DiGiCo Helps Put The "Music" Into "Musical" On La La Land In Concert
04/05/2018
The tour's primary mix engineer, Troy Choi, has been hands on faders for 90 percent of the run, including shows on every continent, all using local orchestras and choirs as well as, in most cases, local musicians for the jazz band that is so crucial to the film's sound and story. And when he has been in the FOH captain's chair, he has insisted on having a DiGiCo SD7 or SD10 desk in front of him.
Basically we play the movie from the beginning, the same as a normal movie theatre showing, says Choi. However, all of the music from the movie is played by a symphony orchestra, jazz band, and choir, and it's 100 percent live. The symphony is always a local pickup. Sometimes we travel with Randy Kerber, the piano player who recorded the soundtrack, and he is amazing! This movies jazz part is not easy and it's always great to have the original players. We actually had the entire original ensemble from the movie soundtrack, including drummer Peter Erskine, bassist Kevin Axt, and guitarist Paul Jackson, Jr., plus Wayne Bergeron on trumpet, Bob Sheppard on sax, and Andy Martin on trombone. But for many reasons, mostly having to do with budget, it has not happened every time.
With pickup musicians in every new city, the ability to get things up and running and sounding good very quickly is crucial. And Choi depends on the exemplary audio quality of the DiGiCo SD-Range consoles to make that happen.
Most of the time, I mic every single musician, so total channel count is easily between 90 and 100 inputs. And, many times, I dont have enough time to check and tweak each input individually, so it's important to have a mixer that always sounds good as is.' I use SD7s and SD10s, and both of those consoles are gain up, fader up, sounds great with minimal processing.' The sound is fat, smooth, and never harsh. Many channels run with no EQ changes other than a high-pass filter. That's helped bring a lot of success to this tour.
As mentioned, all the music is live. The only recordings are stem files for general dialogue plus sung vocal tracks for stars Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, some background vocals, which are mixed with the live choir, effects, and a click track to keep everyone in sync. One of the features that Choi depends on to manage all of these inputs is Control Groups of which he uses 24 in total.
Control Groups mixed with the ability to customize fader layers is crucial to wrangling all of these inputs. I'm a bit of a micro-managing kind of mixer, Choi says. So I need to have a pretty significant level of control over workflow. The faders in the center of the SD7 allow me to set up a workflow that makes it super-easy to control all of the Control Groups with.
Even given that the local pick up orchestras were some of the best in the world, including the Sydney Symphony and Tokyo Philharmonic, each orchestra and conductor has a distinct vibe that can change the character of the inputs that Choi is working with. The presence of the jazz band complicated the job further.
So far, luckily, I've been able to work with a great orchestra in every city. The harder task was finding the right jazz band. Every musician involved in this show has said that the jazz parts on the score are very challenging. I once heard Randy Kerber and Wayne Bergeron say, Did we really play this? It's so hard,' he laughs.
The challenges go beyond just the music, and the whole character of the music portion and Choi's mixing decisions can change based on myriad influences. For example, when we did the shows in South Korea with the full band from the soundtrack, I ran the band inputs hotter because the people that came to those shows came to see that band, he explains.
Other shows outside of the US, where the film was presented with subtitles, wanted to hear more orchestra, while audiences in the English-speaking world may want to hear more dialogue. Choi, who has a background as a drummer and reads music, did the first shows of the tour with a copy of the score next to him to keep track of where they were.
The score has so many musical parts that bleed right into dialogue, he describes. Eventually, he memorized the score. For the first gig, I had the score open right in front of the desk. But, by about show 22, I had it memorized.
Choi points to the SD-Range consoles as a big part of the success of the show. All of the inputs sound great without a lot of tweaking. That allows me to focus most of my energy and bandwidth on balancing out the orchestra, band and dialogue. Plus the layout and the way I can customize the workflow allows me to be the micro-managing engineer I like to be. And it flat out makes me faster.
Plus, I love the multi-band compressors. I can use them on literally every input without external plug-ins, and they help substantially. Sometimes, for example, a violin even a really well played violin can sound a little harsh in certain parts of its range. With the SD's three multi-band compressors, I can tame those harsh high frequencies without losing any warmth or detail in the rest of the instrument's range. Also eve
LINK: | https://www.digico.biz/docs/latest_news/EVkVuFpuEETMakwrfa.shtml... |
See more stories from digico |
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
Dalet Appoints Santiago Solanas as CEO to Lead Next Era of Growth and Innovation
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, is excited to announce Santiago Solanas as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
03/06/2024
Dalet and Veritone Reach Agreement to Distribute, Transact and Monetize Media Archives
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
01/05/2024
NXTGENbps powers Molinaire's Notorious DIT
NXTGENbps battery solutions are designed to replace diesel generators and offer silent, emission-free power for various applications in film, TV, outside broadc...
01/05/2024
Amazon CEO: AWS has multi-billion dollar revenue run rate in AI already
Sales rose to $25bn during the first three months of 2024, up 17 per cent year-on-year By Matthew Corrigan Published: May 1, 2024 Sales rose to $25bn duri...
01/05/2024
Roku to Offer NBC Olympics Zone
NEW YORK NBCUniversal and Roku are teaming up to offer the NBC Olympic Zone on Roku, a new destination on the Roku Home Screen Menu. The dedicated channel wil...
01/05/2024
U.K.'s Freely Officially Launches
Freely the new streaming service backed by Britain's leading broadcasters BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 is now available through the next generation of ...
01/05/2024
Study: FAST Channel Growth Accelerates
NEW YORK A new report on free, ad-supported streaming channels indicates that their growth continues to accelerate, with the number of channels hours views and ...
01/05/2024
VuWall Unveils New Capabilities For VuStream 150 Video Encoder
MONTREAL VuWall has enhanced its VuStream 150 H.264 video encoder with new features and capabilities, including support for HDMI signals at resolutions up to 38...
01/05/2024
Samsung TV Plus Announces New High-Profile FAST Channels for Sports
NEW YORK At the IAB NewFronts 2024, Samsung Ads announced a new lineup of premium sports, music, family and entertainment content on its leading FAST service Sa...
01/05/2024
WAPA TV Celebrates 70th Anniversary As #1 Station in Puerto Rico
SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO WAPA TV has announced that it will be celebrating its 70th anniversary on May 1 as the number 1 broadcasters on the island....
01/05/2024
Diamond Sports Group Renews Its Distribution Deal with Cox
SOUTHPORT, Conn. & ATLANTA Diamond Sports Group and Cox Communications have reached a multi-year renewal of their distribution agreement for the continued carri...
01/05/2024
Warner Bros. Discovery Networks Dropped by Fubo
As the NBA playoffs heat up on TNT, Warner Bros. Discovery and FuboTV have been unable to reach a new distribution deal. That impasse forced the vMVPD to drop T...
01/05/2024
Time for NAB Reality Check
Time for NAB Reality Check Andy Marken April 30, 2024 0 Comments Above image source - Allegiant, Summit Entertainment Great leaders don't seek...
01/05/2024
Dream Street Productions Switches Live Corporate Events with ATEM Television Studio HD8 ISO
Dream Street Productions Switches Live Corporate Events with ATEM Television Stu...
01/05/2024
lodie Ichter Joins Light Iron as Senior Colorist
lodie Ichter Joins Light Iron as Senior Colorist Brie Clayton April 30, 2024 0 Comments Acclaimed colorist brings global expertise on high-profile pro...
01/05/2024
Skeem Saam: Tuesday's episode, 30 April 2024 [video]
Skeem Saam: Tuesday's episode, 30 April 2024 [video]Missed an episode of Skeem Saam? No problem! Watch the latest episode of your favourite South African so...
01/05/2024
Scandal soapie teasers: What's happening this May 2024?
Scandal soapie teasers: What's happening this May 2024?This month is going to be intense in Scandal. Scandal! airs on e.tv Mondays to Fridays at 19h30. Don&...
01/05/2024
The Dawn Chorus 2024: Sunday 5th May from midnight to 07:00
The Dawn Chorus 2024 Sunday 5th May from midnight to 07:00 on RT Radio 1 and RT Lyric FM & BBC Radio Wales Love nature, love the Dawn Chorus! Listen to th...
01/05/2024
Say It Again: ChatRTX Adds New AI Models, Features in Latest Update
Editor's note: This post is part of the AI Decoded series, which demystifies AI by making the technology more accessible, and which showcases new hardware, ...
30/04/2024
The Anchor of Our Work at the Native Lab: A Dispatch from Adam Piron
By Adam Piron In anticipation of this edition of the Indigenous Program's Native Lab, it actually dawned on me that this will be our lab's tenth year i...
30/04/2024
Launch of SBS South Asian channel and SBS Spice, a new English language offering for younger South Asian Australians
Launch of SBS South Asian channel and SBS Spice, a new English language offering...
30/04/2024
lodie Ichter Joins Light Iron as Senior Colorist
LOS ANGELES (April 30, 2024) Light Iron, the post-production creative-services division of Panavision, is excited to announce that lodie Ichter has joined th...
30/04/2024
Breadth of Support
Now streaming on Netflix, Good Grief marks the feature-film directorial debut of Daniel Levy, well known as the co-creator and costar of the series Schitt's...
30/04/2024
PBS Masterpiece Sets Third TV Adaptation Of The Forsyte Saga'
The Forsyte Saga, John Galsworthy's sweeping portrait of a wealthy British family in 1880s London, is getting its third TV adaptation in less than 60 years....
30/04/2024
Clear-Coms Eclipse HX and Agent-IC Technology Illuminate Coverage of Solar Eclipse
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
30/04/2024
Plex Partners with T-Mobile To Grow Connected TV Reach
CAMPBELL, Calif. Streaming media company Plex and T-Mobile will work together to expand T-Mobile's connected TV (CTV) inventory and advance the connection b...
30/04/2024
Roku, iSpot Launch Expanded Streaming Audience Measurement Partnership
SAN JOSE, Calif. & BELLEVUE, Wash. Roku, Inc. has announced an expanded measurement partnership with iSpot.tv, the cross-platform TV measurement company....
30/04/2024
Paramount+ Subs Hit 71M as Revenue Grew by 51% YoY
NEW YORK As Paramount Global wrestled with management turmoil and ongoing negotiations for a proposed merger with Skydance, the company managed to report improv...
30/04/2024
Cobalt Digital Receives Trifecta of Awards at NAB 2024
Cobalt Digital Receives Trifecta of Awards at NAB 2024 Company adds two 2024 NAB Show Product of the Year awards and one Best of Show from TV Tech to long list...
30/04/2024
arkonas BLADE runner IP Audio Engine Receives Best of Sho...
arkona technologies GmbH, provider of IP core infrastructure solutions for top-tier broadcast productions, has announced that its BLADE//runner IP Audio Engine ...
30/04/2024
OpenDrives Joins AWS Partner Network
OpenDrives, Inc., the global provider of software-defined media workflow solutions and data management capabilities, announced today that it has joined the glob...
30/04/2024
dandb group unveils SustainSymphony a ground-breaking clo...
The first norm conform sustainability service dedicated to the needs of the events industry Easy-to-use, intuitive platform for venues, event organisers and su...
30/04/2024
Dejero Smart Blending Technology opens new opportunities...
Dejero GateWay enables Stream7 to create independent internet connectivity at any venue or location, including UK teaching hospital for live streaming of surgic...
30/04/2024
farmerswife and Cirkus to Showcase Cutting-Edge Solutions...
Excitement is building as farmerswife, a leading software provider for resource scheduling, project management, and team collaboration in the media industry, ha...
30/04/2024
XL8 Clears SOC 2 Type II Audit Enhancing Data Security
XL8, a leading deep-tech startup specializing in AI-powered machine translation technology, proudly announces the successful completion of a System and Organiza...
30/04/2024
CABSAT 2024 - Leader and PHABRIX to showcase latest Test...
Test & measurement innovator, Leader Electronics of Europe, has announced that it will exhibit at CABSAT, which takes place this year from 21-23 May 2024 at the...
30/04/2024
MRMC Debuts Cinebot Max Camera Robot at NAB 2024
MRMC Debuts Cinebot Max Camera Robot at NAB 2024 Brie Clayton April 30, 2024 0 Comments Expands its range of live-action, motion-control camera robots...
30/04/2024
Next Jazz Legacy Announces 2024 Cohort of Women and Nonbinary Awardees
Next Jazz Legacy Announces 2024 Cohort of Women and Nonbinary Awardees The program was created by New Music USA and the Berklee Institute of Jazz and Gender J...
30/04/2024
SES Announces Acqusition of Intelsat for $3.1B
European telecom satellite company SES announced today that it is acquiring rival Intelsat for $3.1 billion. The deal, unanimously approved by both companies...
30/04/2024
Bakish Out at Paramount
Bob Bakish, chief executive of Paramount stepped down on Monday, effective immediately. Bakish, who was a staunch ally of Shari Redstone, controlling shareholde...
30/04/2024
Hotspring unveils Slapshot ML-driven rotoscoping solution
Hotspring said the breakthrough had been achieved through the acceleration of machine learning technology By Matthew Corrigan Published: April 30, 2024 Ho...
30/04/2024
SES to acquire Intelsat in $3.1 billion deal
Speaking about the deal, Adel Al-Saleh, CEO of SES, said: it will bring value-added, efficient, and reliable offerings for both companies media customers By Je...
30/04/2024
Bob Bakish officially out at Paramount, new Office of the CEO finalising long-term plan'
Paramount said the Office of the CEO is working with its board to develop a comp...
30/04/2024
Gray Television Using NextGen TV to Roll Out Advanced Features Like HDR
LOUISVILLE, Ky. In another sign that broadcasters are finally using NextGen TV broadcasts to offer viewers new features instead of simply simulcasting existing ...
30/04/2024
Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame To Honor Blaise Labbe
OKLAHOMA CITY The Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame will induct Blaise Labbe, a group news director for Sinclair Broadcast Group, May 2 at the 54th Anniversary I...
30/04/2024
Cox Media Group, Dish Ink New Multi-Year Agreement
ATLANTA and ENGLEWOOD, Colo. Cox Media Group and Dish have ended a dispute over retransmission fees that lasted nearly a year and a half with a new multi-year ...
30/04/2024
TelevisaUnivision Taps LTN for IP-Based Distribution
Video transport solution provider LTN has announced that it is working with TelevisaUnivision to help the Spanish-language media giant migrate to IP-based video...
30/04/2024
NBC KXAS and Telemundo KXTX Used Clear-Com Solutions for Eclipse Coverage
ALAMEDA, Calif. Clear-Com has released details about how it played a pivotal role in the seamless coverage of the recent solar eclipse on April 8, 2024 by NBC K...
30/04/2024
Scripps Appoints Seth Walters To Steer CTV Sales Strategy
CINCINNATI The E.W. Scripps Company is adding Seth Walters to its sales leadership team as head of CTV sales, effective April 29....
30/04/2024
Durham Bulls Saturday Game, First Sellout of 2024 Season
The force was strong at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park on Saturday night, April 27, 2024, as the night netted the ballpark's first official sellout crowd of...