The Silver Sold(i)er

I always end up writing this stuff at night. I should almost certainly be in bed. I'm coming off a week in which I worked as many hours as I ever have, spent one night remembering how awful it is to have the flu, and ended up shucking it just in time to catch a cold.

But I'm all full up right now. Full up? That's not a thing.

Like I said.. big work week. We delivered the complete package of music for CTV's Olympic coverage. Delivered in the theoretical sense, as hard copies weren't necessarily exchanged, and finished versions are not even entirely printed yet. My part in this project was, to me, somewhat unexpected, and entirely fantastic. I joined the group later than I would have liked.. which is to say that I wasn't there when the stuff was recorded (in Montreal, with the Montreal Symphony). I suppose I was the odd cook voted out of that particular kitchen. With a project like this, however, the amount of work is truly immense. Let's say, for example, that 8 main themes are written by the composer and recorded by the orchestra. Each of those 8 themes is then broken down into any number of versions (let's say 25 each) of different lengths (.30sec, .20sec, .5sec) that will be used for any number of broadcast scenarios (into commercials, out of commercials, into sport transitions, into throws to a live standup, etc.) Each of those 25 x 8 versions then need to be conformed, edited, and mixed, and then printed, in both English, and French. And Instrumental.

I managed to get on board doing all of the conforming and printing, mastering, etc.. basically the legwork that needed to be done so the head engineers could spend their days in heavy editorial and mixing.

Huzzah!

So, it's been a big week. The finished work sounds great. All credit to Mike and Josh for that. I'm proud to have had my part in the project. It'll be great to watch the games and hear the stuff front and center. I'm excited for you guys to hear it!

I hold to the fact that these olympics are gonna be fantastic. Really huge.


Then, all the gear for Bartel Audio Recording's new rig showed up on friday. Or at least most of it. And like any hot-blooded enthusiast, I desire nothing more than to tear it all open and smell it. And, you know, hook it up and use it.

But there's a lot to be done before that can happen!! Namely, cables to build. So, today was a great day of listening to christmas tunes, drinking coffee, and hunching over multipins (DB25) and XLRs. Made a ton of headway, which feels great. Though, I do have recurring nightmares that I've wired about 30 mic cables and five 8-channel DB25 to XLR snakes in the wrong layout. ONE is ground, TWO is hot, THREE is not. Getting close to being ready to hit record. Sortof.


So that's where we stand. Almost there on about every front. Almost healthy, Almost ready to make records, Almost home for the holidays (wednesday night home-boys), Almost ready to go to bed...


Life is really good. We're full, in every way. I think we've tapped into something in the past few months with regards to maxing out our time in this city. We love it. We were out for sushi tonight at our favorite spot. Date night. We couldn't get over how much we love that place. It's become our routine. There's a lot of that these days. Seems wide open.

Gonna be great to be home for a week, talk lots, eat lots, catch up lots. I enjoy it more every year. It means more, and it's real..more.

Here's to everybody's holiday... Make it great!
JB

Keys

A few days ago we added another bit of kit to our apartment!

We're really pumped about it. Music is a huge part of our lives. I love that I married a girl who feels it like I do. Kar's got an innate sense of music that's hard to describe.

We try to make a conscious effort to have music as a central focus in the house. It's energy-giving! The difference a great background playlist makes when a bunch of people are hanging out in a room together is fantastic. I want to have one of those homes where music is a constant. I want people to feel like they can pick up a guitar and throw down a tune, or hop on the bench and make some noise. Music doesn't need to be confined to CDs in the car, or iPods on the subway, or bands in the bar.

I've spent more time lately hanging out in the musical crowd around here. It's a really cool group to hang out with.. you learn alot. I imagine it's not unlike spending time with actors. They're aware of the moment. Anything's possible. Rehearsals are less about achieving the predetermined set of goals, and more about experiencing something creative. Performances aren't about achieving, or succeeding.. they're about expressing.. existing in a moment. I LOVE that!! I think it's a hugely valuable thing to have that in your life.. those are muscles that need exercising.

So anyway, Kar's been playing like crazy. Piano has a way of filling space. It isn't aggressive.. it isn't "loud". It's just full. Beautiful. I spent last night sitting on the couch making mic cables while Kar worked out lines from an Elton John tune. I love it. I'm fully content in those moments. Music does that. I'm aware, and happy.

Continuing on the music front, I'll be home this weekend for the pub night/house concert at my parents' place. Gonna be great! See you there mmmmk? I promise to play at least one song left-handed :)
JB