Michael
Bierylo's Technical Notes
Read
Other Articles
When
I joined Birdsongs in 1991 all the live electronics were handled
by Erik's stage rig which at the time consisted of an EMAX
Sampler, an EMU
SP-12 sampling drum machine and a Roland
D-110 sound module controller by a Alesis
MMT-8 sequencer and a Kurzweil
MIDIboard keyboard controller. Along the way Erik acquired
the factory prototype of the Kurzweil
PX piano module and this has remained the sampled piano sound
he uses in live performance, when the real thing is unavailable.
This was essentially the Sounds
Interesting studio setup that he painstakingly transported
to gigs. As was the case with many hardware systems of the time,
Erik's rig was pretty idiosyncratic and it was soon obvious that
in writing for the group I'd have use my own platform.
The
first pieces I wrote for Birdsongs, Ray and Band Of
Deborahs were originally developed on a Macintosh
SE30 using Opcode's Vision which I began using when it came
out in the Summer of 1989. I initially resisted using the computer
for live performance and spent a great deal of time arranging
those pieces to be performed using a Roland
R5 drum machine which was loaned to us by our friend Dr. Mark
Spitzer. The many different sections and time signature changes
in those pieces made for an interesting collection of patterns
on the R5 and I've occasionally been tempted to compose a new
piece based on a random reordering of that material.
I brought the computer to Hawaii for our January 1992 residency
at Koloni Hanua and started work on Birdgam. By this time
I wanted to add pitched percussion and bass textures to the music
I was working on and I began using an EMU Proteus
I with Orchestral Expansion. Soon thereafter the parts for
Ray and Band Of Deborahs were being triggered from
the Mac and the R5 was used only as a sound module.
During 1992 till 1995 I added a Roland SE50 Effects processor
to my rack and experimented with using the Mac to control it during
performance.
Birdsongs' recordings have traditionally tried to capture the
sound of the band live. This is perhaps in sharp contrast to the
trend in record production during the 1980's and 90's of using
studio technology to produce a recorded artifact distinct from
a live performance. For the most part the sounds used in recording
Dancing On A'A were the one's
we used in live performance. One notable exception was a wavesequence
from the Korg
Wavestation A/D used on the rave-up ending section of Ray.
After
recording A'A we made a conscious effort to downsize and
simplify our live performance set-up. All of Erik's sequences
in repertoire were transferred to the Mac. Gradually the parts
from the D110 and the SP12 were remapped to the Proteus. By 1997
the Proteus was returned to the comfort and safety of my Studio
rack and all performance sequences and samples were handled by
the a K2000RS.
After 8 years of faithful service the Mac SE30 was replaced by
and Powerbook 3400. For the 1001
Real Apes shows Birdsongs did from 1996 till 1999 all
sequences and samples were handled by the K2000RS with some live
audio played back from the Powerbook.
Petrophonics
is the first recording of new material in 5 years and most of
it has never been performed prior to the recording. Indeed some
of the parts were written the morning they were recorded. Of the
many electronic devices we used in making the recording, my favorites
include the Waldorf
Microwave XT (Orange) used throughout Allswell and the Nord
Micro Modular which was used to process some of the tracks
during mixdown. Petrophonics
also marks the swan song for Studio Vision. RIP
Opcode.
For upcoming live performances we'll be using the K2000RS, an
Access
Virus sound module and the Nord Micro Modular mixed through
a Mackie
1202VLZ mixer. Sequencing a live digital audio will be handled
by a new 500MHz
Powerbook G3 running Digital
Performer.
