MSND @ Bartell Theatre |6 shows down, 7 to go! |Score Talk

Strollers Theater | FB.Event | Isthmus | Bartell Theatre | DB Pedersen |

“Have you read the footnotes to this play?  I didn’t realize there were so many words for vagina –  it’s basically a porno!”  ~ db pedersen

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DB’s pit POV

Strollers Theatre
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM
May 3rd through May 25th @ Bartell Theatre
William Shakespeare | directed by Greg Harris
Original Score by db pedersen & Brothers Grimm

$20 general admission
$15 for seniors, students, & Strollers members

Call || 661-9696 ext. 2
Web || strollerstheatre.org

second half of MSND runs…

Thursday, May 16, 2013 – 7:30pm
Friday, May 17, 2013 – 8:00pm
Saturday, May 18, 2013 – 4:00pm
Saturday, May 18, 2013 – 8:00pm

Thursday, May 23, 2013 – 7:30pm
Friday, May 24, 2013 – 8:00pm
Saturday, May 25, 2013 – 8:00pm

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Notes on the original live score, composed and performed by Brothers Grimm & db pedersen >

In approaching the score for A Midsummer Night’s Dream, db pedersen presented the Brothers Grimm with theme sketches and initial cue concepts that had been developed with dir. Greg Harris. We then spent the next few weeks of April attending rehearsals, observing the actors develop their character. In the nights following these observations we’d convene to have fast paced cue-composition sessions. One by one, we deconstructed db’s thematic material and built them up from the ground as a trio – finding our strongest instrumentation as we went. Our goal was to reduce the sauce of these themes down to a flavorful, simple substance – and hit tech week with a lot of room to grown organically in our accompaniment to the actors.

Main instruments
AJ ~ classical guitar
BC ~ cello & guzheng
DB ~ vocal-foley/sfx, throat singing, shruti box, various flutes, animal noises

Implements & Sough!

  • Pot Lid “tree” (struck//bowed) 
  • bowed Saw 
  • various 

    Bells 

  • Slide 

    Whistles 

  • Woodblock 
  • Wup-Wob Cards (bent//bowed) 
  • boxes of Twigs//Branches 
  • … & etc!

// All material played on the 21 string Chinese guzheng 古筝 zither for this production’s score is in emulation of the European harp & hammered dulcimer. The entire instrument has been customized & re-tuned to fit different theme material in each register/octave. It is a completely unique tuning, never before used on the instrument, designed specifically for this show. [ ~Traditionally, the zither is tuned in multiple octaves of a single pentatonic scale; adapting pentatonic mode to fit the key, from D1 – D5]

MSND custom guzheng tuning, from low to high >

E1-F1-G♯1-A1-C2-D2-F2-G2-A2-C3-E3-F♯3-G3-A3-B3-C4-D4-F4-G♯4-B4′C5

~ and we hope here is a score fitted!

all photographs copyright Jonathan J Miner//J Miner Photography 

(except for musician pit photos)

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4/26 8pm COLIAS 1 ►Preview 3 Bros. Grimm + DB Ped. // Shakespeare scores

ᄽ|Preview COLIAS 1 TONIGHT 4/25 11pm on Gross Time w/ DJ EW/RadioTWC|ᄿ

  Fri, 4/26 8pm  

  Bright Red Studios | $7 Entry + CD | $5 Entry Only | All Ages  

COLIAS 1  RELEASE PARTY
BROS.GRIMM + DB PEDERSEN   (MAD)
NUDE HUMAN   (MAD/MKE)
ESKIMEAUX   (PHL/CHI)
CJ BOYD   (USA)

░▒▓▓▒░

This week we mark the birth&death-day of Willy Shakespeare …. and for those who know us, you are aware that the Brothers Grimm have been hard at work scoring two of the Bard‘s plays. 

இ Comedy!

Brothers Grimm & db pedersen are putting the finishing touches on a live instrument score to accompany A Midsummer Night’s Dream this May – directed by Greg Harris with Strollers Theatre, Ltd at the Bartell Theatre (Madison).

 The production opens next Friday, May 3rd.

 for when, where, how much? check out the Isthmus Guide

௸ Tradgedy!

Directly on the heels of MSND’s closing night, the Bros. Grimm will head down to Indianapolis and perform their foley/sound-score for NoExit Performance‘s production of Macbeth directed by Michael Burke.

Macbeth opens Thursday, June 13th

see photos from our Bradbury’s Coffee foley recording session!

 

 ண here’s our 3rd and final preview for tomorrow’s COLIAS 1 release party!

Everything in this track that isn’t DB’s wonderful vocal performance is source sound from the Bradbury’s ladder, gathered during our Macbeth rec session. Including the ‘ah-ahk//gagaku’ style wailing-melody in the background!

►Preview 3 |Brothers Grimm & db pedersen 
 – Ladder Study 1 (Alice Cooper’s Tears)