Behind the Scenes: Nalini Nadkarni
Nalini Nadkarni has spent two decades climbing the trees of Costa Rica, Papua New Guinea, the Amazon, and the Pacific Northwest. Her work explores the world of animals and plants that live in the canopy and how this upper layer of the forest interacts with the world on the ground. A pioneering researcher, Nalini reaches out to new partners, from prisoners to artists. At a correctional facility on the Oregon coast, Nalini teaches science to inmates and uses nature to connect them to the outside world.
Majora's interview with Nalini took them inside prison walls and to the top of a tree in the rain forest. Technical Director Robin Wise talks about recording in the rain and being a conductor of sound.
Above, Majora, Nalini, and Technical Director Robin Wise look out over the Pacific Ocean.
What do you do for the series? What are some of the best parts of your job?
I'm serving as technical director and post-production audio engineer, which means I’ll be mixing and mastering all the programs. I help ensure that the audio is a consistent high quality from beginning to end. I record in the field and provide support to producers for all their technical needs.
Everything I do on this project is interesting to me. I enjoy going out into the world, putting on headphones, and recording voices and sounds. I enjoy working with producers to bring these sounds and their stories to life. And I enjoy the post-production, mixing and mastering. Being a part of the entire process allows for a natural flow during the project.
How did you develop your ear for sound?
I'm a classically trained musician. French horn was my instrument, and I've played many instruments through the years in addition to composing and arranging music. As an educator, I conducted large instrumental ensembles, choirs, and musicals for 18 years. As a conductor of music, you hear every note, every tonality, everything from every instrument and voice and are constantly working with layers of sound. This experience provided a perfect transition to becoming an audio engineer. Now, the instruments I work with are audio tracks of voices, sounds, and music. The visual of each track on the computer screen is like a conductor’s score for me. Working with the elements of this “score” is like composing and arranging. In doing the mix, I am the conductor.
Tell us about some of the environments you had to record in for an interview with Nalini Nadkarni.
We were in a college setting, we were in a prison setting, we were in a rain forest, we were at the ocean. The idea is to provide listeners with the picture of where we are and what is happening through the use of sound. The sound supports good writing, and that is the basis of radio.
For example, in Stafford Prison, where Nalini is doing work with offenders, we recorded sounds that are a part of everyday life in a prison. Listeners will hear that distinctive sound of metal on metal, a gate locking, the turning of a key in a lock.
What were some of the technical challenges of the interview?
After recording at the prison, we shifted gears to a totally different recording situation: a rain forest. And what does it do in a rain forest? It rains!
Nalini and Majora climbed a tree to discuss the research Nalini does in the tree canopies. To record this conversation, they wore wireless mic headsets, the kind you see stage musicians wearing. Each speaker has a transmitter that sends an FM wave signal to a receiver that is on the ground. Then the output of the receiver connects via a cable to the inputs of the recording device.
This very high-end recording gear needs to be protected, and you have to be careful to not get the transmitter and the receiver wet. There was a lot of troubleshooting necessary that day. The equipment was acting a little wacky, and truly, just at the last minute, just as [Producer] Mary Beth was working on plan B, the equipment issues were resolved and the tree climbing and recording could begin. As the technical person in charge, I found it nerve-wracking, but it was a very successful recording session.
There are techniques to recording good sound, but for me, it always starts with high-quality microphones and recording devices. I use a variety of Neumann microphones and the Sound Device 722 recorder.
What surprised you about Nalini?
She is just constantly going, going, and her pure enthusiasm for what she does is contagious. She loves life, and she loves her work. When we went to the rain forest, we were all walking together along the stream bed, heading to the tree that Majora and Nalini were going to climb. We're almost to the location of the tree. Nalini runs up to the tree and says with great enthusiasm, “Here's the tree!” Her reaction is pure, honest, joyful.
She's accessible, she communicates very well with everyone, and she listens and responds thoughtfully to everyone. For instance, Nalini teaches at Evergreen State College. We were with her when she was working with students doing independent studies. She coaches them, encourages them, respects and treats them as peers. And then, Nalini goes to Stafford Prison, facilitates a discussion with 30 men in the prison, and she interacts with them in the exact same way that she does with her college students. She raises their level of understanding. She's a consummate educator.
What sort of connection did Majora and Nalini have?
They are both “rock stars” so the two of them together were amazing. In a conversation, they get to the heart of the matter. Neither of them had to pull information out of the other. It was obvious that they truly enjoyed their time together.
You're not a producer, but what's a moment you wish you could include in the final show?
There was a moment that really summed up for me who Nalini is and the work that she does. Majora and Nalini were beginning their descent from the tree. And this is hard work; it's not an easy thing to do! They're starting to come down, and Majora did this lovely thing, she said, “Thank you, tree!” And Nalini then whispered, “Thank you, tree.” She said this quietly, honoring and connecting with the tree. Those three simple words communicated so much about who Nalini is, what she does, and how she does it.
