This is how the rusty old fella is looking:

(Click on the images for higher resolution images)

Biff has finished the melody and punched it into a strip of card ready for playing.

When playing the music box, the sound you achieve is dependant on the surface that you place it on. If you don’t attach it to anything it’s extremely quiet, whereas if you place it on a large table it becomes very loud. The quality of sound also changes depending on the material the object is made from and the space in which you play it. So we’re experimenting with some different objects to see what kinds of sounds we can achieve and what will be suitable for the requirements of the film.

Here are a couple of examples:

Music Box on Blackboard recorded by aaronbradbury and performed by Emphemetry

Music Box on Metal Bucket with Mic Inside recorded by aaronbradbury and performed by Emphemetry

Music Box inside Piano recorded by aaronbradbury and performed by Emphemetry

This is the visual reference sheet of cogs and clockwork parts that I’m working from.

I’ve decided to use an early piano recording Biff did for the project and cut a simple introductory edit for Twinklebox. Biff explains that the piece was recorded at the wrong speed and that it’s in a different key to what he had originally wrote it and how this might complicate writing a complimentary part on the music box. He then discovers that the music box only has white notes, with no flats, and this might prove awkward to write with due to the original piano chords being in B flat. Nevertheless, we both like the original recording of the piano and Biffs decides that with a little musical magicery he can write something to work with it.

Biffs explanation:

For the melody to be in tune with the piano it has to be in B flat, but the music box only plays white notes, so in order to make it possible for the box to play it, I’ve transposed it up to E. Now the only problem is that the music box is pitched at concert A flat.

Anyway, we watched a couple of reference videos and worked out an appropriate tempo the tune must be to achieve a sense that the tune is in fact being played by the music box and not just part of an accompanying track. Due to Twinklebox’s music cylinder being his driving wheel, his speed of motion is directly linked to the tempo of his music. If the tempo is too slow he will literally look motionless, if he moves too fast the melody of his tune would be lost completely. There’s a certain amount of flexibility between these values before the connection between the music box and the music is lost.

I imagine this is what Autumn looks like in the world of Mr Toots.

Another study of a boy. I’m spending a little time letting the river run it’s course and doing some ground work for a future project. I’m not expecting to begin work on it properly for a few years so I’m just planting a few seeds to let it grow subconsciously.

Click to see full size.

This was created using Adobe Photoshop with a few custom brushes. The picture of the boy was from one of my favourite magazines… The absurb and eclectic Permanent Food.

Listening to Nils Frahm. Glass colours and textures.