From the Sound Designer: DESIRE and the Blues

While the Ozarks in 1926 weren't a core location for the development of the blues, this musical style encompasses many of the strongest elements of the play: violence, despair, passion, sex, longing, and the knowledge that, no matter how fast you run, the devil will catch up with you. Masters such as Son House, Robert Johnson, John Lee Hooker, and Lightnin' Hopkins poured their lives and hearts into their music, and the countless covers of their songs are a tribute to how the central themes of their work resonate today.

The sound design for Desire takes certain liberties in its choices; the timeline of artists spans the 1920's-1950's. In addition, blues musicians from different locations are featured; Delta, Texas, and South Chicago blues are all influences. However, all the pieces are acoustic, solo slide guitar and have been chosen for their sound and emotional drive. In addition, live blues will also be performed in the show; mood in the small theatre shifts dramatically with a musician on stage.

Included are videos of some blues masters who have been an
inspiration to the research. Though certain covers of their songs
by more current artists will be used in the production (for
improved sound quality), much of the spirit of Desire Under
the Elms can be felt in these driving rhythms, lyrics and chords.

--Michelle Caron

Son House - Death Letter

R.L. Burnside - Just Like A Woman


Lightnin Hopkins - Baby Please Don't Go

Blues Dancin'

"It's not a museum piece, we want people to get caught up in watching it."
- Randy Reinholz

As we brought up the issue of period dancing, Randy and Bernie spoke a lot about mood. Though it's not drastically important that we master blues dancing in the party scene, I've found some videos that might help ease that transition.

Treat this first video as a breif tutorial in blues dancing. You'll find the most helpful moves, to comply with the sexiness of the scene in the play, are the fish tales and after.

Blues Dancing 101


and about a minute and a half into this next one, they start to dance... a great example of just feeling the music...
Bukka White

A Visit from Bernie Pearl

Today, we had a visit from old school blues expert Bernie Pearl! He met our cast and shared his knowledge of the delta blues. He and Phil Kruse, one of our cast members, had an awesome jam session. It was exciting to watch the cast close their eyes and get lost in the rhythm and blues. I'll update later with a clip from today's rehearsal and some of Bernie's recommendations.

Until then you can check out Bernie's website: www.berniepearl.com
I have his CD and it sounds awesome. Here's a brief portion of our jam session...





Several other period artists to check out are Muddy Waters, Lightin' Hopkins, Mance Lipscomb - and check out this website to hear a variety of blues tracks:
http://www.yearoftheblues.org/radio/index.asp

As we discussed the style of dancing and mood music, Bernie suggested we listen to...
Ray Charles's "What I'd Say"

Only Ozarks: Society, part II

I found a really great mini documentary on the Ozarks in the early 1900s. It is split up into two 9 minute videos, so if you have some time check it out.

The host interviews several Old Linn Creek residents and shares an assortment of fantastic images and footage. The video montage provides a great visual idea of town size, buildings, population, town activities, clothing, climate, social and town struggles. Although the dialogue can be a bit repetitive, it's hard to deny such a sweet, delightful narrator.

Ozark, part 1


Ozark, part 2

The Alaska Klondike Gold Rush

"There are strange things done in the midnight sun
By the men who moil for gold."
- Robert W. Service
1907 Yukon, Canada

As Eugene O'Neill originally set the play in the 1850s, several of the characters struggle with their desire for gold in California. However, since we've adapted the play, our challenge was to discover an appropriate parallel to the gold rush. The Klondike Gold Rush conveniently falls into our setting, first starting in the late 1800s stretching all the way to the start our play.


Facts about the Klondike Gold Rush

• 1893-1896 worst U.S. financial crisis to date
• 25% of United States work force was unemployed, the silver value fell, and people scrambled to exchange whatever money they had for gold
• 1896 started Klondike gold rush with a few lucky men in Dawson
• The U.S. found out a year later due to harsh Yukon weather
• People quit their jobs and mortgaged their homes, packed up their lives and headed for Canada and Alaska
• Thousands traveled by railway
• Trail was perilous claiming thousands of lives
• 500 miles of treacherous river conditions to get to Dawson
• Once they arrived, prospectors found out that almost all fortunes had been claimed, most long before news even first reached America
• Less than 25% of hopefuls even survived trip to Klondike

Above: Original Footage of the Alaskan Gold Rush (c.1901)
Below: A Brief Documentary on the Klondike Gold Rush


A full timeline and more information on the Alaskan Gold Rush can be found at http://www.library.state.ak.us/goldrush/.

Music to your ears

“When Robert Johnson got through playing, all our mouths was open. He sold his soul to the devil to get to play like that.” - Son House

With a new setting comes new music. The delta blues most accurately sets the mood for our new adaptation of Desire Under the Elms.

Robert Johnson was known as the King of the delta blues, much admired by fellow artists like Son House. Delta blues was the earliest type of blues music, first recorded in 1920s usually with just one man on the guitar. SDSU's production of Desire largely emphasizes the music of one man on the guitar, a character known as the blues man.

Long before blues music went commercial, it was underground music, unknown by most of white America. First it dealt unflinchingly with the experiences and feelings of most black Americans. Though conditions were harsh and brutal, the music's mood was never bleak... ironically, it acted as desperate humor. A humor so willingly needed to distance psychological hurt. Our production employs music to exemplify such pain, and more so, desire.

The character Tommy Johnson in the popular feature film O Brother, Where Art Thou is losely based off real-life Robert Johnson who was thought to have sold his soul to the devil (as Son House describes in this post's opening quote).
Check out the brief scene that introduces Tommy Johnson: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEQCZTaRdRo

Also, I found a podcast of delta music that may act as a great resource: http://www.deltabluesmuseum.org/high/podcast.asp

I can be contacted for additional delta blues tracks by Robert Johnson. I copied his album, King of the Delta Blues, from my fathers library. “This is the ten commandments of the Blues; he came first [in recorded blues] and everything else followed.” – Joel Hurwit