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The Sound of The Color Purple

The Sound of The Color Purple

I was wondering how Alice Walker's deeply poignant and deeply disturbing drama The Color Purple would be interpreted as a Broadway musical, especially at a time when so many literary and filmic adaptations are gratuitously brought to the Great White Way, but I was pleasantly surprised. The wellwritten show has a magnetic lead in LaChanze, a highly talented ensemble cast, and a score that spans African music, R&B and blues. And the multilayered story–on its most basic level, about a woman named Celie who struggles through life with an abusive, controlling husband after having grown up with an abusive, controlling father–is incredibly powerful.

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OEM

When you hear that infectious fournote audio signature on television, you know without even consciously realizing it that there's "Intel inside." The makers of components of larger systems, who have tended to labor anonymously in years past, are waking up the need to market their own brands. It's a worldwide phenomenon that transcends market sectors: Siemens informs you that they may not make the television set, but they make the technology that makes it brighter; Boeing takes 30 seconds next to a Budweiser commercial during a football game to extol their aircraft despite the fact that most viewers aren't currently in the market for a $30-million 737.

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In The Trenches

Beth Gladen

Owner/engineer

Sweet Spot Audio Productions

Cleveland, OH

[email protected]

www.myspace.com/soundchic

Live sound, both medium and small scale. Sound, stages and lighting.

Clients:

New company! First year of going out and doing this on my own! Clients include The

Grog Shop, The Winchester and several other local bands.

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The Tax Men

Dear Anklebiters,

After working with other people's sound systems for a number of years, I decided last spring to invest in some equipment of my own. It's all decent gear, and with it and my existing contacts, I have been able to slowly build up enough clients to keep busy almost every weekend. But now it's tax time, and I'm wondering what I need to do on the business end of things to stay kosher and keep in good favor with our friends at the IRS.

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Trust Me…

Driving can be a dangerous thing. Not only for the obvious "the guy in the other car may be drunk, or an idiot, or both" reasons, but because long drives can lead to thinking–in my case, a very dangerous thing.

In this case, I was headed across Highway 166 from the central coast of California (specifically Pismo Beach) where I had done a weekend as a guitar sub for an '80s tribute act, headed for Bakersfield and then Highway 58 to Barstow and up the 15 home to Las Vegas. I was home for 36 hours before heading south again to the Timeless Communications headquarters for production on the issue you are reading now.

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119dB Without a P.A.?

Have you ever heard the sound of more than 10,000 girls screaming at 119dBa at FOH? Daryl Carmen, FOH for Hilary Duff, and the Masque Live crew have been experiencing this night after night since her tour started last summer.

Those who think of theatre sound and wireless microphone management when they hear "Masque Sound" should know that over the past two years, Masque Live, a new division, has been slowly establishing itself as a formidable player in the fast-paced commodity world of concert sound. Masque Sound is renowned in the theatre world because, like with a high-end installation, they take the time to work out every last sonic detail for Broadway-type shows that run for years in the same venue. In contrast, Masque Live is about the time pressures of being in a different arena or stadium every night. Crew chief Paul Fabre said he believes that what separates Masque Live is their philosophy of having the same level of quality control at the shop for both their theatre and concert businesses.

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New Orleans' Operatic Comeback

In post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans, you never know what to expect; events often take unexpected turns. Case in point: "A Night for New Orleans." It began as a modest fundraising gala, something to help the city's renowned opera company regain a semblance of normalcy. However, by the time the day of the event rolled around, it had mushroomed into what was quite likely the largest operatic performance in Louisiana history. When Placido Domingo stepped on stage at the New Orleans Arena–a relatively new NBA-sized facility largely unscathed in the disaster–an audience of 7,400-plus gave him a rousing welcome. By any measure, it was a result far better than expected only weeks earlier. However, for the audio professionals charged with sound reinforcement, the late surge in ticket sales became a challenging turn of events that required on-thespot changes in system configuration.

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In Search of "Entertainment"

OK, so now I am officially a pimp. Oh, what a long, twisted path I have traveled to get to this place in my career, but I have finally arrived. Much like any other kid with a guitar and a dream, my ambition was to make beautiful music and be heard the world over. Alas, it is not meant to be, and destiny has placed my shining star behind an audio console, relegating me to life of servitude as I feverishly dial, fade, cut and boost my way to glory while utilizing the auditory magic of other shining stars. Always willing to rise to a challenge, I found myself tour managing, road managing, production managing and even promoting these shining stars of stage and screen. Often, by default, I would find myself doing these other jobs in addition to my engineering responsibilities. Be that as it may, it all seemed like a natural progression from one job to the other, and though I may have been a bit of a "gig whore," pimping was never part of my job description.

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Smoother Smyth Q&A

Looking out over the Mandalay Bay Arena in Las Vegas where INXS would be performing that night, Delicate Productions' Smoother Smyth recalled how he started working with the band when they were first starting their career in the States: "I was in my office, and the receptionist called and said there was a band there to see me. I asked her to repeat that, because sound companies rarely deal directly with bands, but she repeated that there was a band there and they wanted to speak to me. 'What's their name?' I asked. And she said, "I don't know. It's INCS or something like that. "I asked where they were from, and she answered, 'Australia.' So I said, 'Right. Go up the road to the liquor store and get a case of Fosters and bring it back here.'"

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Nokia Theatre Rings Loud and Clear

In the heart of New York City's Times Square, one of the world's largest crossroads of talent, a new jewel has emerged that is destined to become an integral part of the neighborhood's famed history. Exceeding the expectations for sound reinforcement set by the numerous legendary venues in the immediate vicinity, Nokia Theatre features a fully functional, rider-friendly sound system designed and installed by Clair Brothers Systems.

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On the Bleeding Edge

It's really wonderful how the quality of sound reinforcement gear has progressed over the past few years. Last week, I mixed a show at the House of Blues in Atlantic City where the installed system is based around a JBL VerTec rig with enough horsepower to blow-dry your sister's hair, a 56-input Yamaha PM5000 console and some serious processing at FOH, a Midas monitor desk and Clair Brothers stage wedges. The house crew was great, both in terms of their technical ability and their hospitality.

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Shower Dancing, Part 1

I was mixing FOH for a ballet. Just as the first act started, someone backstage decided that the power amp on the rear speakers didn't need to be plugged in. So I cranked up the mains to compensate, and rushed backstage to troubleshoot. When I got back, I cranked them up to match the front. Before I knew it, I was up at 95 to 100dBs, and some old creep behind the console got up and asked me why it was so loud, so I told him what was going on. He said he'd leave if I didn't turn it down. So, I ever so slowly started to turn it down, and out of the corner of my eye, I noticed him leave. I didn't think much more would come of it.

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