CoLab | Signal & Story

  EVENTS CoLab Signal & Story: Sound Design for a Sound Mind CultureHub NYC 47 Great Jones Street 3rd Floor New York, NY 10012 July 13-17, 2026 11am-2pm ET In-Person Free REGISTER Join us for a 5-day workshop for young artists (ages 14–20) who live in NYC. Every classic record, every great podcast, every film score are all built on the same secret: somebody listened to the world and took what they needed. In this beginner-friendly 5-day audio bootcamp, you'll do the same. You'll record the city. Sample it. Layer it. And remix it into an audio story that's completely your own. Signal & Story is a hands-on sound design and audio production program for young creators ages 14–20. You'll work like a DJ, a producer, a journalist, and a sound designer all at once, learning the tools and techniques behind podcasts, Hip Hop production, audio drama and experimental music. Then you'll use all of it to tell a story that matters to you. Sound has always been used to process emotion, build community, and make sense of the world. With this lens in mind, we’ll analyze the connection between frequencies and feelings, exploring what sound actually does to a room, to the body and to the mind. With this knowledge we’ll work to find balance in our daily emotional lives and balance in the audio mixes of the stories that we set out to tell. By the end of the week, you'll have produced a 3–5 minute original audio piece—built from field recordings, original beats, sampled sounds, interviews, and your own voice—and premiered it at a live public listening event. Day 1 - Listen First: Learn what makes sound powerful, emotional, and cinematic–and how listening more deeply can help us understand ourselves more clearly. Start mapping the story only you can tell. Day 2 - Sample the City: Hit the streets with a recorder, capture the sounds of your neighborhood, and build your personal sample bank. What signals are you picking up? Day 3 - Chop, Layer, Build: Learn how to take a sound from anywhere and make it mean something new through the art of sampling, Foley and beatmaking. Plus a visual collage session to design the cover art for your piece. Day 4 - Remix the Story: Edit your audio, mix your tracks, and record your narration. Balance frequencies until every layer has room to sit and the story hits right. Day 5 - Signal Out: Put the final polish on your piece and premiere it at our closing public listening event. No prior experience necessary! CoLab is CultureHub’s free one week art & technology program for young artists ages 14–20. This workshop is FREE to anyone interested in audio, storytelling, journalism, or production ages 14-20 who lives in New York City. The workshop will run from 11am-2pm for five days. Snacks and daily 2-trip OMNY cards will be provided. Students should be able to attend all five sessions. Participants who complete the full program will receive a gift card stipend! Fabian “Farbeon” Saucedo is a NYC-based DJ, emcee, songwriter, pro...