The Metronome Revolution In any musical culture there is an exciting turning point that occurs when music as a professional industry starts to emerge. Musicians start to play other musicians’ music, rather than just their own: composers are writing music down for people in the future (or in other countries) to play, multiple performances of… Continue reading The Marvellous Mr Maelzel
Tag: Sound recording and reproduction
Making Ghosts
Ghosts are one of the most enjoyable things to create in the world of technical theatre, as they allow you to merge a live performance with technological enhancements to create something impressive and other-worldly. Ghost Onstage These are a lot of fun, as you get to turn an actor essentially a classy cyborg. For me… Continue reading Making Ghosts
Live and Kicking
Live musicians vs recording The theatre provides an arena for the latest developments in musical and theatrical technology to be used in a practical context. This technological integration has both advantages and disadvantages for the development of live performance. Moving away from the traditional roles of amplification and reinforcement, advances in electronic and digital technology have allowed designers… Continue reading Live and Kicking
Finding and Using (Mostly Free) Sound Effects
Finding and using the right sound effect is difficult when starting out. While sound effects libraries aim to make finding the exact right type of running-water effect a simple task, the money needed to buy and license these effects can be prohibitive. Finding Sounds Record Your Own By far the best method of getting sound effects… Continue reading Finding and Using (Mostly Free) Sound Effects
Underscoring
Underscoring (the process of accompanying speech or action with sound or music) as a science as much as it is an art. It requires a careful understanding of the action onstage and a sensitive tailoring of the music to interweave exactly with the narrative of word and action. Nowadays we are far more familiar with… Continue reading Underscoring