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#1 Portfolio

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This document provides summaries of sound design and composition work by Patrick Jansen for various theatrical productions. It describes 15 projects, listing for each the title, play, concept, instruments/software used, and a brief description of the sound design or composition. The projects cover works for plays such as "Eurydice", "Arcadia", "Art", and others. Methods include live instrumentation, field recordings, digital signal processing and others.

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Patrick Jansen Patrick Jansen Sound Design/Composition Portfolio http://bit.ly/1jMJZeZ Title Show Method Concept ‘1’, ‘6’, ‘12’ ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Electric Guitar, E- Bow, manual fader riding on Analog 24.8 Mackie, GarageBand Eurydice’s father builds her a string house in the underworld. I took the idea of string literally- adding a new note into the multitrack via manual board fade for each string (12 total) the actor used to build the house. Each track has slightly higher levels on the new layer for clarity and highlight of dissonance. Arcadia Waltz ‘Arcadia’ – Tom Stoppard Piano, Sibelius 6 I was commissioned to write a waltz that spanned the generations and time periods in which ‘Arcadia’ takes place. I drew inspiration from a simple ‘pop-Baroque’ progression with a hint at Classical era voice-leading. The melody confirms its Classical conception, and adds ornamentation and dissonance as the piece continues, much in the way a more Romantic composer might have performed it. Art ‘Art’ – Yasmina Reza Electric Guitar Harmonics, Swells, Delay, Attack Point Composition, GarageBand, Sibelius 6 The script concerns a piece of minimalist artwork in which value and structure is debated. In order to accentuate the tension, I kept the tempo and harmony constant, only adding layers of harmonics. The first layer does not make sense on its own- only when the rest of the layers are added does anything have any meaning. Much inspiration was drawn from the Third Movement of Steve Reich’s ‘Electric Counterpoint’ Dies Irae ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Baritone, Large Diaphragm Condenser, GarageBand, Digital Reverb Dies Irae (Day of Wrath) is from the Roman Catholic Mass for the Dead whose lyrics reference David and Sybil. I changed the original key, melody and lyrics to also quote the ‘Fate’ motive Beethoven’s 5th Symphony at the end over the final text ‘cum Eurydice’, translating in its new form to ‘Day of wrath and doom impending, David’s word and Eurydice’s blending’, therefore implicating Eurydice for the tragedy that has unfolded. In order to increase diction in the incredibly wet recording, I added a completely dry track at a lower gain level. Inspiration for this incredibly wet sound came from the recent acoustic research at the Hypogeum of Hal Saflieni. (http://bit.ly/1GG9qnx)

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Patrick Jansen Patrick Jansen Door ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Bösendorfer 97-key grand piano, sustain pedal, Large Diaphragm Condenser, GarageBand, Digital Reverb, Tuning As Eurydice is drawn into the Nasty Interesting Man/Lord of The Underworld’s room, there is a sound of a door slamming, presumably the door between the over world, Purgatory (the apartment), and the underworld. IN order to dramatize this, I recorded the sound of the lid of the piano dropped on the body whilst holding the sustain pedal, creating a cavernous droning sound. I then added reverb and tuned it down an octave in order to give it resonance and depth. Elevator ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Metal Railings, Wood Block, Large Diaphragm Condenser, SM57, GarageBand Digital Reverb, Tuning In rehearsal, I heard the stage manager clank the wooden key against a metal railing in the Theater, and found inspiration for a creepy elevator ding. I recorded the sound of three or four different pitched railings in stereo, lowered their pitch, and added reverb to give it a resonant, but dulled ‘ding’. Emma Ritter ‘When I Am Laid’ – Dido and Aeneas – Henry Purcell One Large Diaphragm Condenser, GarageBand This is more of a recording arts feature. I was requested to do a Graduate Audition recording, but only had access to one microphone, so I placed it in such a way as to capture the warm sound of the Steinway grand piano while still allowing the vocalist to showcase their incredible instrument in its capacity. I controlled the stage plot, and was therefore able to use physical placement to affect auditory perception, as opposed to using panning or individual levels to create the desired mix. The recording was accepted, and Emma is currently pursing her M.M. in Vocal Performance at Eastman. Footfall Chimes ‘Footfalls’ – Samuel Beckett Stereo Pair – Avantone CK- 1, GarageBand A quick recording of a sinister chime noise. I used Chinese finger cymbals and a Tubular Bell to create a strong ringing dissonance brought about by chromatic dissonance through displaced octaves. Again, reverb was added to enhance the presence of the sound. Quad ‘Quad’ – Samuel Beckett Piano, Sibelius 6 ‘Quad’ is strictly a movement piece, so I focused on creating a driving force behind the lines I write. There is a four beat ‘Intro’ which prepares the actors to start the piece, as well

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Patrick Jansen Patrick Jansen as a five beat ‘Outro’ to play them out. The score is very easy to follow, and indicates which of the four lines are playing. In order to further assist the actors in keeping time through the changing rhythms, I added an accent and an octave at the beginning of each measure, each denoting a change of direction. SFL ‘The School for Lies’ – David Ives Harpsichord, Sibelius 6 ‘The School for Lies’ is based on Moliere’s ‘The Misanthrope’, and is like ‘Arcadia’ in the sense that it has to do with an understood, but unacknowledged sense of anachronism. As such, I composed an introduction of Baroque music with modulations typical of the era. After that, however, I launched into anachronism, writing variations on a Romantic theme (Dvorak Symphony No. 9, from the New World) and a Classical theme (Beethoven Symphony No. 5). String House Deconstruct ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Baritone, Large Diaphragm Condenser, GarageBand, Digital Reverb, Audacity I actually used the same sound effect twice in the show. The first time was when Eurydice’s father was deconstructing her string house, and the director wanted a sound ‘akin to a long groan from a football team’s loss.’ It was played at a very low volume level to barely cross the listener’s audible threshold. The second time is when Orpheus turns back to see Eurydice, thus losing her forever. The stage direction reads ‘THE WORLD FALLS AWAY’, and along with a strong red light cue, this sound effect played at a high level, simulating the groan of the entire underworld. This is the same exact two tracks as the ‘Dies Irae’, but taken through Audacity and slowed down by 66.6%. The Melody ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Piano, Sibelius 6 This is a melody that the script calls for that Orpheus writes for Eurydice in the First Movement. I used this only to teach the actors the melody, as they sang it acoustically on stage. It is referenced a few times later on in the stage directions. The Yada Yada ‘The Yada Yada’ – Sterling Long Bass, Horn Section, Auxiliary Percussion, Sibelius 6 The Yada Yada is a new script written by a good friend and fellow student at Valparaiso University. It has not yet been produced, but in order for him to help pitch his script, he requested the ‘Theme’ be composed à la Seinfeld’s slap bass.

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Patrick Jansen Patrick Jansen Third Movement ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl SATB Choir, Sibelius 6 In the Third Movement of the Script, there is a stage direction that reads to the effect of ‘The Melody that Orpheus wrote, over and over’. In order to accomplish this, I used the melody as a structure which I harmonized in ever- brightening keys, from Eb (three flats) through the circle of 5ths to D Major (two sharps). In the score, the melody (whose intervallic and rhythmic proportions remain intact throughout, while the pitch level changes) is visually highlighted with phrase markings, and once the D Major section begins, the melody’s entrances become more and more truncated, until in measures 33-34, all four voices are at different points in the melody, and the melody is harmonizing itself.

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#1 Portfolio

  • 1. Patrick Jansen Patrick Jansen Sound Design/Composition Portfolio http://bit.ly/1jMJZeZ Title Show Method Concept ‘1’, ‘6’, ‘12’ ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Electric Guitar, E- Bow, manual fader riding on Analog 24.8 Mackie, GarageBand Eurydice’s father builds her a string house in the underworld. I took the idea of string literally- adding a new note into the multitrack via manual board fade for each string (12 total) the actor used to build the house. Each track has slightly higher levels on the new layer for clarity and highlight of dissonance. Arcadia Waltz ‘Arcadia’ – Tom Stoppard Piano, Sibelius 6 I was commissioned to write a waltz that spanned the generations and time periods in which ‘Arcadia’ takes place. I drew inspiration from a simple ‘pop-Baroque’ progression with a hint at Classical era voice-leading. The melody confirms its Classical conception, and adds ornamentation and dissonance as the piece continues, much in the way a more Romantic composer might have performed it. Art ‘Art’ – Yasmina Reza Electric Guitar Harmonics, Swells, Delay, Attack Point Composition, GarageBand, Sibelius 6 The script concerns a piece of minimalist artwork in which value and structure is debated. In order to accentuate the tension, I kept the tempo and harmony constant, only adding layers of harmonics. The first layer does not make sense on its own- only when the rest of the layers are added does anything have any meaning. Much inspiration was drawn from the Third Movement of Steve Reich’s ‘Electric Counterpoint’ Dies Irae ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Baritone, Large Diaphragm Condenser, GarageBand, Digital Reverb Dies Irae (Day of Wrath) is from the Roman Catholic Mass for the Dead whose lyrics reference David and Sybil. I changed the original key, melody and lyrics to also quote the ‘Fate’ motive Beethoven’s 5th Symphony at the end over the final text ‘cum Eurydice’, translating in its new form to ‘Day of wrath and doom impending, David’s word and Eurydice’s blending’, therefore implicating Eurydice for the tragedy that has unfolded. In order to increase diction in the incredibly wet recording, I added a completely dry track at a lower gain level. Inspiration for this incredibly wet sound came from the recent acoustic research at the Hypogeum of Hal Saflieni. (http://bit.ly/1GG9qnx)
  • 2. Patrick Jansen Patrick Jansen Door ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Bösendorfer 97-key grand piano, sustain pedal, Large Diaphragm Condenser, GarageBand, Digital Reverb, Tuning As Eurydice is drawn into the Nasty Interesting Man/Lord of The Underworld’s room, there is a sound of a door slamming, presumably the door between the over world, Purgatory (the apartment), and the underworld. IN order to dramatize this, I recorded the sound of the lid of the piano dropped on the body whilst holding the sustain pedal, creating a cavernous droning sound. I then added reverb and tuned it down an octave in order to give it resonance and depth. Elevator ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Metal Railings, Wood Block, Large Diaphragm Condenser, SM57, GarageBand Digital Reverb, Tuning In rehearsal, I heard the stage manager clank the wooden key against a metal railing in the Theater, and found inspiration for a creepy elevator ding. I recorded the sound of three or four different pitched railings in stereo, lowered their pitch, and added reverb to give it a resonant, but dulled ‘ding’. Emma Ritter ‘When I Am Laid’ – Dido and Aeneas – Henry Purcell One Large Diaphragm Condenser, GarageBand This is more of a recording arts feature. I was requested to do a Graduate Audition recording, but only had access to one microphone, so I placed it in such a way as to capture the warm sound of the Steinway grand piano while still allowing the vocalist to showcase their incredible instrument in its capacity. I controlled the stage plot, and was therefore able to use physical placement to affect auditory perception, as opposed to using panning or individual levels to create the desired mix. The recording was accepted, and Emma is currently pursing her M.M. in Vocal Performance at Eastman. Footfall Chimes ‘Footfalls’ – Samuel Beckett Stereo Pair – Avantone CK- 1, GarageBand A quick recording of a sinister chime noise. I used Chinese finger cymbals and a Tubular Bell to create a strong ringing dissonance brought about by chromatic dissonance through displaced octaves. Again, reverb was added to enhance the presence of the sound. Quad ‘Quad’ – Samuel Beckett Piano, Sibelius 6 ‘Quad’ is strictly a movement piece, so I focused on creating a driving force behind the lines I write. There is a four beat ‘Intro’ which prepares the actors to start the piece, as well
  • 3. Patrick Jansen Patrick Jansen as a five beat ‘Outro’ to play them out. The score is very easy to follow, and indicates which of the four lines are playing. In order to further assist the actors in keeping time through the changing rhythms, I added an accent and an octave at the beginning of each measure, each denoting a change of direction. SFL ‘The School for Lies’ – David Ives Harpsichord, Sibelius 6 ‘The School for Lies’ is based on Moliere’s ‘The Misanthrope’, and is like ‘Arcadia’ in the sense that it has to do with an understood, but unacknowledged sense of anachronism. As such, I composed an introduction of Baroque music with modulations typical of the era. After that, however, I launched into anachronism, writing variations on a Romantic theme (Dvorak Symphony No. 9, from the New World) and a Classical theme (Beethoven Symphony No. 5). String House Deconstruct ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Baritone, Large Diaphragm Condenser, GarageBand, Digital Reverb, Audacity I actually used the same sound effect twice in the show. The first time was when Eurydice’s father was deconstructing her string house, and the director wanted a sound ‘akin to a long groan from a football team’s loss.’ It was played at a very low volume level to barely cross the listener’s audible threshold. The second time is when Orpheus turns back to see Eurydice, thus losing her forever. The stage direction reads ‘THE WORLD FALLS AWAY’, and along with a strong red light cue, this sound effect played at a high level, simulating the groan of the entire underworld. This is the same exact two tracks as the ‘Dies Irae’, but taken through Audacity and slowed down by 66.6%. The Melody ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl Piano, Sibelius 6 This is a melody that the script calls for that Orpheus writes for Eurydice in the First Movement. I used this only to teach the actors the melody, as they sang it acoustically on stage. It is referenced a few times later on in the stage directions. The Yada Yada ‘The Yada Yada’ – Sterling Long Bass, Horn Section, Auxiliary Percussion, Sibelius 6 The Yada Yada is a new script written by a good friend and fellow student at Valparaiso University. It has not yet been produced, but in order for him to help pitch his script, he requested the ‘Theme’ be composed à la Seinfeld’s slap bass.
  • 4. Patrick Jansen Patrick Jansen Third Movement ‘Eurydice’ – Sarah Ruhl SATB Choir, Sibelius 6 In the Third Movement of the Script, there is a stage direction that reads to the effect of ‘The Melody that Orpheus wrote, over and over’. In order to accomplish this, I used the melody as a structure which I harmonized in ever- brightening keys, from Eb (three flats) through the circle of 5ths to D Major (two sharps). In the score, the melody (whose intervallic and rhythmic proportions remain intact throughout, while the pitch level changes) is visually highlighted with phrase markings, and once the D Major section begins, the melody’s entrances become more and more truncated, until in measures 33-34, all four voices are at different points in the melody, and the melody is harmonizing itself.