Posts on Colton Provias

Syncing and Editing a Virtual Orchestra

Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This is part 2 of a 2 part series on how a the Googler Virtual Orchestra piece Finlandia was done from an audio perspective.

File Preparation
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Once the recordings were completed, we could now begin processing all of the files. The files we received were in a myriad of formats from different phones, cameras, audio recorders, etc. For the video editing team, this meant re-encoding all of the files into a singular format then providing a low-scale proxy and a screenshot to speed up editing. The audio side here was a bit easier.

Virtual Orchestra: Preparation and Recording

Mon, 10 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

During the pandemic, I ran the Googler Virtual Orchestra project. This consisted of syncing recording and syncing dozens of musicians to create a seamless performance.

Here is how Finlandia was done from an audio perspective.

Prep
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Everything begins with obtaining a copy of the score. With the score we can derive the instrumentation for the piece and start getting an idea of what will be needed. As a key tenant of the Googler Virtual Orchestra was musician inclusion, we found ourselves in need of adding additional parts. This meant adding saxophones and other instruments to a traditionally classical score.

Syncing A Live Orchestra to Video

Mon, 20 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

I lead the technical production for the Googler Orchestra, an orchestra comprised of Google/Alphabet musicians. This entails coordinating the technical requirements that a show main demand. Sometimes it’s just coordinating simple stage movements for a basic show, and sometimes it stretches to cover lights, cameras, audio, graphics, and other show elements.

For the 2024 annual holiday concert, our music director Nick Mazuk proposed synchronizing the orchestra to an animated film. This raises a simple question: how does one sync a live orchestra to video without detracting from the experience for the audience?