i am sound

I have just done a sound design for Sandy Nelson’s superb comedy Baltamire which opened yesterday at Oran Mor, Glasgow for A Play, A Pie & A Pint.

The play was directed by Julie Ellen and was a pleasure to work on. Sandy’s imaginative writing called for the creation of some interesting effects, including elaborate helicopter and aeroplane soundscapes,  air traffic control radio communications and even the sound of bird eggs hatching!

The show features Sandy Nelson, Rebecca Elise and Ewan Donald and is a great show that is packed full of laughs.

“Baltamire” runs from 8th November until 12th November.   You can get tickets here.

“Baltamire” by Sandy Nelson.

Directed by Julie Ellen.

Assistant director – Stasi Schaeffer

Featuring Sandy Nelson, Rebecca Elise and Ewan Donald.

Sound design by RJ McConnell.

Photographs courtesy of Leslie Black.

After months of hard work, preparation and design The Enchanted Forest has finally arrived and it is already proving to be a resounding success.

Earlier this year I was approached by Derek Allen, the chairman of the Highland Perthshire Community Interest Company to compose music and soundscapes for this year’s Enchanted Forest show.

After walking the delightful site at Faskally Woods near Pitlochry with the lighting designer Simon Wilkinson we agreed that the natural beauty of the forest itself should be our theme for this year’s show.

After discussing how my musical ideas correlated with Simon’s vision for the lighting we noticed a strong elemental theme developing, with fire, earth, wind and water all becoming strong features in the design. The Force Of Nature was born.

In keeping with the naturalistic feel of the piece I deemed it only right that the music should employ earthly sounds in its creation. Organic sounds such as wind, birdsong, human voice and the sounds of stone slate were played musically as part of an ethereal score that was true to the naturalistic tone of the show.

In one piece entitled “Firefly Chorus” I sampled a variety of bird tweets so they could be played musically and in polyphonic structure. In this piece the evening chorus of birdsong eventually becomes a human choir, as the woodland before them is gradually illuminated in beautiful splashes of light. A moment which I hope sparks the imagination of everybody who sees and hears it.

“Firefly Chorus” was just one of several sound installations requiring very specific placement and type of loud speaker. Marcin Buczek of DM Audio was in charge of installing the various sound systems and his expertise was hugely appreciated by everyone. I would like to thank DM Audio for their superb quality of service on this production.

There will be audio from the show on my recent work page in the next week, so please check back if you would like to have a listen!

“Force Of Nature” opened last Friday and was warmly received by patrons and press alike. It was a pleasure hearing such positive feedback from many of the audience members as they promenaded around the site. It would certainly seem that the decision to create a more naturalistic show has proven to be a huge success!

There are photographs by Graham Smith on the BBC website which I recommend you have a look at.

Force Of Nature runs until the 7th November. Buy tickets here.

It’s less than a week until the Enchanted Forest show Force Of Nature is unveiled to the world and we are all very excited about it.

In the last few days Faskally Woods has been transformed into what seems like a completely different world as sound and lighting have been installed in the forest. It really is quite a magical place to be.

I have been working with Marcin Buczek from DM Audio who has overseen the installation of the various PA systems. I was very impressed with his time-delayed amplifiers in one location which really finished off the sound beautifully. I am using amps and speakers from German manufacturers D&B Audiotechnik in my sound design, and they are sounding great in the charming natural acoustic of the forest.

As well as being delighted with today’s soundcheck it was also great to see some of Simon Wilkinson’s beautiful lighting which accompanies my sound and music, and the combined effect is brilliant!

The Force Of Nature is shaping up to be a truly fantastic show so get your tickets booked!

Snow flakes falling down
Landing gently on the ground
Made crisp and cold by Jack Frost’s hand
A magic winter wonderland!