First Film Score Recording Final Edit

Here is the final edit that I'm turning in for the assignment. Once again, special thanks to Hummie Mann for musical direction and conducting, Tim Huling for score study during the session, awesome Seattle players such as Steve Schirmer, Tom and and Virginia Dzeikonski, Arthur Zadinsky, Scott Logocki, John Kim, and others who played wonderfully. Special thanks too to Claire Hawkins, without whom none of this would have happened.

Special changes include a different ending, an edited fast section, additional room mics, reverb added to the spots, and some other magic.

First Film Scoring Recording Session

On January 16th, the Pacific Northwest Film Scoring School held its first student recording session. The session was held at Studio X in Seattle and each student was assigned to write for string orchestra and clarinet solo.

We had to write an introduction, 8 measures of a clarinet melody, 4 measures of modulation, 8 measures of the same melody in a new key, and four measures of coda.

This is a rough cut of take 6 with a little reverb and added spot mics on the clarinet and bass. Further editing for mistakes and balance will come soon, but this is what I've got as of Thursday, the 17th.

The cue is from an imaginary movie called "Biker Chick III: Home On The Range" and the cue is "Into The Storm". I think that she (the biker) makes it out nicely but not unscathed.

Musical inspiration is coming from James Horner, Hans Zimmer, Henry Mancini, and a whole lot of Hummie Mann. Special thanks to Hummie, who serves as my graduate advisor and who contributed greatly to the style and output of the piece.

Hummie Mann conducted and Tim Huling sat in the booth, running the score study. Thanks to all.

Enjoy!

Solo Concert March 23rd

(photo courtesy of Eric Shalit)
Seattle Area German American School presents a benefit concert for art and music instruction. It's a cello and piano recital with treats served and is scheduled in conjunction with the SAGA parents night out.

On the program will be:
Beethoven Sonata #3 in A Major Op. 69
Bach Unaccompanied Suite #2 in d minor
Hindemith Sonate Op. 25 #3
Pårt Spiegel im Speigel
and a new work by Brad Hawkins

The best part is that Lesleigh Reinfried will play piano on the Pårt and Beethoven. John Teske will perform on the Hawkins in a special improvisation.

Tickets are $20/30 single/couple and all proceeds go directly to the SAGA school but truth be told, we won't turn anyone away.

March 23rd, 7 PM John Marshall Building 520 NE Ravenna Blvd. Seattle

Alchymeia

I've spent a lot of time with a fabulous band. It's peopled with Steve Rice on piano and accordion, Brandon Vance on violin, Yusuf Kilgore on guitars, Ahmad Yousefbeigi on percussion, Nadia Tarnawsky on vocals, and I play on cello and bass.

We play some serious Eastern European folk, Scottish MSR's, gypsy jazz, and torch songs.

We have a new album coming and some good concert dates including April 20th in Georgetown.

More information coming

Thursday Downtown with Emily Dickenson

After three productions of William Luce's "The Belle of Amhearst", the first in Fremont, the second at Seattle Center, and the third in Federal Way, we are doing a private performance on Thursday for lunch. I've never done dinner theater nor have I done any lunch theater, but this should be good and since I wrote the music and perform it on a regular basis, ok the only basis, I have a really good time with it.

Upcoming Concerts December 2008

So here goes:

Saturday September 6th, 2PM. Chamber concert with Oana Tomai and Natalie Lerch. Frye Art Museum. Performing Andre Previn's 4 songs, Rachmaninov Vocalise, and a Vocalise also by Previn.

Saturday December 6th, 7 PM. Handel Messiah at Tacoma First Baptist Church

Thursday, December 11th. More involved version of the concert at the Frye. This one is at the Chapel; 4649 Sunnyside Ave N. You'll want to hit this one. Note: 7 PM start time.

Friday, December 12th and Saturday, December 13th. St. Mark's Cathedral with Choral Sounds Northwest. These concerts are always really well thought out. Fred Coleman runs this group. Excellent Choir.

Sunday, December 14th. Seattle LDS Stake Center. Some sort of chamber piece as part of the Christmas concert. I'm thinking up something grand.

Friday, December 19th Lynnwood WA. Address TBD. Chamber concert with Ute Freund-Puscht and Mark Salman.

Sunday, December 21st. Continuo for Handel Messiah at the Lynnwood LDS Stake Center 7 PM. Should be interesting.

I haven't been to Lynnwood in months and I can't remember when I last played in that town, but the upcoming concerts should be interesting.

Brian Cobb's Opera "O Pioneers"

I think that's the name. We just finished a set of recording sessions for selections from Brian Cobb's chamber opera "O Pioneers" It's a cool one that includes cello, clarinet, two percussion, flute, violin, soprano voice, baritone voice, flute, guitar, and banjo. Julia Tai conducted and I played the cello part.

The music was generally slow to moderate with lots of extended techniques. The trickiest parts were segueing from scratch tone to scraping vertically on the strings with the bow, to pizzicato to snaps to everything else in between.

The banjo parts were very interesting also because numerous places in the score asked the banjo player to scrape or rub on the sound skin. This performer was a little skittish because he was playing a borrowed instrument and didn't want to damage anything. The quirky part about it is that the very same sound can be effected by scraping fingernails on a snare drum. I don't mean to jest when I say that banjo and snare drum are kindred instruments. Deal with it.

I finished the last session on Saturday by punching in the cello part on some circular bowing techniques and overdubbing onto what the other players had just done. It was easy, got it in two takes. Whew!