''Tonmeister'' is a job description in the music and recording industries that describes a so-called "sound master" (a literal translation of the German ''Tonmeister''): a
person who creates recordings or broadcasts of music who is also both musically trained (in
classical and non-classical genres) and has theoretical and practical knowledge.
The word ''tonmeister'' was trademarked in 1996 by the
University of Surrey
The University of Surrey is a public research university in Guildford, Surrey, England. The university received its Royal Charter, royal charter in 1966, along with a Plate glass university, number of other institutions following recommendations ...
, United Kingdom. Also within the UK, the
SAE Institute
The SAE Institute (SAE) and SAE University College (in Australia), formerly the School of Audio Engineering and the SAE Technology College and badged SAE Creative Media Education, is a network of colleges around the world that provides creativ ...
registered the term ''SAE Tonmeister''. The title has been abbreviated to ''tonmeister'' in their registrations in several other countries, not including Germany, Switzerland or Austria. Members of the
VDT may call themselves ''Tonmeister VDT''.
Origins
The concept of a tonmeister dates back to 1946,
when
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian and American composer, music theorist, teacher and writer. He was among the first Modernism (music), modernists who transformed the practice of harmony in 20th-centu ...
wrote a letter to the Chancellor of the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...
suggesting a course to train "soundmen". Schoenberg wrote, "soundmen will be trained in music, acoustics, physics, mechanics and related fields to a degree enabling them to control and improve the sonority of recordings, radio broadcasts and sound films". It was also in this year that the University of Music Detmold in Germany started the first Tonmeister course.
References
{{Reflist
Music production
Audio engineering