Recording at Abbey Road Studios with the RPO

By: Chris Egan

Date:: 07 Dec 2011

What does a Composer do in the lead up to a huge recording with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Abbey Road Studio 1? Drinking lots of Red Bull, staying up all night and finessing hundreds of pages of score…Audio Network chats to Chris Egan.

What does recording at Abbey Road Studio 1 mean to you?

It’s the best sounding orchestral room in the world. It’s as simple as that. There aren’t many studios in the world that can hold a full Symphony Orchestra and a full Symphonic Chorus simultaneously. The room was purpose-built for this type of production, it makes the orchestra sound massive and it really comes alive.

It sounds like nowhere else in the universe, it sounds beautiful.

Have you always recorded there?

For years I have been recording here out of choice. It is the finest recording studio in the world. We are recording Hollywood Blockbuster Music in the same studio where John Williams recorded the music for Star Wars, Indiana Jones and Harry Potter, alongside thousands of other iconic Composers and Movie Scores. That awesome sound is embedded within the room.Also, Abbey Road has a wonderful atmosphere which makes it an inspiring place to work.

Is it always orchestral music?

In Studio 1 the room is designed to make an orchestra sound big. Everything you see on the wall, every angle is designed to make that sound. If you walk into Studio 1 and clap your hands, you get the most beautiful natural reverb. The room brings sounds to life like no other.

How long is the process between beginning to write and getting here?

I’m a composer that works well with tight deadlines. That’s the way I’ve been bought up. I’ve been in a situation many times when I’ve got the call – we need to do something in 2 days time with an orchestra. So, you just stay up all night and do it.

I started writing this score about 1 month ago. But I’m always jotting ideas down. There is one little melody that I wrote about a year ago in my sketch book which is the basis for one of the pieces on this session. When I write I’m surrounded by technology, but I always find the best results come from sitting behind the piano with pencil and paper.

Tell us something about Abbey Road Studios that we don’t know?

All the microphones the Beatles used are still there. We will be using some of them on Friday. I have a favourite pair of ribbon microphones built in 1932 by EMI – 80 years ago; they are meticulously maintained by the Abbey Road staff, and they sound glorious.

I am also lucky enough to be based at Abbey Road. I have a fantastic space here; my writing room has a beautiful roof terrace. It’s a really inspiring place to come to work.

What sort of things go on behind the scenes that we wouldn’t even think about?

Printing alone for this whole project will be around 5000 sheets of music that need to be taped up and copied. It’s an incredibly important job. There cannot be one note wrong amongst all of that; there are no mistakes, there is no margin for error.

It’s also impossible to work on a project of this scale alone and I couldn’t do that without the great team I work with.

How do you feel the week before a big recording session at Abbey Road Studios?

The same way I have for the last 10 years. I love doing it. It doesn’t make me nervous. As a Composer, if I don’t walk into the room with faith in my music, then nobody else will have faith in it either. I always do my best work when I’m under pressure. I won’t go to bed at all on Wednesday or Thursday night; I’ll be going through scores.

For me, the best buzz you can possibly get in this industry is when you stand in front of a ninety piece Orchestra and they play your music for the first time; there isn’t a better feeling. If they could bottle that, it would sell for millions. I wish everyone in the world could experience it.