Jon Zielke
JZ Sound Design
Sound Design Portfolio
Below you will find clips of audio I have put together for a variety of theatrical shows. There are numerous different styles and contexts and I have done my best to describe each clip accurately. All sounds have either been recorded, created by myself, or sourced from the internet with permissions and acknowledgement where appropriate. Some of the finished sounds and soundscapes were made in Adobe Audition, and others were created within Figure53's QLab program. Below, the shows appear in no particular order, however all sounds from the same show are listed together. If you can, listen to these with headphones or a set of stereo speakers. You will also find a general sound schematic document that I put together for a larger theatrical show.
Boat Splits In Storm
Show: ANON(ymous) by Naomi Iizuka.
Directed by William Whitaker, Washington University in St. Louis.
2014.
This sequence appears during Anon's mother's recollection of how she and Anon were separated form each other when fleeing from their home. They were on a boat in a terrible storm, and when the boat splits apart in the waves Anon is separated from his mother. I wanted to emphasize the moment when the boat split - the sound is a large tree cracking in half.
Chased To The Tunnel
Show: ANON(ymous) by Naomi Iizuka.
Directed by William Whitaker, Washington University in St. Louis.
2014.
This sequence appears as Anon and his friend Pascal are running and find themselves in a rat-infested tunnel. I wanted to emphasize the chaotic and urgent nature of their flight, as well as the tranquil and seemingly safe, yet creepy and uncomfortable feeling of being inside the tunnel.
Deaths Of The Refugees
Show: ANON(ymous) by Naomi Iizuka.
Directed by William Whitaker, Washington University in St. Louis.
2014.
This sequence appears for the crash of the truck Anon is riding in. Unknown to him, many other refugees are hiding in the back. All but Anon perish when the truck crashes. The voices of the refugees' souls can be heard, asking the audience not forget them, where they come from, and why they attempted their perilous journey.
Heart Attack Pre-Show
Show: Sky Sky Sky by Elizabeth Birkenmeier
Directed by Annamaria Pileggi, Washington University in St. Louis.
2015.
This is the top of the show sequence. Storms, chaos, and general dysfunction are major motifs in the play, and I wanted to connect that briefly to the sterility and order of a medical environment, which then fades back to the storm with static playing on the radio. The sound was sync'd with a projection of an EKG monitor to follow the heartbeats. Projection design by Sean Savoie.
Hail Storm
Show: Sky Sky Sky by Elizabeth Birkenmeier
Directed by Annamaria Pileggi, Washington University in St. Louis.
2015.
This sequence takes place when the storm intensifies for a brief moment. I wanted the sound to be distinctly a hail storm, not just harder rain. As a result, the final sound is comprised of several layers of hard rain and hail sound clips that I sourced from the internet.
Sound Documentation
Show: Passing Strange by Stew
Directed by Ron Himes, Washington University in St. Louis.
2016.
This is the Console I/O, Cue, and Wireless Coordination documentation that I created for the musical Passing Strange. It includes a comprehensive list of console automation cues, as well as QLab sound effects cues. The general setup was a Behringer X32 console at FOH, feeding the master outputs into the venue's installed Midas Verona 480. Wireless system included 18 units, 12 of which are the Sennheiser EW100-G3, and 6 of which are the Shure SLX. Both the Narrator and Youth were double-mic'd. The 6-piece band was seated on stage and was fully reinforced.
The PDF is the stage schematic created in Vectorworks. It shows the band layout on stage, house speaker placement and monitor speaker placement as well as basic wiring.
Come Down Now
Show: Passing Strange by Stew
Directed by Ron Himes, Washington University in St. Louis.
2016.
This is a live recording of the song Come Down Now that Desi sings to the Youth in Berlin. The entire cast was in wireless microphones, and the Youth & Narrator were double-mic'd. The 5-piece band was on stage and fully reinforced (Bass, Keys 1, Synth, Drums, Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar.). This song is a mixdown from a full multitrack of the cast and band recorded direct from the Behringer X32 console into Reaper. Music Director - Charles Creath.
Keys / It's Alright
Show: Passing Strange by Stew
Directed by Ron Himes, Washington University in St. Louis.
2016.
This is a live recording of the end of the song Keys that Marianna first sings to the Youth after she gives him the keys to her Amsterdam flat. The entire cast was in wireless microphones, and the Youth & Narrator were double-mic'd. The 5-piece band was on stage and fully reinforced (Bass, Keys 1, Synth, Drums, Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar.). This song is a mixdown from a full multitrack of the cast and band recorded direct from the Behringer X32 console into Reaper. Music Director - Charles Creath.
Warfare Voiceover Transition
Show: Beyond The River by Lauron Thompson-Cosby
Directed by Lauron Thompson-Cosby and Tre'von Griffith, TLT Productions.
2018.
This sequence contains various sounds of gunfire, explosions, helicopters, and artillery fire to create a sense of chaos during the transition. The following calm river sounds serve as a contrast to the chaotic transition, and are the sonic background for the following scene.
We Shall Overcome
Show: Beyond The River by Lauron Thompson-Cosby
Directed by Lauron Thompson-Cosby and Tre'von Griffith, TLT Productions.
2018.
This sequence occurs after the full cast sings "We Shall Overcome". The music transitions to the sounds of the police's violent response to protest in the 1960s including dogs and fire hoses spraying jets of water at protesters. Imagery was shown concurrently in the projections onstage (projection designer: Max Cassilly). The sequence finishes with Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have A Dream' speech.
Music by Tre'von Griffith.
Retina Burn 2018
Show: Retina Burn Lighting Technology Final Concert (mp3)
Managed by Sean Savoie, Washington University in St. Louis.
2018. Featuring local band Uncle Albert.
This is a live recording of Retina Burn in the Edison Theatre at Washington University. It was mixed live and multi-track recorded on the Behringer X32 mixing system into the Reaper DAW. All instruments were reinforced. The following microphones were used:
DI - Bass and Keys
Shure SM-57 - Electric guitar amp, Snare, Rack toms, Floor tom
AKG DM112 MkII - Kick
Shure SM-81 - Drum Overheads (xy), Room Mics
AKG C451 EB - Hat
Blue EnCORE 200 - Vocals
Swim On 2020
Show: Peter and the Starcatcher (mp3)
Directed by Kasey Cox and Sarah Dickey, Missouri Baptist University.
2020.
This is the production rendering of the Act I finale song Swim On. Given the pandemic at the time, a traditional musical with microphones, a pit orchestra, etc. was not possible to do safely. Instead, the entirety of the show's dialog was performed by the cast and pre-recorded. The music was arranged and performed by the musical director, Michael Frazier. The show was then mixed in the Reaper DAW, with complete level and FX automation as well as layered sound effects. Ultimately, the rendered stereo file was played back in QLab (divided up by scene) while the actors physically acted out their parts onstage with no live microphones or musicians.
​ Drawings Paperwork
Sound Documentation
Show: Big Fish, small cast edition
Directed by Kasey Cox, Missouri Baptist University
2021.
This is the Console I/O, QLab Cue, Drawings, and Wireless Coordination documentation that I created for the musical Big Fish. The general setup was the SC48 console at FOH, feeding an M32 for live stream audio. The wireless system included 23 units, 16 of which are the Sennheiser EW500-G3, 4 are the EW100-G4, and 3 are the EW100-G1. The 6-piece band was seated off-stage right and was fully reinforced.
​ Drawings Paperwork
Sound Documentation
Show: Shrek, The Musical
Directed by Adam Grun, Kirkwood Theatre Guild
2021.
This is the Console I/O, QLab Cue, Drawings, and Wireless Coordination documentation that I created for Shrek, The Musical. The general setup was a Midas M32R console at FOH, feeding the house speakers. A second M32R console was in the orchestra pit, serving as the monitor console for the pit musicians as well as actor foldback onstage. It also fed a stereo orchestra mix to the FOH console via AES-50 networking. The wireless system included 26 units total (Shure QLX-D, Sennheiser EW-100 G4, and Shure SLX). The orchestra was seated underneath the stage in the pit, and was fully reinforced.