As the level of Canadian production increases in volume and sophistication, the Canadian production and post scene has, like an attractive and sonorous onion, created layers of talent to support every audio and visual requirement.

Rising behind the established stars of the audio production, audio post and post-production sectors, is a field of up-and-coming-talents, the next generation who bring a wealth of experience and enthusiasm to commercial, feature and tv projects.

Many of the rising stars in sound and video editing emerged together with digital technology; with early schooling in traditional film methods, they were present at the rise of nonlinear editing and grew along with digital developments. They bring a variety of artistic experiences and technical acumen to their projects and are now hitting their stride, tackling some high-profile Canadian and u.s.-based projects.

In this report, a sample of some of the ascendant names on the audio and visual firmament discuss some of their recent projects, where they come from, and where they and the industry are going.

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Tantrum Music, formed three years ago by Toronto composers Doug Pennock and Chris Tait, produces music for commercials and television projects, utilizing the varied and extensive musical backgrounds and sensibilities of the two composers.

Tait and Pennock met several years ago and meshed musically and personally before Pennock conceived of the notion of forming a commercial audio production facility.

‘I thought it would be great to make a living in music and not travel; to work in studios on all kinds of different styles of music sound tracks and effects,’ says Pennock, who brought the idea to pal Tait, who had been working on Pennock’s reel. ‘It all started very innocently,’ says Tait.

Pennock, a graduate (Dean’s list in composition) of the Berklee College of Music, has played jazz guitar with the likes of Chick Corea and Joan Armatrading. Tait, former lead singer with Chalk Circle, which received a gold record for its Mending Wall effort, has opened for bands from Rush to Crowded House.

During one of what Pennock calls their infamous sales meetings, a client suggested the two avail themselves of a marketing person, specifically Elizabeth Taylor, who had experience building the early businesses of music houses like Sherman Armes Crawford and Pirate Radio.

Taylor says Tantrum is beginning to gain more recognition and bigger jobs, with their first major campaign coming from Young and Rubicam for a Doritos spot.

In the creative process, Tait says the level of input from clients varies, with some agencies identifying a specific sensibility or type of music while others come looking for an angle, providing visuals and requesting sonic input.

Taylor says much of the audio work today is post scored and pictures are the primary driver of the eventual audio course of action. Sadly, she adds, jingles are rare.

‘The trend for quite a while now has been toward soundscape, sound design stuff as opposed to jingles, which are right out of fashion now,’ says Taylor. ‘Which is too bad. Ten years ago you would have singers in the studio all the time. Now we rarely do. We’d love to do jingles; songwriting is a talent these guys have.’

Tait says for a musician, a high point of a commercial audio production gig is the abundance of opportunity to work in a number of different styles and with quality talent from different musical fields.

‘There’s so many things we’re doing musically and in the sound design realm,’ says Tait. ‘Everything from the sound design perspective like capturing really foley-esque realistic sound effects to going completely wacky and creating sounds you haven’t heard before, and in turn, musically, everything from traditional, beautifully scored pieces of music to harder edge guitar stuff.’

Varied approach

That varied approach has led Tantrum to jobs ranging from the minimalistic – as in recording East Coast singer Damhnait Doyle singing a cappella in Toronto’s Trinity Church a la Cowboy Junkies – to the complex Canada Savings Bonds spots which involved jazz and hybrid Cajun/pop music.

‘To write something in a style that perhaps you haven’t played in professionally and then hear guys who live there play it is a real treat,’ says Pennock.

Tantrum’s next challenge is putting together a one-minute opening to play at Famous Players theaters, created for Dolby surround systems. The piece will utilize at least 48 tracks of music and will be orchestral and effects-heavy, says Tait, who says surround work is most effectively written with the idea that it will be a 360-degree, moving experience.

Software solutions

Taylor says while the Tantrum office is full of ‘goo’ (toys, equipment, numerous guitars), in terms of technology, the facility is careful about buying into every new thing that is released. Tait says that Tantrum is concentrating on software-based solutions with an eye to format compatibility. ‘We’ve tried to set it up so we have an expandable versatile core of technology we can build upon, where we can replace software,’ he says.

Taylor says Tantrum is emphasizing the commercial production side of sound, looking toward more business from the u.s. and across Canada, and would ultimately welcome doing long-format tv projects.

Tait says there is a wealth of interesting sound work coming out of agencies, with creatives looking toward a mix of instrumentation and musical influences. ‘It’s a different mix of sounds,’ he says ‘creating a vibe by any means necessary.’