AUDIBILITIES

By Emmet Robinson
King Street Recording Company

Professional Audio Services for Any Purpose You Can Think Of
Video and Photo Too!

Volume 62, Spring, 2016        610-647-4341      www.kingstreetrecording.com           kingstreetrecord@aol.com

 

How to Capture Your Grandmother

 

What that alarming title actually means, of course, is capturing the life story of your grandmother – or any senior family member – with a professionally recorded audio or video interview. The adventures and accomplishments, trials and tribulations, joys and regrets of your senior family members can be fascinating, meaningful – and educational!

My grandmother was a tremendous positive influence on me, and the recordings I made of her warm, loving voice nearly fifty years ago remain among my treasures.Your parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles can provide a treasure trove of personal and family history. You’ll learn things about them that might surprise you.

Dorothy’s brother, Bob, was a gifted storyteller who served in the army during the Korean conflict. Hearing him describe his adventures is an adventure in itself.

Back in the days when the interior walls of homes were constructed of wooden lath and real plaster, Lloyd’s uncle Herbert invented a metal lathing system that produced a better result in less time. The profits from his novel invention allowed him to retire to a beautiful high-rise apartment overlooking Lake Michigan.

Richard’s parents were Austrian Jews who were able to escape from their homeland just minutes ahead of Hitler’s invasion. How they established themselves here with only $20 in cash is a fascinating story.

Cindy’s uncle was in show business for more than fifty years, and worked with Jackson Browne, John Denver, Billy Joel, Don McLean, Joni Mitchell, Laura Nyro, Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, and many other popular songwriters. His stories of those times are highly entertaining.

Kevin’s grandfather’s tales of his 35 years with a large utility company sound more like standup comedy than a job history.

What fascinating stories are nesting in the branches of your family tree? Find out by scheduling a recorded interview here in the studio. In a quiet, comfortably lit setting, you might be amazed at the memories that bubble to the surface – and trigger stories you’ve never heard before.

Once you’ve selected someone as a subject, create a list of questions to ask in your interview. Standard information would naturally include date and place of birth, education, career choice, military service, family etc. Other questions might be more personal, such as:

• What was your greatest achievement?
• What was your greatest regret?
• Who was the most influential person in your life?
• If you could live your life over, what would you do differently?

In forming your interview, be creative. To capture and preserve the unique history of a treasured family member, think of questions that others might not ask. Be daring! Get personal! Interview rates begin at $195.00.

Call 610-647-4341 now to schedule your interview – and receive a free interview outline form that will help you to think of good questions to ask.

IN THE STUDIO
Words
Lasting Love

In response to the growing interest in recording the life stories of senior members of the community, it was a pleasure to conduct a video interview with a long-time married couple and learn a lot about them.

Starting out with two pages of prepared questions, the conversation seemed to find its own way. It was fascinating to learn how they’d followed different paths to the same career field – and been so successful at it! When they met, during their college years, they found the “love that lasts a lifetime.” Well, the first fifty years, anyway.

The 90-minute interview was recorded on two digital tapes, then transferred to a computer workstation for rendering and final transfer to disk. Multiple copies were made for distribution to family members. Some of the recorded stories will be brand-new to their children. As a courtesy, I took a high-resolution digital photo to use in producing custom full-color covers for the DVD cases.

At the end of the session, I asked them what they were most proud of in their combined lifetime. Their answer: having achieved both financial and emotional security – truly the love that lasts a lifetime! That reminded me of a comment by comic Richard Altman who said, “Not being loved is a disaster; but having no one to love is a catastrophe!”

If you have a life story to tell on video, rates begin at $195.

FROM THE ATTIC
Audio
It’s All Greek to Me

In a culture obsessed with rap, hip-hop and rock n’ roll, my own taste in music ranges more widely. What a pleasure it was to restore a series of audiocassettes of traditional Greek folk music. The distinctive blend of violin and lute stood out from the sounds I usually work with. Also, performance techniques varied. Sometimes the singers and musicians played and sang with vibrato – and sometimes not.

Keeping the material organized presented a challenge as the original hand-written labels were in Greek! In the end, I numbered both the original cassettes and their matching disks, allowing the client to finish labeling by hand… in Greek!

Young Talent

The audiocassette was of a ten-year-old boy interviewing his grandfather who was born in 1910. Despite his youth, the grandson was quite the competent interviewer. The questions he asked were quite detailed. A few were rather personal.

The grandfather had remarkable powers of recall, and was able to remember scenes from his earliest childhood. It was fascinating to learn about what life was  like back in the early part of the previous century. Growing up, going to school, finding work, developing a career – those experiences were very different nearly 100 years ago!

After digital processing, the client received two standard audio CDs, plus two more in the MP3 format for computer and Internet use.

Stretch!

Due to limitations of the Internet, most MP3 audio files sent from the studio are somewhat short. Longer programs can usually be divided into sections that can be easily combined by the client.

A recent exception was an instructional program from long ago that ran nearly an hour in length. Using a third-party provider intermediary allowed sending the entire file at once.

Video
Let’s dance!

Having been a professional ballroom dance instructor, restoring original videotapes of traditional folk dances provided quite a pleasant afternoon. Watching the dance styles of other cultures made a nice change.

Long Play

Back when VHS-format camcorders were popular, some chose thrift over quality and recorded at the slower extended-play speed. In this way, it was possible to cram four hours of video onto a two-hour tape.

Here in the studio, converting these four-hour-long tapes to videodisk can be tricky.  Since a standard DVD will accommodate just two hours of video, what happens to the other two hours?

By keeping careful notes on content, and pausing playback of the original just past the two-hour mark, the complete program can be divided between two disks. The second disk repeats a few seconds of disc #1 to assure the client that nothing has been left out.

As the standard rate for converting a two-hour program is just $34.95, naturally modest additional charges apply for processing a long-play tape.

Up in the Air

In the Air Force, the oldest aircraft I had access to was the B-25 light bomber. In converting a vintage VHS tape to disk, I learned quite a bit about the older B-24 ­– the workhorse of WWII. The videotape showed the complete manufacturing process of the plane that did so much to win the war. What a fascinating program this was to work with!

Happy Anniversary!

What a pleasure it was to restore and preserve an original wedding video from thirty years ago!  The ceremony was conducted in perfect taste, and the reception with a live band was non-stop fun! The client received two DVDs, plus an extra copy for archival storage provided at no charge. Rates for video restoration begin at $34.95. How many vintage videos do you have?

IN THE PHOTOSHOP
Two Different Methods

In processing 1950s-era photos of the client’s band, it was interesting to try two different scanning techniques. Normally, black and white images are scanned in gray-scale. The result is both accurate and satisfactory.

Over sixty years, however, original photographic prints acquire more of a sepia tone. Scanning them in color preserves that interesting tonality. In this case, the client received eight-by-ten prints produced both ways.

Slidin’ Along

Converting 35mm slides to the digital format can be interesting. As quality is always the primary concern here, scanning is done at very high resolution. Storing the finished files on disk can allow the client to produce his/her own prints. A second disk at lower resolution makes it easier and faster to send the images by email.

The final files are stored here on computer hard drive for one year, with an additional high-res disk stored here for ten years.

Got slides? Conversion rates begin at $1.95 each. Call 610-647-4341 for details.

Younger Than Springtime

An original photo was sent here by a client wanting to project a more youthful image. Instructions included specific requests for removal of dark shadows under the eyes, and a narrowing of the face to reduce the jowls.

Since there is no single keystroke or mouse click that will accomplish this, hundreds of strokes with the equivalent of a digital paintbrush finally accomplished the desired effect. Some of those strokes were only one pixel in size – about the size of the period at the end of this sentence. Photo restoration rates begin at $24.95, including basic corrections.

 Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why do you always scan images at such high resolution when a lower setting would be much faster?

A:  Speed isn’t the primary purpose here. Higher resolution provides greater control and a broader range of retouching options. Since no one has ever asked for poor quality work, it made sense to choose quality over speed.

ON STAGE
Shut Up and Sing!

In working with another live recording of a concert from long ago, I was reminded of just how much unnecessary chatter occurs in a typical amateur performance. We call this a lack of “Stagecraft.” In the performing arts, everything you say, everything you do, everything you are while on stage either adds or detracts from your impact on the audience.

In the performing arts, you get only one chance to make a good first impression. If you want a career in “Show Biz” make your next first impression the best it can be. Call 610-647-4341 for professional coaching in the art of stagecraft based on more than 50 years of practical experience as a working entertainer.

Rates begin at $45 per half hour.

Plunk and Twang

For anyone wanting to learn to play the acoustic guitar, professional instruction is available here. I enjoy opportunities to pass along what I’ve learned over the last 62 years. Half-hour private sessions are $45.00.

Common Sense Advice

Uncle Arthur says, “Organizational skills can take you further than talent.” It’s true! If you lose your driving directions to the club, you’ll never get to play there!