So about that radio show...

KMFA's Ancient Voices has been going strong for over 12.5 years, and I am delighted to be able to continue producing it from lovely Lübeck, Germany! 

I'm not the only KMFA producer who produces a show from outside the studios on North Lamar in Austin, not by a long shot. Some of them even have professional-grade studios in their homes!

A professional-grade studio is hard to fit into a suitcase, so it was time to get creative.

These days are behind us! 

I do have professional tools: a YETI USB microphone, sound editing software, and a blazingly fast computer. 

What I lack is the right acoustic space to record in. Most rooms are way too live, and mics pick that up. It doesn't sound good. You need 'stuff' on the walls and the floors to absorb sound.

Lacking a professional studio with acoustic tiles and other soundproofing measures, a closet makes a nice 'dead' environment, with the added touch of a blanket covering you and your mic like a little tent.

My house doesn't have a closet.

So, I consulted KMFA's amazing Jeffrey Blair, sound engineer extraordinaire.

Make a pillow fort, he said.

Now I love a good pillow fort as much as the next gal, Jeffrey, but I'm trying to make radio here.

But then the gears started turning, and I came up with a pretty good 'sound cave'!

Sara in The Cave

Our house came furnished with two room dividers. I set those up around the dresser upstairs to form a little enclosure. Added bonus: I can stand up to produce my show! I hung comforters on the dividers, and placed pillows behind my mic and computer. Throw a blanket over the top and voila! A nice, warm sound, which passed the “Jeffrey hearing test"!

Before leaving Austin, I produced a whole bunch of shows in advance, to give myself a nice buffer to get used to the new set-up, and the new editing software. Thanks to Jeffrey's help, and that of Phil Pollack, KMFA's Technical Operations Manager, the process was smooth and intuitive.

My first show 'from the old country' is now right around the corner! 

Here's another fun fact: the idea for this show arose from the amazing musical sights and sounds we heard on KMFA's Trip to Italy last October, such as the Odhecaton, which we saw at Bologna's excellent music library/museum. It dates from 1501, and contains the first polyphonic music printed using movable type.

Sara meets The Odhecaton

So tune in January 11 & 12, 2015* for Music from Bologna on Ancient Voices!

Ancient Voices airs Sundays at 10 AM and Mondays at 9 PM on KMFA 89.5 FM in Austin, Texas. You can hear the show via our live stream at www.kmfa.org.

*We had a slight mishap 'back at the ranch', and a different show aired on the original air dates (Jan. 4 & 5). I apologize for the confusion.