During the month of January, usually slow for production, I used the time to organize and refine. Between a great find on storage bins and a new Brother P-Touch label maker, I may have gotten a little carried away. On the digital side of things, both the studio computer and on-location laptop got fresh installations of Windows and an upgrade to the latest Pyramix audio production software, now capable of Dolby Atmos mixing and mastering.
This month we pivot back towards production again, starting with a documentary production for Paul Klemperer’s Creative Aging project. With interactive musical performances of his own compositions, Paul is able to use music as a device to improve the quality of life for seniors. The documentary will be shot over months with the final product being used to draw interest for grant funding and recruitment. Through interviews, behind the scenes preparation, recording sessions and performances, we will capture the creative process and scope of the project.
2×2′ untitled landscape 2021, Carl Smith
We are also very excited to be in the planning stage for an avant-garde jazz album recording with the incomparable visual and performing artist Carl Smith, who’s latest creative push centers on the contr-alto clarinet. In the aughts Carl’s influence was formidable in the Austin free jazz scene, and around 2010 he started developing his abstract expressionistic landscape art.
Also in February is our live production and taping of Chorus Austin’s Fauré Requiem with full choir and orchestra. The audio will be produced with our THOR24 multitrack recording system, where it will be recorded with sample accurate timecode. A live mix will also be made in Pyramix and sent out to the broadcast dynamics processing unit, before being paired with the video. This will help laptop and mobile users hear all of the details. The video will be shot and recorded with four Netflix approved cameras, two operators, also recorded frame accurate with genlock sync. The live feeds of audio and video will be fed to the TriCaster, where we will choose the shots on the fly, sync the audio, add graphics, and send it off to the internet! The recordings will be easy to work up in the future as needed because everything is synced and has timecode.
Finally, as is our new monthly tradition, a ⚡️flash⚡️ sale. During the great re-organization of January 2022, I re-discovered our 5 camera GoPro system which has been sitting dormant. Three of the GoPros are modified to accept external lenses, making the system capable of filming super-wide to telephoto. And the system is designed to be able to tape performances up to 2 hours. This month we are offering the first two people to claim it, a 2-hour 5 cam GoPro taping for just $100.