September 20, 2011

Here are some opening clips from programs I've worked on in the last year:

(The "Music Only Mix" contains just music with picture.  In the "Broadcast Mix", music takes a backseat to all the other audio content that makes the story move forward.)

September 20, 2011

Clips from the recent Explorer Episode "World's Oldest Child" on Nat Geo:

August 3, 2011

I've been thinking a lot about this question and ideas implicit in its answer: What makes "Heart and Soul" such a favorite to play on the piano among people of all abilities?  I have my theories regarding music that people of various abilities can play together.  In fact, I think that is something sorely lacking in our culture: if a beginner (or a complete newbie) wants to join in with experienced musicians, there is often no path for that person to take.  There is not an "easy" part to Beethoven's Pathetique Sonata, Strayhorn's "Take the 'A' Train", or even "Just Dance".  There are easy arrangements, but nothing that invites a beginner to play right along with an advanced musician.

Aside from playing simple rhythm instruments that remind one of kindergarten music class (ahem), there is no way to say, "hey, join in!" to a novice in the midst of a jam session.  This is a problem, because more people deserve the smiles of spontaneous, uninhibited music making. Don't they?  Don't YOU?

This brings be back to Hoagy Carmichael/Frank Loesser 1930 hit song.  How did that song, not unlike many songs of that era, make it's way into the American avocational piano repertoire along with the black-notes-by-knuckles-song?  Here's the original recording from 1930: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8CSjDC18b0

And if you go to 2:00 of this clip, you'll get to see Tori Amos playing it with someone else's fingers.

Tell me what you think!

August 2, 2011

The film features the real horse whisperer, Monty Roberts and his work with Gulf War vets struggling with PTSD. Directed by Lisa Wolfinger and produced by Lone Wolf Documentary Group for Military Channel.

Lisa and her crew captured the personal journeys of four very different veterans, beginning with profiling their difficulty adjusting to home life after their service in the war.   These stories are contrasted with that of Monty Roberts, whose complete departure from violence of any kind at a young age led him to bring horses into the lives of those in need.  The arrival of the vets at Monty's farm begins the main drama of the program as they learn to treat horses with patience, calm, and gentleness.

The score I created for this needed to capture both the dusty, outdoor spaces of Monty Roberts "Flags Up Farm" as well as the inner healing journey of the four veterans as they learned Roberts' nonviolent methods for training wild, and often abused, horses.  We worked with acoustic guitars, solo violin, and other small forces to support Lisa's desire to create an close-up and personal viewing experience.  "This shouldn't feel like a big screen story," Lisa said in an edit session with Jed Rauscher.  "It needs to feel very intimate."

More from the Lone Wolf Documentary Group Site

July 19, 2011

Chris Hancock called me this evening to give me the news that our letter drop game Swamp Talk is now available on the Apple App Store.  I excitedly downloaded it to my phone and started playing.  Even with all the practice I got during development, I still am terrible at it.  (Well, I did spend most of my time composing the music, not playing the game…) Erica has the knack of it.  She's a real wordsmith.

It's completely free for the next week, so I urge you to gobble it up.  Chris and his development team at Tertl Studos have some surprises coming up.  I can't wait to get good at it!

July 13, 2011

The new scrabble-meets-tetris word building game is on its way to Apple for approval before it can appear on the App Store later this month. Game designers at Tertl Studos in Montpelier, VT, just wrapped work on their flagship game product yesterday.

Swamp Talk takes you deep into a swampy virtual pad of paper where letters drift down from the margins. It's your job to turn these letters into words before they bump each other off the edge and fall into the swamp.

It's a quick, fun and addictive game that challenges your word skills like Scrabble and pushes your quick spatial problem solving the way visual puzzles do. Quite frankly, it was often hard to tear myself away from playing it to work on the sound design and music that help bring the game to life.

Chris Hancock is a long-time collaborator since I became his piano teacher back in the 1990's. His work at TERC and the MIT Media Lab has led him to create unique programming languages for kids and to his current work at his own Tertl Studos.

July 13, 2011

- The Edge / U2
I have no idea why. Like many things that get stuck in my ear, I haven’t listened to it in ages.