Our Father Session Clips
Not yet mixed, not even really edited, but here are the long-demanded rough clips from the recording session on Friday. And by long-demanded, I mean I casually mentioned that I would post them, and nobody has really said “No no, please don’t.” I take that to be a consensus for demand.
Here are 3 clips from the song. When the final mix is completed, I’ll post the whole thing in sequence, including videos of my laughably bad conducting. Joy!
our_father_vindicate_clip1.mp3
PortcullisChain 12:20 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
beautiful. i truly mean it.
-PC
michael lee 1:13 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
Thanks, Josh.
PortcullisChain 1:22 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
oh sure, go ahead….reveal my secret identity…..i don’t mind!!!! That’s the last compliment you get from me buddy boy.
-PC
michael lee 1:28 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
oops.
Gretchen 1:28 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
wow. I’m sitting here with chills. I am so excited to hear this in completion. so proud of you babe.
Too bad you couldn’t get a “real” bass. Geesh.
Darren King 1:34 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
Incredible!!!!!!
Chad 2:56 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
Here’s how the dialog went earlier on iChat, with perhaps a few editorial embellishments.
Chad: Wow… great tones!
Mike: Yup.
Chad: Are they tuned? There are certain phrases that sound like vocal samples played off a computer!
Mike: Nope, raw and unedited. 4 students and 4 pros.
Chad: I can’t believe you didn’t want me on this session! (Editors note: Chad meant this sarcastically)
Mike: You can’t read music.
Chad: **** *** *******!! I can read music! Well… gimme 3 passes and I’ll have it.
michael lee 4:13 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
I believe my actual comment was “You can’t read this sh*t!”
michael lee 4:17 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
I was actually blown away. It was great to work with vocalists who read like, well, instrumentalists. I would give them a starting pitch, and they would just sing it. A few of the hairier sections I would maybe play the line, but mostly they just rolled through it.
Chad 4:58 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
Hehe.
I was taken to task once, by an overzealous worship singer, for not having every chart with actual notes. She said, as she knew I did sessions… “How would you like it if you went to a session and there was no actual music for you to read?”
I responded in all honesty, “I haven’t seen notes on a page on a real session in years.”
In fact, a year after that, during one of the HSM sessions, which actually DID have real charts, we ended up making up our own parts anyways, as the charts were all stiff and lame.
Most of the time it’s just lyrics and the producer singing in my ear. I’ve developed a pretty reliable shorthand notational system that I literally sketch in real time the 1st time I hear someone sing me what I’m supposed to turn around and then sing perfectly.
michael lee 4:59 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
Yeah, this is not that.
michael lee 4:59 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
For one thing, this won’t make enough money to cover the catering budget on that gig.
Chad 5:19 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
Hehe. “Catering.” By “Catering,” do you mean sandwiches and chips? I was the only person over 22 in that whole crew, and I was WELL over 22. I felt like I was at the kids table.
I console myself with the residual checks.
michael lee 5:29 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
Hey, we had the same catering company! Subway, carried back to the studio by a student on a scooter!
Mandy 7:17 pm on 29 April 2009 Permalink
No! I only rode the scooter to my apartment to get my car! I swear! I don’t ride scooters!
Eric 5:57 am on 30 April 2009 Permalink
Eric Whitacre, eat your heart out.
Love the section at m. 35 and m. 61 made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Terrific.
The bar lines in the 3/2 at mm66 + 80 should be one half note later (personal prejudice…)
michael lee 8:34 am on 30 April 2009 Permalink
Man, I rewrote that 66 + 80 section sooo many times, trying to figure out the best way to indicate it. I tried using mixed meters to match the melodic phrasing, pushing everything over, nothing seemed to really work. Finally I settled on leaving meter at 3/2 based on the “redeem us” line, and indicating phrasing for the melody using dynamic markings as best I can.
I think if I were to conduct this again, I would probably get them all started on the 3/2 meter, then switch to phrase conducting for the melody.
But yeah, it’s not quite settled.
Leonard 9:11 am on 30 April 2009 Permalink
These are great, can’t wait to hear it all put together. Could we get a little more cowbell please
Eric 9:35 am on 30 April 2009 Permalink
Mike, re 3/2 section: I apologise for offering unsought “advice”, which you clearly don’t need. It’s a wonderful effect with one voice declaiming over the ostinato in the other 3.
Since I already apologised, here’s more unasked for notational thoughts. You may already have considered and rejected the idea of barring the “solo” voice differently from the repeated pattern (c.f. Hugo Distler, for example), though I’d probably avoid this option if I knew I was going to have to conduct it (since I know I couldn’t do it). Or, you might bar the ostinato according to the textual weight and use dotted barlines in the solo voice to show the phrasing.
I’d probably make m.65 3/2 and stay in 3/2 (Re-| deem – us, re-| deem – us, re-|…) through to Kyrie at double bar, changing to 2/2 for 3 mm, then back to 3/2 last Kyrie bar (as before). 4/2 comes one beat later. 3/2 m.88 – 93; 2/2 for bar 94 (deem our), back to 3/2 in bar 95 (as you have it currently barred). Still some of the solo phrases come in the “wrong” place, but I don’t think there is an ideal solution.
It’s a terrific piece.
michael lee 12:40 pm on 30 April 2009 Permalink
Eric, all unsolicited advice is gratefully accepted in the good-natured spirit with which it was offered.
The dotted barlines in the solo voice is an option I hadn’t considered.
JC 6:39 am on 6 May 2009 Permalink
Michael…this is incredible.
aly hawkins 7:52 am on 6 May 2009 Permalink
Okay, this is an honest question. Am I the only one who thought these clips were an Autotune joke? Everyone is oohing and aahing, but all I hear is Mike being funny with effects. Is there something wrong with my headphones?
Bobby 10:38 am on 6 May 2009 Permalink
No you’re not the only one. The flash player sounds like it’s having sample rate issues. Same result on FF,Safari,IE,Mac,PC.
michael lee 11:17 am on 6 May 2009 Permalink
ok, I’ll check it out.