CAS Quarterly

Spring 2017

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C A S Q U A R T E R L Y S P R I N G 2 0 1 7 19 C A S Q U A R T E R L Y S P R I N G 2 0 1 7 19 the subtle changes made through sound choices is something that Michael defi nitely seems to understand and is how he approaches his work. "Sound is life—it's always there. You cut sound from the pop to the tail pop. However, that doesn't mean you have to use it all. You have to do what is best for the fi lm and the storytelling. All the elements have to work together to make the story. Getting the CAS for Dory—it really says that people were listening." THOMAS VICARI CAS: SCORING MIXER Thomas Vicari not only provided scoring mixing for Finding Dory but was the scoring mixer for Finding Nemo in 2002. His experience varies from modern classics such as Road to Perdition to the recent thriller Passengers to the celebrated docudrama Behind the Candelabra, for which he won a CAS Award in 2015, and fi nally to this year's Oscar for Best Motion Picture of the Year, Moonlight. His ability embodying the vision of the director among so many cinematic sales and music genres is what makes him top talent in his fi eld. Here, Thomas Vicari explains how the music gets to the fi nal scoring stage: "Finding Dory was recorded in two parts. [It] starting in February 2016, and then resumed in April and May … approximately seven or eight weeks of recording. "Typically, we start with pre-lay sessions. That is the augmentation of the demo mock-ups that (composer) Thomas Newman presents to the director. Recorded usually before I arrive by Shinnosuke Miyazawa. Tom's demos usually consist of keyboards, strings, atmospheric pads, and any other samples Tom may use for that particular cue. We tend to do the bulk of recording at Tom's home studio before we get to the scoring stage. At this point, under the direction of Newman and along with his team, the cue then evolves." Many instrumentalists lend their talent to these scores. and as Vicari reinterates, "All of these contributions help to create the mosaic that is emblematic of a Tom Newman score." For Finding Dory, the following musicians were employed to work their magic: George Doering on bowed guitarron, aeolian, wind harp, gopichand, dulcimers, electric guitars, bass, auto harp; Steve Tavaglione on acoustic fl utes, granulated water phones, spectral ambiences, morphed EWI, human sleigh bells; Dan Greco on timpani, vibraphone, high- metal rhythms, toy snares, tambourine, bongos, devil chaser; John Beasley on percussian loops, piano, water rhythms, ROLI; Rick Cox on xaphoon loops, bowed harmonics, sample pads, slowed bass 9; Sid Page on violin, and, fi nally, Thomas Newman on piano. "After days of recording, we then go to the Newman Scoring Stage, or in this case, Sony Scoring Stage, to replace any synth strings and horns with orchestra. "Dory had about 80 minutes of music. So we probably had four or fi ve days of double sessions on the stage to complete this task." The turnaround seems breakneck and the workload enormous but the team is clearly up for the job. Vicari explains, "Because of the amount of prerecords, my job is to mix them all while Armin Steiner overdubs the orchestra." After all of this, the team moved to The Village to begin the actual mix. But preparation is still not complete. "[Audio editor] Larry Mah and I usually spend a day or two prepping the cues, doing any cleaning, basic construction of the cues before Tom gets there so he doesn't have to sit through all the tedious technical chores. "At this point, I have the task of merging all the prerecords with the orchestra. Each cue is unique and is treated as such. There are themes that are reprised, but always altered to the fi lm." Vicari has worked on three Newman fi lms for Disney Pixar, Finding Nemo, WALL-E, and Finding Dory. This experience no doubt develops trust in the creative input of the team but develops a shorthand. "Tom is always present at the mix. Larry, Tom, and I audition any prerecords and takes that we have recorded. So the composition goes through various stages, but is not completed until the [fi nal] mix." While Michael Semanick has yet to receive an Atmos mix from Vicari and Newman, Atmos decisions are able to be made on stage as a result of a delivery that provides great opportunities for manipulation and separation on the fi nal dub stage. "We usually deliver a totally discrete 5.1 mix to the dubbing stage. That is, orchestra, and all prerecords in their own echo, and totally separate." Music editor Bill Bernstein normally manages communication between the dub stage and scoring stage as a result of the schedule each room is trying to keep. "I do have conversations at times with the stage, however, most of the time we are chasing to keep up with the dub and dealing with whatever changes that need to be made." The result is clearly tremendous. Our heartstrings were tugged and our bellies shook with laughter. The Cinema Audio Society congratulates the very talented team of Finding Dory and thanks them for their insight and contributions here.

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