Dublin Connection

While most of you likely celebrated your St. Patrick's Day on the weekend, we were all feeling a little bit Irish here midway through last week. 

Last Wednesday, in a timely twist of fate, our studio connected via ISDN with Mutiny Studios in Dublin, Ireland.  The lovely folks at Mutiny were directing their voiceover talent over the line as they recorded spots for Liberty Insurance at their end.

An American-owned company (they go by Liberty Mutual here), Liberty has also become one of the primary insurance providers in Ireland - thus the necessity for our trans-Atlantic connection.   

Still, all in a day's work in this business - and were it not for the booking immediately afterwards, we might have kicked back a Guinness (or two) in honor of our international session!

Engineer Sighting!!!

Over the years, we've had the chance to show off our great gear in numerous photo-ops.  Wouldn't it be nice if one of these audio companies featured our studio and staff on one of their websites?  Well......

If you happen to visit the website for Automated Processes, Inc. this month, you may see a familiar face.  

Our very own Chief Engineer Bill Ahearn, as well as the studio itself, is featured in this month's installment of API online's feature "Word from the Street".  

Knowing that we had recently purchased one of their 500-series "lunchboxes" as well as paired 550a EQ modules and 527 Compressor/Limiter modules, API contacted the studio a little while back to see how we were enjoying the new gear.  

Bill crafted his response, sent it in, and the results are displayed on their website.  Take a look when you get a chance, or - better yet - drop by the studio to hear why we're so excited about our lunchbox!

Coming up next week: the Tapeworks crew wearing our snazzy new API Tees!  Think of it as a blog-update B-side...

Great Voices, Great Planes

Over the last couple of weeks we've had an opportunity to brush up on our historical aviation knowledge, with the help of Military Channel host and former Survivor: Panama contestant Terry Dietz.  

Terry - a Simsbury, CT resident and American Airlines pilot - is a retired US Navy Commander and he provides the narration for the show Great Planes.  The show, about to start its 3rd season on Military Channel, focuses on aircraft that have played a vital role in significant military events throughout US history.   

Although Terry had previously made a name for himself on TV through his 3rd-place finish on Survivor in 2006, his expertise and enthusiasm when it comes to aviation is perfectly suited for this show.

We've even managed to learn a thing or two... 

With Season 3 just about ready to "take off," we're looking forward to seeing the new episodes!

Putting a Face - and Piano - to the Music

While we're used to seeing musicians and actors pay regular visits to Tapeworks, it's not often that they are accompanied by a film crew!

Last week, the studio had a unique opportunity to host a video shoot for our friend Grayson Hugh.  Grayson was putting together a promotional video featuring parts of 5 of his most memorable songs, and the video prominently features not only Grayson, but our very own C6 Yamaha Concert Grand Piano.  


Both Grayson and our Yamaha look great -- you can watch the finished video by clicking here.  



The shoot was a fun experience for everyone involved, and a chance for us to re-visit some great songs from a great Connecticut-based songwriter and performer!

Hakuna for the Holidays

Yesterday we received a seasonal "shot in the arm" and a real boost in holiday spirit as Ernie Sabella, the voice of "Pumbaa" in The Lion King, brought his infectious energy and cheer to the studio.  
  
Ernie was recording voiceovers for "Wishes," the newest original show for Disney Cruise Lines.  The show will be performed on DCL cruises, and features a trio of teen characters visiting Disneyland to celebrate their high school graduation.


Along the way, they run into some real-life Disney characters who help make their experience a memorable one -- enter Ernie's performance as Pumbaa, along with his old pal Timon.


From the sound of things, it should be a really fun show... now who left all of these bugs lying around the studio??  

Once upon a time, in a LEGO set far, far away...

Amongst the various signs of holiday spirit, none have contributed more to the festive mood 'round these parts than the Star Wars Holiday specials we recently made with our friends from LEGO.  As part of a campaign that is helping raise awareness for a great charity, the folks from LEGO worked with Tapeworks engineers to score and sound-design both Darth Vader- and Yoda-themed Youtube holiday season videos.  

You can take a look at the videos by clicking the links above, or by copy/pasting these URLs into your web browser:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFKqAhIlcHI&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFpDa5e4lpo&feature=related

These videos are raising awareness for the Toys-for-Tots donation program that LEGO is running this winter; click here to find out how you can help make a child's holiday season much merrier with a couple clicks of the mouse. 


More to report in the upcoming days - including a visit from our favorite animated warthog and a trip to the snowy slopes of New Hampshire...

...Now, in the words of a very wise little Jedi: "Back to work, we must get!"



   

It's Doc Season at Tapeworks!

It's always exciting when you get a chance to host Hollywood talent - this week we were pleased to work with highly-regarded film actor and international stage performer, Marton Csokas.  


Mr. Csokas (from the films Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring; Kingdom of Heaven; Alice in Wonderland (2010), and The Debt, among others) was in our studio to perform voiceovers for the upcoming feature-length documentary, Follow Me: The Jonathan Netanyahu Story.  


This film depicts the story of a young Israeli soldier who was killed during the 1976 rescue of 246 passengers who were taken hostage by terrorists on a flight from the Ben-Gurion Airport (in Israel) to Paris, France.  The narrative is of a combination of historical accounts from the highjacking to the eventual rescue, as well as personal letters and correspondences involving Jonathan from the time of his military training up until the time of his death.  Mr. Csokas' role in the project is the vocalization of Netanyahu's written letters - the voice of the principle character for the film.

Despite coming from a variety of backgrounds (born in New Zealand, dual-citizenship and ancestry in Hungary, and permanent residence in the US), none of which include a Hebrew dialect, Marton expertly delivered his lines with an Israeli accent; no small task, when we regularly see just how hard it is to read lines the right way in our regular voices! 

Marton even found some time to demonstrate his didjeridoo chops during a short break - don't you just love working with those multi-talented performers!