Howard McGillin- Page 2

[Stagerage2003]

Posted: 6/13/06 at 5:20pm

I wonder if He'll get fined for it.

[ThankstoPhantom]

Posted: 6/13/06 at 6:36pm

Why would he be fined for it?

He covered him self well though. If you'd never heard it before, I don't think you would have noticed it.

Posted: 6/13/06 at 7:35pm

Is it just me or did Howard's voice not seem as strong at the Tony's? (I've seen him perform in Phantom about 3 or 4 times and he's amazing). Maybe it was the entire orchestra/timing thing, but his voice seemed a little muffled. (again---maybe it was my TV?)

[morosco]

Posted: 6/13/06 at 8:08pm

I guess it's a good example of why using a recorded orchestra is not a good idea.

Is this the first year the Tonys have used all pre-recorded music? Shame on them.

And shame on them for not holding the awards ceremony in a REAL Broadway theatre.

[SweeneyPhanatic]

Posted: 6/13/06 at 8:18pm

"All" pre-recorded? Surely some of it was live (especially Sweeney's performance).

[SMiller]

Posted: 6/13/06 at 9:14pm

Well, I think they prefer Radio City Music Hall for 2 reasons.
One, it is the largest theatre so you can fit a lot of patrons.
Two, they don't have to fight with another shows scenery.

SMiller

[secret-soul]

Posted: 6/13/06 at 9:22pm

well...i'm not really a howard fan...but maybe he didn't sound perfect because he performs 8 shows a week and having to sing for that little bit can still be annoying and straining to the voice. it sucks to have to do that stuff.

all the music wasn't pre-recorded. well...at least for pajama game--part of that being because harry was on piano...

[CapnHook]

Posted: 6/13/06 at 11:22pm

ALL the music was pre-recorded, except for Harry on piano and Sweeney's performance.

The orchestra pit is used to seat the executives and sponsors and such.

[Madame X]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 12:55am

If you'd never heard it before, I don't think you would have noticed it.

Surely you're kidding. I don't want to harp on it b/c I really do feel bad for the guy, but that was so obvious, even to the most lay person.

When did we lose the live orch for the Tonys?

[trpguyy]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 10:01am

Man, some people really bother me. First, lets blame it on the musicians, as if the eintre orchestra was all wrong, together. Oh wait, there wasn't a live orchestra? IT MUST HAVE BEEN THE SOUND GUY!

Being both a professional musician and a part-time sound operator, I'm used to people not knowing what they're talking about, but I expected better from the people here. The performers messed up. It's that simple. Everyone knows that they're top-class performers, and it was on honest mistake. This kind of stuff happens, just not usually with millions of people watching.

[Blanche]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 10:19am

Sorry, trpguyy, but this time it WAS the soundguy, or to be more correct, the director who gave the cue for the audio operator to start the music. The music started too early, while Brian Stokes Mitchell was still introducing the piece and during the applause. What Howard did was save it the best he could. There was nothing else he could do. I know this because a dear friend of mine was on stage with Howard when this happened. I hope this puts this argument to rest.

[trpguyy]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 10:31am

Without being able to rewatch the show, I have to respond based on memory. Brian Stokes Mitchell introduced the whole thing over an underscore, which then became McGillin's accompaniment. It worked fine in the rehearsal, but perhaps the introduction took longer, or applause added more time.

The simple fact is, that when dealing with pre-recorded music, the music is ALWAYS RIGHT. These performers know that. If you have to speed up your speech to catch up to the music, then do it. If you have to skip a phrase, then skip it. If you have to turn off the autopilot and actually think about your performance, then do it.

The stage manager for the Tonys only has to think about the Tonys. All of the performers have to think about both their own shows, and the Tonys. The chance of one of New York's best stage managers screwing up a cue is extremely slim.

[Blanche]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 10:45am

Using pre-recorded music at the Tonys just doesn't make sense to me, especially in a case like this. Yes, the intro went on too long and and the applause lasted longer than expected. Was Howard supposed to start to sing while Brian was still introducing him? No. Let's just say it was nobody's fault except whoever decided that canned music was a good idea for something as important as the Tonys. And on a separate note, why, for a television broadcast would the stage manager give an audio cue? I am a television director by trade and since this was a TV broadcast why wouldn't the director give the cue?

[trpguyy]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 10:55am

Tomorrow night, The Light in the Piazza will be broadcast live from Lincoln Center on PBS. The director of the telecast will not be giving any lighting or audio cues. Same thing for the Tonys.

A stage manager is in control of what happens on stage, because there is a large, live audience, and the show is basically a stage show. And I certainly hope for the sake of the CBS director, that he was just following the action as best as he could, without many rehearsed shots, because the direction and camera shots were just awful.
Updated On: 6/14/06 at 10:55 AM

[Blanche]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 11:16am

I can understand the Light in the Piazza, since they would be keeping their same lighting and audio cues as the regular show. But the Tonys is a live television broadcast, a show unto itself and not a presentation of an already run stage show. Why wouldn't Glenn Weiss, the director of the Tonys give the cue? As I said, I direct live television shows as my job and I am asking out of professional curiosity. (Sorry this is drifting off topic some)

Posted: 6/14/06 at 12:05pm

Would the lack of strength in Howard's voice be due to the sound tech? Or was he just having an off-night due to the recording mess-up?

[ckeaton]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 12:34pm

If all of the music is pre-recorded, why did they director/producer keep soliciting applause for the musical director?

Cite your source Hook. I was there too.

[trpguyy]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 12:58pm

My knowledge of live broadcast is limited only to what I've observed, but I do know that the Tonys are different than the run-of-the-mill live telecast. For example, when there's a performance from a specific musical, it is called by that particular show's stage manager. I don't know for fact whether or not the sound is mixed by the show's own engineer, so I won't speculate.

Because the Tony's are actually a televised musical of sorts, with a live audience of 6,000 people, whatever happens on stage (inculding music that is sung to) is cued by a stage manager. Music that is played on TV and not in the theater is cued by the director.

[Blanche]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 2:43pm

Interesting. Thanks for the info.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 3:21pm

At the rehearsal, there was a Phantom underscore which turned into his accompiment. It was Howard's fault. But can you blame him? Again, after doing the role for thousands of performances, he's like a robot.

Being in the front row (and therefore hearing everything exceptionally well) his voice sounded fine. EXCEPT for the very last note. I always remembered it being more light, head voicey, and counter-tenorish. The sound I heard was a little lower. Oh well. Still worked.

[BWIDB Charlie]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 5:08pm

The orchestra was NOT pre-recorded, inteasd, they were located on the 7th floor of Radio City Music Hall.

- Charlie
[e-mail]

[Bialyhoos22]

Posted: 6/14/06 at 5:15pm

CapnHook, you are ill-informed on a couple of points:

Firstly, the Tony Awards uses a LIVE full orchestra during the telecast and has now for many years (certainly the post-Cohen years). Howard's number was the exception to the rule in that it utilized a pre-recorded track. The orchestra is usually located on the 7th or 8th floor of the Music Hall, out of sight. Though not ideal, it's far better than the canned stuff the Phantom production had to work with. It begs the question why they just didn't get the real orchestra to accompany Howard..it would've solved this problem from the getgo.

Secondly, the note at the end of Music of the Night is a D above middle C. A higher note (for a baritone), but certainly not anywhere near to being a counter-tenorish one. As Howard naturally has a richer, deeper timbre to his sound (as he's a high/lyric baritone) his D is bound to sound a little darker than Hugh Panaro's or even Michael Crawford's D -- even in falsetto/head voice. Howard delivers it exactly as written in the score, and quite beautifully I might add! :)
Updated On: 6/14/06 at 05:15 PM