Theatre

Credit: Music, Sound Design, Pipe Organ, Electric Keyboard, Synth

A play written by Alistair McDowall and performed to nearly 250 audience members across four dates of the Camden Fringe by the University for the Creative Arts (UCA) Graduate Company. An experimental sci-fi music score and sound design by Daniel Finch, telling the story of a crew trapped in space and coming to terms with their reality, which is entirely in their minds. 

Performed for two hours, supported by score and sound design combined into an immersive soundscape that consists of drones, ambiences, hits, birds and organ music, all designed to fall into the background and come out as focal points in key areas, for the characters to interact with.

Full of distortion and destructive sounds, tastefully combined with live recordings on the pipe organ, Rhodes 54 Electric Piano. Chopped and processed vocals, synthesisers and strings are also present in the score, which supported the actors on stage and immersed the audience. Daniel's chosen style for this project was a tasteful and creative blend between the realms of acoustic, analogue and digital audio. 

The reverberation of a pipe organ throughout a church, combined with the delicate tones of an electric piano, and combined with spring and plate reverbs, sounded smooth and beautiful, while the anger and discomfort of a processed digital signal caused an engaging blend.

Credit: Music, Sound Mixing, Multi-Instrument, Synth

An animated short film by James Saunders — Pocket Planet. Telling the story of a boy's first experiences with grief and understanding the world around him, expressed through a small planet for which he cares. 

Daniel chose the delicate tones of this instrumentation in combination with analogue gear to complement the child-like nature of the lead character, whose interactions with his newfound power and care come into connection with real-world consequences.

Stylised with a vintage feel visually and musically, Daniel used a creative blend of analogue and digital techniques to achieve a realistic portrayal of the sound from the mid-1900s. Modernised and in his style, Daniel used a combination of live flute and tongue drum alongside a Wurlitzer electric keyboard emulation — all recorded through a vintage Fender Stage 112 SE Amplifier. This amp was chosen for its warm character, naturally saturating the digital & acoustic source material, fed through a spring reverb tank, leading to a characteristically vintage sound — matching the art style and story direction.

Alongside the music composition, he also guided the sound design and mixed James Saunder's primiarly voice-made soundscape. Daniel's work led to audio repair & restoration alongside more traditional sound mixing, and ultimately, mastering the film ready for release.

Credit: Music, Harmonica, Synth

Ludum Dare 56 entry, AquaLens was a team effort and scored 135th in Audio among thousands of entrants. The game was inspired by the sounds and feel of Club Penguin's Aqua Grabber minigame and other sea exploration web games of the mid-2000s era. A project that took around a week to complete, deadlines were tight for all parties, so prioritising key elements and feelings was vital for a successful experience for the player.

Composing this score led Daniel through synthesis in the forms of electronic instrumentation and stringed instruments, and combined them with a performance of harmonica, all fed through a pleasing reverberation. The score was designed in a looping fashion to continue evolving and feel free throughout a playthrough. A pretty soundscape was formed in combination with the sounds of Will Bertiz, a previous collaborator, to create a lush, engaging sound world for this peaceful and relaxing game.