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Tag: scoring mixer

Blog Post music Theatre

2015 Projects! Construction! Projects!

4 min read

2015 was just a crazy year with both production and construction. I would never have survived it without the tireless help of the entire team here at DRR&P.

Projects:

We started the year with a full load of productions; Sea Lion High, the new sea lion and otter show for Sea World; new Junior musical versions of Peter Pan (the 1954 musical), Honk, Dear Edwina and Anything Goes; and a new full length musical (and Jr. version) based on the animated film Madagascar! In here somewhere I also managed to mix the score for a video game; more when that’s public.

Construction:

From April to November 2015, we made it through a massive expansion of our studio building, adding a big, new orchestra recording space to studio A and an entire new studio suite, Studio D (complete with another lounge, shop, and two more bathrooms), to our facility. (more…)

Blog Post Game Audio music

Gundam Wing – Suiting Up For The Mix

2 min read

At last I can share the latest video game release I worked on, Namco’s Gundam Wing: Blue Destiny, the newest side story remake in the Mobile Suit game set for PS3. The Gundams are mechanized battle suits (much as seen in Pacific Rim) which, along with their pilots, were made popular in Japanese comics, video and games. As you can imagine, there can be some pretty intense battles… I’d want to blow stuff up if I had a suit like that.

I mixed the score which includes some new orchestrations of the original themes as well as all new material all done by New York based composer/ orchestrator Zac Zinger (www.zaczingermusic.com). While most of the score is synthesrated (created with sampled orchestral instruments and sections,) Zac played all the winds live and added some live violin passes for enhanced phrasing. As the score is mostly battle music, the game directors wanted lots of percussion, lots of brass and lots of punch. The result is huge.

Below is the trailer for the game which, while it’s occasionally buried a bit beneath the sound design, features one of the cues from the new score. And while I’m working steadily on my Japanese, I have little idea what they are saying!

Blog Post music Theme Park

Shamu’s Christmas San Diego

3 min read

We recently completed work on a new Shamu show for SeaWorld San Diego, Shamu’s Christmas, opening this November for the holiday season. DRR&P worked directly with the creative team at SW San Diego and composed, arranged and produced all the music for this production.

The show features Orcas (of course), live male and female host/singers and a live sax player. As the directors wanted a spectacular show that featured exciting animal choreography yet still retained a warm holiday and family spirit, we felt it called for a score that combined both classic orchestral moments as well as driving percussive, rock and pop elements. (more…)

Blog Post Game Audio music

Dan Rudin’s Audio Blog – Best Of The “How To’s”

1 min read

Over the years, I’ve printed a few audio recording, midi and music business tutorials and “how to’s” that have received much positive response from readers. The other day I was having a difficult time locating one of the older posts for myself, so I decided to put together a short list of links to the favorites.

Thanks to those who’ve taken the time to email and continue discussions on these topics.

Midi and Tempo Mapping:

– Midi: Four Letter Word or Composer’s Best Friend?
– Are You Leading or Following
(more…)

Blog Post music Theatre Theme Park

Big Fish, Big Shows, Big Month

3 min read

2013 started off with three non-stop weeks of show production and recording – five different shows! I’ll try to re-capture some of the fun for you.

I recorded and mixed a score for Disney Land Tokyo’s Diamond Horseshoe Dinner Theatre. A Vaudeville show with a western flavor, composer/arranger Greg Smith wrote for a 10 piece band contracted by accordionist Jeff Taylor (The Time Jumpers, Elvis Costello) that featured a “western swing-horn band” with some killer players like guitarist Bryan Sutton, trombonist Barry Green and fiddler Matt Combs.

After recording the orchestra at The Tracking Room Studio, I mixed the project (more…)

Blog Post music

Recording Oscar D’Leon’s Big Band Album

2 min read

Big Band Brass for Oscar

Famed Venezuelan Salsa singer and bassist, Oscar D’Leon, is recording a new album of American Big Band standards mixed with some latin favorites. Where else would he record than here in Nashville with me? Executive Producer Jaime Araque (de Venezuela) and Producer Rodolfo Castillo (de Guatemala) hired Chris McDonald to orchestrate and myself to record and co/produce the sessions why not try this out. So, back I went to the Tracking Room studio for a few days of smoking hot Big Band. (more…)

Blog Post music Theatre

A Wicked Opportunity (To Work With Stephen Schwartz)

2 min read

It was certainly no surprise when, in 2009, Stephen Schwartz was inducted into the American Songwriter Hall of Fame. He’s been much awarded and has written some of my favorite shows in musical theatre (Godspell, Pippin and, of course, Wicked) as well as songs for the films Pocahontas, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Enchanted and Geppetto. I was asked by Disney Theatrical to produce the recording of Stephen’s stage adaptation of Geppetto, My Son Pinocchio, so after much prep work, arranger/orchestrator David Weinstein, vocal contractor Lori Casteel, Stephen and I settled into The Tracking Room Studio in Nashville for the orchestra recording dates. (more…)

Blog Post music Video

Deutsche Bahn Commercial Wins Awards

2 min read

Last year, I composed and produced the score to a television commercial for Germany’s passenger rail system, Deutsche bahn. Though we do quite a bit of commercial music for Europe, the spot, beautifully shot, very edgy and very funny, was a bit different than anything I’d done to date with my sister company IV Music, so I really didn’t know how it would be received.

Apparently it was received well! The spot, called Der Chef Kommt, won 8 awards including 2 New York Festivals Awards, EuroBest, Effie, EPICA and 3 DDP Awards. If you don’t know what these awards are… well, neither do I, but it’s always nice to have something I scored get some thumbs ups.

In the score, I was asked to strongly convey the feeling of ennui that the office workers might feel, then move straight to a buffo, Big-Valley Western gunslinger as the Boss arrives back at the office, EARLY, because he’s taken the new rail system instead of driving. No problem… we all know what ennui sounds like, right? Remarkably, my first draft was accepted with a minor revision to the vocal in the second half. It was a great gig.

You can find the long version of this spot on the video side of my work page. Here’s the short version of the commercial

And here is a great article on IV and what CEO/ CCO Steve Keller is doing with audio branding.