Merrily We Roll Along, is one of Sondheim's less frequently produced musicals. It requires that a song, written by Sondheim, is sung by Frank Sinantra on a news broadcast. The Music Director selected a singer from the cast and we recorded the sound effect live with instrumentation. Then I limited the frequency range to make it sound a bit more like an old TV set, and added a little reverb to mimick the room color of a concert hall where Sinantra might have performed a cover.
Merrily we Roll Along
Merrily We Roll Along Directed by Matt Davis
Scenic Design by Elizabeth Whalen - Lighting Design by Ed Potorrof - Costume Design by Emily Haggerty
Notes on Mixing: Sondheim provides a set of unique challenges for the Mix Artist that aren't commonly experienced in other musicals. As a composer, Sondheim once advised that "As much writing as possible should be done away from the piano" -- this is evident in his musical composition. His Hallmark as a composer is his deviation from conventions and his abandonment of popular time signatures. He even wrote about it, tongue in cheek, in a song from this show "Opening Doors," in which, the protagonist is meeting with a producer who sings "What's wrong with lettin' them tap their toes bit? I'll let you know when Stravinsky has a hit". This defiance of convention leads to radical changes, characters breaking into and out of the chorus and multiple part harmony in dissonance-- all things that are characteristically "Sondheim," and they require the Mix aArtist to attempt to memorize the show.
I mixed this show on a Yamaha M7-32cl, a digital console that is very common in touring applications, their were 18 performer microphones and a 10 piece orchestra.