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Escape From Andraxus involves an unusual approach for the Melbourne Planetarium. The central character ROJIL is never seen. Instead, the visitor to this show sits in the auditorium and experiences what he experiences as he navigates space in his ship. The script required a semi-serious dramatic tone to convey the tension and excitement as ROJIL encounters supernovas, red drawves, blue dwarves & black holes.
To reflect ROJIL's state-of mind throughout his journey, 2 musical themes are developed which recur and enforce his emotional state as he leaves his home to find a new one.
The first theme (Andraxus) evokes his loss, mourning and regret. Grand piano tinkles state a simple mannered motif. Angular digital corruption occasionally intercedes to remind one of ROJIL's compassionate yet non-human status. On top, a counter-cycle of rising dissonant surges breathe. A down-tempo fractured beat remains unmoved by the harmonic momentum; a soft but brittle analogue synth drone swirls across the chords. In a second movement of this theme, choral samples impregnate this base arrangement with mock heroics, building up only to dissolve into a babbling of synthetic vocoder harmonies.
The second theme (Solar System) expresses the immensity of the universe before ROJIL as he ventures into the unknown. Referencing distant twinkling star constellations, it is based around a cycle of pointilist chords played on Rhodes. Electric dubby bass percolates a recurring refrain while eclectic percussive detailing creates complex restless rhythms. Grand drama (in the form of somewhat gaudy orchestral flourishes) erupts to represent ROJIL's earth-shattering experiences. The Black Hole sequence goes for the drum&bass jugular with lots of sub-woofer booms.
The music to Escape From Andraxus can be heard on the Sound Punch release THE PLANETS.
The sound design for Escape From Andraxus works to create the scale of the ship interior and the spatial realm of the universe navigated by the ship. Attention is paid to how sounds can evelop the audience, and shift their sense of perspective and direction.
The first phase of sound design involved breaking down the script into appropriate 'locations' (or spaces). Dramatic weighting and tone was then ascribed to these 41 locations. The final list is:
Space - star field still / star field moving / galaxy field moving
Our galaxy - afar / spiral arm / afar
Our solar system - near
Star nurseries
Protostars
Orion
Nebula
Orion
Rigel - afar / close
Betelgeuse - afar / close
Sirius
Alpha
Centauri
Proxima
Centauri
Sun - afar / orbit / close / surface
Earth - surface / night sky
Planetarium - ariel
Rojil - transmission / data display
Andraxus Prime - surface / space
Garillon - afar / close
Rojil's sun - afar / close / gaseous layers / core / red giant / white dwarf / black dwarf
Supernova
Black hole
Various nebulaA shema of sound soucres was devised, then recorded by myself and Jennifer Sochackyj. Half were location sounds; half were specially prepared elements 'performed' in a studio. The list of sounds used in the final design is:
Metal blade on stone
Small cup on stone
Single ball bearing in metal tin / on car hood / on curved metal sheet
Generator fan
Electric hammer drill in concrete
Plane saw on wood
Plane saw on metal
Electric drill in wood
Freight lift truck
Concrete mixer
Exhaust fan from engine
Internal car
Underground trains
Escalators
Fork lift trucks
Compressor hose
Compressor pump
Hammer in metal container
Metal grinder
Chiselling stone
Metal press cutter
Arc welder
Metal pipe drop
Hammer on metal sheet
Inside metal container
Electrical lathe
Engine
Electric drill
Pneumatic pump
Container contacts
Grinder
Caserole dish on wooden floor
Glass jar on wooden floor / on wooden table
Deep vase on wooden floor / on wooden table
Ceramic bowl on wooden floor / on wooden table
Caserole dish on wooden table / on wooden table
Glass jar on wooden table
Ceramic bowl on wooden table
Chickpeas in ceramic bowl / on wooden floor
Crunching brown paper
Crunching waxed paper
Tearing brown paper
Tearing heavy cardboard
Ball bearings rolling on wooden table
Scraping synthetic material with card
Phone book bangs in stairwell
Door slam in stairwell
Door frame on concrete
Metal bars on metal pile
Plastic frame on concrete
Scraping silkscreen with card
Complete contents of this page © Philip Brophy