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/ Such Sweet Thunder: AoIP links analogue / Military Wives: recording the choir / Microphone special
/ DPA 4560 binaural headset: immersive / Avid Pro Tools: new features / Arturia Creative Suite
/ Warren Huart: Produce Like a Pro / Dave Pemberton: A Day in the Life / The sound of multi-Oscar winner Parasite
V19.2 | March/April 2020 | £5.50
The
Interview
Xxxxx Xxxxxxxx Jean-Michel JarreXxx
INTRODUCING...
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P R O F E S S I O N A L
A U D I O
H A R D W A R E
A N D
S O F T W A R E
/ Contents
24 V19.2 | March/April 2020
News & Analysis 5 6
Leader News News, studios, appointments 12 New Products 48 A Day In The Life Dave Pemberton, The Prodigy recording engineer
Columns
14 Business Remote production, and DIY artist gain in 2019 15 Broadcast Aside ‘Made for TV’ sound could become a production differentiator 16 Crosstalk Creating interactive audio for virtual assistants 50 Playlist Electronic music choices from the team
Jean-Michel Jarre
Craft
24 Jean-Michel Jarre Four decades in, the Oxygène composer brings a breath of fresh air to electronic music composition with EōN 28 Warren Huart The inspirational engineer/producer behind TEC Award-winning Produce Like a Pro on where the music industry is at, his journey from musician to producer, and returning to a studio with a multiplatinum artist…to find the locks changed! 32 Military Wives Production soundman Paul Paragon on the challenges and rewards of using on-set audio for the choir movie 36 Ralph Tae-Young Choi Creating the sound for Oscar winner movie Parasite 38 Such Sweet Thunder Atmos mixing room— Merging AoIP digital with vintage analogue
28
32
36 50
REVIEWS 18 Avid Pro Tools (latest) 20 DPA 4560 CORE Binaural Headset 22 RØDE VideoMic NTG 23 Arturia Creative Suite 43 MICROPHONE SPECIAL
38 March/April 2020 / 3
/ Welcome
Leader
Nigel Jopson
EDITORIAL Editor Nigel Jopson nigel@resolutionmag.com
From a distance
CONTRIBUTORS George Shilling, Jon Thornton, Dan Daley, Dennis Baxter, Danny Turner, Russell Cottier, John Broomhall, Simon Clark, Mike Aiton, Bob Katz, Bill Lacey, Piper Payne, Tim Oliver, Erica Basnicki, Catherine Vericolli, David Kennedy, Phil Ward and Rob Speight
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A
s I write, the world is in the grip of a global health emergency. It started with news of trade show postponements, and rapidly snowballed with live events and concerts cancelled, as politicians struggle to implement solutions to protect populations. Our colleagues in live sound have clearly born the brunt of many cancellations, but spare a thought for those at work in production sound for movies and episodic TV. As Hollywood stars scarpered from location shoots, news has come of audio pros having to find their own routes home to self-isolate (or head to hospital), in many cases forced to leave personal equipment — a lifetime of investment — behind. A refrain I’ve recently heard from some production pros is self-reassuring talk of “when things get back to normal”. From the point of view of an industry veteran, it seems to me that most media people under the age of 35 have always lived in a time when global travel, instant human connection, free trade and peace existed. I’m sad to say this is not “normal” for our world. In future, a generation now too young to reach the faders is going to have quite different life-imperatives — driven by environmental concerns — as a certain Swedish teenage activist
has amply demonstrated. And they will be in charge. To those with an interest in economics and history, it was also more than clear that certain media corporations, airlines, tech companies and other businesses were hopelessly over-valued, with investors just waiting for an excuse to correct their exposure. Those of us with inside knowledge of large media projects are aware that some teeter on the brink of financial viability, with IP owners secretly longing for a justification (other than their own incompetence) to bail-out. Life will change, and perhaps dramatically. There is going to be huge demand for remote working, and remote media production. Educational institutions will increasingly need to hold classes remotely. Those who develop innovative ways of presenting events without the risks and ecological impact of thousands of people being in the same location are going to find themselves in great demand. Holograms, immersive sound, interactive social commentary — we are the media people — and we know how to do it. The changes that will come won’t always be benign or within our control. But we can keep busy with good solutions for the social consequences.
Nigel
Editor
March/April 2020 / 5
News
$2m for Australian schools hit by virus
Australian manufacturer RØDE Microphones announced it will donate $2 million worth of podcasting equipment to help New South Wales schools impacted by health concerns. As teachers face the difficult task of overcoming disruptions to classes in the coming months, RØDE founder and chairman Peter Freedman established a programme that will give schools access to audio equipment they can use to deliver classes remotely via podcast platforms. As of March 13th, any NSW public schools who wish to participate have been able to access an online portal on the RØDE website where they can order a complete podcasting kit, which includes a RØDECaster Pro Podcast Production Studio (review, Resolution V18.2), microphones and accessories.
COVID-19 Relief Fund
The Recording Academy and its affiliated charitable foundation MusiCares have established the COVID-19 Relief Fund to help people in the music industry affected by the coronavirus disease outbreak and subsequent cancellation of multiple music events. Administered through MusiCares, the COVID-19 Fund will be used to directly support those in the music community with the greatest need. To establish the fund, both the Recording Academy and MusiCares have contributed an initial donation of $1m each, totalling $2m. Additionally, all Recording Academy Chapters have committed to fundraising in their local communities. “The situation, requires an unprecedented response,” said Harvey Mason jr., chair and interim CEO of the Recording Academy. “We are asking the entire industry to stand with us to support the musicians, artists and professionals who are the bedrock and the future of our music community.” 6 / March/April 2020
Korean Audioguy goes immersive In the heart of Seoul a unique recording space has taken a different approach. Focusing on acoustic music, including classical, jazz, and the Gukak style of Korean music — the recording room has a longer reverberation time of 2.7s — more like a concert hall, explains Jung-Hoon Choi, founder of Audioguy Studios. The facility chose a Genelec 7.1.4 monitoring system based around ‘The Ones’ coaxial three-ways. “I would be very confused when making mix decisions without the standardised in-situ corrections of frequency response, level and delay offered by Genelec’s GLM software,” reflects Choi. “Using this system, the 11 individual monitors (three 8351As as LCR, eight 8331A monitors as surrounds and overheads plus a 7370A subwoofer) sound exactly as they should. We can mix in the most precise and accurate way, GLM makes it very convenient and easy to switch between 3D, binaural and stereo formats and analyse the differences.”
MPG Awards 2020 gong-grabbers London’s Grosvenor House hosted the 2020 Music Producers Guild Awards on 27th February — an annual event that recognises the creativity, skill and talents of all music recording professionals. Recording Engineer Of The Year was won by Daniel Moyler (pictured with Elizabeth Wilkinson of sponsors AMS Neve). Moyler has worked with Marina and the Diamonds, Shura, Dermot Kennedy, Frank Carter, Dua Lipa, Birdy and more. Producer Of The Year was won by Dan Carey for his work on the Black Midi album Ducter, Kate Tempest’s Firesmoke and Fontaines D.C. Boys in the Better Land. Marta Salogni won Breakthrough Producer Of The Year for her work with The Orielles, Georgia Ruth, Hero Fisher, Two Monkeys and Yak. Studio of the Year went to The Church (Resolution V13.8). The MPG Award For Outstanding Contribution To UK Music, sponsored by PPL, was awarded to producer Stephen Street (Resolution V8.5).
APPOINTMENTS
API revives Capricorn Studios The Macon, Georgia, facility where the Allman Brothers recorded was dormant for decades until reopening in December 2019. A new API 2448 Recording Console with the largest 2448 frame built to date takes centre stage: with 40 mic pres and 40 API equalisers, each channel features two inputs, both with faders. Rounding out the system is API’s ‘Final Touch’ motorised fader automation. Steve Ivey, a Mercer graduate and Grammy-award winning producer based out of Nashville was a key figure in the planning and revitalisation of the studio. “For 50 years API consoles and Capricorn Studios together have made a worldwide, profound impact in music and recording,” said Ivey. “As a Mercer University music graduate who learned to record on an API console, under the direction of Capricorn producer Paul Hornsby, I’m thrilled to be part of the team taking Capricorn Studios and API into the next era of recording great music.”
Resolution and coronavirus In these strange and difficult times, I’m writing to inform you of a few ‘mods’ we’re making to the Resolution machine, if you will. The impact of the pandemic has meant aircraft space for transporting of freight is scarce and increasingly expensive, if available at all. Surcharges and the quarantining of goods are changing every few days. In some territories, even if we could get a print copy of Resolution into the region, it might be stuck in a depot for some time before it reaches your doormat. We have therefore taken the decision to limit the number of print copies produced for the time being. In a small number of countries — as I type, Spain, France, Italy and the USA (but maybe others) — you won’t receive a print copy of Resolution; instead you will be sent an email containing instructions on how to download (as a PDF) and view (via issuu.com) a digital copy of the magazine. You will receive this before the print version is distributed. We know many of you prefer a hard copy, but right now it is just not viable for certain regions. There will be an opportunity for you to obtain a print edition when we have some sense of global normality. Let’s hope that’s soon. In the meantime, we have racked up another couple of years’ worth of free archive issues for your reading pleasure. Every edition of Resolution produced before January 2010 — that’s from V1.1 to V8.8 — is available at no charge to you, via our website or www.issuu.com/resolutionmag. The Resolution team will continue to create your favourite pro-audio read to the best of our ability during this trying period. I hope you enjoy this current copy… and I leave you with this photo of myself and the impossibly ageless Monsieur Jarre, taken in Dublin at a time when the only ‘Virus’ of note was a synth module by Access. Dave Robinson, publisher, info@resolutionmag.com
Ralf Oehl has been appointed as CEO of Georg Neumann GmbH. In his new position, Oehl will continue to build the business and brand, further developing the overall strategic direction of Georg Neumann GmbH, a Sennheiser Group company. He will report to Peter Claussen, COO of the Sennheiser. Oehl joins after founding his own company, Concinno, which focused on strategic and M&A advisory services to high-end manufactures. He has expertise in areas such as disruptive industrial technologies, innovative new business models and innovation-driving organizations.
Stage Tec Berlin has a new management team: René Harder (R), who has been a VP for many years, and Sascha Khelifa (L) have been appointed managing directors. From 2008 to 2018 Khelifa was MD of Meyer Sound GmbH. Khelifa will be responsible for sales and commercial management. “Stage Tec is a globally active, well regarded company with an attractive portfolio. I am really looking forward to working with a dedicated team in Berlin,” explains Sascha Khelifa. Harder began working at Stage Tec as a software developer in 2003 and has gained extensive know-how in various areas as assistant to the management and vice president since 2013. Decca announced the promotion of Tom Lewis and Laura Monks to co-managing directors of Decca Records Group. Lewis moves up after a year in his current role as VP of Decca, A&R and Artist Strategy. He joined the company 17 years ago as label manager for the jazz division before moving into A&R. Monks is promoted to co-MD after eight years at Decca, starting as senior digital campaign manager and moving through digital, commercial and marketing positions to the position of GM in 2018. She has worked on successful campaigns for artists such as Gregory Porter, Andrea Bocelli, Ludovico Einaudi and Sheku Kanneh-Mason.
March/April 2020 / 7
The Interview
Jean-Michel Jarre Four decades in, Jean-Michel Jarre still feels compelled to rewrite electronic music history. DANNY TURNER discusses his latest ground-breaking algorithmic app, EōN
Photos: Anthony Ghnassia
Artists are like sponges — we are stealing and inspired by everything around us…
I’m more and more convinced that technology is dictating styles and not the reverse… / How’s this for a ‘keyboard cave’? Clavia Nord Lead, Mellotron, MemoryMoog, Roland System 500, Grp A4, Waldorf kb37, Kurzweil K2000, Eminent 310, ARP 2600…
S
ince 1976, the name Jean-Michel Jarre has been synonymous with electronic music. His album, Oxygène, sold over 18 million copies and led the synthesizer revolution of the ’70s. From the first modular synths to the rise of digital recording, Jarre’s fascination with technology has kept him one step ahead of his peers, bridging the avantgarde and mainstream through his albums and jaw-dropping live performances. Balancing the abstract and familiar; the organic and artificial, Jarre has redefined our expectations of what electronic music should sound like — it’s therefore no surprise that his latest venture should lead electronic music into unchartered territory once more. Titled EōN, Jarre’s generative music app is designed to produce infinite combinations of tempo, tone and rhythm, creating a unique music experience for every user, every time. I just wanted to touch on the Electronica albums you released in 2015/16. Looking back, what do you think you gained from working with so many artists that you clearly admired? Electronic music is really quite solitary work; like a writer or painter you’re stuck in your own studio. I was going through a rather dark moment in my life and wanted to open the door and try to create a true link with people I admire — not just by sending files to artists you never meet or talk to, but sharing our DNA in the same place physically. It’s been really cool to learn other people’s approach to ideas and technologies and it’s an experience that I want to develop as a parallel project to my studio albums and other activities with Electronica 3.
Was the project all the more meaningful considering Tangerine Dream’s Edgar Froese passed away in 2015? When I met Edgar in Germany I had no idea he was ill. He seemed to be in quite good shape — maybe a little tired, but the track we did together was the last he would do as Edgar Froese and Tangerine Dream. Of course, that added another emotional layer to this collaboration. Artists are like sponges — we are stealing and inspired by everything around us, so that experience taught me a lot and I hope it brought a little to the other collaborators. What these artists all have in common is an instantly recognisable sound. You take 30 seconds of Moby, Air or Massive Attack and you know it’s them and nobody else. I remember working with Moby in LA and he just played a D Minor on the keyboard — a chord that a 5-year-old child could play, but it was instantly Moby and that’s what’s fascinating about working with such great musicians. Many people had hoped for collaboration with Daft Punk, but it never materialised? When I started the project they were already in the middle of the promotion and marketing of their last album, which was very pop and disco-oriented. The Electronica project was based on a purely electronic approach, so it didn’t match their ideals. You’ve just released a new album ‘EōN’ — a generative music app. Was this an idea that’s been hibernating for a while? When I was a student at the Music Research
Centre with Pierre Schaeffer — the father of musique concrète and generative music, I always thought it would be really cool to make an infinite album. In the history of recorded music you have a start and ending note, but I always wanted to conceive a piece of music that was in constant development and a unique experience for every listener. Each time you play the app, it’s totally different, and it’s not just an ambient experience, because that’s already been done by lots of people. How does EōN differentiate itself from those generative-based ambient albums? With an ambient-style project it’s easier to give a feeling of constant evolution, but not in terms of texture, beats, loops and atmospheres. With the EōN project, we wanted to deal with different BPMs, textures and styles while keeping my personal touch. With the emergence of artificial intelligence, there are two ways to approach collaboration with technology through algorithms. When I collaborate with Moby or Massive Attack I’m expecting them to give me content that, by definition, is not mine and bring fresh ideas. That’s one way of working with algorithms — to expect them to feed new ideas and melodies, and that’s something I’m working on even if the results are not convincing, yet. The other way is to compose a huge toolbox of music, so the content is entirely human, and then the algorithm is remixing and rearranging the different patterns and sequences. For EōN, it took me one year to compose hours of music where every pattern and sequence is able to work with everything else in terms of tonality and BPM. March/April 2020 / 25
Playlist
Resolution electronica When Jean-Michel Jarre is on the cover… Dave Robinson Artist Song
Why?
Jean Michel Jarre Arpegiator (The Concerts in China, 1981) A trippy, grandiose paradigm of multi-layered monophonic sequencer lines and drum machine rhythms, bouncing around in a cave of reverb and delay, and composed especially for his ground-breaking trip to the Far East.
Simon Clark Artist
Song Why?
Philip Newell
Artist Vangelis Song Conquest of Paradise Why? Electronic music can often be very mechanical, but this is a superb blend of electronics and emotion. The soundtrack from Ridley Scott’s 1992 film 1492 Conquest of Paradise and covered by many artists, including Blake and Klaus Schulze.
Nigel Jopson Artist Song
Why?
Ed Lister Artist
f.o.o.l (Rasmus Hermansen) Song Highway (2018) Why? This is THE COOLEST ‘80s electonic synth track you will hear today full stop… whether your going to the gym, need motivating for a shoot/in the midst of an edit… this will get you in an epic productive mood!!! One of the BEST tunes going!!! NEON !!!!!! Be sure to check the video too! EPIC!
John Musgrave
Artist Orbital Song Belfast (from Orbital 1 1991) Why? Given the massive body of awesome work that’s followed since, it may seem odd to choose this early Orbital track. But 30 years later it still captures that post-party vibe as well as any track and reminds us how beautiful electronic music can be created from a few choice instruments.
Ron Grainer & Delia Derbyshire Dr Who (1963) Truly electronic. Truly ground-breaking. Truly catchy. Truly scary. Derbyshire created each note individually by cutting, splicing, speeding up and slowing down segments of analogue tape-recordings of a single plucked string, white noise, and the pure harmonic waveforms of test-tone oscillators. Boards of Canada Over The Horizon Radar (Geogaddi 2002) A beautiful vignette providing respite within an album which can be disturbing for non compos mentis listeners. The Sandison brothers (BOC) called the album “a record for some sort of trial by fire, a claustrophobic, twisting journey that takes you into some pretty dark experiences before you reach the open air again”.
Phil Ward
Artist Yazoo Song Situation (1982) Why? Every synth loves a bit of delay, and in the hands of Vince Clarke it becomes a slithering, erect joy. Plus Alison’s lovely giggle.
Rob Speight Artist Album Why?
George Shilling Artist Song
Why?
Why?
Don Karate Ice Age (Don Karate 2020) Don Karate is a talented Italian jazz quartet. Great musicians playing great contemporary jazz, I just want to share with my non-Italian friends. Just to be contemporary — the song has an atmosphere with a tension that could describe what we are breathing these days in Italy for the lockdown.
Artist Song Why?
Fatboy Slim Gangster Trippin’ (1998) I love how Fatboy Slim manages to cram so many styles of music into one song. It’s like a music history lesson, but one where a very energetic and positive teacher tells you everything at once. With the help of some brilliant music videos!
David Kennedy Artist Song
Why?
Facebook is a convenient and quick method of contacting the editorial staff at Resolution. Like us and message us at: bit.ly/Resolution-Facebook
50 / March/April 2020
Chicory Tip Son Of My Father (1972) The first UK number one to prominently feature a synthesizer (it was a Giorgio Moroder cover; Chris Thomas programmed the Moog). My mum bought this (I was six years old) because we couldn’t understand the words on Top Of The Pops. Turns out, neither could Chicory Tip, because they got them wrong and re-recorded it with the right ones in 2000!
Gijs Friesen
Donato Masci Artist Song
The Art Of Noise Daft (1986) This album was so formative in my fascination of electronic music and sampling. The rawness of the short samples, the heavy handedness of ‘In the Army Now’ and the haunting beauty of ‘How to Kill’ make the entire album one I still listen to and smile.
The Orb Blue Room (U.F.Orb 1992) The short version (17½ mins) of this all time top juke box value for money track is a giggly, joyous voyage round inner space. The long version? 39’57” and still technically a single.
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/ Waves: Chris Lord-Alge MixHub / Antelope Audio: Orion 32+ / Upmixing with Schoeps
/ Phil Joly: Daft Punk, Lana Del Rey / Podcasting: Rob Speight speaks / Broadcast metadata — getting it right
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/ Resolution Awards 2019: the winners! / SoundPro’19: expo success / WIN a SoundBucket speaker!
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/ Chris Sheldon: mixing Rocketman / Paul Butler: Bees guitarist in L.A. / MIDI 2.0
V18.7 | November/December 2019 | £5.50
V18.D | April 2019 | £5.50
V19.1 | January/February 2020 | £5.50
The
The
Xxxxx Matt Wiggins Xxxxxxxx Xxx
The
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Interview
Interview
Xxxxx Matt Black Xxxxxxxx — Coldcut Xxx
Resolution V18.7 Nov-Dec 2019 X.indd 1
Xxxxx Joe Chiccarelli Xxxxxxxx Xxx
05/12/2019 15:36
Resolution V19.1 Jan-Feb 2020.indd 1
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