with Composition and Music Production Coordinator Patrick Nellestein and Audio Coordinator Richard Hundy saw Nick’s potential. “It was actually the AIM staff that decided I was suitable for an internship at Trackdown so I have nothing but thanks and praise for them as my job is now working for Trackdown as an engineer.” AIM facilities were also fundamental in developing Nick’s undeniable talent, “In terms of gear, I love being at AIM. Q Studios are very well equipped with a list of gear that covers anything a recording engineer could want. It was the experience of using this gear that made me realise my passion for recording music.”

Nick has one more trimester of study left but needed to defer to make himself available for The Voice. He plans on finishing his studies at AIM next trimester. “In order to be an intern at Trackdown, I needed to be flexible with my studies. AIM was incredibly supportive of me and made it very easy for me to continue both simultaneously, deferring to a part-time study load. AIM understood that working in a studio was what I was studying to do.”

Nick dreams big as he hopes to continue working across a range of different audio engineering formats at Trackdown, “In particular, I want to be able to record and produce some of the best sounding music in the world.” He continues, “There are some exciting new jobs in the works, including potential work on a large-scale feature film. There will be plenty to keep an eye out for in the future.”