31 August 2023 

An actor-turned-musician has used her studies at TAFE NSW to secure a position at the prestigious Sydney Conservatorium of Music, where she’s using traditional instruments and sounds recorded in unusual Illawarra locations to create unique compositions. 

Wollongong’s Mckenzi Scott, who excelled in her Certificate IV in Sound Production at TAFE NSW Wollongong, is now working towards a career creating soundscapes in fields such as the booming video game industry, which is listed in the top ten jobs for gamers by Indeed Career Guide. 

“TAFE NSW was pivotal in helping me to study at the ‘Con’ and gave me the confidence to experiment with creating unique soundscapes for film, television, video games and multi-media,” she said. 

“There are big opportunities to be had in the video game sector and the need to create sounds is going to keep growing – it’s a cool and interesting world! 

“When you think of video game soundtracks, they are often filled with traditional and non-traditional sounds to create the emotional experience of the game - so it's not unusual that my three most recent compositions included a piano and sounds collected in disused rail tunnels in Helensburgh." 

During her studies at TAFE NSW, Ms Scott won the prestigious 2022 Avid Award for Best Mix of Music or Composition, which encouraged her to continue recording music with traditional instruments, vocals and electronic input, as well as innovative percussion sounds using timber, glass and other household items.  

Her teacher John Kilbey said the Certificate IV in Sound Production at TAFE NSW allows students to explore techniques in recording sound for film or gaming or creating content using the latest music technology.   

“Only the best of the best gets to study at the ‘Con,’ which reflects Mckenzi’s talent as well as her studies at TAFE NSW,” he said. 

“Mckenzi’s goal to use her talent to build a career in the booming games sector perfectly demonstrates the range of opportunity that exists – from recording artists through to producers or technicians – just to name a few.” 

Ms Scott’s most recent compositions, Clove, The Siren and Peony, have been published online as she works towards completing her Diploma of Music at the Conservatorium. 

“I’m so grateful to my teacher and others at TAFE NSW for helping me to reach this point,” she said. 

“I was getting work when I was acting but sometimes hitting brick walls. Music has just offered one opportunity after another. 

“My focus is to create and share music that melds the acoustic and digital world, all while maintaining a connection to the soul, and TAFE NSW has made an enormous difference on that journey.”