A bit of further info - I have some moderately-sophisticated sound editing software that can remove steady background noises such as the buzzing mentioned previously. I'll see if there's a way I can grab that audio and clean it up a bit.

As I mentioned in the "possible next effort" thread, I also have the capability of doing a bit of scoring with my Yamaha ES-7 keyboard to get you some real-sounding instruments. Especially if your scores can be sent to me as MIDI files, I can import them to my computer and Yamaha setup, and send them back as MP3 or WAV files.

Good to hear from you Thenamir!

We've been in trouble getting Gandalf on board and an adult voice might just do the trick... (and Macalaure and Legate seem to be away anyway).

So I'd very much appreciate you giving it a try.

The first goal is to get the few pages from when the fellowship leaves Rivendell to the place when it starts snowing (from the bottom of page 298 to the halfway of page 305 of which I think is an old standard edition - from: "Many others of Elrond's household stood in the shadows..." to: "... unless it is a choice between fire and death.").

Let me be moderately suspicious... :) I mean the buzzing and humming take place at certain frequencies. One can cut those frequencies off with many programs (or play them down with an equalisator) but the downside is that you lose all that there is in that wavelength - also those frequencies from the speech. At least with Matthew the problem has been that the buzz is pretty low in frequency and as you cut those frequencies out his voice sounds like someone in his pre-puberty... Adding some bottom there makes his voice great but also increases the buzz... But if you have a software that solves this go for it! We could try at least.

I'll send you Thenamir my e-mail account in a PM so that you can send me your clips there as I have been the one to gather these all into one file. I'll also send you a clip of the music I've done this far so that you can say whether your Yamaha makes it better... for in that case please go on, I can send you notes or whatever you prefer.

Yess.

Let's do this now and then turn into Matthew's idea of the Prancing pony as our next item.

And any ideas anyone comes up with. I mean everyone must be able to participate!

Okay. The music for "The Ring Goes South" is still under construction - as I hope fex. that Greenie will sing with me for the B-part (when the going gets a bit lighter for a while) as well and that can happen the next week earliest (and I need to come up with the harmonies to be sure) - and she might make some more flutes as well. We'll see to that.

But I have been able to use my school's Korg-synthetisizer to replace those poor software synths I had used before and I really think this sounds better now. More like real contrabasses and strings and not a pseudo-fun movie-cheap-software program -stuff. :p

So check here. The site may require you to update your flash player before it plays it to you but it seems to be okay. At least my computer is still working after I did that. :)

Reading through the new posts on this thread (accumulated over a long, long weekend away), I was THIS close to volunteering to be Gandalf.

Thank you, therefore, Thenamir, for saving me the hassle and cost of purchasing a microphone--at least until the next time this sort of project rolls around and I wander too close.

Terrific! Things are really shaping up. Next chance I get, I'll record the rest of my lines, as I think I stopped short of the snow.

You can always buy the mike and sign up here... :D

I would love to have you with us there!

While definitely tempted... the lack of a really cool voice part like Gandalf slows my hastiness, and the role I would most covet is that of the narrator... who, perhaps, would be more fairly left to one of the lady 'Downers, given the gender balance.

But perhaps this is a discussion for another thread?

You are quite correct to be suspicious, but fear not. The software I am referring to allows me to take a sample of the offending noise from a section of the sound file where the noise occurs alone -- in other words, where the track is otherwise silent except for the buzz. As long as the buzz is relatively constant the software can then analyze the sound and surgically remove it from the file without affecting the rest of the frequency balance. I have used it to remove some persistent 60hz hum from the background of some tracks I have created with excellent results. I'll send you a before/after compare file as soon as I am able.

Here! :)

Sorry, I've been neglecting this thread for a while. I wasn't able to record anything the last few weeks - first I had no time, then my computer sabotaged me, and then I caught a nasty cold.

You should get a Gandalf sample from me within the next few days.

The music sounds EXCELLENT. Brilliant.

Chime in, chime out...
 

As I said before:
And that's it. I am here now just to appear and disappear and have not yet time to make any recordings (and not even to listen to what you others have done meanwhile... *sigh*). You see, I have holidays, and I am going here and there and am not at home for most of July. I am now around always just for a day or two between coming from somewhere and leaving to somewhere else and have really no time to do anything longer than to check the Downs if something really acute is not happening (of course on these days I don't do anything else than check the Downs. Do you think there is anything else which should be important? ;) Of course, besides the things which are in relation to the Downs in some way but which take too much time so that I can't actually complete them :( - like this).
:D

But as I said: now I am going on a weekly Telcontar-ish trip pretending to be Sam ("my backpack does not weigh anything at all") and then again pop in for a day and then a week after that or so I should at least have time. So maybe I can even make some recording then.

I've got a host of recordings and will try to share them with you tomorrow.

Sorry about the delay but I've been away and tied with other projects lately...

I've not bothered to set up anything on Facebook or Xanga before, but now I have, so that I can post recordings and stuff. It took all my spare time this evening just to set it up to my satisfaction, but it's there -- www.xanga.com/Thenamir.

I've not got any of the Gandalf recordings up yet, but I did post one thing I had already made before. If anyone ever wanted to hear Thenamir sing, here's your chance. As I said on the Xanga blog, one you hear it you'll know why I make my living writing computer programs.

I was swamped last weekend. I'll get something up by Sunday, I promise.

Wow...you have a GREAT voice!

Thanks! Although I doubt Randy, Paula, and Simon would agree with you.
:eek:

Okay. That sounds relatively advanced techniques indeed. We might give it a try with Matthew's files at least.

So if you Matthew send your files to Thenamir we could see if he's able to wipe that hum out?


A second thing. TheGreatElvenWarrior and Lauri said they wish to join the choir! Great! Anyone else interested?

I'll try to make some re-edits this weekend including Oddwen's new read out. I'll also check the files sent to me over last weeks as I now finally have time for them.

We're getting there... :)

Send me a single sample first, or let me know where on the net I can pick it up, and I'll see if there's any magic that Gandalf can work on it.

I've turned in some narrations and dialogue clips, but I'm not happy with either of them. I'll try to do some better work and get it in soon.

Hello? Is everyone alright? No problems out there, I hope...

Alive and kicking...

I'm waiting for Oddwen to either make her things a new or telling me the first one is okay.

Then TheGreatElvenWarrior and Laurinqüe will join our choir on a week or two... and I still need to come up with a choir setting for the part B of the thing... :rolleyes:

And anyone wishing to join the singing is welcome! I can send you the notes / choir-lines...

Are your clips in your xanga-account Thenamir? Or where should we look for them?

My last narration that I had sent to Nogrod turned out to be too quiet, so I've sent in my most recent try.

I see that Nogrod has posted - I sent you a new clip sir, please use whichever one you feel is best.

I e-mailed the clips to the address you PM'd me -- have you not received them?

I've got them both... (Oddwen and Thenamir). Thanks.

I'll listen to them tomorrow (it's 6.20 AM right now and I need to go to sleep). But I got them to be sure.

I'll come to them tomorrow...


Good to see this thing working... we're so near... !!!

I couldn't go to sleep without listening your clips...

That's just great!

I really love your voice as Gandalf Thenamir, especially in the first part of your clip!. You're also a good narrator... it can be heard you have read aloud to your children... :)

But Oddwen had a nice one too. I may try two different versions of the thing in the end. You can then choose - or choose to get both of the recordings...

Let's not forget about this thread.

Hmm, quite, quite... I thought about it recently. I wonder if you are still counting with me. In either case however, I have caught a little cold, so I can't supply you with any recording right now - unless you wish the story to seem indeed realistic by mimicking the results of the night spent at Caradhras.

Anyway, could somebody briefly sum up in what stage are we? What is clear and what is not, and what is supposed to be done and what...?

We are still undecided on Gandalf at least... I need to check what else is missing.

I'll be coming back to the subject in a day or two as I have time to go through my files and some previous discussions...

Gwath is right, let's not forget this! The things we have now are pretty nice so this will be worth doing.

What?? I'm not a shoo-in for Gandalf? Harumph!! I'll be in my trailer with my double-caf venti mocha frappuccino! <stomps off in a huff>

:) :) :)

I'd say you should do it - if others agree that is. I was mainly referring to the fact that we haven't decided on that yet... :)

I'll try to check all that I have and all that is missing. That will be done either later today if I have time or then the day after tomorrow.

Thenamir will voice Gandalf. :smokin:

Let's get to work.

I checked out a flash recorder for a school project this weekend and decided to finally make some recordings for this project since I had the equipment. Perhaps I should email them to you, Nogrod, or should I post them online somewhere?

I'll be able to do future recordings with the same equipment for the remainder of the semester at least. I could do more vocal stuff, or more preferably I can create some sound effects. Just specify what you want me to do. :)

Good to hear that Brinn!

I'll try at last today have time to go through my files to check out what we already have and what we need to finish that first "episode".

Here's what we seem to have...

Music - ok.

Narration by Oddwen - a bit fast paced and the record-levels could still be a bit higher but it will do unless Odd wishes to make it once more... :)

Gandalf by Thenamir - ok.

Aragorn by Gwath - ok.

Boromir by Matthew - still very problematic as it hisses and cracks a lot. I can try it with the versions I have but it will sound nasty.

Legolas by Nerwen - ok.

Gimli by Nogrod - not done yet but will be as soon as I get on with it.

The hobbits... well... the hobbits. Volo made me one one-liner by Frodo (all there is fvor Frodo in the first setting) but I have definitively lost it... I'll try to find it. Then I think Lommy & Greenie were going to make Merry & Pip. That can be done any day they visit my place.

So we miss only Sam then? (and that lost Frodo line...)

Who's going to go for Sam?


I'm not sure - as I hadn't time to check it - but if you guys remember all the better: so did you (Thenamir, Gwath, Nerwen, Matthew) send me all the lines of your characters before Sam takes the watch and the crebain come? If yes, then there is no problem.

If you Matthew just would give it one more try with whatever gear you can get hold on to (like school-stuff or something) it would be great. You have a nice voice and you actually act! It would be cool to have that without your voice being buried under the hiss and buzz...


After all that should be recorded is done (it shouldn't take too much time and depends basically on how fast we will get a Sam) I'll need some time to put this all together which will take some time and effort - and it probably means also some reworking with the music-stuff (not anything major though as I can copy bits from here and there to fit the final thing). We have an autumn leave from school within two weeks and that might be the time I would try to bring this all together.

Btw. we must do another one as now Mac, Legate, Rikae, Hookbill, Form... got no role (unless one of them takes Sam)!

I actually don't remember how much I sent you, Nogrod, but if I get the chance, I'll go back and check. Thanks!

Well, I thought I was listed for Sam so I went ahead and recorded his lines. But if you all would rather have someone else play him, I suppose that's okay...

I also read some narration and dialogue from other parts, just to give a voice sample.

Ha ha! Nogrod's being passive-aggressive again, I guess. :p

Oh no. You'll make a dashing Sam Brinn... just send them to me and I'll add them.

I kind of thought there were lists about who could play who but I didn't find any of those yesterday I was looking for them... It's been such a long time I've looked at this thread the last time I have clearly forgotten half the stuff we've decided already. :(

Unless I've missed something, Legolas only has one speech in that section, so yes.

Indeed. I was just checking...I admittingly stopped paying attention to this thread halfway through the summer since there wasn't much I could do until I had the equipment. I didn't know if something had changed since then.

I can send the files to you...perhaps tomorrow. Could you PM me your email, Noggie? I don't think I have it...