Musical theater pit question...

[PWV]

For those of you that have ever played in the pit - I'm the Chair for our High School Performing Arts Department. The orchestra teacher came to me and asked me about this new technology available. The rental company can "expand your instrumentation" with this software program. Its not sequenced or Midi stuff - it supposedly follows the conductor in real time. eg - if we don't have a clarinet, we just add that into the Instrumental Ease program and the clarinet part from the score magically joins the pit and follows the conductor in real time.

One question - what if the actor misses his cue because of a costume change taking too long? A typical pit would vamp, improvise, repeat 4 bars - whatever. How does a software program like this synch up with the human element? Here's a link from R&H Theater Rentals (sorry, the swf file wouldn't let me copy any text.)

Does anybody here know anything about this technology? I think its pretty new.


http://www.rms.biz/Documents/Movies/IE_intro4_gen.swf

[IanStephenson]

Just looking through their presentation, it sounds like certain sections of the piece are marked up as loopable. The conductor would need to hit a key to tell the computer to keep looping.

I think the key is that they use the word "operator" - someone needs to babysit this thing, and make sure it's getting the cues that the rest of the band is getting.

Ian

[funkybassplayer]

I don't like the sound of this at all. So i might walk into a pit one day to find a computer going over my charts before a rehersal. I do not like that one bit.


The new technology sounds cool though.

[Hoover]

Originally Posted by funkybassplayer

I don't like the sound of this at all. So i might walk into a pit one day to find a computer going over my charts before a rehersal. I do not like that one bit.

The day I find a computer hitting on one of the dancers backstage is the day I quit the theater business!

[funkybassplayer]

Originally Posted by Hoover

The day I find a computer hitting on one of the dancers backstage is the day I quit the theater business!

For real. That is the bassist's territory. Dancer's love bassists.

[gottawalk]

I hate their presentation; can't go back and forth from page to page.

Anyway; looks to me like whoever is running this, plays the part on the keyboard provided and it plays the multiple instruments along with what you're playing, thus keeping in time with the conductor.

With InstrumentalEase, a musician controls a limitless number of simultaneous, individual musical lines, all while playing a standard musical keyboard.

They say that it comes pre-loaded with your show's instrumentation that you need; all you do is plug in and play.

As far as stage "glitches", it also says in the presentation it can "Vamp and relocate on-the-fly"

If scenery gets caught or someone misses an entrance, you won't have to stop to react. Emergency vamps and relocates can be created seamlessly while the music continues.

You'd probably do better going directly to their site at the end of the presentation and directing your questions to them. Sounds like quite an interesting system.

[CamMcIntyre]

I know it would be expensive, but if you don't have a part-why not either find a kid from your school or go to a local college and hire one of them? Not the answer you were looking for, but that seems far more practical than using some software. Even having someone play the part on synth makes more sense-don't need fancy software to do that.

[PWV]

Originally Posted by CamMcIntyre

I know it would be expensive, but if you don't have a part-why not either find a kid from your school or go to a local college and hire one of them? Not the answer you were looking for, but that seems far more practical than using some software. Even having someone play the part on synth makes more sense-don't need fancy software to do that.

Yeah, that was standard procedure until a few years ago... you shouldn't hire handsome drummers. Aggressive high school girls go after them and liability becomes a problem.

[Hoover]

Originally Posted by funkybassplayer

That is the bassist's territory. Dancer's love bassists.

No schidt; how d'ya think I met my wife?

[tplyons]

I don't like it... gonna put ME outta business