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Page 3  Joseph Thalken is actually seated at the piano at this point, since Brady’s plane has been delayed due to inclement weather. By the time “Henchmen Are Forgotten” is recorded, Brady has arrived and takes his place at the piano. Buckley and Abraham are now in place at their microphones to do a run-through of the show’s opening number, “This Day of Days,” and Norman, one of Buckley’s brothers (who is in town working on a film) arrives and joins those of us in the sound booth. Soon after, Buckley’s incredible voice begins to fill the room as she sings, “See how the sun rises in fire/Higher and higher it soars/And wait for the moment/This glorious moment/When Sparta is once again yours.” It really is a thrill to hear Buckley’s booming voice,
with its unique shading and silvery vibrato, come through the
two large speakers on the walls of the control room.
After this first rehearsal, By 3:45, the first take of “This Day of Days” has been recorded, and John Yap asks Betty to move just a step closer to the microphone so that the recording will have the brilliance of her sound that he heard during the rehearsal of the song. Four takes of the opening song have been recorded by 4:10, and everyone is happy with the results, so it’s time to move on to the next tune, which will be the show’s first act finale, the haunting “Teach Me Not to Love You.” Three takes of “Teach Me Not To Love You” have been recorded by the time it’s half past four, but Betty is not completely happy with the sound and wants to make sure that her voice has as intimate a sound on this song as it did in the theatre. John Yap decides tospend the remaining time before the dinner break on “Teach Me” and move “Have a Little Faith” to tomorrow’s evening session. By 4:50, “Teach Me” has been recorded, and it’s time for a well-deserved rest as members of the cast, orchestra and sound crew head out for dinner.
By 6:00 the The delivery of this song by both actors is extremely moving, and I am particularly surprised how touching Murray’s readings are considering how little singing experience he has had. It is now a quarter to seven, and the band runs through “Love Won’t Take No for Answer.” Three takes are completed of the song, and at 7:10 the orchestra is rehearsing the recitative. While the orchestra practices, I have a few minutes to chat with James Magruder, Triumph’s book writer. Magruder seems quite enthralled with the recording of the musical and tells me that he had once admitted that he would be happy with the experience of this show if he could have “a poster and a cast album,” and, soon, he will have both. Currently working on a novel about love, Magruder also confided that he would love to work on another musical with Triumph’s creative team, especially Triumph’s lyricist, Susan Birkenhead, and director, Michael Mayer. Perhaps they could write Buckley her own song cycle, akin to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Song and Dance and Maury Yeston’s December Songs. . .just a thought. . . . By 8 pm the recitative has been recorded, and F. Murray is ready to perform his section of “Emotions.” By 9 pm Betty is set to record her duet with Susan Egan (who will add her portion of the song on Tuesday), “You May Call Me Phocion.” The first day of recording is now complete, and the cast departs at 9:30, ready to return tomorrow afternoon.
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Buckley and Abraham decide to run
through the song again, this time at the piano.
orchestra members are back in their seats, and a photographer
from In Theater Magazine, Bruce Glikas, has arrived to photograph
Betty and F. Murray’s recording of their second act duet, “The
Tree.” During the first take of the song, someone in the control
booth notices a soft squeaking sound emanating from the conductor’s
podium. A few mats are placed beneath the podium to avoid the
sound, and Betty and Murray’s microphones are adjusted so they
can face each other–as they did in the show–while recording their
duet.