Take note of ECMW celebrations and check them out. Allow yourself the opportunity to dig a little deeper and discover some of the excellent music being produced from those who are from Atlantic Canada.

It’s hard to make a living as a musician in this neck of the woods but many artists choose to do so and do so with an honesty and integrity second to none.

I’m happy to report that my friend Joel Miller, who I grew up with in Sackville, NB won an award for Jazz Recording of the Year. He makes incredibly creative and wonderful music: way to go Joel. suddenlyLISTEN isn’t nominated for any awards but there is an organization dedicated to investigating improvised music creation. There are oodles more!

Although many of my clients reside outside of Atlantic Canada, I see the ECMW as a celebration of Atlantic Candian’s recording the great music! I love that ’cause that’s what I love to do!

The next two blog posts here at stonehousesound.com will describe the production process that I undertook from getting the call to delivering the final media.

This first post will cover the pre-production and recording process. The second will describe the post production editing, mixing and mastering. It’s a fascination and complex process… I hope you enjoy reading my rendition of the events. Please feel freeze to post comments if you like.

Tricia Baldwin, Managing Director of Tafemusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir, contacted me in November 2011 to put together a team to record the complete Messiah live at Koerner Hall in Toronto. The first and somewhat important order of business was to find a Producer who was knowledgeable of the repertoire and the orchestra, who was available and whose fee fit the budget. Carl Talbot (Musicom Productions), who I most often work with on Tafelmusik projects was not available. I called Halifax based producer Jeff Reilly and with Maestro Taurins’ input arranged to have him produce the recording. I secured the 24 track recording system from Musicom Productions and hired Montreal based engineer, Jeremy Tusz to oversee the transport and installation of the recording system. I also hired Toronto engineer Andrew Mullin to assist me in the somewhat involved process of hanging the microphone array.

In consultation with Malcom Harris, the production manager at Koerner Hall, and Stephanie Miletic, the operations manager at Tafelmusik, a production schedule was put together that would allow us enough time to prepare the technical set-up and then sound check all the microphones.  When taking into consideration the musicians under an AFof M contract, the choir under an Actra contract and the tech crew of Koerner Hall, there is a certain amount of coordination that needs to take place in order satisfy everyone’s requirements without incurring extra costs for the orchestra. Malcom Harris (who understands recording very well having done it for many years in the past) was extremely helpful is providing all of Koerner Hall’s resources to the project. His crew is extremely professional and he has some excellent equipment in house that we used to supplement our resources.

Having the personnel and technical resources in place, the next task was to fine tune the budget and get the green light from Tafelmusik management. Needless to say, recordings of this nature are not cheap to produce so cost estimates were made and negotiations ensued in order to fit the budget. Since I was coordinating the recording production, there were many fees and costs to take into consideration – from the recording equipment to the shipping of the final CD master.

I made a plan to meet Andrew and Jeremy at the loading dock early in the morning of day 1. Time was tight to get everything ready an in place for the sound check that afternoon (with subsequent performance that evening), so it was important to get in there with a clear plan of who does what.  Andrew worked with one of the house crew to drop lines from the grid and rough in placements of all the microphones to be hung. Jeremy handles the recording rig and making sure we were getting signal. I hovered between the control room and the stage to ensure all the technical aspects we aligning so everything would be in place for the sound check that afternoon.

Here is the initial sketch of my my plan for the microphone array in Koerner Hall:

For all you audio geeks out there, we were recording to a Pyramix Native system employing a MADI interface and a stage box with Millenia Media microphone preamps / AD and an SSL alpha link.

We tied into the venues optical system to get the signal from the stage to the control room at the back of the hall. The Koerner Hall crew had never used the optical tie lines before so there was a little problem solving required to figure it all out. Our microphones consisted of DPA 4003, Schoeps MK2H, Neumann KM-184/TLM-170, Sennheizer MKH40 and others. All the suspended mic were stabilized by attaching fishing line to them and tying them off. The result was literally a web of fishing line, but to the audience the visual impact of the microphone array was minimal.

Here’s a picture of the array in place:

Koerner Hall is a joy to work in. The acoustic is fantastic and the facilities are world class. One feature that I took advantage of was their system of adjustable curtains. With a touch of a button you could very quickly change the reflectivity of the acoustic quite drastically. One thing I learned from my last recording experience in Koerner (recording the Sing along Messiah for DVD) was that once you get people in the seats, the acoustic changes quite drastically. Tafelmusik’s Messiah performances are very popular and full houses were expected every night so I planned to account for this. For the sound check I asked to have the acoustic curtain fully implemented to damped the acoustic in an attempt to recreate the liveliness of the hall with a full house. For the performance I would open up every curtain possible to create as much reflective energy in the acoustic as possible.

Here is a picture of the side curtains partially open:

In the afternoon our producer Jeff Reilly arrived, and met up with Ivars to discuss some artistic details then it was sound check time. Right away it was determined that the main mics were too close and the choral spot mics were not evenly picking up the choir. Immediately following the rehearsal Ivars, Jeff and I sat don and listened to some of the sound check which I recorded to discuss the sound. Ivars confirmed some of our observations and I figured out the mic positioning changes I need to make to achieve the sound we wanted. Andrew, the house crew and I fine tuned the mic positions. Microphone heights were adjusted, the fishing lines were tweaked and were were ready to roll. I was still a bit nervous about how the sound of the Koerner would change with a full house.

The Orchestra had four performances with one 3 hour “patch session” in the afternoon of day 4 to record any tricky spots for coverage. For a piece that’s almost 2 hours long, this is not a lot of time, so Jeff and Ivars needed to put their heads together to determine what spots needed the attention.  These “sessions” were ultimately going to be the takes we had to choose from when it came time for editing.

On performance day 1,  the house was sold out. As I suspected and even with the curtains fully open, the acoustic seemed dead. What was there was fantastic, but there just wasn’t a whole lot of decay to the sound of the room which for choir helps with the blend. Adding reverb in post was inevitable. During the performances, Jeff had his head in the score marking spots that could be improved upon and I was listening carefully for any noises that might be distracting to the listener and taking note of then. Ivars wanted CD copies of each nights performance immediately following the show so he could review them and make notes as to what he had to get coverage for. Before the next performance Ivars and Jeff would touch bases and then the concert would begin.

On day 4, the last day or recording we had scheduled a 3 hour patch session so we could pick up spots that were technically challenging and/or Ivars and Jeff wanted coverage on when it came time to editing. In advance of the patch session it was decided by Ivars and Tafelmusik management to record the patch session without the choir. I imagine economics played a roll in this decision but Ivars was confident that he could get everything he needed from the choir during the four live performances.  Nonetheless, for a piece that is over two and a half hours in total length, 3 hours was not a lot of time so we needed to be very organized with our time. Given was we had in the can at that moment (the 4th and final performance was looked at as bonus material!) Ivars and Jeff carefully planned what required and scheduled the soloists and budgeted the time so we would have time to record everything we needed. Every minute beyond the 3 hours allotted for the patch session was very expensive. There were concerns that extra time was going to be necessary to get everything we needed but at the last minute Jeff decided that we were good… we had everything we needed.

Stay tuned for part 2 of “Messiah in the Making” where I will describe the post production process. Thanks for reading.

http://www.facebook.com/stonehousesound

I’ve been very fortunate to be working with lots of amazing creative people making excellent music over the past ten months. Scott Benson Band (CD we worked on together just got nominated for a Western Canada Music Award), Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir (Messiah now completed!), Tempest Baroque Ensemble (finished recording at the historic St. John’s Anglican Church in Lunenburg, NS), Vernon Regehr (Just finished his solo CD), Evergreen Club Contemporary Gamelan (just finished recording at the Glen Gould Studio in Toronto) and Suzie LeBlanc (we’re just beginning the production on her Elizabeth Bishop recording project).

This summer we spent 2 incredibly creative weeks in St. John’s Newfoundland for a series of performances and recordings. Rob Power has put together a incredible group of talented percussionists to begin the recording process of an epic CD project of his own compositions.

I’ve recently updated my sessions gallery which is an interesting peek behind the scenes on some of my recent recording sessions. Go have a look here.

But here I am, with some time, thoughts and pics to share with those that might be interested. Scroll down below the pictures for more words

Here’s the studio in it’s complete state:

I’m so happy to now have a room that is neutral and allows me to edit, mix and master with confidence. There still may be a a few minor acoustical tweaks in order to even out one small bump. A big thanks to Iain Cocks of Cocks & Delaney and Dan Séguin from Dan Audio for their part in the realization of this studio. Also thanks to Erin Donovan for her patience and support through the process.

So far I’ve mixed and mastered Scott Benson‘s new album, done some post editing and mixing for Tafelmusik’s Baroque educational videos with RH Thompson, Vernon Regehrs upcoming solo cello CD, Helen Pridmore’s upcoming CD release, and the recording of Erin Donovan’s composition for Yvonne Ng’s next dance to be premiered in Toronto in March. Next up: Tafelmusik‘s complete Messiah post production, Robert deMaine‘s Haydn cello concerto CD, Paul Buchanan’s next solo project, and the Evergreen Club Contemporary Gamelon ensemble.

On an aside, it’s interesting to note that our business here on Woodstock Road continues the tradition here at this address. The previous owners ran a Yoga Studio / B&B and the family that built the house ran a store selling primarily oyster bags (whatever those are!) and sails.

If you’re in Nova Scotia, give me a call and drop by for a visit.

Right away I got on the phone to my builder Iain and hired him again. First thing was to order all the materials required for the acoustic panel fabrication. The wall and ceiling treatment uses 2″ Owens Corning 703 fiberglass insulation framed by 1.5″ strapping. The suspended Bass Trap panels design specified 1.5″ Roxul acoustical fire batts. The local building supplier didn’t stock either the 2″ Owens Corning 703 fiberglass insulation or the 1.5″ Roxul acoustical fire batts so Iain order this up. I also had to come up with an aesthetic plan as all of the acoustical panels are covered with fabric. Thanks to my lovely and supporting wife Erin for pretty much making these decisions. We ordered the special “acoustical panel” fabric from Gilford’s of Maine.

Next task was to remove the small closet and open up the room. I was planning on using this as my “machine room” and for extra storage but I quickly let that one go. Oh and remember all that Primacoustic foam paneling I first put up in the room? I had to take it all down. It doesn’t feel very good undoing work, but it just didn’t do the job.

Iain recommended I blow cellulose insulation above the ceiling of my room to reduce the heating costs and hopefully dampen the influx of exterior noise into my space. Iain manned the machine and lucky me, i ended up in the attic. I was reminded why I didn’t become an insulator, but I’m very glad I did this.

We started with the ceiling and let me tell you, working with fiberglass overhead sucks! After completely covering the ceiling with the 703, we put the fabric up. It made a huge difference to the feel of the room and the height of the ceiling.

Next up, the wall panels which were also put together using the 2″ 703 fiberglass. These went up fairly quickly but we were constantly trying to think ahead to the next steps so our installation wouldn’t hit any hurdles. There’s nothing worse than undoing work!

Determining how much fabric we needed took some careful measuring and planning. Janet Adams (Mom) and Susan Sayle who are both experts in working with fabric put their heads together to come up with a plan. Sue is a busy violist so I booked to to come to the studio to help with devising a plan to wrap the bass trap panels. Working with Janet, and Erin, Sure jumped in a we started putting these units together: twelve 18×60 panels and six 18×72 panels. Roxul is a faily loose insulating material so care had to be taken to not disturb the integrity of it’s surface so the panels would have a clean look to them.

This process takes a significant amount of time and resources to make happen. The motivation of course is that in the end I’ll have an excellent studio with a solid sound, so i can continue delivering my work with the precision and detail my clients expect.

Stay tuned for the next post when I’ll hopefully have some photos of the finished studio.

Our Mahone Bay location is currently undergoing an important renovation giving our main mixing room a physical infrastructure specifically for sound mixing and mastering.

The design is complete (by Dan Séguin at DanAudio in Montreal) and over the next two to three weeks the installation will be taking place. For fun and the interest of whomever, I post progress reports and pictures and things move along.

Design by DanAudio

I’ve recently had two concert going experiences that revitalized my excitement for live music.

1. I had the privilege of attending a concert of the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra performing Mahler’s 2nd Symphony at the Jack Singer Concert Hall. We’re talking a 100 piece orchestra, 200 member choir, 2 solo singers and an organist. Cram all those performers and their passion for music in one room with a sold out audience and you have the makings of an interesting evening. I was literally on the edge of my seat for the entire 1.5 hours of this non stop performance. I was completely blown away by the dynamic range, the textures the genius orchestrations, the expert direction (Roberto Minczuk) and the superb performances. Mahler and the Calgary Philharmonic took me on a journey and at the time I had no idea where it was going. Amazing.

2. While in Toronto for a recording project, I happen to have the evening off that Kurt Swinghammer was launching his new CD/Bluray Turpentine Wind. His band are all stellar musicians, and during this event Kurt involved a visual artist, Justin Stephenson, to create live video imagery to accompany the performance. Last but not least, he hired Michael Wojewoda to do the live mix. Kurt chose the Music Gallery for his performance venue… a sweet acoustic, but not your usual space for pop music. Wow. It was truly a masterpiece of a performance. Of course with the above mentioned participants and Kurt’s crafty song writing, all the elements were in place.

To reproduce the energy and power of musicians performing in a real acoustic space through microphones, cables. analog to digital converters then back out some wires to 2 boxes with big round cones in them, is a feat every engineer and producer attempts to capture. Everyday in my work I try to reproduce it but really, it is impossible.
Recording music is full of compromises. Live music is magic. I didn’t always think this way, however.

When I graduated from McGill University is 1991 I was destined to be a studio engineer/producer. In my mind live music was full of compromises: bad acoustics, mediocre sound systems, sitting in a bad seat. Recording was the only way to get it right: put the listener in the perfect seat, tweak the timbres perfectly and balance it all exactly the way it should be.

Well, it wasn’t too long after I graduated that I got a job working for John Cage and Merce Cunningham in New York City. I was hired to tour around the world with them as their live sound engineer. At the time I was thinking to myself “what am I doing? I’m a studio guy”! But of course the opportunity to have John Cage as my boss was too big to pass by. This wasn’t your ordinary live sound gig. I was primarily in charge of their sound system with consisted of between 8-16 channels of discrete audio with speakers distributed throughout the venue often in locations to activate the interesting acoustic qualities of the venue. I was also asked to regularly perform in the “band”. What turned out to be the most interesting aspect of my job was assisting the late David Tudor in the presentations of his music. Now, here I was working with these pioneering composers and performers who made music which was literally impossible to record, at least in a way that it could be reproduced as it occurred in the venue. Any attempt at recording this music was fraught with compromises. Needless to say, it didn’t take me long to flip my somewhat naive post graduate perspective. Thank you to Merce, John and David for bringing that realization into my world!

I think it is extremely important for anyone working in the music recording industry to go see live music. It reminds us of what we’re striving for… even if the sound is bad (which it is most of the time), it allows us to experience in real time the exciting process of musicians performing for an audience and in turn, an audience giving back to the musicians. This is what music is all about.

Happy concert going.

-John

We’re almost finished editing and mixing vocalist Helen Pridmore’s next CD.

Recording production on cellist Vernon Regehr solo project has just complete. We had a great session in McGill University’s Multi Media Room (MMR). Here’s a link.

We’re heading to Toronto to record Daniel Taylor and the Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra. Really looking forward to this session.

Lots more action to share. Come back soon for all the news!

These guys are great.