Willow Smith surprised everyone when she shelved her long-held ambition to become a marine biologist in favour of a career as an audio engineer.
But today she’s half way through her Bachelor of Audio Engineering at Collarts International in Melbourne with the support of a Powell Legacy Fund scholarship, while continuing to enjoy playing with her Timboon-based all-girl band Lisztomania.
Willow says the change of heart took everyone, including herself, by surprise. “I had wanted to be a marine biologist since I was six years old, then all of a sudden when I was 14, I decided I wanted to be an audio engineer,” she said.
“I’ve been around music my entire life. I play guitar in a band and my parents have always taken me to gigs; they were super excited when I told them I wanted to pursue this career.”
Lisztomania has been playing gigs around south-west Victoria and will be part of the Ignite Music festival in Warrnambool on February 3.
“Lately we’ve been getting into a pop-punk grungy sound which has been fun,” Willow said.
Lisztomania started as a school band and after the drummer left, Willow’s little sister Poppy was recruited, joining Jade Van Es and Ebony Bouwman.
Willow didn’t want to rely on playing her own music for a career, so audio engineering was a perfect option.
The course has three main streams – live sound, studio recording and mixing, and post-production recording on film or television.
“I think I’ll end up doing everything, but probably more in recording and post-production which I really enjoy,” Willow said. “I’ll see where next year takes me.”
Although the bachelor course has three years of content, it is consolidated into two years. “It’s a lot of work but it’s a really wild course and you get to do cool things,” Willow said.
The Powell Legacy Fund scholarship, administered by the DemoDAIRY Foundation, has been a big help. Willow is mainly using the scholarship for equipment, including buying specialist studio headphones, but also for the course fees.
“It has made the education more accessible and less financially stressful,” she said. “The scholarship has been amazing and I really appreciate the opportunity.”
Willow will be returning to Timboon over the holidays and working at the 12 Apostles in January.
Ultimately, she would like to return and work in music in the region. “I want to come back to the Timboon area but will probably have to stick around Melbourne for a few years to build up a name for myself, then I would be able to work remotely,” she said.
Willow’s family moved to Timboon in 2015 and she joined the Port Campbell Surf Lifesaving Club where she volunteered alongside Ross and Andy Powell, and has been heavily involved with local soccer clubs and coached the first Corangamite Lions women’s team.
Visit the DemoDAIRY website https://www.demodairy.com.au or contact DDF secretary Ian Teese on 0427 358987 or itag@bigpond.com for more information on DDF or the Powell Legacy Fund.