Alternating Cues on Two Master Stereo Tracks

[plowman]

I recently had a client ask me to score human interest segments of about two to three minutes a piece.

Thay've asked for alternating cues on two separate stereo tracks within the overall piece. So, mood 1 goes on track one, 2 to two, 3 to one, 4 to two, etc.

I've done media work, but in smaller markets. Is this a common request?

[Nick Batzdorf]

That's not a common request, but it doesn't sound very complicated unless they're supposed to play simultaneously.

[plowman]

Thanks Nick. I was just wondering how far out of the loop I was.

They play simultaneously in that the piece is, say, three minutes, and the two files (each in stereo) are also three minutes. But the first "cue" is on track one, and then it's silent when the second "cue" starts on the second track. They ping-pong from there, each taking turns carrying the music. (I put "cue" in quotes, because to me, the whole track is the cue.)

I guess it gives them a little more latitude in post to hand-adjust each mood wiithout requiring more than two files.

But I hadn't heard of such a thing before. Recording this way is not that big a deal, but my limited modem speed will now be uploading twice as many files and a lot of alternating silence.