CompuServe Thread

#Pro Amiga Users Wanted

10 messages in this thread
#92134From: Steve GloverMar 14, 1993 1:48 PM
Hello! I am interested in hearing from anyone who is using a Commodore Amiga as a professional tool. This is for an upcoming story, so please leave your full name that can be included. I am particularly interested in people using the Amiga as either a writing or desktop publishing tool. Thanks. Steve Glover Memphis, TN
#92168From: Greg MalcangiMar 14, 1993 5:31 PM
Steve: We use an Amiga 4000 to run our commercial recording studio. I'll give you more information if this interests you. Greg (UK).
#92218From: Steve GloverMar 15, 1993 1:03 AM
Yes, that does interest me. Are you using the 4000 strictly for its multimedia capabilities or are you using it with other programs as well, such as DTP, accounting and comm's. Also, where are you located, what kind of business (volume) do you get and what other platforms have you used (how does the Amiga stack up?)?
#92259From: Greg MalcangiMar 15, 1993 4:32 PM
Steve: Heritage Studio near Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire in the UK is a commercial recording studio setup by Evelyn Glennie, a famous classical musician in the UK. It provides the highest resolution audio recording available anywhere in the world at the present time. There are already plans for some of the most famous Ensembles to record at the studio, film music and TV commercial music will also be composed and recorded at the studio. As the studio is only just about to open most of the negatiations with major artists are still in progress so I am not able to mention them specifically, sorry. Evelyn has 2 upgraded Amiga 1500's which are used to run her business, utilising mainly Database and Wordprocessor programs. The A4000 however is used obviously for comm's, mainly CIS and the WPN (World Percussion Network). The A4000's main task is to run the MIDI and syncronisation capabilities of the studio. Dr.T's KCS has a program called Automix which can mix two MIDI parameters in real time in upto sixteen tracks. The Amiga however can run Automix ten or more times so I can control in real time almost any MIDI parameter. This ability is not available on any other platform. Even under Windows the output from one Automix program would be halted when switching to another Automix. Another advantage of the multitasking abilities of the Amiga is that I can run my database and look up the location of various sounds within my synthesizers while my sequencer runs in the background. It can do this while simultaneously syncronising my MIDI information with the live recording equipment. I have used the Atari and the MAC, I don't like the Atari but I think the MAC is great with an excellent Intuition, unfortunately it just cannot provide the versatility of the Amiga. With the introduction of Bars & Pipes Professional v2.0 The Amiga is by far the best computer for our studio. When Full Motion Video becomes available my Amiga should also allow for the multitasking editing of both video and music. I think that the only thing holding the Amiga back from dominating this area of computer use is Commodore's marketing. Just for your information here is Evelyn's most recent biography: E V E L Y N G L E N N I E The London Times: "The young and by any standards brilliant percussionist Evelyn Glennie …. displayed admirably her astonishing capabilities." The Sydney Morning Herald: "Here is an awesome skill and certainty that becomes almost bewildering ….". South China Morning Post: "Brilliant Glennie mesmerised a capacity audience." Washington Post: "(Evelyn Glennie) Proved herself able to communicate any musical mood, and at the close left the audience with the pleasurable and rare sense of being in a new musical world". In a very short space of time Evelyn Glennie has established herself as the consummate musician. She is believed to be the only full-time, solo percussionist in the world. Her outstanding international career now encompasses concerto, chamber and solo performances, television and radio broadcasts as well as recordings. Evelyn Glennie was born in Aberdeen, where she studied timpani and percussion from the age of 12. In 1982 she entered the Royal Academy of Music in London where she won many prizes, including the Queen's Commendation Prize for all round excellence – the highest award granted by the RAM. She went on to win the 1984 Gold Medal in the Shell/LSO Music Scholarship. In 1986 a Munster Trust Scholarship enabled her to visit Japan to further her studies. In 1991 she was awarded the prestigious Royal Philharmonic Society Charles Heidsieck "Soloist of the Year", Aberdeen University conferred an Honorary Doctorate of Music upon her and she was elected a Fellow of the Royal College of Music and the Royal academy of Music. Following highly successful concerts with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl and a recital in Washington, she will return to the USA to work with various US orchestras, including the National Symphony Orchestra (Washington) and the Cincinnati Orchestra. She is a regular visitor to Japan, where she is in great demand, working with all the major orchestras. In 1994, she will return to Australia and New Zealand for her third tour which will also include visits to Singapore and Indonesia. In the UK, in addition to her busy schedule, Evelyn Glennie regularly works with all the major symphony and chamber orchestras, where she often champions new works. In 1989 Evelyn gave the first ever percussion recital in the history of the Proms and in 1992 she returned to perform the premier of a specially commissioned concerto by James McMillan. Among the earliest of Evelyn's numerous television appearances was a CBS documentary about Bartok's Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion for which she joined Sir Georg Solti, Murray Perahia and David Corkhill – their subsequent recording won a 1989 Grammy Award. A South Bank Show documentary "Evelyn in Rio", where she took part in the carnival, was broadcast in many countries and has been released as a video/laser disc by Decca. Two major documentaries on Evelyn's life by the BBC and Yorkshire Television have also been broadcast. Composers are continually writing solo works especially for her: Dominic Muldowney, John Dankworth, John McLeod and Richard Rodney Bennett, to name but a few. She has founded a major composition award to further the development of Percussion compositions – the "Evelyn Glennie Percussion Composition Award" is at present open to all UK composers. The first such award will be granted in 1993. Evelyn Glennie has an exclusive recording contract with RCA/BMG. This month sees the release of her fourth recording : "Rebounds". Previous recordings include the highly successful "Rhythm Song", "Dancin'" and "Light in Darkness" albums. "Good Vibrations", Evelyn Glennie's autobiography, was published in the UK in 1990 by Century Hutchinson and in Japan in 1992 by Simul Press. NOVEMBER 1992 Evelyn's recent accolades include an OBE (Order of the British Empire) and the International Classical Music Awards Personality of the Year. I hope this is some use to you, Greg.
#92291From: David KieltykaMar 15, 1993 9:25 PM
Greg, Evelyn is indeed a superb percussionist. Being a fan of drumming and percussion, particularly African and Brazilian, I've been aware of her work for a number of years. Let her know I've got all her albums. 8^) I recently saw a profile of Evelyn on the local public (no adverts) television station. I've forgotten the name of the program…. It featured her playing in Japan and at the Rio carnival, and had a number of nice interview snippets as well. I wish you both much success with your studio! -Dave (via AutoPilot)
#92341From: Greg MalcangiMar 16, 1993 4:58 PM
David, Thanks for your wishes, I'll pass them on. BTW have you heard Evelyn's latest album "Rebounds"? This features four percussion concertos using a lot of drumming, as well as a Brazilian Marimba Concerto by Ney Rosauro. Greg.
#92366From: David KieltykaMar 16, 1993 8:33 PM
Greg, Yes, I have "Rebounds". Lovely stuff. I'm particularly fond of the Rosauro piece and the one by Miyoshi. When I was a teenager I hated orchestral and chamber music. Typical adolescent rebellion, I guess. I was more into guitar feedback and such. 8^) But the older I get, the more diverse my taste grows. I'm really just starting to rediscover classical music. Lots of fun and pleasure! -Dave (via AutoPilot)
#92624From: John LeonardMar 20, 1993 8:25 AM
Greg, The news of the recording studio is very interesting. My wife, cellist Andrea Hess, has played with Evelyn on lots of sessions and sends her greetings. If the studio is going to be useable for chamber music recordings, then please let us know. Finding good places to record in the South East is getting more and more tricky. Best wishes, John.
#92389From: Andre PageMar 17, 1993 12:26 AM
I use an Amiga 3000 for DTP etc. A lot of my clients are in the Advertising Specialties business (imprinted products). They bring me a crummy copy of someones logo and I scan it in , clean it up, add type and fit it to whatever it will be printed on. Everything from T-Shirts to Pencils, coffee mugs, etc. Occaisionally one of these turns into a complete "Identity Program" and generates some additional work. I also do a lot of business forms Invoices, Purchase Orders, etc. One of my better customers (I rent space in his building!) does "Unique Holographic Products" Paper Glasses with diffraction lenses, Red/Blue 3D, and others. Holographic Foils, wrapped on pencils, Paper Fold Up Pocket Binoculars and a lot of other stuff. For him I do EVERYTHING. Catalogs, Price Sheets, Product Design, and ANY other artwork hge needs. The software I use is PPage, ProDraw, PageStream, Art Expression, AdPro, DPaint, Aladdin 4D and a lot of the others too. Hardware is A3000 2megs chip, 16 megs fast ram, 100 & 330 MB HD's, Syquest 44M, NEC CDR73M, Epson ES-300C scanner, Canon BJC-820 Color Ink Jet…. And my NEW Xante Acell-a-Writer 8100 1200×1200 dpi, 11×17" PostScript Laser Printer! I am starting to do PostScript Output Service (Amiga Friendly!) with that. The quality is comparable to Linotronic at much lower cost. No Chemicals either! I have been advertising at UserGroup meetings, Local Amiga stores and on BBSs. I even have my own BBS set up to accept files for output (can I put the # here?) It's (818)345-9123 2400bps 24 hrs. What I do is take the files off the BBS, print them out and mail them back to the customer. I charge $5.00 for 8.5×11 & $10.00 for 11×17",st service bureaus charge DOUBLE that! I also offer qu quantity discounts and 10% off for first time customers. I also have a MAC Plus that I keep around for compatability and to read Mac disks. (It's a little dusty, but comes in handy once in a while!) Well, I'm getting tired of typing. Later, / / / //ANDRE
#92422From: John LeonardMar 17, 1993 2:26 PM
Steve, I use the Amiga professionally in two different ways: 1) DTP. My brother runs a business releasing compilations of film music on CD. I carry out all the work for the booklets. Last booklet was full colour 24 page. my wife runs a very successful chamber music group. I handle all their promotional publishing requirements. 2) in real life, I'm a theatre sound designer in the U.K. I use the Amiga to prepare system drawings, to produce consultancy reports and as a hard disk recording system using the SunRize card. I also use a program called Stage Manager to run complex sound effects shows with the effects stored on an AKAI sampler, and triggered by the Amiga. An extra unit also triggers the analog tape machines if required. Current show using this system is for the Royal National Theatre of Great Britain. machine used is an Amiga 1200. Hope this is of some use. John.