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A Note
From Bob
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April, 2002 Soft Music In A Loud World Ever notice that things are getting louder? Cars are louder, music is recorded and played louder, people talk louder, especially the stewardess on the plane when going through the safety routine. Even the buzzer to my doctor's building front door is deafeningly loud. Most of the music I hear these days is too loud, overly present and in your face. It seems intensity is the theme nowadays. Solos generally have a skillion notes, as if the player still isnt sure if he has the gig or not. What gives? What happened to subtlety? We just finished recording the next big band project, and the word most thrown around in the studio was "softer". Much of the music was played at a whisper. The end result was the most georgeous sounding recording I think I have ever made. There's plenty of swing and intensity in the music, but you walk away feeling soothed instead of like you were hit in the head with a brick! I've been trying to do this for many years. Perhaps writing this music on the heels of the NSO orchestra commission was the catalist that got this concept hapenning. I orchestrated the greater percent of the tunes using woodwinds, muted brass, and indicated dynamics ranging from pp to mp. The funny thing is that the band sounded louder when it played softer. The blend was far better, you heard all of the inner voices with far greater clarity, and the music felt better. Peter Erskine came out to play on the project. He was the perfect drummer for the date. He plays in an understated way that has lots of energy. The rest of the band did a beautiful job as well. Soft burn! The cd will be released in the fall sometime. Keep an eye out for it. Peace, Bob Mintzer |