At the time of developing this production, Daniel Winder and I had been working together for around a decade. We had already explored so many components of promenade theatre - particularly in the spatial use of sound. We arrived at Macbeth armed with a wealth of experience and ambition. For me, as a sound artist, I was particularly interested in how the sonic languages might be able to communicate on a subconscious level, an almost subliminal interaction with sound. After all, the original work is intended to be a terrifying journey in to the mind of a murderer. Visually we were inspired by the psychosexual imagery of Hieronymus Bosch, which had a huge influence on my approach to the sound design and composition.  

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MUSIC & ACOUSTIC SOUND DESIGN: 

Although there is only one scene in which music is used 'conventionally', the entire production is weaved with sonic elements derived from a music composition. The parameters all the sonic elements were very much established through music composition techniques - placing music parameters within the entire design enabled me to further connect with sentiment and emotion. The tools used to sonically build the experience went beyond loud speakers, the performers themselves were used as sound making entities.  From the outset, I had a very clear idea of how we might be able to use the body as a sonic tool - particularly for the witches. Working closely with the Daniel Winder and the Cast, we were able to explore and develop ways in which movement could share a sonic language. The result was a real-time synchronisation, present in the text, the movement and in the space itself.   

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SOUND DESIGN: 

The use of the reproduced sound in this production of Macbeth was characterised into Diegetic and Non-Diegetic - it's function is to further highlight the complex dimensions of scenes and characters. The diegetic use of sound was often subtle with slowly evolving soundscapes and themes - placing emphasis on the more subtle narrative details, for example, scene location and physical accents. The use of non -diegetic sound, on the other hand, predominantly functioned as a window into Macbeth's perception of the world around him - at times, confirming his fears and rationalising his actions.  Beyond this it played a vital role in determining the presence of key characters significant to Macbeth - non more than the witches themselves. 

 

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS:

Remotely controllable synchronised 8.4 Multi-Channel Surround Sound System - dispersed through out the gardens of St Pauls' Church. 

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