Material and technical base, equipment status of the educational process

Material and technical base of Moscow Gnessin Special School (college) of Music for the implementation of a training program for mid-level specialists

Federal State Educational Standards, 53.02.03
Instrumental performance, 53.02.08 Sound engineering

Educational process in Moscow Gnessin Special School (college) of Music (hereinafter referred to as the College) is organized in 4 educational and administrative buildings with total floor area of 9920.9 sq. m. which are connected with passages and located at the following addresses:

• Moscow, Znamenka Street, 12/2 bld. 3 and bld. 4
• Moscow, Krestovozdvizhenskiy pereulok, 12/2 bld. 2
• Moscow, Starovagankovskiy pereulok, 15 bld. 4

The College has the material and technical base that provides the opportunity to carry out all types of practical training, disciplinary, interdisciplinary and modular training, and educational practice stipulated by the curriculum of the educational institution. The material and technical base corresponds to effective sanitary and fire safety regulations.

Classrooms and specialized premises, equipment

19 classrooms for group lessons included in the general education course and music disciplines (Russian language and literature; mathematics, history, foreign language, geography and social studies, humanitarian and socioeconomic disciplines, history of world art; music theory disciplines; music literature) are equipped with student furniture (tables, chairs), piano or grand piano, computer, blackboard, DVD recorder, audio system, TV set, multimedia projector, and extendable screen.

There are 28 classrooms for individual lessons; 12 of them are equipped with two grand pianos each, and the rest – with one grand piano each. The mentioned premises also include the following: piano chairs with adjustable height, table, chairs, armchair, cupboards for storing sheet music; if necessary, the teachers can use a metronome.

3 classrooms for percussion instruments’ classes are equipped with an extended set of percussion instruments and accessories (about 200 units), additional noise suppression, and furniture (tables, chairs, boards, stands etc.).

Rehearsal room for orchestra, ensemble classes, and the classes included in the interdisciplinary course “Study of related instruments” with 30 seats is equipped with student furniture, grand piano, and piano; there is also a maintenance room for storing the inventory and large instruments (percussion instruments, tubular bells etc.).

The classroom for the lessons included in the interdisciplinary course “Conducting and orchestral score reading” is equipped with student furniture (tables, chairs), a mirror, and a grand piano.

There is a special classroom for music information science program equipped with personal computers (9 work places), MIDI keyboards and the corresponding software.

Specialized classes in chemistry, biology, and physics with laboratory rooms and the required equipment (chemical reagents, learning aids etc.) are organized.

For the purpose of implementation of program 53.02.08, Sound engineering, the College was equipped with specialized premises and the required equipment with the corresponding software.

The specialized premises – a tone studio and a sound engineering booth are connected with the Organ hall with a cable and allow carrying out audio recording sessions, including training sessions. The premises are equipped with sound recording tools, mixing board, and a computer. Studio equipment: lamp input amplifiers, universal combo amplifiers, reverberators, sound processing effects, universal synthesizer, commutation panel, and drum kit.

The following equipment is present for carrying out education according to Sound engineering program:

• classrooms for group and individual lessons equipped with computers with multimedia software, near-, medium- and long-range field monitors with amplifiers, digital mixer board, MIDI keyboards;
• digital workstation on the base of Core i7-8700k processor with Cubase and Pro Tools software;
• software audio processors (compressors, reverberators, vitalizers, maximizers) Waves Platinum Bundle, iZotope Production Suite;
• licensed software: digital workstations (Cubase and Pro Tools), sound processors (Waves, iZotope);
• software synthesizer reFX Nexus 2;
• percussion software module Groove Agent,
• HAlion Sonic SE software synthesizer, Retrologue, Prologue, Padshop, Mystic, Spector, Roland Juno-Gi hardware synthesizer, Kontakt 5 Player sampler;
• piano sample module Synthogy Ivory Grand Pianos II;
• Avid Pro Tools set of virtual synthesizers and samplers, including Boom, Structure Free, Mini Grand, DB-33 Tonewheel Organ, Vacuum, Xpand!2;
• 2-ROMpler synthesizer reFX Nexus;
• virtual grand piano Synthogy Ivory II Grand Pianos. It includes the samples of the following grand pianos: Steinway D Concert Grand, Bosendorfer 290 Imperial Grand and Yamaha C7 Grand;
• convolution reverberator, Audio Ease impulse library. Altiverb 7 Regular, input/output up to 5.1 and sampling rate over 96 kHz;
• a set of plugins for the reverberator from Lexicon PCM Native Reverb company. The set includes LexChamber, LexConcertHall, LexHall, LexPlate, LexRandomHall, LexRoom, and LexVintagePlate;
• Waves Audio Platinum Bundle of sound processors, containing 50 plugins for dynamic processing, equalizing, and reverberation;
• a set of effects for sound processing SoundToys Bundle;
• Synchroarts Vocalign Pro 4 instrument for voice editing and processing. Compatible with Pro Tools, Logic Pro X, Cubase, and Nuendo;
• iZotope Music Production Suite collection of more than 30 sound processors;
• AVID Pro Tools software for educational institutions.

Part of equipment mentioned in the Federal Educational Standard 53.02.08 Sound engineering , namely – vitalizer, sound maximiser, hard disk recorder, DAT-recorder, minidisc player, synthesizer-controller – was obsolete, which is why it was changed to more modern technological solutions, namely – computer recording means and program solutions which serve as a better fit for the modern requirements.

Premises used for working with specialized materials (record library, lingaphone laboratories) are equipped with the following: DVD recorder, audio system, TV set, multimedia projector and extendable screen, lingaphone equipment and furniture.

The library of the College includes more than thirty thousand sheet music publications, about ten thousand books on history and theory of music, as well as general fiction books. The funds are located in a spacious room, additional storage is also available. A reading hall equipped with PC connected to the Internet and to the electronic catalog of the library was created for the students.

The gym is equipped with wall bars, volleyball net, there are sport mats and special surface for rhythmics classes. There is a possibility to carry out firing drills using the electronic shooting range.

The open wide-profile stadium with obstacle course elements is used by State Budgetary Institution of General Education School No. 1287 according to the agreement about joint activities in the field of physical education of students.

The College has three concert venues: Organ hall, Chamber concert hall (Attic floor), and Summer stage (Courtyard).

The Organ concert hall has 130 seats. It is equipped by 2 concert grand pianos (Steinway & Sons and Fazioli F-278), racks and sound equipment, Glatter-Gotz organ, and video screens. The hall is also equipped with a projector and DVD cameras for video broadcasts and recording the videos of concert performances. There is a function of sound notification of the audience about the beginning of the concert. The organ hall also carries the function of a viewing video hall due to being equipped with an extendable 3?4 m screen.

The Chamber concert hall (Attic floor) has 46 seats. It is equipped by 2 concert grand pianos, Steinway & Sons and Fazioli F-278, chairs, and racks.

The Summer stage is equipped with a tent, lighting equipment, and has enough space for 120 seats.

Provision of musical instruments allows the arrangement of the educational process in the College according to the highest level of professional requirements.

In 2015 Moscow Gnessin Special School (college) of Music received the international title, “All-Steinway-School” due to the fact that about 100 of pianos and grand pianos installed in the school were made by Steinway & Sons company (including Boston and Essex – more than 90% of all keyboard instruments in the school in total).

The College is equipped with the following musical instruments:

Keyboard instruments:

• Steinway & Sons D-274 concert grand piano – 4 pcs.
• Steinway & Sons B-211 semi-concert grand piano – 10 pcs.
• Steinway & Sons AS-188 baby grand piano – 38 pcs.
• Fazioli F-278 concert grand piano – 2 pcs.
• Boston GP-163 baby grand piano – 3 pcs.
• Essex piano – 30 pcs.
• Boston piano – 8 pcs.
• Digital piano – 7 pcs.
• Yamaha DC7E3PRO disklavier – 1 pc.
• Yamaha concert grand piano – 1 pc.

String instruments:

• P. Lorencio violin (all sizes) – 24 pcs
• P. Lorencio viola (all sizes) – 12 pcs
• P. Lorencio cello (1\2, 3\4, 4\4) – 12 pcs.
• Poellmann, Zalzburg contrabass (3\4, 4\4) – 7 pcs.
• Harp – 7 pcs., 4 pcs of them are SAMAS
• Yamaha silent violin – 10 pcs.
• Yamaha silent viola – 4 pcs.
• Yamaha silent cello – 4 pcs.
• Yamaha silent bass – 1 pc.
• Woodwind and brass wind instruments:
• Yamaha flute – 4 pcs.
• Yamaha piccolo flute – 2 pcs.
• Azum flute – 2 pcs.
• Schreiber bassoon – 6 pcs.
• Fagottino – 2 pcs.
• Yamaha recorder – 8 pcs.
• F. Loree oboe – 6 pcs.
• Eb Buffet clarinet – 5 pcs.
• Bb Yamaha trumpet – 3 pcs.
• Bb Bach trumpet – 2 pcs.
• Eb/D Schilke trumpet – 2 pcs.
• Bb/F Bach tenor trombone – 4 pcs.
• “Bb” Holton French horn – 8 pcs.

Percussion instruments and accessories, about 200 units, including:

• Tubular bells (set) – 1 pc.
• Xylophone – 4 pcs.
• ADAMS concert marimbaphone – 2 pcs.
• Concert vibraphone – 2 pcs.
• Adams timpani – a set of 5 timpani, 2 pcs.
• Chime-bells – 2 pcs.
• Chinese cymbals (Krotali) – 1 pc.

Baroque department instruments:

• Glatter-Gotz wind organ – 1 pc.
• Karl Schuke positive organ – 1 pc.
• “Mozart type” Neupert hammer piano (after Koennicke; Vienna, 1796)
• Neupert hammer piano (after Dulcken; Munich, 1815);
• Two bimanual harpsichords:
• a concert harpsichord from Reinhard von Nagel atelier in Paris (N. Blanchet model; Blanchet, the XVIIIth century)
• Reinhard von Nagel harpsichord (Schola-II model)
• Two unimanual Merzdorf harpsichords created according to the Flemish models of the XVII century.
• Robert Morley clavichord (John Morley 4 octave clavichord Mahogany)
• Baroque (Irish) harp – 1 pc.
• Baroque cymbals – 2 pcs.

The College has a specialized workshop for repairing keyboard musical instruments, storage room for musical instruments; it also employs tuners of organs, hammer pianos, harpsichords, and clavicords.

The College is equipped with a medical office, which has all equipment and medications required for providing fist medical aid. A dentist’s office is present.

Extracurricular activity room is equipped with student furniture (tables, chairs), and didactic materials.

Staff recreation rooms (teachers’ lounge) in buildings A and C are equipped with ready-built kitchens including sinks, tables, cupboards, soft furniture, and fridges. 4 PCs with Internet access are installed in them.

Gnessin Moscow Special School of Music has a canteen equipped with food heating and cooking devices, as well as food storage equipment. Dinner tables and benches (with 90 seats) are located in the dining hall.

The College has a dormitory for 67 people. All 30 rooms are equipped with separate bathrooms and showers, all the required furniture, pianos, and fridges. On every floor there are ready-built kitchens with sinks, electric stoves, fridges, tables, chairs, as well as utility rooms (laundry rooms) with washing machines, ironing boards, and clothes dryers. Recreation room is equipped with a TV, PC, furniture, and a ping-pong table.

The buildings of the College include elevators for individuals with limited mobility and elevating equipment. There are also cargo elevators for the transportation of furniture and instruments.

In administration activities, functioning of structural divisions and services of the College various computer equipment is used, including computers – 46 pcs, printers – 36 pcs, copy machines – 6 pcs. All college buildings are equipped with internal and external video surveillance; for safety reasons the whole school is equipped with diagnostics monitoring and control system (DMCS).

The college is connected to the Internet with a separate fiber-optic communication line. The speed of connection is 20 Mbps. Three servers are present. E-mail was organized, website was created and is functioning, Wi-Fi service is provided.