Alan Silvestri - The Mummy Returns
Alan Silvestri was the first composer to use the new facility, with his
score for The Mummy Returns being engineered by Dennis Sands - Alan and Dennis
had previously worked together at CTS Wembley on various films, including
Judge Dread and Who Framed Roger Rabbit.
Alan commented on the results of the new project: "The sound is simply
spectacular - it's been just great working here, and I'm completely thrilled
by the results! The musicians can hear themselves very clearly and have loved
playing here - and if they can hear each other clearly, that makes them comfortable
as performers and they'll play at their best. The film is filled with big
images, which is why we went for such a large orchestra, 112 in the orchestra
plus a 30-voices choir, and we still had space to spare - the room produces
an enormous sound. I can't really say enough about it and I'd be pleased
to come back."
Engineer Dennis Sands, who has a large number of film scores and soundtrack
albums to his credit, also commented on the new CTS:
"It has worked very well here - the hall, the sound, the facilities
and the support from the CTS crew have all been great - from Pat Dodd (CTS
Bookings Manager) to Toby Wood (CTS Engineer). Toby communicated with us
over the pre-session documentation, and translated this into the set up.
Our requirements were far from straightforward, but everything was ready
and waiting for us, and was handled beautifully.
The quality of the CTS crew was tremendously significant to the project -
to my mind, the quality of the people is in many ways more important than
the kit - I couldn't compliment them enough. We recorded the orchestra -
the Sinfonia of London - onto 48-track analogue, with some electronic cues
on 48-track digital. We also recorded 5.1 monitor mixes onto digital and
sent these back daily to LA for screening. It's been a fast, efficient project,
and the sound is as good if not better than anywhere. The film's director
and producer are also thrilled beyond belief with the results!"