I noted in my previous post LUFS for Dr. Jane our concern in putting forward the best form of audio masters to mitigate any changes to the audio downstream. Meaning: presenting the audio in such an acceptable form that there would be no need for additional processing by any distribution platforms. Also, presenting dynamic audio in such a frame that listeners would not be constantly adjusting volume.
The magic of this audiobook production in part has allot to do with Ruth Mendelson’s attention to detail in researching, capturing and arranging the gigabytes of supportive audio soundscapes. These arrangements include many actual sounds from African locations and elsewhere provided by Dr. Jane’s long-time cinematographer Bill Wallauer, along with the purposeful placement of visceral effects in support of Dr. Jane’s evocative narrative and distinctive voice.
My goal as mixer was to stay true to the art; envelop the listener in an immersive experience in support of Dr. Jane’s words yet again, mindful of the potential downstream listening environments.
We took great care to capture and preserve what she read and how she read it on that spring day in a hotel room turned makeshift recording environment. **Check out Recording an Icon.
The realities of technology these days create a conundrum for the audio producer. Any listener can simply turn things up! In that, simply turning things up lies the problem … by turning things up using the volume knob on the car system, iPad or phone amplifier or by using limiting maximization and/or normalization processing, you can change the audio balance that was so artfully crafted.
It’s a tricky proposition keeping all within a consistent listening frame and still provide the dynamics to deliver the necessary visceral affect in support of context.
Our approach to mix was to treat it like a film score soundtrack. Convey cinematic dynamism yet, without having limiting processing adversely affecting the overall soundscapes. It was challenging to not allow serial loud inter-chapter segments push the overall loudness detection into the red beyond our integrated loudness / peak targets. Also, due to the wide range of sound effects and sound sources, everything could not simply be treated with the same processing.
I relied heavily on iZotope’s Insight 2 and RX for metering and audio waveform statistics as well as Presonus Studio One’s Level Meter. Certainly, the latest crop of audio tools delivers a level of accuracy and assurance that our eyes and ears simply can’t match.
The bombastic elements needed special attention in consideration of driving perceived LUFS loudness values. At times properly presenting the unpleasantness of context was challenging. Dr. Jane was adamant and quite clear she wanted to convey the intensity of the visceral sounds especially, when the subject matter was the abuse of animals and mother earth.
Likewise, Ruth was adamant about putting forward the subtleties of Dr. Jane’s distinct un-doctored voice, as if she was sitting next to you at a fireside chat. The wisdom of her years imbued in every syllable and consonant of her iconic aging voice. I am pleased to say that after hours of experimentation, we achieved this throughout the body of this work. ** After experimenting with many compressor and limiter processors to see how Jane’s voice was affected, we went with iZotope’s Vintage Comp Limiter on all Jane’s monologue tracks. It simply interacted the best with Dr. Jane’s very dynamic delivery.
Delivery
After much consideration of the body of information on acceptable industry streaming content practices (sources AES, EBU R-128, ITU-1770, NPR, PRX and BBC), and anticipating noisy listening environments, we delivered in the middle range for spoken content, with an eye on audibility across delivery mediums
as an element of artistic control. Coming in at Integrated Loudness values between -18.1 and -19.4 LUFS with a Loudness Range “LU” of 6 – 7.2 for all chapters.
In the end it’s Kopf Kino (mind cinema) by design. A unique experience and privilege to make history and a contribution to the enduring legacy of one Earths’ most beloved and renown conservators.
Thanks for reading.