My area of expertise lies in music production and electronic composition. Three words that are often not universal are:

1. MIDI - (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) a language standard for interconnecting electronic musical instruments and computers. Basically this is an electronic instrument signal language that sends messages to and from each other and/or a computer. For example: if you plug a keyboard into your computer and play notes that you can manipulate on the computer, all that information is being send by MIDI.

 2. ADSR Envelope - (Attack, Decay, Sustain, Release) this is a term referring to the amplitude envelope used in some synthesizers. Attack - the time it takes for a sound to go from nothing to its loudest point. Decay - the time it takes for that initial attack to the sustain level. Sustain - the level at which the sound remains while holding the note. Release - the time it takes for the sound to fade to nothing once the note is no longer being played.

3. DAW - (Digital Audio Workstation) any electronic system designed to record, edit, and playback digital audio. Any music production software is a DAW. For example: Ableton Live, Logic, FL Studios, Cubase, Reason, Pro Tools, etc.

Something that is mentioned quite a bit when referring to my area of study, is a misunderstanding or limited view of what people like to call “real music.” Plenty of people will ask me “do you play or write any real music?” This is probably one of the most degrading things to me, especially because of the fact that I have been a percussionist for 11 years and not just “pushing buttons on a computer.” (another phrase that degrades the complexity of good music production). The way I view music is simple. It is an emotion and a feeling. No matter what kind of technologies, materials, or objects where used to make the music, as long as it invokes an emotion or feeling in you, it is real music. Period.