For this production of Fences, our director was very engaged with as she calls it, the "musical soul" of the production. This was the music of Ben Webster, specifically his album Soulville. This music formed the basis of my sound design.

         Initially, we discussed having musical transitions between scenes, as well as introductory ambient soundscapes. We decided that both would be too many ideas at the same time, and would muddy the story. We decided to go specifically with the jazz music of Ben Webster. For each transition, I chose pieces that enhanced the mood of the previous scene, so that the audience could process what had just happened. I also worked towards choosing pieces that could also serve as good introductions for the following scene. Additionally, each piece of music was EQ'ed to sound like it came from an old-time radio, and became more staticky as the conflict built in the play.

        Outside of the music, there were few sound effects in the design. The primary piece for me was the recording of the baseball game. Using textual references made by the characters, I constructed a rough script of the final at-bat of the game. I then recorded an actor - James C. Burt - doing the voice-over of the baseball announcer. I have included both the complete version and the trimmed down version that was used in the show.

        My goal with this piece of design was to reinforce and foreshadow Troy's journey throughout the play. I chose historically accurate players and teams (although I did take some liberties with some of the statistics). The different pitches, previous at-bats, and commentary are all drawn from information August Wilson provided.

​