Today we’d like to introduce you to Diana Merchant.
Hi Diana, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My time as an audio engineer began in 2011 while I was in high school. I was acting sound designer/audio engineer for a number of school plays and also ran microphones for various presentations and award ceremonies. But it wasn’t until years later in 2020 that I decided to go to school in order to professionally work as an audio engineer. During my time in school, I was granted an internship with a local recording studio – Starke Lake Studios – and I’ve been there ever since. I was officially brought on board for a permanent position in 2021 as an assistant engineer as well as an administrative assistant.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I’ve always been the creative type growing up. My interest would cycle between drawing, acting, directing, playing music. At any one point in my life, I had a dream of having a career in any of those fields. However, when I reached my senior year of college, I made a drastic pivot and chose to go to college to study economics. I ended up graduating with a B.S.B.A. in Business Economics in 2018. I felt pretty lucky that I immediately had a decent job in corporate not days after the graduating ceremony. As I spent my time in that job, I found myself pretty unhappy and it took me a long while to realize it was because I put myself out of my element. Economics truly interested me, but I didn’t have a passion for it. I just felt so exhausted and lost. It just took a huge mental toll on me. I parted ways with the business and took some time to truly figure out what I was looking for. I realized my life is surrounded by sound. My time of playing instruments, working behind the soundboard years prior, and unconsciously analyzing every song I heard built me a home in audio. Eventually, everything came together and landed me where I am today.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
With Starke Lake Studios, I act mainly as an assistant engineer. I help with micing up instruments, laying out cables, setting up headphone cues, and helping the artists with anything they’d need to make their recording session a success. I’ve assisted with sessions for Disney, Nike, Arcangel, Darkchild, Penguin Random House, and many great local artists as well. I’ve also done some side gigs, like working as A2 in theatre production as well as operating a spotlight at the Orlando Magic home games. I take a lot of pride in my position. The creative industry is full of people who have dreams and visions and they come to us to help make them happen. A lot of the material we record is full of heart and soul. The recording studio can actually be a very vulnerable place for some. More than just setting up microphones and headphones, I think my true job is to help our artists feel comfortable as well as respected as they share their story and their passion with us through music.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
F.I.R.S.T. Institute is full of many great instructors who taught me so much as well as help me make connections in the industry. There are some wildly talented audio engineers at Starke Lake Studios that have mentored me: Raymond Argueta, Harrison Bormann, and Jason Blackerby. They all have their own experiences and knowledge and it’s been amazing getting to learn from them as I watch them work and get to ask questions. Having a mentor in this business can be everything, and I feel very fortunate to be around these people. My parents have been personal cheerleaders for me as well. They have always supported me in whatever venture my heart sets out on and I can’t be more thankful for that. Their belief in my abilities is something I can never take for granted.
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