Well, dear readers, I must write these here notes in a hurry because she of the Evil Eye will be here all too soon. I have to say that yesterday was one of those days where I just never stopped doing and going and also going and doing. I was up at ten after eight hours of sleep, and then I had to answer a plethora of e-mails and we had to ship out a LOT of David and Bathsheba CDs. I then figured out our shoot schedule and e-mailed everyone their call times, so all that’s done. Then I talked to Hal Linden’s lovely daughter, Nora, who’s going to be in the scene with him. She’s very excited. I then went and had a bacon cheeseburger – it’s been a few weeks and I had a hankerin’ for one. After that, I went to the mail place, where I picked up one package but no important envelope – that was irritating, and hopefully it will be there today. I then came home and wrote the blurb for our new release, which I will tell you is a must-have for anyone who loves great film music. It’s a composer who’s very well represented on Kritzerland, it’s a world premiere release, and it’s one of the composer’s greats. Then our musical director came over and I sat with him and constructed what is a really clever arrangement of A Beat Behind from The Goodbye Girl. In the show, part of it is sung by a choreographer, and part by an ensemble. I made it so it could all be sung by one person, changed up the show specific names, and added some really fun stuff from A Chorus Line here and there. It’s kind of a little tour de force now and we’ll open the show with it. Then we arranged the two put-togethers we’re doing, and that’s it until we begin rehearsals a week from Monday. We’ve got about five of our eight ensemble people so that’s looking a little better. Then I listened to the first eight tracks of our new master, wasn’t thrilled with one aspect of them and asked the mastering engineer to make an adjustment. He did and now they sound great. After all that, it was then time to mosey on over to the engineer’s house to comp more vocals.
Last night, I comped more vocals, seven more to be exact. It is such painstaking work but when it’s finally comped to hear it all put together is very gratifying. It’s going to be a really nice album. We recorded more songs than I would have liked, and I’ve been saying all along that two of them would have to go if the album is to come out on Kritzerland, and the two I would lose are so obvious. We’ll see how that all plays out. So, we have three left to do on Sunday and then he’ll finesse his mixes and get them ready for my final finessing. So, we should probably be done within the next week-and-a-half or so.
After that, I came home and listened to a really good new CD of film music by Arthur Benjamin and Leighton Lucas, not exactly two names that are automatically on the lips of film score enthusiasts. But they were both superb film composers and the album is filled with wonderful music from a handful of their scores, including Benjamin’s Storm Cloud Cantata, used in The Man Who Knew Too Much, great suites from Benjamin’s Conquest of Everest and An Ideal Husband, and some wonderful Leighton Lucas music, including a great piece from Hitchcock’s Stage Fright. It’s on the Chandos label, and while I’m far from a fan of their distant, washy sound, I thought the conducting and playing was nice and the music is just so good nothing else really mattered.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I must get as much beauty sleep as possible before she of the Evil Eye arrives.
Today, I shall be up early and out doing errands and whatnot, having an early lunch, and hopefully picking up packages and an important envelope. After that, I’ll prep the eBlast and then I’ll try to create the show order for the October Kritzerland show. Once that’s done, I’ll then begin to write the contextual commentary for it. I have no real plans otherwise.
Tomorrow is busier than I’d like it to be. I have to finish comping the vocals, then we have a rehearsal for Juliana’s show, which we’ll do start to finish so I can get a feel for the running time, then I have to see a cabaret show at The Federal. Next week, every day is a rehearsal, and I’ll prepare everything I need for our two day shoot, I’ll be meeting with the camera people, and also the helper who helps on the shoots and operates playback. One of our actors asked if he could have cue cards, so we’ve got to make those early in the week. In other words, a jam-packed week of jam-packed days and evenings. Insane, really. Then Juliana’s show is on Sunday and we begin rehearsals for the Kritzerland show on Monday. I’ll have to find a day off in there somewhere.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, do errands and whatnot, have an early lunch, hopefully pick up some packages and an important envelope, prep an eBlast, figure out an order, begin writing a contextual commentary, and hopefully relax at some point. Today’s topic of discussion: Who are your favorite British composers – for theater, for film, and classical? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, after which I shall resume doing and going.