Ref: Les Mis and dx-7's. Gidday there Tim. Thanks for the invitation to forward a synopsis of the Les Miserables setup and plan of attack. I think that there's a lot more in here than is of interest to the dx-7 / Atari aficionado but for those who have to face the prospect of mounting this production in the future I think it is all relevant, particularly to the "amateur" groups and participants out there. we feel we are only one step short of being professional in our performances and only believe we are amateur by our non-paid status. For all the rest such as attitude etc. we do the absolute best we can afford. Good reading !--Cheers--Neil Booth. The following comments are those of a modestly competent pianist/accompanist who has worked in the presentation of about 20 major musical productions (along the lines of My Fair Lady, Sound of Music, Fiddler on the Roof, Guys and Dolls, Jesus Christ Superstar, Joseph, etc. along with numerous Gilbert and Sullivan shows, and innumerable vocal and variety-style performances,) with and without instrumental ensembles of some form. From a musician's point of view the offer of presenting the musical "Les Miserables" as the "musical director" seemed at first to be the ultimate compliment and an opportunity not to let pass by. From my experience of seeing the show 4 times on stage and experiencing the 10 year anniversary video over and over, not to forget the C.D.'s many times, I figured that it would be a worthy "feather" to earn to put on my hat with a few others. Now, in the aftermath of a 10 show season , I can truly lay claim to that feather. I trust you'll read on --it was a very interesting journey from beginning to end. The story is multi faceted really, because some of the stories stand on their own, and others effect and inter-relate to quite a few other aspects, so here's hoping the story can be followed---good luck. Les Mis was written somewhere in the early 1980's----about '82 or 83. Contrary to the opinion of heaps of people it was NOT written by Andrew Lloyd Webber. It was written for an instrumental group consisting of: strings 1 and 2, viola ,cello,(3 is good) string bass. woodwind--flute/piccolo, clarinet doubling b-flat sax., oboe doubling cor-anglais. brass 2 french horns, trumpets 1,2,and 3, with piccolo trumpet and flugelhorn required as doubles for 2 of those players; trombone guitar--both electric and acoustic(this actually needs a guitarist who can actually read music as well as chord symbols) Drum-kit , Percussion, consisting of (ideally) 3 timpani, xylophone, glockenspiel, (Chinese) Gong --fabulous--bell tree, and various hand held effect instruments. Keyboards --2 keyboardists are required, each of whom requires 2 keyboards--altogether 4 Yamaha dx-7's .These 2 people (and also all the other instrumentalists, some to a lesser degree) are required to play probably the most poorly presented, most difficult to understand hand-scrawled scores ever presented to a performer. (Of course, from the viewpoint of a piano-player who is used to properly printed music this sounds like the wailings of a small child, and all the instrumentalists had the same cross to bear, but these ramblings will speak for all the parts as one--individual instances will be included as they are remembered, mostly in an effort to embarrass the perpetrators of what could probably called fraud. Anyway--onwards.)The Yamaha dx-7 keyboards were the top of the range, cutting edge state-of-the-art instrument of the time and that is what the 2 keyboard parts are notated for--(if you can call it that). If you are planning on performing this musical, you'll first of all figure that all you have to do is chase up a couple of dx-7 's and it'll be easy-peasy. Oh how I wish that was the case. First off, they're not all that easy to find, and you'll need 4 of them. Secondly, if you can find them , they're probably going to cost you about $400-$500 (Australian) in the likes of The Trading Post, and you'll probably spend half the weekend chasing around the country-side to collect each one . Of course, being as old as they are, you'll be lucky to find one that's in perfect condition that has all the buttons doing exactly what they should---our no.2 machine that which was loaned to us from a school didn't give the correct display for the first bank of sounds and the player had to hope and trust he'd hit the right button every time he made a change. Then the problems really begin ---when you eventually get the music sent to you, you are sent the discs to load the keyboards with the required sound "patches" for the show. Now you need to understand that a dx-7 is a synthesizer not just a keyboard. When delivered new , the machine has a capability of holding only 32 different sounds or "patches" onboard. This compared with the plethora of patches found on keyboards of today--2002.. . The need for more than 32 sounds for each keyboard player then requires 2 keyboards for each person, and many of the sounds have been "designed" especially to match the "mood of the moment" at various times, so they are not all the standard issue dx-7 sounds that come on pre-recorded cartridges with the machines. The cartridges are labeled 1 and 2 or A and B and they are easy to load into the keyboard after a little practise with the sequence of button pushing. The Les Mis issue sounds come on a 31/2 " floppy disc written in the computer programme called Cubase, ready for use on--wait for it--another dinosaur of the 80's--- the Atari computer! [Editors note:The files were created with Steinberg "Satellite" which is an accessory Sysex dumping program used with Atari Cubase] Call your local computer club and listen to how hard they laugh when you ask them if they know of an Atari within whistling distance. Should you be lucky enough to find one within a half days' drive as I was, you'll then need to hope its memory was empty and that it had enough onboard space to hold the info from the supplied discs !! If that all falls into place readily, then you have to find someone who knows how to handle the language of all of that stuff and is prepared to give you their valuable time to sit and play around with them one Sunday in the hope you get it all up and running. So if you get halfway to this point, you then start wondering "how am I going to circumvent all this hoo-haa! ?" Well two obvious questions arise. Firstly, "what other keyboards can do the job that are not dinosaurs"? , and secondly, "if I really need a dx-7, and I can find them but no Atari, can the files be got in IBM compatible PC files"?. The answer is a half yes to no.1 and a resounding yes to no. 2.---so COUNT OUT THE ATARI [editors note: You can now run Atari software on PC using the Atari Emulator called Steem. See http://tamw.exxoshost.co.uk/steem.htm] How to do it---keep reading. Let's go back a few steps, cos there's another serious thing to consider here, and that's your PEOPLE. That's right--your operators. If any of yours are anything like my keyboard one player, you could have a piano player who hates knobs and buttons and keyboards as a whole, so you are probably going to need what I had, and that is a page turner cum navigator come beat keeper. You see, you've got a player who will be in a darkened area with a light on his/her music and will be having trouble reading the aforementioned horrendous score with his/her own markings on it and be going along in some pieces like a bull at a gate and then be required to take hands off everything and look for buttons and check they've hit the right ones at the same time as trying to count some of the weirdest time signature mixes you've ever seen and keep it all together. You see the other thing we haven't mentioned here yet is that many of the patches have dramatically different volume output levels one from the other, so one minute you could be blasting away with some brassy noise that has your volume control turned down low (to suit the house p.a. and the sound tech.) and the next minute you have to pump up the volume full bore so your delicate harp sound can be heard. Make sure you don't forget to turn down again at the right time tho' or you'll blast the house apart next time you're in a loud patch.(Probably won't effect your sound tech. too much tho, because he's probably like all the others and thinks its no good unless its deafening~ ) The other difficulty in this scene is that the supplied keyboard parts (while not really hard to play at all for any-one of moderate ability) are printed so small that its very easy miss the patch change markings on the page. You'll get the hang of it after a lot of muck-ups, but it takes a bit of doing if you are not a techno head. (The real answer here would be for the copyright owners to allow you to make blow-up photo-copies of these things so that you could put highlighted markings on them and then destroy them after the season, but as you can't do that to the supplied scores-they have to go back clean remember- you might try the little re-locatable page "flags" from your stationary store where other great help ideas can be found.) {The REAL , REAL answer to all of this would be for the publishers to get the process of score printing down pat---its gotta be pretty easy these days with Sibelius etc. and with the huge royalties they are commanding its not as though they couldn't afford to do it! Hence my early-on inference of "fraud"} [ O.K.--I finally got that all out of my system--back to the real stuff] These keyboards also are touch sensitive but not weighted, which piano players don't really love, and many of the sound patches have built in after effects--some of which are really terrific and don't occur on other keyboards --another added "something to learn" in-between chorus and principle rehearsals with the piano/vocal rehearsal score --which, if supplied to you as it was to me had more errors in it than you could be bothered making notes about. The errors start to appear at rehearsals with the chorus who question you when you tell them they're wrong, because their chorus scores are different to your score. Everything from incorrect words to incorrect notes and note values and even different numbers of bars between some sections of the same songs. Even the song numbers didn't match, let alone the bar numbers ! Then there is the matter of the chorus parts as supplied being different again from the piano/ vocal accomp't. AND the orchestra conductors score, all of which is written in different "hands" and differs again in many places from what the individual instrument players scores show. Great fun at rehearsals--all of them. So, once you've found your keyboards,--you are going to need at least one dx-7 (you really must have a couple of the growling thunder-type noises ) unless you can get a real wizz keyboard nerd from somewhere, you have to load it and you can get the files in PC format from the great TIM CONRARDY- who was the saving soul for us in our circumstances. His 2 banks of patches downloaded quickly and loaded easily onto the keyboards and didn't give a hint of trouble at any time. Thanks again Tim--through whom you have accessed this ramble. [Editors note: The original files were in Steinberg Satellite format.The files were converted into standard sysex using another Atari program called Midian. Standard SysEx files are cross-platform.] I hope you are still there, cos this journey was well worth the effort in the long run--this is such a great show to perform night after night. There is another really good site to visit put together by a Keyboard One player who gives a lot of great insight into this too-try "Les Miserables-Beyond the Barricades" and look for e real good run-down by Rodney Hrvatin. The other factor to look at here is the option of "other keyboards". Because I could only get 2 dx-7 's I had to find a workable alternative for my "less-than-junior" keyboard 1 player who was also my some-time chorus / principal repetiteur. And that answer came in the form of my own other keyboard--a Yamaha PSR-SQ 16--one of Yamaha's less than successful models but nonetheless quite useful to me over the years, but there are not many of them around, also pretty easy to learn to use. That's right--there under my nose was a really viable alternative. 10 years old as opposed to almost 30, and with many onboard sounds in the same Yamaha mould as the dx-7 originals, but many of them with far from the same names---Bishop's Organ for instance on dx-7 was no different at all from the Ocarina on the SQ 16.--and so it went. There were many benefits in the SQ 16 starting with the "16" in the name .As it is a sequencer able to hold 16 patches on each of 8 banks, which are reasonably quick to change between, it was possible to organize substitute sounds for the dx 7 sounds for keyboard one that got us through with only one keyboard, which also saved "her" standing at a stack arrangement for over 3 hours every performance. The 16 patches on each bank were "up front" and easily and quickly changed by the turner /navigator allowing her to keep her eyes on the music and hands where needed. One major inconvenience in using another keyboard with a different operating method is that you have to create for yourself a whole new "patch plan" for ready reference and a new way of cueing your music to suit the patch selection method of your keyboard. My coded pages look like that gobbledy-gook you get on a computer when something's gone wrong -but it can be done, if you have the time, and sometimes someone to help you through. Also, by being a sequencer with disc drive on board, my 2 banks of patches were easily loaded and also secure close-by in case of a power failure and a re-boot was necessary. (The dx-7 does maintain memory in the event of a power-down). One of the shortcomings of the dx 7 was that the short keyboard meant that you would run out of notes on one end of the keyboard or the other, and technology on that board didn't allow for an octave drop or a jump up an octave, hence the large number of patches. More modern 'boards have an octave jump button easily activated and can be cued on the score. This saves patch changes which use up your bank of buttons as the dx 7 does---need another octave?, pick another patch , go to another keyboard. !!. Had the octave situation been addressed on the dx 7, one keyboard would have handled it for each player, as it holds 32 patches. I ended up using 22 patches only on the one SQ-16--but with some of them duplicated in bank 2 for use when time didn't permit changing back to bank 1. We would have had it even more easy again had our loan machine been working properly as it was a dx 7 S (I think). This actually would have held 64 patches--on 2 banks of 32 --had the darned thing been working properly; it would have been easy to change banks on and would have negated the need for a stack situation and a second amp channel at rehearsals etc. ---and so it goes again. Of course today's keyboards would be great to use if you can get them to match the types of sounds required. The argument was put to me "wadded want those doggy 80's sounds for anyway?" and I have to admit that some of them on their own sound kind of horrible, BUT, when they are mixed in the ensemble they have the funny knack of "working" to match the action and also, I don't assume that I can change all that design work in the writing of the show that we are all paying such great royalties to have the right to perform. Nor do I believe that I should have the ability to reprogramme these machine just because I want to perform a work. I believe its up to the copywrite owners to make the work performable and update the material or supply or make available appropriate mechanisms for it to be workable. After all, how long are dx 7's and Atari s going to be out there for people to find as specified in the score. And also, if its good enough for Cameron Mackintosh to have a score for a "Big" production include a bassoon, why is that part not supplied with the other orchestral parts---as written in the conductor's score? My bassoonist worked from both the string bass and the trombone scores to help add extra character where my lack of players showed up- I had no string bass or viola so needed all the help I could get from wherever I could get it. I had a bass guitar too cos I read the instrument list incorrectly in the first place and offered my bass guitarist a place in the pit--so she made up a part from the string bass and trombone parts also. The bassoonist also transcribed her proper part from my score by hand , and "supported" for the rest of the time. I'd also love to know why 2 of the songs are printed in the new piano/vocal score on 2 keys when the orchestral parts are only offered in the one key----so why rehearse in the other key when you'll only perform in the same key as the orchestra. (Without the score in front of me I think they were No. 2-for Fantine, and another later on for Marius.)The 2 different keys are a nice choice option if you want to re-write for your orchestra or your people will do solos in a concert, but that's not why you are renting this score and sticking to all the copywrite rules, is it? So, what else happened. Well, after about what seems like a thousand phone calls mostly when our mobile phone plan gave us free calls, I spoke to some others who had performed the work to see how they did it. I was intrigued with one group whose person said they used "a clav, with about half a dozen sounds on it like; a xylophone, a harp style, a windy , reedy organ type sound, a spikey, brassy sound for the "baddy" bits, an electric piano, on sharp and mellow quality, and strings for full sound." If you are doing auditions you'll need to know that all of the students need to be able to be comfortable up around top F, and even further if possible. that's OK if they are all from the Con. but ours weren't and that gave us some interesting moments! Also, your Fantine auditions shouldn't be too hard---she's got a g flat below middle C in song number 2 and then at the end about 5 minutes before the end of the show she has a D BELOW middle C. That certainly sorts the wheat from the chaff--then find an actor to sing that well !!! That's about all for this epistle. I hope its not been too long-winded, and I hope everyone's efforts to put this show on stage have been as enjoyable as ours was, and as successful Neil Booth annbooth@serv.net.au Links of Interest: http://www.mixermanic.co.uk/index.html Patch Lists Upper Keyboard 1 Vibes Horn 8vb Bishop's Organ (Marked "Clarinet") Gentle Woodwinds (Marked "Clarinet") Harsh Strings 8vb Gentle Organ/Strings Long Strings Mellow Sustain (Marked "Strings") Hard Piano (Almost "Jangle") Low Resonant Electric Piano 8vb (Marked "Acc Piano") Piano/Xylo (Marked "Piano) Low Resonant Electric Piano Loco (Marked "Acc Piano") "Sparkle" Electric Piano Slow Low Growl (Marked "Strings") Touch Sensitive Strings 8vb Heavy Electric Piano 8vb Recorder Flute Thick Phased Electric Piano 8vb Clavinet/'Hard' Mellow Brass Gentle Electric Piano (Guitar-Like) Guitar Short Attack (+ Sustain Harmonices 8va) Block (Mallet Sound) Mellow Harp (Use 1/5 Mod Wheel) Harp Muted Bells Sharp Brass Electric Piano/Gentle 'edge' Low Quasi Brass 8vb Voice Low Resonant Brass 8vb Lower Keyboard 1 String Sound (1A5) Thunder Low Brass 8vb Slow Strings (2A8) Close-Up Strings Low Slow Strings 8vb "Orchestra" (1A7) Fairly Slow Strings Harsh 'Wah' Strings Harpsichord (Single Manual) Fender Piano (1A11) Sharp Piano Sitar (1B22) Glockenspiel (2A22) Deep Dense Piano 8vb Reedy Sustain (Marked "Strings") Hard Edge guitar Clavinet 8vb Acoustic Guitar/Plectrum 'Clang' Guitar "Leadharp" (Harp/Guitar) Warm piano Finger Style Guitar (Use 1/5 Mod Wheel) Xylo 8va (2A24) Fairly Sharp Brass Tubular Bells (1A26) Low Sustain 8vb (Marked "Strings") Harp (Use 1/6 Mod Wheel) (1B30) Sharper Harp (Use 1/6 Mod Wheel) (1B29) 'Clang' Bass 16vb Thick Brass 8vb (2A12) Organ/Strings 8vb Upper Keyboard 2 Vibes Horn 8vb Bishop's Organ (Marked "Clarinet") Gentle Woodwinds (Marked "Clarinet") Harsh Strings 8vb Gentle Organ/Strings Long Strings Mellow Sustain (Marked "Strings") Harsh Strings Loco Low Resonant Electric Piano 8vb (Marked "Acc Piano") Piano/Xylo (Marked "Piano) Low Resonant Electric Piano Loco (Marked "Acc Piano") Syn-Orchestra (Organ-Like) Slow Low Growl (Marked "Strings") Touch Sensitive Strings 8vb Electric Piano 'Roar' 8vb Recorder Flute Thick Phased Electric Piano 8vb Clavinet/'Hard' Mellow Brass Gentle Electric Piano (Guitar-Like) Ringing Guitar Block (Mallet Sound) Mellow Harp (Use 1/5 Mod Wheel) High Bells 8va Lower Bells Sharp Brass "Pluk" (Hit Hard & Release) Low Quasi Brass 8vb Voice Low Resonant Brass 8vb Lower Keyboard 2 String Sound (1A5) Breathy Brass 8vb (1A3) Low Brass 8vb Slow Strings (2A8) Close-Up Strings Low Slow Strings 8vb "Orchestra" (1A7) Fairly Slow Strings Harsh 'Wah' Strings Harpsichord (Single Manual) Fender Piano (1A11) Sharp Piano Sitar (1B22) Glockenspiel (2A22) Deep Dense Piano 8vb Reedy Sustain (Marked "Strings") Hard Edge guitar Clavinet 8vb Acoustic Guitar/Plectrum 'Clang' Guitar Medium Attack Strings Warm piano Finger Style Guitar (Use 1/5 Mod Wheel) Xylo 8va (2A24) Fairly Sharp Brass Tubular Bells (1A26) Low Sustain 8vb (Marked "Strings") Harp (Use 1/6 Mod Wheel) (1B30) Sharper Harp (Use 1/6 Mod Wheel) (1B29) 'Clang' Bass 16vb Thick Brass 8vb (2A12) DX-Intro (Long Growing Evil 'Growl')