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Post by Carlo on Oct 18, 2012 23:06:12 GMT -5
So I know this isn't really directly related to Owen Pallett, but I was just thinking the other day, how the hell do the light shows work in concerts?
I know a band will always play their songs at a similar tempo to whats expected, but how are those lights dead on with the sound?
Are the lights pre-choreographed and the band somehow plays an exact tempo, or is there something more complicated going on?
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Alyssa!
Go Away
I'm out on the street with an open case and a mandolin and with every coin I am born again
Posts: 437
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Post by Alyssa! on Oct 19, 2012 0:59:27 GMT -5
I've never done concert lighting myself, though I've worked on a large-budget rave or 2 and a bunch of theater, so I have an idea of fundamentals. I wish I could do more concert production. A friend of mine got to do lighting for Herbie Hancock when he came here, but I'm stuck helping out on operas.
As you might expect, a band can vary their tempi so much that preprogramming everything becomes impossible. Most light boards work by moving through cues (cue 1, cue 2, cue 3, etc.); in straight theater, the cue reports which lights should be on, and which should be off, and at what intensity. So if I had 2 red lights and 2 blue lights, I could have a first cue where I had all 4 at full, and then both the blues at half intensity, then 2 reds and a blue at full intensity, etc. etc. The operator only has to press "go" on the board, and we get to the next cue. So THAT much can be preset pretty easily, which lights are on and how bright.
Even in low-budget theater it's possible to add effects to make weird and interesting things happen during cues. It wouldn't be that difficult to have, in addition to the cues, a rhythm control that you could adjust to the music (maybe even with a basic midi bpm detector or something). Things get even weirder when you start using moving lights, which can vary direction, intensity, and color. But the short answer:you can pre-program which lights are live, and which patterns to use, and then progress to the next at the appropriate time (like when Great Elsewhere moves from 3/4 feel to 4/4 feel); you can use a separate control to determine the speed of what patterns you've planned to use.
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Post by Nicole No. 5 on Oct 19, 2012 1:38:01 GMT -5
I know a lot of bands lately are making basic MIDI patches with something like Max MSP to actually control the lights directly with their instruments- usually percussive ones. That way, a certain drum pad (or likewise) can be run through the MIDI circuit to trigger a particular light or lighting sequence when the pad is hit. Here's a good example of how Purity Ring does it  www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0d4KSnaez4 |
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Post by Carlo on Oct 19, 2012 12:49:20 GMT -5
Oh awesome! Thanks for clearing that up guys...... At shows I was always wondering what sorcery was going on with the lighting crew.....
The cue thing and MIDI patches make a lot more sense; however, I still refuse to accept that Purity Ring's lighting is not magic.
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Brian
Tasty
Don't Panic
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Post by Brian on Oct 23, 2012 18:23:00 GMT -5
This doesn't really have to do with light shows moreover it has to do with colourshows. Huh-huh. Anyway, does anyone know which songs on Taylor Swift's new album, Red, has orchestration done by Owen? I hear he did a few songs on it but im not sure
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Post by exitsign on Oct 23, 2012 20:37:00 GMT -5
I don't know, but I estimate that he did the strings on The Last Time. Okay, now what's the right answer?
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Post by Alpentine on Oct 24, 2012 0:22:44 GMT -5
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Post by Carlo on Oct 24, 2012 21:39:44 GMT -5
I don't know, but I estimate that he did the strings on The Last Time. Okay, now what's the right answer? OMG NO WAY???!!!! Thats awesome! Life just keeps on getting better |
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Post by Jo on Oct 26, 2012 18:21:13 GMT -5
Not directly T-swizzle related (she's great, not trying to steer the topic away/backwards) but I love Metronomy's lights! Always thought that would be a good Hallowe'en costume... 'tis the season!
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