...which is a shame and a crime, because I'm a pro-union guy too...but they do many things that are absurd and send work to Eastern Europe.I'm in Local 47 and have played on and even contracted a few sessions. I'm a pro-union guy ordinarily, but there's no way I could do this gig union.
Yeah, they do quite a bit there, to the chagrin of the AFM. But they definitely have the resume and the equipment needed and do a lot.I've heard good things about working this sort of thing in Seattle. It's not, however, a European vacation...
I'm doing a film where I got lucky enough to have a budget for live orchestra. Doing this in Los Angeles (where I am based) would be nice, but I'd like to stretch my dollars a little further by going to Europe. (Plus get a little vacation in the deal.)
I assume London will be as pricey as Los Angeles, but I know that people will often record in Prague, Budapest, even Moscow. The Strezov Afflatus strings sound pretty cool, too, so I'm guessing they were recorded in Sofia? Now that I think about it, I love the sound of Alex's Cinematic Strings, too, so I wonder if Australia would be reasonably priced?
There are two main factors (aside from price! ) that I'm most concerned about. First is the sound. I'm looking for warm and "pretty," especially in the strings. I assume all orchestras can go from epic to pretty, so maybe that's a non-issue, but are there particular orchestras that are known for being more or less so?
The second factor is tuning. Years ago, I did a session on the cheap by hiring college students. They were supposedly "the best" players, but the tuning was a nightmare. I've been scared of hiring a live orchestra ever since.
Any thoughts or advice?
Yeah, they do quite a bit there, to the chagrin of the AFM. But they definitely have the resume and the equipment needed and do a lot.
I would normally recommend my area (Cleveland/NE Ohio). We have some of the best players on the planet, the Cleveland Orch, CIM, Oberlin etc. But I don't know if we have a space suitable for recording. It's ironic because we have so many groups and such in the area that are all great, but nobody records here. I guess they think the Cuyahoga River is going to catch on fire again.
Thanks for the recommendation. From a few quick Google searches, Vlad sounds like a very cool and knowledgeable guy, and from the YouTube videos, they get a beautiful sound.Last week I recorded in Moscow with The Bow Tie Orchestra.
Vlad Podgoretsky, the head of the operations oever there has studied film scoring in L.A. and has worked for some time for HGW. He definitely knows what he's doing and musically he's solid.
It's my second project recorded there and I am happy with the result. It's the most economical (for the quality you get) of them all.
Oh believe me, I am never, ever, ever, ever, ever doing that again!P.S. I'd skip the idea of hiring college students.
It's in Chillicothe, which is way down on the KY border.This is surprising and ironic since the recording workshop is there with many engineers.
Yes. They have an "educational" rate here. Still higher than what the OP is looking for, I think it's 45 an hour.FYI: The union does have low-budget, indie/festival, and demo rates.
You'll get better players
It really depends on the local. In my area, almost all union gigs pay LOWER than non-union. I've been in the AFM for 35 years, so I'm not just pullin' this outta thin air. I've been in 10 locals. Some experiences have been good. Many have been bad. Too many. Way too many.The best players want to be treated fairly and paid appropriately.
I'd like to stretch my dollars a little further by going to Europe. (Plus get a little vacation in the deal.)
Apparently the conductor didn't know much about "recording rules". He never knew that 6 hours of recording is actually 4 hours of recording. That's right, there's 1 hour break for a 3 hour session.
It's the symphony rule for the AFM.A one hour break for every 3 hour session! Safe to say, those are not the rules in LA