How many SPR employees does it take to record a promo?
I’d written a few 30-second spots promoting the Making Noise blog, and headed back to one of the mixing consoles to record.
“Uh…” I’d recorded in this room before, but Patrick had always been manning the computer. Today, though, he was downtown playing at Street Music Week.
There was a picture of our President in cool dreadlocks on the monitor, which I found amusing, but I could not find the Next Gen audio icon anywhere on the desktop. Another thing: Talk of the Nation was blasting over the speakers, and I had no idea how to turn it off without pushing the wrong button and wreaking havoc on the entire station.
The last time I’d recorded stuff on my own, Verne had set it all up for me. I’d made some mistakes, but I’d figured it out.
There was no way I was figuring this out alone.
Luckily, Neesha is a whiz with most things technical. She noticed right away that there were two machines hooked up to the one monitor. Unsuccessfully, she searched for the switch to change over to the machine I needed. With Jerry’s help, we figured out keystrokes instead.
“Oh!” Jerry suddenly announced. “Here’s the switch!” It was hidden behind the monitor. Neesha and I laughed. “That’s what I was looking for!”
Neesha hadn’t recorded audio for a while, but she got me set up in Next Gen’s promo file and gave me a quick refresher on the mini editor. Neesha and Jerry wished me luck as they left, shutting the door.
Okay, I thought, I can do this.
I sat down in the chair. I put the headphones on. I started recording.
I heard nothing on playback.
Uh-oh.
Once again, I looked down at the mixing console. I swear it looked more advanced than the cockpit of a 747. There were at least 12 pots (potentio-meter-something), with various on-off switches lit or unlit, volume sliders, Audition mode, and all sorts of other modes and lights and…
I could feel my eyes crossing, and had a vague memory of flunking the circuit-building part of my Physics final. How did anyone ever figure this stuff out?
Luckily, Brian Flick had just finished an important project, and had time to come and help me out.
“You need to make sure this—“ he pushed a button “—is on Audition, and this—“ he pushed another “—is off, and this—“ He pushed about eight more buttons, which all turned light green. “Okay, now you should be able to hear yourself.”
Viola! All of a sudden I was in business.
I thanked Brian profusely, and he gave me a hearty pat on the back. “Every console is a bit quirky, and so is every computer. We all have to learn each one all over again, too!”
I felt tons better.
So, how many SPR employees did it take to record one promo? Not including myself, it took three. And I never could’ve done it without them.
Showing posts with label Verne. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Verne. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
"Songs of Survival"
.
Walking into the station this morning, I was met with a very different sound. The song's lyrics were sung in a different language. Passionate and beautiful, it was tinged with an unmistakeable sense of sorrow.
Gonzaga alumna Julia Riegel sat in the studio with Verne, explaining that the song, composed during the Holocaust, was part of her thesis presentation "Songs of Survival." For the project, she demonstrated how music from the Holocaust can contribute to understanding what it meant to be a prisoner in a concentration camp and to an overall understanding of that period in history.
For her part, Julia is fascinated by both the music and the history. She analyzed songs with the confidence of extensive research, barely glancing at any notes. She smiled as Verne played a song with a title translating into "It Burns."
"This is one of my favorites," she said. "It's so powerful - kind of like a rock song from the Holocaust."
Julia and Verne have been known each other since she played the viola in his youth symphony. "She was about two years old and came forth fully-formed," Verne joked. The two have shared a love of books and music for many years, and Verne attended Julia's original thesis presentation this past May, where she first explained her work on "Songs of Survival."
"She's really great," Verne said of Julia after the broadcast. "She's so bright and can express things just wonderfully."
Walking into the station this morning, I was met with a very different sound. The song's lyrics were sung in a different language. Passionate and beautiful, it was tinged with an unmistakeable sense of sorrow.
Gonzaga alumna Julia Riegel sat in the studio with Verne, explaining that the song, composed during the Holocaust, was part of her thesis presentation "Songs of Survival." For the project, she demonstrated how music from the Holocaust can contribute to understanding what it meant to be a prisoner in a concentration camp and to an overall understanding of that period in history.
For her part, Julia is fascinated by both the music and the history. She analyzed songs with the confidence of extensive research, barely glancing at any notes. She smiled as Verne played a song with a title translating into "It Burns."
"This is one of my favorites," she said. "It's so powerful - kind of like a rock song from the Holocaust."
Julia and Verne have been known each other since she played the viola in his youth symphony. "She was about two years old and came forth fully-formed," Verne joked. The two have shared a love of books and music for many years, and Verne attended Julia's original thesis presentation this past May, where she first explained her work on "Songs of Survival."
"She's really great," Verne said of Julia after the broadcast. "She's so bright and can express things just wonderfully."
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Party!
.
Sprinkles.
Sprinkles and syrups.
Sprinkles and syrups and fresh cherries and decorations.
That's how the table in the lobby grew this morning. Each year about mid-July, the station has a hot dog roast and ice cream social during the lunch break to celebrate summer birthdays. Right now Verne is playing 52 minute stretches of music to snatch a few extra minutes to help with preparations. A line of ice cream machines churn away on the back porch. Stephanie is coordinating buns, beans, and barbecue. All in the midst of actual station work.
"We like to do this each year to zero in on our real love... food," said Verne. I've been told that his homemade (or rather station-made) ice cream is a big tradition. Added to Verne's vanilla, Patrick and Shelley have brought chocolate ice cream, Neesha is making, according to Verne "something Neesha-esque," and Nancy is whipping up a batch of sherbet for a non-milk-based alternative.
"We've also been eyeing the root beer in the fridge," Verne said. "Somebody might experiment with that."
Luckily for me the annual "ice cream orgy" as Verne put it, falls right on my birthday. So, as a special treat, I get to take a bit of a break from press releases and promos to blog about ice cream. The only concern is that we might wind up with more ice cream than the station can handle.
"It's like why I don't wear Spandex," Verne said.
Spandex? I gave him a look of complete puzzlement.
"You don't have to gear up and make a big fuss to ride your bike to work. Just like that, you don't have to go all crazy to enjoy some ice cream at work. It should be something normal," he added in explanation.
Well I, for one, am all for the normalization of ice cream at the station. Yum!
Sprinkles.
Sprinkles and syrups.
Sprinkles and syrups and fresh cherries and decorations.
That's how the table in the lobby grew this morning. Each year about mid-July, the station has a hot dog roast and ice cream social during the lunch break to celebrate summer birthdays. Right now Verne is playing 52 minute stretches of music to snatch a few extra minutes to help with preparations. A line of ice cream machines churn away on the back porch. Stephanie is coordinating buns, beans, and barbecue. All in the midst of actual station work.
"We like to do this each year to zero in on our real love... food," said Verne. I've been told that his homemade (or rather station-made) ice cream is a big tradition. Added to Verne's vanilla, Patrick and Shelley have brought chocolate ice cream, Neesha is making, according to Verne "something Neesha-esque," and Nancy is whipping up a batch of sherbet for a non-milk-based alternative.
"We've also been eyeing the root beer in the fridge," Verne said. "Somebody might experiment with that."
Luckily for me the annual "ice cream orgy" as Verne put it, falls right on my birthday. So, as a special treat, I get to take a bit of a break from press releases and promos to blog about ice cream. The only concern is that we might wind up with more ice cream than the station can handle.
"It's like why I don't wear Spandex," Verne said.
Spandex? I gave him a look of complete puzzlement.
"You don't have to gear up and make a big fuss to ride your bike to work. Just like that, you don't have to go all crazy to enjoy some ice cream at work. It should be something normal," he added in explanation.
Well I, for one, am all for the normalization of ice cream at the station. Yum!
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Work Song
.
Right now Nancy and Verne are at work on a new project. Early in September, KPBX's program The Bookshelf will feature the popular regional writer Ivan Doig's latest book, Work Song. Just A Theory host Tony Flinn has already begun recording readings from the sequel to The Whistling Season, a story about the miners of Butte, Montana. What makes this particular selection from The Bookshelf special though, is that the station has commissioned a local composer to create an actual work song to be played with the reading of the novel.
Composer, musician, screenwriter, and novelist Don Caron will bring to life what Nancy says should be "an infectious marching tune" like the song meant to organize the miners in Work Song. The lyrics to the song will most likely be accompanied by a concertina. Between the work of bestselling author Doig and that of award-winning composer Caron, this chapter of The Bookshelf should be page-turning.
Right now Nancy and Verne are at work on a new project. Early in September, KPBX's program The Bookshelf will feature the popular regional writer Ivan Doig's latest book, Work Song. Just A Theory host Tony Flinn has already begun recording readings from the sequel to The Whistling Season, a story about the miners of Butte, Montana. What makes this particular selection from The Bookshelf special though, is that the station has commissioned a local composer to create an actual work song to be played with the reading of the novel.
Composer, musician, screenwriter, and novelist Don Caron will bring to life what Nancy says should be "an infectious marching tune" like the song meant to organize the miners in Work Song. The lyrics to the song will most likely be accompanied by a concertina. Between the work of bestselling author Doig and that of award-winning composer Caron, this chapter of The Bookshelf should be page-turning.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Musical Kids
This morning at quarter 'til 11, Verne had the nagging feeling that he'd forgotten something. As he pondered over what it could be, a line of excited 8-to-15-year-olds filtered into the lobby. It suddenly hit Verne that today was the live broadcast for the Holy Names Music Center piano camp and he shot into action.
"Us trapeze artists were about to splatter on the pavement," he said of the accidental lapse of memory and the unprepared live-recording studio. Together he, Jerry, Brian, and Patrick cleared out the room and set up sound equipment with record speed just in time for the 11 am broadcast.
It was at this point that I entered the office, only to be asked by a station volunteer, "Are you one of the pianists? They already went to the back room."
"Pianists?" I replied confusedly and sure enough, the strains of a lovely classical piece reached my ears. Shelley handed me a camera and I tracked down the tinkling notes to discover this scene:
35 kids of varying ages and attention-levels coated the carpet of the little room. A small strawberry-blond head bent over the piano.
Verne perched upon a stool, narrating between each of the 14 child-performers' turns on the piano and the camp instructor shuffled her students into place. Parents and friends spilled out into the hallway, listening to each piece and snapping rapid-fire photos of their children. Some kids waited patiently for their turn.
Others waited less patiently.
But when they sat down at the piano, the music was beautiful.
And everybody remembered to applaud.
The applause actually proved to be a bit of a problem. In an adjacent room, John was trying to record a news story in between the clapping and sounds of the piano. Because the building is not sound-tight, a few bars of a piano solo leaked onto the end of his recording.
"I had to redo it a couple times to make sure there wasn't any extra sound on it," he reported.
Overall, though, the broadcast of the young pianists' performances was a complete success.
"It was a wonderful rush of energy," Verne said with a grin.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
A Red, White, and Blue Brainstorm
.
While for most people the 4th of July means food, flags, and fireworks, at SPR the patriotic holiday means brainstorming. This afternoon Verne padded into the office with no shoes and a harried but eager look on his face, clutching a fistful of scribbled notes on 4th of July special programming. During any holiday listeners expect something different and exciting from the station to match the mood of the day. This all boils down to the need for a surge of creativity from the broadcasters. Verne ran his fingers through his hair so that it stood wildly on end as he went over the first draft of the holiday weekend schedule. In addition to special programs like satirical singing group Capitol Steps performing their 4th of July version of “Politics Takes a Holiday" and the critique of government action during the Vietnam War "Top Secret: The Battle for the Pentagon Papers” performed by L.A. Theatre Works, Verne said that the station will also run a mix of holiday-appropriate music throughout the weekend.
“We’ll have patriotic songs and music to burn burgers by,” he said, thumbing through notes. Verne mentioned the tentative schedule (that Capitol Steps will air on KSFC on July 2 and 5 at 5 pm and on KPBX on July 4 and 5 at 4 pm and noon respectively) but be warned that times may be altered.
“That’s the fun of radio,” he said, heading back to work, “changing our minds at the last minute!” And with that he ducked out the door, leaving half-formed notes as the remains of a patriotic brainstorm behind him. For an up-to-date schedule of 4th of July weekend programming go to kpbx.org or follow Spokane Public Radio on Facebook.
While for most people the 4th of July means food, flags, and fireworks, at SPR the patriotic holiday means brainstorming. This afternoon Verne padded into the office with no shoes and a harried but eager look on his face, clutching a fistful of scribbled notes on 4th of July special programming. During any holiday listeners expect something different and exciting from the station to match the mood of the day. This all boils down to the need for a surge of creativity from the broadcasters. Verne ran his fingers through his hair so that it stood wildly on end as he went over the first draft of the holiday weekend schedule. In addition to special programs like satirical singing group Capitol Steps performing their 4th of July version of “Politics Takes a Holiday" and the critique of government action during the Vietnam War "Top Secret: The Battle for the Pentagon Papers” performed by L.A. Theatre Works, Verne said that the station will also run a mix of holiday-appropriate music throughout the weekend.
“We’ll have patriotic songs and music to burn burgers by,” he said, thumbing through notes. Verne mentioned the tentative schedule (that Capitol Steps will air on KSFC on July 2 and 5 at 5 pm and on KPBX on July 4 and 5 at 4 pm and noon respectively) but be warned that times may be altered.
“That’s the fun of radio,” he said, heading back to work, “changing our minds at the last minute!” And with that he ducked out the door, leaving half-formed notes as the remains of a patriotic brainstorm behind him. For an up-to-date schedule of 4th of July weekend programming go to kpbx.org or follow Spokane Public Radio on Facebook.
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