Kaleidoscope, The Beatles, and other random stuff

OK, as usual it has been awhile since I've updated this, but that doesn't mean that it hasn't been busy. The North Port High School Performing Arts SLC annual performance, Kaleidoscope, was last week. We had two days of rehearsals and two days of performances. Everything went very well this year. The theme was The Beatles, so we had thirteen different songs being performed by Dance, Concert Band, String Orchestra, TV Production, Chorus, and Theatre. We had our largest audience yet on the last night and had a great time with them. All in all, one of our more successful shows.

(The picture above shows us during the video taping of "Dig A Pony" on the roof of North Port High School as we recreate the roof top concert from the movie "Let It Be".)

To prepare for the final editions of the three songs my TV Production classes created videos for, we spent a large amount of time in The Barn recording studio mixing the final tracks. Of the three songs (If I Fell, Help, and Dig A Pony), the latter was the most successful as a mix. Students Christian Beam (lead guitar) and Brittany White (rhythm and bass guitars) were outstanding on the recording; I played drums and did the vocals. Eventually it will make it out somwhere to be heard, just not here.

In other areas, Dr. George Kenney dropped by The Barn to record three additional self-hypnosis scripts related to sports performance. His original series of self-hypnosis CD's (which I produced and created the background music for) are available at amazon.com. This is a great project, one that I've enjoyed being involved with immensely.

And, in other areas of music, I've (oddly and sadly) begun work on the music for the fourth release by now that they're here. There are certain songs that I came across that I forgot about in the last year while working on Pacific Radio Fire. When reviewing them, I really liked them...and realized they'd be perfect for the next CD. So, while I didn't exactly expect to immediately be working on the next CD...looks like I am.

Review in Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Dawn Scire from the Sarasota Herald-Tribune interviewed me last week about the release of Pacific Radio Fire. It was a great conversation since Dawn is articulate and funny.

You can read the review here - http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20100311/ARTICLE/3111031.

BTW, the fish is just a random shot we took in Jamaica last year. I love koi.

Adventures in The Barn

Happy New Year!!!

Since I'm out of school for a few more days for break, I decided to try to fix some problems that I was having in the studio...and, again, had it cosmically pointed out to me that some solutions just lead to more questions.

Like trying to get the dbx 386 tube pre-amp to work with the Digi003 interface. I was sending the digital out signal from the dbx (SPDIF) to the 003...and it wasn't being recognized. After spending too much time swapping out cables and testing every component, the only thing it could be was some setting in ProTools. So, just on a whim, I changed the digital setting from SPDIF to ADAT...and it suddenly started working. I have no idea why since I'm going from an SPDIF out to an SPDIF in, but I'm not going to argue with success. It works...next problem?

I have been having issues with my KAT DK10 drum pads...three of the pads are dead and to have the sensor array replaced (again) just isn't going to happen. Last year I bought a cheapy little Ion electronic drum set. It works in the studio pretty well, but I wanted to have more than the five pads it came with. After a lot of trial and error, I've been able to integrate the DK10 through MIDI into my venerable Alesis D4 drum brain, then plug the Ion pads into the trigger inputs of the D4 to supplement (and replace) the pads on the DK10. By doing this, I now have a 14-pad electronic drum system and I can ignore the Alesis SR16 knockoff that Ion included with the pads (it doesn't have a MIDI-In port, which was essential to integrating the two systems.) For now, it all works and serves my needs, although I needed to buy 1/8" TS to 1/4" TS cables for it to work elegantly. (Thanks Sweetwater Sound for the help, as always!)

The other problem I was having was with playing audio through the Digi003 to the monitors. You can't do it unless you are in ProTools...no other application (like iTunes) will work. After verifying this on the Internet in about five different places, I was left with the yucky solution of taking audio out of the side of my 13" MacBook to the Aux. Input of the Digi003...thereby adding another source of coloration by having to do another D/A conversion. Oh well, at least I can now switch between ProTools and other audio fairly quickly, which I could not do before.

I also hung a few more pictures in the studio, filed away some CD's (copies of my first two releases that I still haven't sold...c'mon people, Papa needs some more closet space!), and generally tried to make The Barn a bit more comfortable for me and the clients.

All in all, a fairly productive time in The Barn.

Pacific Radio Fire - PRESS RELEASE

After seven long years, the third CD release of the group now that they're here is finally available!

Pacific Radio Fire is a collection of twelve songs that range in style from techno to alt rock to classically-inspired music, and cover themes such as the writings of Richard Brautigan and Ray Bradbury, Buddhism, war, death...you know, simple subjects.

This release involves the talents of three guitarists - Fred Nowicki (who was with the group for the sophomore release Auschwitz Bound and appears on the song Far Away, Gone), Glenn Banish (lead guitar on Pacific Radio Fire), and Nate Russell (rhythm guitar and cowriter on So It Goes). Also, bassist Pax Helgesen cowrote and played on So It Goes.

The cover of the CD was designed by Chelsea Dorato, a high school senior at North Port High in North Port, FL. Chelsea won a design competition with her cover submission. This will be her first commercial work.

Pacific Radio Fire is available at cdbaby.com, iTunes, Rhapsody, walmart.com, and 30 other online sites. Just search for "now that they're here".

Endings and Beginnings

I'm abandoning the more formal "press release" style of this blog since it just doesn't suit me or this site. Since all things "deep kimchee" are also all things "Kevin Brislin", there really is no point in trying to separate the two. So much for formality.

In no particular order, here's what's been up since last June.

1. Pacific Radio Fire: The next now that they're here CD is in it's final stages of mastering. This process has been particularly grueling, for some odd reason. I seem to be second-guessing myself on the mixes constantly. One day, they sound fine, the next I'm dissatisfied with some aspect of what I've mixed. However, the twelve songs are almost all at a point where I'm changing things just to change them....and that's when I know I'm done.

The cover for the CD has an interesting story. I decided to have a competition at North Port High School with two graphic arts classes to design the cover. Altogether, there was about 20 to 25 entrants. The winning design was made by Chelsea Dorato and was done in a very cool way. Each letter for the title was "drawn" in a darkened room by a Cyalume light stick, then put together in Photoshop. I thought the process was fascinating and choose her design as the winner.

So, the CD is almost done, the cover is almost done...all that's left is for me to hurry the hell up.

2. Alternative Music Education video: At long last, after almost three years of work, my Masters of Fine Arts degree is completed. It took a year's worth of work to have my thesis video accepted; it took four submissions to have it finally approved by my thesis committee at National University in Los Angeles, CA. The video is 15 minutes long and is an educational look at what constitutes alternative music education and how it can be achieved. Due to the constraints of size for video on blogspot, I will have to put it on vimeo.com. You can see it at vimeo.com/7132012.

3. Hypnosis for Education: An odd project that came up this year from Dr. George Kenney, who is creating a series of self-hypnosis CD's for students to help them with such problems as test anxiety, sports performance issues, etc. There are five CD's to be released. I was hired to do the background music and produce the project. This has been fun to work on. It will be released on amazon.com, so look for this there soon.

4. Kaleidoscope 2010: For the next Kaleidoscope performance at North Port High School. we are doing a Beatles-themed show. In my TV Production III-IV classes, we are re-enacting three music videos from the films A Hard Day's Night, Help, and Let It Be. We are in pre-production at this point, but we have our cast and the shoot dates for at least two of the videos. We will also be using our own renditions of the music, so recording dates for that will be coming soon and will involve students from three of my classes. More news on this as it progresses.

The Next Big Thing(s)

The Pacific Radio Fire CD by the group now that they're here has finally been upped in the queue to be finished. Kevin Brislin is finishing the final mixes for test listening sessions over the next few weeks, then wants to have the CD released in three tiers:

1 - an electronic download in all the usual places (iTunes, amazon.com, etc.)

2 - the physical CD available from CDBaby

3 - a deluxe CD that will include all three CD's from the group, a book of lyrics for all the songs, and a handmade necklace specifically commissioned for this release. This deluxe set will only be available from deep kimchee's website.

The CD insert design is still ongoing, as are plans for an invitation-only release party. There are twelve songs at this time, but that may change depending on what happens during the final mixes. The target release time is August 2009, but that may be delayed depending on the cover design and the usual mastering problems.

The next big project involving deep kimchee isn't ready to be fully announced yet, but it is going to involve an online blog, a DVD, and a book. This project has been in the works now for almost a year and won't be ready for any form of unveiling for another six months at least. Suffice it to say that this is the largest project we've attempted and involves a lot more people than ever before. All you can do is hold on for more info when it's released.

Last Thoughts on Final Projects

From Kevin Brislin:

Since the school year is over at North Port High, I thought I'd wrap up what happened with all of the projects we worked on in the classes and where they will go from here.

1. The horror movie "Dr. S": the movie was extremely well received at Kaleidoscope on May 20. The crowd was actually one of the largest we have had since we started the performance series 6 years ago. While we are still having issues with the correct export settings for the Final Cut Pro file and having video hardware issues as well, I can't complain about the final results. A fine job by all, especially student Joey Rieszer (co-writer, co-director, director of photography, editor, sound designer...the guy was a bit busy and took this as his project when others dropped the ball.) When the issues with the aspect ratio and quality of the transfer are worked out, the video will be posted on YouTube.

2. The four-song EP from Sound Engineering never made it to plastic. While all four songs were completed, the class did not meet the deadline to have it mastered or duplicated. There are still some issues with the mixes, so it was decided that the release would be premature. This is a project that may be revisited by next year's SE class. However, the performance of the four songs went over well at Kaleidoscope (even though the first song was prematurely ended by a fire alarm!)

3. The Education Channel 20 in Sarasota (Comcast) will be featuring the horror movie "Dr. S" and projects from my TV II class over the summer. Tune in to see what all the fuss is about.

End of School Year Madness

Kevin Brislin and his TV Production III and IV students are to be featured in a program on Educational Channel 20 in Sarasota, Florida, concerning their efforts in producing "The Horror Movie!". The movie is an original video that they have worked on since last August as a large-form school project. The video is in post-production now as they work on audio, foley, sound effects, and the score. It will premier on May 20.

The Recording Engineering class is finishing tracking the four songs for their EP and the live performance on May 20. The photo is a shot of one of the vocal sessions completed at North Port High. Mixing and mastering will occur within the next two weeks.

Paradox Recording Studio

From Kevin Brislin:

I had the opportunity to visit Paradox Recording Studio in North Port, FL, a fantastic space owned by Rick Duncan. Rick is the producer/songwriter/drummer for the group Cryptic Vision, a progressive rock ensemble based here in Florida. I've been aware of Cryptic Vision for a few years now due to a mutual friend and was even invited to attend their last CD release party in 2006 when "In A World" was released.

Rick's studio is a stunning space and I would highly recommend it to any artist or group that is looking for a larger studio in which to work. I was at his studio to interview him for a possible article in TapeOp magazine (another "must have" in the world of audio, in my opinion.) Who knows if that will pan out, but I did want to let people know that there is a(nother) great studio in the country.

NPHS Musical

The NPHS Musical for 2009 has just finished its run. This year, the Drama Dept. chose "Little Shop of Horrors" as the musical and, as usual, the Drama students delivered a great set of fine performances.

For the past five years or so, Kevin Brislin has been the audio supervisor for the musicals, a fact of which few people have been aware. The job usually consists of training his audio production students to run sound for a live performance, which may mean that up to 12 mics are running at a time, along with sound effects. It is a stressful job for the students, but one that is vastly different than the experiences they have in a recording situation. Since musicals are so script-oriented, the students learn to follow along closely to know what mics have to be open at any particular time, when sound cues are to be played, and how to balance the sound in a live hall between a non-mic'ed orchestra and the actors.

Brislin considers this experience a make-or-break for anyone who is considering doing this for a living. Many of his students believe that running sound for the musicial is one of the highlights of their audio production education.

NOW what's he working on?

Right to the point...

1. Kevin Brislin's thesis video, "Alternative Music Education", is on its third (and hopefully final) edit, and the entire project is being submitted for formal review this week. This is a 15-minute video detailing how music education is taught, and how to expand music programs by integrating the non-traditional music student. This video will be hosted here at a later time. Contact Brislin for more information at dkimchee@earthlink.net.

2.  TV Production II, III, and IV classes at North Port High School, North Port, FL, are in the production phase of the horror movie they are producing for the annual Kaleidoscope performance this year. The movie is based on an original screenplay written by the TV III and IV students. The premier for this will be at the NPHS Performing Arts Center on May 20. Brislin is directing and will write the score for the movie.

3. The Recording Engineering class at NPHS is just finishing rehearsals for a 4-song EP that is being produced by the class. Instructor Kevin Brislin chose four songs that the musicians of the class had to learn, then adapt to be played in another style. For example, the song "Everybody Hurts" by REM has to be done in the style of The Cars, and the song "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" by Melanie is to be done in the style of Pink Floyd. The class plans to record the results of the project and have CD's available for sale by May 20. The class also intends to perform all four songs live the same day before the Kaleidoscope premier of the horror movie. Brislin is producing the CD, and will play keyboards or sing on all four songs.

By the way, the picture you see in this post is the new corporate logo/photo for deep kimchee. It just looked so relaxing and, when people see it, they always ask where it is. 

2009 FMEA Conference

On Jan. 8 and 9, Kevin Brislin and Owen Bradley made two presentations at the annual Florida Music Educators Association conference. They dealt with the Kaleidoscope project at North Port High School in FL as a model for alternative music education. Both have been spearheading the use of non-traditional classes (such as electronic music, recording engineering, and "guitar" classes) to engage the non-music student at NPHS. The presentations also were the first time that Brislin's thesis video on the subject was presented to the public. Owen Bradley is the music director and Music Department chair at NPHS. Brislin teaches TV Production, Electronic Music, and Recording Engineering...but not at the same time.

The Last 2008 Post for deep kimchee

Here's a recap of what's happening in all things deep kimchee...

1. Kevin Brislin's thesis film for his MFA from National University, Los Angeles, has to be re-edited and the narration rewritten. This will probably take up much of the time he had earmarked for other projects, but this takes precedence for now. Deadlines are tight, so he is hoping to have this completed in January.

2. Cor Mulhern's next guided imagery project will soon be remixed, but no plans have been solidified as to when it will be released or in what form.

3. now that they're here's next CD is still in progress. Guitarist Glenn Banish and Brislin's schedules just aren't in sync yet to finish the remaining tracks. Soon...very soon.

4. The first song from the collaboration between the Brislin Brothers (Jay and Kevin) was completed in November. The song, Aldino, is a poetic piece that evokes memories of their home in Maryland when they were growing up. Sadly, the debut of this song was at the funeral service of their mother, Ruth Brislin, who died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 86. 

There are a few more projects that are rearing their ugly heads for 2009, but let's keep them a little close to the vest for now. Have a Happy and Prosperous New Year!!

Current Projects

An update on what has been happening with deep kimchee and The Barn.

1. Work continuing on the third CD by now that they're here, "Pacific Radio Fire". Kevin Brislin has started working with guitarist Glenn Banish, a local North Port, FL musician who Brislin has known for about a year. Banish added acoustic and electric guitar tracks to the title track for the CD. Banish is attending a local community college and studying to be a music journalist. 

2. The working mix of Cor Mulhern's next meditation project, "Peace and Health" has been reviewed and requested changes are being implemented by Brislin at The Barn. It is unclear at this point how, when, and where it will be released.

3. A new collaboration between Kevin Brislin and his older brother Jay has been started. Jay Brislin plays electric guitar and both are co-writing songs for inclusion on a shared CD project. Since this is a long-distance recording effort (sending files over the Internet between The Barn in Florida and Jay's loft studio in Massachusetts), it will take time to iron out song issues and production schedules. In any event, both are having a good time with the project.

4. Straight A Productions of Florida has tentatively contracted to use Kevin Brislin to produce foley sound effects for one of their film productions. Brislin's extensive library of sound effects and ability to create custom sound design is a definite asset. More on this later as this develops.

The Barn has been updated further to incorporate a new Digidesign Digi003 Rack interface using the latest version of ProTools LE, a M-Audio Nova large condenser microphone, and a set of new plugins for ProTools. See the website for more details.

The Barn

At long last, after three years of delays and headaches, the recording facility known as The Barn is completed and ready for business. Located on three acres in a country setting, The Barn is a smaller space that is suitable for ensembles and solo musicians to write and record. Audio post-production capabilities are also available, as are video editing services based around Final Cut Pro.

The studio uses ProTools LE on a Macintosh computer and a small arsenal of outboard gear (see website for a list of equipment used.)

Use of the studio can be arranged by emailing producer Kevin Brislin at dkimchee@earthlink.net.

Fees are variable, depending on the level of involvement by Brislin and the scope of the project.

Jeez, yet another update?

Seems that all we do anymore is update readers on the continuation of the continuation of projects and plans. That's OK, though...at least things are progressing.

The Barn isn't doing that badly; the siding is installed on the interior. The walls have to be painted, the carpeting installed, then the studio equipment has to be taken out of the old studio and installed in the new. It will probably be some time in late June before all of this is completed. One can only hope.

The latest update for ProTools LE has yet to be released, so most (if not all) production work is at a standstill since the computer systems used in the studio have been updated to Macintosh OS X 10.5 Leopard. There are a few ways around this problem, but none exist to help finish the latest now that they're here CD, nor remaster the Mulhern projects (see previous posts for details.) 

One of the projects that is progressing is the Masters thesis video of producer Kevin Brislin. A documentary about alternative music education is in the editing phase and hopefully will be in rough form by the end of May. One of the few recording projects at The Barn will be the recording of the narration for the video and the creation of some of the background music.

Brislin also provided information about teaching TV Production, which can be seen at

(http://wikispace.ci.fsu.edu/LIS5313/index.php/

Spotlighting_Teen_TV_Production#Reference).

Also, the Electronic Music class taught at North Port High by Brislin will be part of a presentation at an international symposium of music educators in Taiwan in June by C. Victor Fung, the Director of the Center for Music Education Research at the University of South Florida, Tampa.

"Calm and Healing" Pre-Release Info

The recording label deep kimchee has taken on the project of re-mastering and re-releasing the phenomenally successful guided imagery project "Calm and Healing" by Cor Mulhern, RSM, D. Min. This 1997 release was a pair of relaxation exercises for pre-surgery and overall well-being. The initial release of this project was extremely well received, even though it was only available in cassette form. Producer Kevin Brislin was recently in talks with Dr. Mulhern to release a new set of relaxation exercises, which is in final production, and the concept of re-releasing "Calm and Healing" was broached.

As of this date, "Calm and Healing" will be released electronically only (no CD pressings are planned), which will allow prospective buyers to download the sessions onto a portable player of their choice.. Further information on where this will be available will be announced when the final details are worked out.

The new guided imagery project, tentatively entitled "Peace and Health", is being presented for chemotherapy recipients and for general well-being. Dr. Mulhern has received a multitude of praise for her work in helping others to achieve an inner balance to aid in combatting illness. At this time, this project is being mastered. Both "Calm and Healing" and "Peace and Health" will be released simultaneously.

For more information, contact Kevin Brislin at dkimchee@earthlink.net.

Change in Plans

Due to severe time constraints and a misunderstanding of what was really being written, the rock opera "The Gods Themselves" is now an oratorio and will not be presented live at North Port High School. The principal writers (Tiffany Stone, Glenn Banish, and Kevin Brislin) are continuing work on the oratorio and will eventually record the entire performance in the NPHS production facility or at the still incomplete studio in The Barn (see previous posts for details.) The documentary is still being worked on and will include scenes from various writing sessions of the oratorio, but will concentrate on past Kaleidoscope performances and interviews with educators involved with alternate music education. More on this as the documentary progresses. (BTW, the picture shown is a pre-performance conference with some of the principals involved in the movie, "So the wind won't blow it all away." Brislin is the only one not smiling and has his arms crossed.)

Speaking of The Barn, the interior is slowly (s-l-o-w-l-y) being finished. Brislin is hoping that the last of the interior issues will be taken care of by the end of March and equipment installation can commence at the same time. The Macintosh-based system has recently been upgraded to include a new operating system, the latest version of ProTools LE and the use of the Digi002 Rack system. The studio also has incorporated an Emu Proteus 2/XR synthesizer, a dbx 386 tube preamp, a Blue Ball powered dynamic microphone, and a Sony CDR-W33 compact disk recorder for mastering.


Potential clients can contact Kevin Brislin at dkimchee@earthlink.net for information on availability of The Barn for audio and video recording projects.

New Projects

Working once more with high school students, Kevin Brislin has taken on the science fiction book "The Gods Themselves" by Isaac Asimov as the text for a rock opera being written for North Port High School's annual Kaleidoscope performance. The opera will integrate rock and classical instrumentation to convey the intricate story of the book, which is considered one of the top 100 science fiction books ever written. Brislin is being assisted by two student co-writers; senior Glenn Banish and junior Tiffany Stone. This small ensemble will not only help write the opera but will also constitute the core performance group for the production at its premier on April 17, 2008 at the NPHS Performing Arts Center.

Brislin is also directing a documentary of the entire process involved in getting this production off the ground, which he is submitting as his thesis project for an MFA.

Summer 2007 Update

Songwriter/producer Kevin Brislin spent the month of July in L.A. working on his M.F.A. (Masters of Fine Arts) by completing the residency component of National University's Digital Cinema program. He and nine other candidates worked on three different industrial shorts. Kevin performed as a production manager, field sound person, and camera operator during the production phases of the projects. During post-production, he edited one project using Avid Express Pro and did audio mixing/final mastering for two projects using ProTools HD. Brislin will declare his thesis film project in September and start pre-production as soon as possible. Further news on this front as it becomes clear what the project will be.

In other deep kimchee news, the siding for the interior of the new recording studio has been chosen and will be delivered in the next few weeks. It is supposed to be very easy to install, so the goal is to have the siding and flooring finalized by the end of September and have the studio up and running by October.

The next now that they're here CD is still on hiatus until a guitarist is found. There is a possibility that this has been worked out by including a guitarist that lives in Tampa, FL to work on tracks via the Internet. The actual production flow is being worked out, so no names until it is official.