AV News 195 - February 2014
Needing a second theme, to herald in the wrought iron, I thought back some
years to a group called Gryphon, who produced several LPs using an ensemble
which included a crumhorn - a good match for my first track. The number I chose
had a series of rhythmic metallic clangs in it - perfect for blacksmithing! (Just
don't enquire about its title - it's called 'The Last Flash of Gabardine Tailor'!)
In addition I wanted some real blacksmithing sounds, and the resident smith
at the Avoncroft Museum, which is close to where we live, invited me along to a
teaching session. The museum was quiet at that time in the morning, and my
only problem was the anachronistic electric blower - essential to keep the forge
hot.
Obligingly
he
switched it off for just
long enough for me to
collect hammer blows
on anvil and swage
block, and the clink of
his hammer as he put it
down. I also got some
close-ups pictures of
'hot metal' which might
come in handy I
thought.
Eventually
I
used
those, posterised in Photoshop, for the 'fantasia' at the climax of the sequence.
I now needed a more
authentic bellows sound,
which I produced at home,
by the simple expedient of
blowing
on
the
microphone! Putting it all
together in PicturesToExe
was so much easier in
version 7.5 - being able to
slide sound and images
around is brilliant and I
needed to do less work in
Audition than I would
have done previously.
(And it will be even
better in v8.0 - thank
you Igor!) "The rest" as
they like to say "is
history..." And yes, we
got to El Corte Inglés
that morning too - my
opening panorama was
taken from the window
of their restaurant!
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