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The Doctor Who Fan Orchestra is an online collaborative project
to celebrate Murray Goldís wonderful music for Doctor Who.
When the show was revived in 2005, Murray Gold provided the score,
which he has now done for the last seven years.
Seven soundtrack albums have been released to huge success,
and there are many fans around the world to whom Murrayís music
means just as much as the show itself.
The music itself is so iconic that every time you play it,
or even hum it in your head, it takes you back into the show,
into that scene that the music is written for.
The thing I love most about Murray Goldís music is how evocative it is.
Some episodes, you could just close your eyes and listen to the score,
and youíd still get the full emotional depth and breadth of the story.
I love how it sort of combines
the grandeur and ìspace-opera-nessî of the show
with that little bit of, sort of, quirkiness and playfulness.
The music in the show is phenomenal, and...
and probably has one of the best soundtracks
ever on a TV show.
The Doctor, the companions, some special guest,
even the monsters have their own theme,
and it really helps tell the story.
Murray Goldís music has the emotion, the heart, the guts.
Puts it at the centre of the show. The score plays a character in the show.
Itís a voice, sometimes a literal voice.
In addition to being a brilliant composer,
Murray is, through his music is,
a dramatist. He tells the story through his music.
Itís so distinctive, and so catchy and well-written,
and it suits the show so perfectly.
I think thatís just the trick Murray Gold knows how to perform
so very well in our heads. Itís that weíre so keen to experience
and feel like the characters,
and, through Murray Goldís music, we are able to do so.
I think in fact his musicís the key to all that.
When I originally heard that someone was putting together
an arrangement of ìI Am The Doctorî, I was absolutely delighted,
because this project is like a combination of my two main passions in life.
Thatís music and Doctor Who.
So I couldnít have been happier to take part.
This was basically a chance for musicians all around the world
to submit recordings that they made, based off a part that they were sent,
and then all of the recordings were mixed
to create a final ìperformanceî of a Doctor Who piece.
I was so excited, because this was what I had been wanting to do for so long!
For each piece, participants are provided with sheet music for their part,
and an audio file containing a MIDI version of the arrangement,
with the all-important click-track.
Like a metronome, the click-track keeps time,
and, as such, is vital to the success of the DWFOís performance.
It can be very difficult in trying to be as precise as you need to be,
to make sure the timing is spot on to where it needs to be,
in order to be able to assemble the parts.
Each member practises and eventually records their part individually.
Once is never enough.
Like, no matter how good it is on your first try,
youíre always going to want to do it again to make it better.
So it can be a really frustrating process. You just have to learn, you know,
when to let go and when to send it in.
And itís challenging because obviously we canít rehearse together,
we canít work on our intonation as a group.
Okay?
- Cool. - Well done.
I was flat, flat, flat there, but who cares!
- I was too flat. - You were flat!
I was flat.
- You were flat! - Exterminate!
The DWFO has a private Facebook group,
allowing the co-ordinators to make announcements,
and members to ask for technical help, or to ask questions about their part.
The group provides a place for us to get together, chat,
help each other, support each other,
find a place to be a common organisation.
It helps you connect with people from all over the world,
because I never imagined,
years ago when I started playing my instrument, that,
at one point, Iíd be playing with people from other countries,
and I think that is just so fascinating.
Thereís always someone happy to give advice or answer questions.
The oboes talk about tonguing,
the violin players talk about bowing,
and itís really important that they have that place to
have these discussions and come to a consensus.
You get to ask your questions about how the music should be played,
and also logistical things like what kinds of microphones to use.
Also, the group is very special because some of us share jokes,
we talk about where weíre from.
Itís a very interesting place to meet all these musicians
that has all gathered together because we also love Doctor Who.
I already knew Stephen Willis, from e-mails,
and just a tiny little project or two,
and some chatting in the Gallifrey Base Doctor Who forum.
Robin and I had been discussing Doctor Who music
for a few years previously,
so I knew she was just as crazy about it as I am.
I knew he was sincere. I knew he could arrange music.
I first had the idea to start the project when I was messing about
with an arrangement of ìI Am The Doctorî,
and I thought it was a bit of a shame that no-one was ever going to get to play it.
And then I thought, hang on, I know lots of people just love Murray Goldís music
and Iím sure a portion of them must also play musical instruments.
So...
why not see if I can get people to record it individually,
and Iíll put it together?
I thought, well, I donít know how itís going to work,
donít know whoís going to reply.
But...
it sounds so cool,
that I have to do whatever I can to try and help make it happen.
Itís quite amazing to see
the final product. Itís like, wow, howíd this happen!
When I look back now,
Iím just so, so proud of all that weíve done.
Itís been a lot of work, and itís never been dull.
And I think weíve got better as we've gone along,
we've got slicker.
Iíve certainly learnt a lot in terms of transcribing, arranging,
even composing,
from studying Murrayís work.
My name is Laura, and I live in the state of Oregon in the US,
and I used to be a professional horn player,
but physical disabilities and living in a remote area
keep me from performing these days. So I was really excited to participate.
Being in the Fan Orchestra was so much fun and such a great confidence rebuilder,
that Iím going to keep playing and recording.
And thatís part of what Doctor Who is all about.
People coming together to do more than they ever thought possible.
Playing with the Doctor Who Fan Orchestra has been a very, very enjoyable process.
Even though it has been a lot of work, I really enjoy it.
And thank you, Stephen, for organising this orchestra.
It has been a lot of fun.
The experience was a fun thing, and to be part of this,
I would say I would not have given it up for anything else.
Itís a big year for Doctor Who next year, with the 50th anniversary,
and we hope to celebrate that in style.