Coin Machine Review (& Pacific ...)

:Jomorrow~
..
dozen a ttemp ts ruined by such mishaps
before he achieved perfection. Bandsmen
usually blame jinxes for such situations.
• Hal Kemp's band is one of the most
difficult to record because of his delicate
reed effects and his blending of flutes, pic-
colo, brass clarinet and English horn in
contrast to th e full brass. "Hot jazz" outfits
are generally the easiest.
To the casual visitor the studio would
seem like anything but an integral part of
the giant industry it is. The atmosphere is
always informal, with musicians usually in
their shirt sleeves, old slacks, or perhaps
an old sweater. Fred Stulce, Tommy Dor-
sey saxaphonist, always takes off his shoes_
Tommy himself airs his latest gags. Sammy
Kaye is affable and friendly. Glenn Miller
is invariably serious and concerned only
with one thing-the recording job to be
done.
•
Out-and-out jazz bands like Muggsy
Spanier's often will make six test pressings
before they're really in the mood to swing.
While the records already in wax are tech-
nically perfect, Muggsy may feel that they
lack the natural feeling and relaxation
that good jazz should have.
During rest periods, all musicians drink
pop from an automatic machine. Some days
more than 200 bottles are consumed.
There are no office hours in a recording
studio, and any hour of the day or night,
including Sundays. will find the place in
full swing. Sessions have to be arranged
according to the different bands' or artists'
schedules, and those playing theater or
ballroom dates rarely arrive before mid-
night.
And that's how tomorrow's tune for your
phono/!raph, or your wired music installa-
tion, is born.
♦
SongJ.Ju
J).tJ &ing m«Je :loJay
By JULIUS HABER
•
Sometime within the next few months,
it is safe to predict, America will be swept
by some new popular song-another "Beer
Barrel Polka," or a new "Tuxedo Junc-
tion." Hundreds of thousands of its re-
cordings will be sold, played by a Glenn
Miller, a Hal Kemp or a Tommy Dorsey.
The tune will be whistled, hummed and
sung from coast to coast.
What the American public doesn't know
is that in all likelihood the tune is being
born right now in one of the major record-
ing studios. Few people-and coin machine
men are probably no exception- are aware
of the machinery necesary for making a
tune popular, or of the amount of meticul-
ous care that goes into the actual recording
problem.
The initial problem of selecting the num-
bers is big enough. At RCA Victor this is
done at a conference between Leonard Joy,
manager of popular artists and repertoire,
and the orchestra leader. The selection
usually depends upon two factors-the suit-
ability of the number to the band's style,
and the position of the song in the pub-
1 isher's catalogs.
The latter factor is important since of
all the songs published, only a limited
number can be given the concerted drive
of the publisher's promotion. Such tunes
are assured of some degree of popularity
since the publisher will make sure they
are plugged on the air by the country's
major orchestras. Recently, however, there
has come the rise of such hits songs as "In
the Mood," "Sunrise Serenade" and "Begin
the Beguine" which can trace their popu-
larity directly to one band's recording.
Once the number is selected, the band
leader must confer with his arranger, plan
the orchestration, assign the vocalist, make
sure the chorus i's in the proper key with
his or her voice, and rehearse the arrange-
ments. Often he wants to test it on dancers
and perhaps make other changes before
recording it.
In the studio. most orchestras record in
a series of four or six sides at one session-
two or three full recordings. This can be
done in New York, Chicago or Hollywood
where RCA Victor maintains permanent
studios, depending on the location of the
band at that time. On hand in the control
room are usually two recording engineers
and a musical supervisor.
Orchestral balance is the first consider-
ation. The leader sits in the control room
with the engineers while the band runs
through the number. Instrumentalists are
moved back and forth until the sound com-
ing through the loudspeaker is blended per-
fectly. Four microphones are usually used
-one for the sax section, one in front of
the brass, one by the rhythm section, and
one for the vocalists. For individual in-
strumental solos, musicians simply step up
to the closest microphone.
Once balance is achieved, a test record-
ing is made to be played back for the en-
tire orchestra to hear. This permits correc-
tion of .small mistakes· and allows for vari-
ations in balance .
At this point the finished recording is
transcribed. Two turntables operate, one
consisting of a thin coating of compound
"flowed" over a metal, the other-for emer-
gency use-a solid plastic platter one-half
to two inches thick. One is sent to the RCA
Victor record plant at Camden, New Jersey
and the other is held in reserve to be sure
the first has been safely delivered a-nd
used; it is then ground down and used
again .
Sometimes it may take two or three
hours to record just two sides. At other
times it is possible to complete six in three
hours. It all depends on the numbers, the
band, and the mood. For example, during
the recording of "Tuxedo Junction." Glenn
Miller spent an hour-and-a-half shifting his
men and instruments around in order to
/!et a perfect balance. His next two sides
during the same session were recorded in
an hour.
Every so often a band hits a snag while
making a master recording; a trumpet
player will drop a mute, a sax man will
rustle his music. a singer will catch a frog
m her throat. The "take" is spoiled and
the recording must be done over. In making
"Study in Scarlet" Larry Clinton had a
77
COIN
MACHINE
REVI EW
• • •
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