Soldier Songs Sound Design Notes

Soldier Songs is a fully amplified work that necessitates an entire sonic world to be created around, through, and in it, so the piece can fully realize its potential. Each instrument must have a mic, sometimes more than one, in order to faithfully recreate the warmth, fidelity and range of the parts. Please see the suggested input list provided with these materials.

The story of Soldier Songs is one of war, the loss of childhood innocence, the tragedies of death and beyond. This must be conveyed as much by the sound design as it is by the singer and players themselves. The sound designer/engineer is playing the sound console as an instrument in the orchestra, part of the band and more. The creator of the sonic world. The piece as a whole is demanding and not for the faint of heart. Please make sure your sound designer is up to the task.

System: Soldier Songs requires a digital console with at least 32 channels of high end mic pres and processing. The PA system must be capable of rock concert levels of audio utilizing a Left, Right, Center Cluster, Surround (Rear Left and Right), high powered sub woofers on either side of the proscenium, side fills on stage for the singers and low profile floor wedges for the orchestra. The system should be capable of producing at 120db of sound without distortion.

Orchestra: The instruments should sound natural and clear, with both warmth and depth. Watch out for the high register of some instruments, expert EQ is essential to the design not only on the instruments but on the system as a whole. Compression is also an important tool in this piece. Mastery of compression is required in order to keep the orchestra sounding full, big, larger than life, but to also be able to keep the singer clear and above the mix without sounding forced or overly loud.

The concert bass drum should be sent to the sub so that even a ppp hit is present and felt in the room. But the drum should have a gentle gate on it to avoid feed back. (Gate must be artfully applied so that the quietest ppp hit makes it through, but the drum won’t actuate the subs when it is not being played.) A large diaphragm dynamic is recommended like a Sennheiser MD421. The concert bass drum channel should also be compressed so that when it is played f – fff the subs don’t overload. This will give the concert bass drum more attack and high end at higher dynamics without an overwhelming sub response. The idea is to keep the drum present in the subs–and ominous in affect–but to not let it get away from you when things get big.

Singer: The singer must be clear and open sounding with plenty of head room. His story and experience are the most essential aspects, next to the color and tone of the music. Compression is also an important tool here, helping control peaks in the upper register, while supporting the very low extensions of the voice called for by the score. Use a natural compression ratio, attack and release to transparently control their dynamics.

Qlab Files: The playback elements of Soldier Songs are essential to the piece. The house walk in “bombs” should sound far away as if a large battle rages not far off. They should be in the subs more than the PA to convey the power of the far off explosions.

The dialogue at the top of the piece should be clear, not overly loud, a setup for what is to come. The clock should be a background to the singers counting backwards from 365. A machine sound will fade in, it is necessary to push this fader up so that the crescendo of the machine, and it’s subsequent stop leave the audience with an empty and open feeling readying them for Still Life With Tank and iPod/Strings distortion. The “Some one yell cut rumble” should feel present but in the background and the subs.

Steel Rain is a very important cue and should be in all the speakers, surrounds and subs (lots of subs). This is the moment you bring the audience into a war zone. It should feel like bombs and shrapnel are falling all around you. It if for this reason best to have a disclaimer outside the theater telling patrons that there will be simulated combat and loud war zone like experiences. Be careful not to go above 105 decibels A weighted. You want to simulate discomfort but not hurt anyone’s hearing, or your own.

The feedback crackle and swelling low C note are important gestures that must be effectively mixed into the orchestra as if the players themselves are performing them. Likewise, the “angel” sample–triggered by the synth–should feel present, but not overwhelming.  The final interviews should feel present, but a little more in the background than the opening. Fully intelligible at first, but slightly more difficult to understand, and more textural as it progresses. The final bass drums need to be loud like 5 final bombs dropping on the stage, signalling both the finality of the piece, and the cyclical, ongoing nature of the story being told.

FX: The Sound Engineer will need a Tube Screamer and a Micro POG at FOH. Send the strings to the Tube Screamer, and return to another channel on the console. The Cello only is sent to the POG to get 1 octave down and return it to another channel on the console. The Tube Screamer should be very distorted but, also clear and bright. Too much crunch and you will lose clarity and have feedback. Too little and the effect will not register, lacking the metal-feeling that parts of the score require. Watch out for rests at 243 in Still Life with Tank and iPod: it is necessary to pull out the Tube Screamer return to avoid ambient feedback, but it must be re-engaged in time for the re-entrance of the strings. The POG is for the cello and is used thematically in the piece. Make sure the effect is clearly audible, add it to the subs.

Reverb is a necessary tool in this piece to create a nicer sound in rooms that don’t have great acoustics. I recommend a Hall: 2.3-2.8 decay, 10ms pre-delay depending on the size of the room, High pass of between 250hz and 400hz and low pass of between 5 and 10k, to keep it dark and brooding. For the special violin reverb setting in War After War, I recommend reverb with a 3.4 second delay and a sound balance 50/50 wet/dry, a 60 ms pre-delay, a high pass of 106Hz, and a low pass of 3k.

Overall Arc: Soldier Songs has moments of beauty, moments of terror, moments of innocence, and many other feelings in between and beyond. The sound design must not only support, but enhance these feelings and passages of music/text. A thoughtful, attentive and talented engineer is vital to the success of this piece as a whole. Thank you and good luck.

– Garth MacAleavy, Sound Designer