Music.

A while back, I posted some getting started tips.

I want to re-visit the importance of sound.

There is little that can drive more fear than the proper music and/or sounds in a haunt. Now, acquiring a suitable sound for your setting can be quite difficult. Anyone who has attempted to do a haunted house before, and has gone shopping for some music has probably seen the “scary” Cd’s (or tapes, back in the day) that promise some great atmosphere. Only to bring these home to find some music being totally ruined by really horrid cheesy sound effects.

Now, by far, the most common settings out there are nice and spooky, and if you haven’t yet, you really should be checking out Midnight Syndicate.

And, for those of you seeking more sound effect in nature, a couple of great options are found from the guys at Big Scream CD’s. From screams to chainsaws to creeking mansions.

And then, there is the more unique sound experience over at Zombietronix. A surround sound assault on the patrons. Very cool and creepy.

However, as you might have noticed, my stuff really doesn’t fit into the norm. We go much more tribal in nature, and have had to resort to creating my own sound track. This involves searching for music worldwide, and has come to include Native American drumming, Djembe drumming from Africa, Haitian drumming, and Japanese Taiko drumming.

I do want to note Portland Taiko, however. Their CD’s are masterfully recorded, capturing the rich sound of Taiko better than certain better known groups. Very nice. :b:

And yet, I’m never satisfied. I’ve been trying to find some chants to go into the drums as well, and have been searching Native American, African, and Haitian chanting this year for the right sound. So far, I have lots of chants that are fun to listen to, but none that fit the right “feel” for Halloween.

Or so I thought. I was listening to one of these CD’s when picking up my son from Soccer practice. His team mates looked around, and gave the car very strange looks, keeping their distance as the chants blasted out the window…

The power of music.

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