The Quick Question Thread

[Jay 37,249]

50 minutes ago, BloodBoal said:

So, let's say I have an audio file in which the music sounds really distant. What would be the best tool to use in an audio editing software to try to "improve" the quality as much as possible (if there is any)?

 

Rambo 2 end credits?

[BloodBoal 7,538]

Nope.

[Dixon Hill 4,232]

Other than boosting overall gain and certain high frequencies to imitate greater presence, I'm not sure.  Maybe widen the stereo image as well? 

[karelm 2,901]

There are tools that help with this.  Google deverb and noise gate.  Like this:

https://rxcookbook.izotope.com/reducing-reverb-rx-de-reverb-module

[Quintus 5,399]

Can someone help me, I've just been listening to the main titles from Missouri Breaks and it suddenly dawned on me that I've heard that cool little highlight somewhere else. Did Stir Crazy borrow it for the rodeo breakout scenes? 

[BloodBoal 7,538]

On 20/08/2016 at 9:50 PM, TheWhiteRider said:

Other than boosting overall gain and certain high frequencies to imitate greater presence, I'm not sure.  Maybe widen the stereo image as well? 

 

On 20/08/2016 at 11:56 PM, karelm said:

There are tools that help with this.  Google deverb and noise gate.  Like this:

https://rxcookbook.izotope.com/reducing-reverb-rx-de-reverb-module

 

Forgot about that. Thanks for the answers. Will look into that!

[Will 2,215]

Let's say JW is recording a cue, 1m1, for a film. As he will want to orchestra to perfect this cue, he will probably make them play it multiple times. How many takes of a cue are normally recorded?

 

Second, will the final (film) version of the cue be entirely one take or will it be a combination of multiple takes, typically?

 

[Jay 37,249]

How many takes recorded varies so greatly from situation to situation, hard to give a meaningful average

 

The final film version will be an edit of many takes.  The trailer cue from Hook is only a minute long has 7 intercuts using pieces of 4 different takes!

[karelm 2,901]

50 minutes ago, Will said:

Let's say JW is recording a cue, 1m1, for a film. As he will want to orchestra to perfect this cue, he will probably make them play it multiple times. How many takes of a cue are normally recorded?

 

Second, will the final (film) version of the cue be entirely one take or will it be a combination of multiple takes, typically?

 

 

JW also rehearses quite a bit before a take. For example, he might tell the orchestra to remove their clicks and only follow him.  He'll fine tune their performance then say "ok, lets try it with click" if its a tightly timed sequence.  This is something he certainly prefers not to do.  In the Star Wars original trilogy, I don't know if they ever used click.  Those cues are very much free timed.  Again, the exception will be a cue that is heavily precisely timed.  As far as I know, even sequences like Indies first adventure are not to click but punches and streamers which he always uses.  Basically, a punch and a streamer means that he has to be at a specific spot when a punch or streamer (a 2 second line across the screen) ends.  So between those moments he is free to conduct but has to land at that right spot.  This is not so different from how an opera conductor must keep focus on the stage action and the singers idiosyncrasies but ultimately keep a 100 piece orchestra together.  They have to be precise and flexible at the same time. 

 

The final tracks are frequently edited.  The princess Leia theme from SW 77 was a mix of several takes but all were done in 30 minutes and all takes sight read and recorded.

[Jay 37,249]

Indy's Very First Adventure is definitely recorded to a click track - you can hear it bleeding through all over the recording (especially noticeable on the Concord CD)

[karelm 2,901]

Just now, Jay said:

Indy's Very First Adventure is definitely recorded to a click track - you can hear it bleeding through all over the recording (especially noticeable on the Concord CD)

 

Ok, my bad.  It is surprising since he frequently performs this live in concert without click but only punches and streams and in a live performance you only get one chance. 

[Jay 37,249]

That is a wonderful part of a JW concert when he does that!

 

 

 

@Will to give you an example, here is a list of all the slates used for each cue in Empire of the Sun

 

http://www.jwfan.com/?p=6800

 

And that doesn't even tell you how many intercuts happened

[Will 2,215]

16 minutes ago, Jay said:

That is a wonderful part of a JW concert when he does that!

 

 

 

@Will to give you an example, here is a list of all the slates used for each cue in Empire of the Sun

 

http://www.jwfan.com/?p=6800

 

And that doesn't even tell you how many intercuts happened

 

So a slate = a take? 

@Jay 

 

Do the "complete unedited" Potter 1 sessions actually contain cues often made up of various takes intercut together?

[Faleel 5,326]

I think in some session leaks they are specific takes.

[Will 2,215]

30 minutes ago, Fennel Ka said:

I think in some session leaks they are specific takes.

 

But not in all, right?

[Faleel 5,326]

Probably not.

 

Some sessions leaks actually have multiple takes like the Schindler's List sessions or Horner's Battle Beyond the Stars, some sessions leaks consist of only multiple takes of one cue, or small group of cues. 

[Jay 37,249]

2 hours ago, Will said:

 

So a slate = a take? 

@Jay 

 

Yes.

 

Quote

Do the "complete unedited" Potter 1 sessions actually contain cues often made up of various takes intercut together?

 

Yes.

The reason the Diagon Alley film version and Owl's Flight in that leak have multiple takes is because those cues weren't used in the final film. [at least, the first half of Diagon Alley wasn't, before the Gringotts part)

 

 

 

1 hour ago, Fennel Ka said:

I think in some session leaks they are specific takes.

 

Indeed.  The old Hook bootlegs, for example, are complete unedited takes, not the intercuts assembled for the final film (other than the stuff they just took from the OST, of course)

 

 

 

15 minutes ago, Fennel Ka said:

Some sessions leaks actually have multiple takes like the Schindler's List sessions 

 

Man, that is such a cool leak for that very reason.  I'd kill to have a leak like that for other JW scores.  It's too bad leaks like that are extremely rare!

[karelm 2,901]

Was this source cue written by JW?

 

[Faleel 5,326]

Yes.

[karelm 2,901]

28 minutes ago, Fennel Ka said:

Yes.

Interesting.  Maybe some left overs from Gilligan's Island. 

[Bespin 8,472]

Hi, I wonder what JW score to listen when making a spaghetti sauce.

 

Thanks!

[Faleel 5,326]

The Fury.

[Bespin 8,472]

Splashhh!

 

[Naïve Old Fart 9,488]

2 hours ago, Bespin said:

Hi, I wonder what JW score to listen when making a spaghetti sauce.

 

Thanks!

 

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE PURÉED KIND,

SUPERHAM,

A.I. ARTIFICIAL INGREDIENTS,

HAM ALONE.

[nightscape94 965]

Two ham jokes?  Rather ham-fisted, wouldn't you say?

[Naïve Old Fart 9,488]

Just call me Ham Solo 

That's three you owe me, junior.

[Nick1Ø66 4,687]

So does anyone know what the average "name" composer will make for mainstream, tent pole pic vs. what Williams (or someone near his stature) will make? Will the more prominent ones like Williams or Zimmer get points?

 

Obviously I know this can probably vary greatly, but I really have no idea how much these guys make for a score.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

It depends of course. On the budget of the film, on the negotiating skills of the composers agent etc etc.

 

We can assume Williams earned a lot more from TFA than from The Book Thief.

[karelm 2,901]

It is very complicated.  An A-lister can get 1.5 million per film for the creative fee of writing the score.  Composers do not receive royalties for domestic theatrical release.  Orchestrators, performers, and conductors do but these are threshold based (the film has to hit a certain high profitability which is not often achieved except for blockbusters or hits.  The music budget might allow the composer to hire themselves as orchestrator and conductor (allowing for royalty payments).  Royalties can be quite lucrative if you have a string of hits that get repeatedly played on TV or around the world.  They get royalties for international theatrical releases or broadcasts.  Some A list composers will waive their fees if it is a passion project or they are trying to break into a new genre.  Jerry Goldsmith received no payment for a film he wanted to do in the 1980's when he was typecast for Rambo style bombast and wanted to do something different.  I forget what it was but you see this is not that unusual for composers to dip into their own pockets if they want to break away from what they always do and no one thinks of them in that way.

[Nick1Ø66 4,687]

Very detailed answer! Thanks much for the info.

To be honest, I'm a bit surprised that composers don't get royalties but orchestrators and conductors do? I'd think it would be the opposite. 

[Bespin 8,472]

Composers get royalities from the albums.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,488]

A question for all our computer bods, out there.

I know it's possible to change avatars, but...why, if you change your avatar, does it change the avatar on all your posts, and not just posts made from the time that the avatar is changed?

[nightscape94 965]

The previous avatar images aren't stored anywhere.  When you change it, it updates all posts automatically since it's pulling the info from your profile.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,488]

Ooh! Thank you, nighty 

[Jay 37,249]

44 minutes ago, Richard said:

A question for all our computer bods, out there.

I know it's possible to change avatars, but...why, if you change your avatar, does it change the avatar on all your posts, and not just posts made from the time that the avatar is changed?

 

The database table holding the posts only holds the post content, and the ID of the user who made it.  So when the site is displaying your post on the screen, its uses your ID to go to the Users table, and grab your current username, byline, avatar, gender, location, signature, etc.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,488]

...and thank you, Jay 

[BloodBoal 7,538]

[Naïve Old Fart 9,488]

I never said that I wanted different avatars. I just wondered why all avatars change. Now I know.

[nightscape94 965]

[Naïve Old Fart 9,488]

I'm not sure what you mean by that, but I like it. Very HITCH-HIKER'S.

[Jay 37,249]

It's a US-only pop culture reference

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_More_You_Know

[Naïve Old Fart 9,488]

Thanks for that. The logo is by R. Greenberg And Associates. Anyone who did the main titles for SUPERMAN, is ok by me.

[bollemanneke 3,334]

Question about MIDI files

 

I have collected a bunch of excellent JW MIDI transcriptions that I studied by playing the separate instruments to see who plays what. However, I just discovered that MIDI files don't just have different instruments, but also different tracks. For instance: preset 48 is a general string ensemble, but some of the files have tracks like 'violin, double bass' even though they are all collected in preset 48, while others use preset 40 for violins.

 

So, my question is: Is there a way to rename those tracks to their appropriate instruments (so the track viola has to be in preset 41 instead of 48)? I'm very interested to study the individual string sections, but the app I currently use, MIDI transform, can only change instruments but not tracks.

[karelm 2,901]

For someone who has never watched Game of Thrones, I am told it is something I would absolutely love.  What is it about this show that captivates its audiences into such ravenous fandom?  Basically, I need a sort of crash course on why it's great without too many spoilers.

[Jay 37,249]

It's a sprawling story covering many characters and locations, it's scope it bigger than most shows made. It starts out being kind of an interesting political examination in medieval setting, but as the episodes and seasons go on more fantasy (magic and creatures) elements enter the show. Also, they were totally on point with casting; there's a ton of GREAT actors employed by the show. 

 

Don't expect anything out of its original score, though. Nothing special there outside of the brilliant main title music. 

[Naïve Old Fart 9,488]

6 hours ago, karelm said:

For someone who has never watched Game of Thrones, I am told it is something I would absolutely love.  What is it about this show that captivates its audiences into such ravenous fandom?  Basically, I need a sort of crash course on why it's great without too many spoilers.

 

On YouTube, there is a 7-minute catch-up, narrated by (I think) Sam Jackson.

Personally, I've never seen a single frame of this show, so I am unable to educate you as to its merits, or otherwise.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Have you ever seen Verhoeven's Flesh + Blood? It's just like that!

[karelm 2,901]

7 hours ago, Stefancos said:

Have you ever seen Verhoeven's Flesh + Blood? It's just like that!

 

No, I haven't seen that either.  Is Game of Thrones serial so it's hard to jump in mid way through?  Basically, like Lost you had to watch each episode in order otherwise it doesn't make any sense.

[BloodBoal 7,538]

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

It is absolutely pointless to not start with episode one