Roll Over

I Want More Life

mike — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:51:30 +0000

I was fortunate enough to receive another commission last January from The Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus to set a text from Tony Kushner’s Angels In America. The piece is called “I Want More Life”, and Brent just finished mixing a recording of it in our studio.

Dr. Stan Hill, Artistic Director of TCGMC, (also responsible for my last TC-GMC commission, Through A Glass, Darkly) asked me to write “I Want More Life” for the Tony Kushner Celebration at the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis. The commission was made possible by the generosity of Jeffrey Bores and with the permission of Tony Kushner.

I Want More Life
Vocals by Michael Marcotte, Alex Richardson, Drew Santini, and Mike
Music by Mike
Text adapted from “Angels In America: Perestroika”, Scene 5 by Tony Kushner
Produced by Brent
(c) and (p) 2009 FatLab Music
All Rights Reserved, Text used by permission of Tony Kushner

Previously:

Demo Reel of Children’s Theme Park Show Music

brent — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 15:50:28 +0000

For three summers now, FatLab Music has supplied soundtracks to theme parks for IAAPA Award-Winning medley shows, fireworks spectacles, and lately, more and more kids’ shows. We provide original theme songs, reinterpreted arrangements, karaoke-style transcriptions, audio editing, pre-tracked vocals, and so on.

We are the “music guys” for two great companies: RWS & Associates Entertainment, Inc., whose live entertainment character properties include the CBS Television lineup and HIT Entertainment’s portfolio (“Thomas and Friends”, “Barney”, “Bob The Builder”), and Manhattan Creative Group.

Our shows are wrapping up their summer season, so we thought it was a good time to share a demo reel of some of our Children’s Show work to-date.

[0:00] “Beyond The Castle Walls” – Original music and lyric
From Beyond The Castle Walls (RWS)

[0:39] “Garfield The Great” – Original music and lyric
From Garfield The Great & Friends (RWS)

[1:04] “Believe” – Arrangement
From The Spirit of Christmas (RWS)

[1:18] “Kidapalooza” – Original music
Lyric by Stephen Tomac
From Kidapalooza (RWS)

[1:35] “Rockin’ on Route 66″ – Original music and lyric
From Rockin’ on Route 66 (RWS)

[1:53] “Who Left My Bologna In The Sun?” – Arrangement
From The Hopsicals (MCG)

Transitions

brent — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 18:07:38 +0000

Here is track 3 from Through A Glass, Darkly, “Transitions”. Billy is lost to his first high.

(We just got back from the GALA Choruses Festival 2008 in Miami. At least two major choruses will be performing “Darkly” in the coming year. More as this develops.)

See the Official Site for complete information on Through A Glass, Darkly.

Transitions
Music and Lyrics by Mike
Ensemble Vocals by Michael Kadin Craig, Matt Hinkley, and Steve Morgan
(c) and (p) 2007 FatLab Music (ASCAP)
All Rights Reserved

from Through A Glass, Darkly – commissioned by Dr. Stan Hill and the Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus

Previously:

Stay A While

brent — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 15:22:06 +0000

Here is teaser track 2 from Through A Glass, Darkly, “Stay A While”. Sebastian and Billy hook up in a hotel room somewhere.

(It’s 6 1/2 weeks until the Minneapolis concert.)

Stay A While
Music and Lyrics by Mike
Lead Vocals by Sebastian Arcelus and Michael Kadin Craig
Ensemble Vocals by Sebastian Arcelus, Michael Kadin Craig, Matt Hinkley, and Steve Morgan
Guitar by Jeff Widenhofer
(c) and (p) 2007 FatLab Music (ASCAP)
All Rights Reserved

from Through A Glass, Darkly – commissioned by Dr. Stan Hill and the Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus

Previously:

Opener

brent — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 15:53:00 +0000

We just received confirmation that Twin Cities Public Television will be broadcasting the World Premiere concert performance of Mike’s new oratorio Through A Glass, Darkly, a work commissioned by the Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus that looks at the rippling effects crystal meth addiction has on the community.

I also promised we would post a couple of teaser tracks from our demo. We can’t give the whole thing away (there’s a DVD in the works, too), but here is track 1, “Opener”. Expect a couple more in the upcoming days.

The concert performances are in Minneapolis on March 29 and 30 in Minneapolis (more info, tickets) and as an encore, the Chorus is performing Darkly for their slot in the GALA Choruses Festival in Miami this July.

Opener
Music and Lyrics by Mike
Lead Vocals by Sebastian Arcelus, Michael Kadin Craig, and Steve Morgan
Ensemble Vocals by David Giuliano, Matt Hinkley, Michael Marcotte, Alex Richardson, James Sasser, and Joe Spieldenner
Guitar by Jeff Widenhofer
(c) and (p) 2007 FatLab Music (ASCAP)
All Rights Reserved

from Through A Glass, Darkly – commissioned by Dr. Stan Hill and the Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus

Previously:

“Through A Glass, Darkly” to premiere in Minneapolis

Charlie, after a week of Frankie

brent — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 03:43:50 +0000

Today is Frankie’s first birthday (not that we have cake or anything).

This video was taken last March, a week after bringing two-month-old Frankie into the house and clearly shows Charlie’s apprehension. Later, that orange squishy toy would become the “toy of truce”, forging a brief but playful friendship between Frankie and Charlie.

Charlie, 1997-2008

brent — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 04:42:41 +0000

We sadly had to say goodbye to one of our labs this week. Charlie died Thursday night after a sudden onset of restlessness and frequent small seizures, likely caused by a brain tumor. She was 10 years 9 months.

As we sifted through the hundreds of pictures we have of her, we found a few short video clips taken on our digital camera. We’ll be sharing a few of them here on the blog as a tribute to her healthier days. Mike and I — and Roscoe and Frankie — miss her very much.

Morning Rush Hour – The Platform, 8am

brent — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 15:13:54 +0000

This is track 15 of 15 from Platforms.

The platform slowly comes back to life for morning rush hour, as those just coming home and others just getting up intermingle. A tentative Nancy and Doug, aware of how a night of “freedom” felt, find each other.

Morning Rush Hour – The Platform, 8am
Music by Brent
(c) and (p) 2007 FatLab Music (ASCAP)
All Rights Reserved
Segment choreographed by Ron De Jesus, Linda Goodrich, Nick Kenkel, Jeff Shade, and Matt Williams

from Platforms – originally produced at NYMF ’07
Written by Delaney Britt Brewer
Directed by Holly-Anne Ruggiero
Choreographed by Ron De Jesus, Linda Goodrich, Nick Kenkel, Jeff Shade, and Matt Williams

3am – Inside the club

brent — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 14:58:33 +0000

This is track 14 of 15 from Platforms.

Things heat up as the night drags on. Heidi and John bump in to each other and their secret double-lives are revealed. Nancy and Doug might have seen each other, but they allow their charade to continue.

3am – Inside the club
Music by Brent
(c) and (p) 2007 FatLab Music (ASCAP)
All Rights Reserved
Segment choreographed by Nick Kenkel

Tango – Inside the nightclub

brent — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 14:48:29 +0000

This is track 13 of 15 from Platforms.

Doug and Heidi lock eyes across the club, having noticed each other in very different circumstances on the Platform earlier in the night. They, along with other clubgoers — eventually joined by John and Eva — explore uncharted territories with their partners.

The Club

brent — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 14:25:31 +0000

This is track 12 of 15 from Platforms.

All types descend on the nightclub, including Doug and Nancy — each having found their way to the club from Sammy’s flyers.

John and Eva – Outside the nightclub

brent — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 14:01:09 +0000

This is track 11 of 15 from Platforms.

John, a visible public figure, finds some solitude with his flask in a dark corner outside the club, when Eva — who is definitely more than she seems — interrupts.

Heidi – A Times Square nightclub

brent — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 13:55:01 +0000

This is track 10 of 15 from Platforms.

Heidi walks in the back door of a Times Square nightclub and somewhat reluctantly transforms out of her business attire into her other work persona.

A Club Owner

brent — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 13:52:22 +0000

This is track 9 of 15 from Platforms.

A club owner (VO by Eric Rubbe) as Heidi arrives for her night job.

Near Misses – The Platform, 10pm

brent — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 13:46:55 +0000

This is track 8 of 15 from Platforms.

After being split up and venturing out into the city separately, Doug and Nancy each find themselves back on the platform. But rowdy late night passengers and the intrigue of Sammy’s fliers advertising a nightclub party distracts them from seeing each other.