Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/830490
22 S P R I N G 2 0 1 7 C A S Q U A R T E R L Y exciting and also challenging at times. The opening scene was the hardest one because it was a pop-up performance with the entire ensemble playing together in an outside square in Istanbul. The camera was going 360 degrees around the musi- cians and a small audience gathered in front of the ensemble as they started playing. I had to hide the mics the best I could. I put it on the instruments where it would not come out so much and I had to try and hide myself, but I think it came out well. Peter did an amazing job with putting it all together. But we did this in one take! If something went wrong, we were not going to do it again. In Turkey, it was a lot of "Okay—they're going to play right here, right now" with barely no time to set up. Just record it and make the best of it. How did you get started? Being a sound mixer was not my actual plan in life. I wanted to be a professional upright bassist, but I had an over-stress injury when I was in college from playing too many gigs. My dad, Claude Tisseyre, is an engineer in Toulouse, France, so I decid- ed to follow his path, thinking that when my hand gets better, I will go back to music. I'm back to music now, but I'm doing engineering AND music. It's a great combination and is better than being a straight-up musician because the life of a musician is very, very hard. I also think it helps with the audio because I hear things differently. You know, most of the Silk Road peo- ple were my friends from back in my music days. It was really enjoyable to work with people I've known for a long time. It made the process even more fun. Did you use any special programs or apps? Or did you record mostly straight? There was a time when I recorded Kayhan Kalhor in the Cistern Basilica (in Turkey), the old Roman underground reservoir. That was actually my favorite part of the whole trip. We got to go when no one was inside and Kayhan, the kamancheh player, played a solo for us. For this part, I used a condenser mic that I hid and placed in front of him, a lavaliere mic on his chest to get his breath and a stereo mic a little further out to get the ambience of the space. Afterward, I put it together in Pro Tools and sent it to Morgan. I think that's what he used in the final. It was a great project and I'm glad I got to be a part of such an amazing team. DENNIS HAMLIN: PRODUCTION MIXER How did you get started in the sound business? Did you have a mentor or someone who you looked up to as you came up in the ranks? I actually stumbled into sound by being hired as a PA for a company that had an in-house camera guy but no sound. I had no previous experience at the time but was very familiar with recording music, so I was hoping I could figure it out on my own. They took me up on the offer to buy the gear and have me do their audio at a cheaper rate and I taught myself one shoot day at a time. It was very stressful initially. What was it about this project that was particularly challeng- ing or interesting? Were there any "stories" you could tell about the making of this documentary? For me, this was a dream doc to work on because I wasn't famil- iar with a lot of the instruments we were going to be recording, so I had to do some research as to what the instruments were and how they were generally recorded. Those are the weird things that excite me. I love working with Morgan Neville because he likes to keep things natural and use space that feels organic to the subjects. That makes it challenging sometimes for the recording of music but keeps it from feeling staged and stifled. What kind of equipment do you use? Did you find any particu- lar program or equipment that helped you in this project? I use Sound Devices mixers, Lectrosonics wirelesses, and Schoeps booms. Pretty standard stuff. In the past, I've brought in studio mics, but this film had a more organic feel to it and it didn't seem necessary. You also worked on some of my favorite documentaries—20 Feet from Stardom and Best of Enemies. From your career his- tory, I saw that you work on both docs and fiction, TV, and film. Is there any difference in your approach to a project depending on the genre? Yes. They are completely different. TV and film are much more controlled and, although you still use external elements at times, they are usually not preferred. What I love about shooting docs is the ability to use what's around you and that being an asset to making the sound more organic and real and not being afraid you're going to ruin the world your director is trying to create in, say, a scripted film. I also saw that you compose. So many hats! Do you enjoy more working on projects related to music? Yes! Music is the world I come from and has always been a pas- sion of mine. My wife and I started my sound rental company a long time ago and we also have a band together, if that says anything. What was your relationship with Peter Horner? Were you pres- ent during the post process? It's funny, I've been working on films with him for years but just met him for the first time at the CAS Awards. He seems like a really cool guy and I enjoyed hearing his stories about dealing with Dimitri's and my audio. Great film, great guys, great meeting them all. Dimitri Tisseyre, Dennis Hamlin, and Peter Horner at the CAS Awards