Recording Mozart’s Requiem at Home

Recording at home always sounds simpler than it is.

In theory, the process should be straightforward: set up the cameras, arrange the lights, sit down at the piano, and play.

In practice, this particular recording took a few attempts!!

We recently completed a home recording of four selections from Mozart’s Requiem in Scott’s new arrangement for one piano, four hands:

Dies Irae
Rex Tremendae
Confutatis
Lacrimosa

These movements were chosen from a list of specific Requiem movements requested by our supporter Allan Park. Scott liked these four the most and felt they made a strong set to perform together.

The recording itself, however, was not quite as simple as choosing the movements!

Because the summer days are so long, we decided to record at night, after the natural light had disappeared. That meant waiting until quite late before we could even begin.😆 On our first attempt, by the time we finished setting up the cameras, lights, and recording equipment, it was already past 10 PM. At that point, we were both tired enough to realize that recording Mozart’s Requiem well was probably not going to happen that night.😴

The next day, students were coming, so everything had to be taken down again!!! Before putting the room back, we marked the floor with masking tape so we would know exactly where the equipment had been placed.

The tape turned out to be very useful. 😆

On the next attempt, the setup went much more quickly. Everything seemed to be working, and we recorded the four selections.

Then we discovered that one of the camera angles had stopped recording halfway through.

So we tried again!

This reminded us of the time during the pandemic when we were recording regularly from home. Home recording can look casual from the outside, but it often requires a surprising amount of patience: lighting, camera placement, sound, timing, retakes, and the simple endurance of staying focused long enough to play well after all the technical details have been handled.

After several attempts, late-night setup, masking tape floor marks, one failed camera angle, and a lot of patience, the recording is finally done.

The videos still need to be edited and reviewed, so we are not ready to release them yet. But this was an important step, and we are pleased to have these four Requiem selections recorded.

More soon!!!