London Tube Tour
Denzil takes the listener on a journey on the London Tube system from Earl’s Court Station to Piccadilly Circus. Recorded on 24th and 25th July 1952.
Read more details about this documentary on the Curators Blog
Technical Notes
This short programme survived on 1/4 inch tape, but like many of Denzil’s tapes from that era, had been spliced and many of the splices had come apart. The tape was re-spliced and then played on a Revox B77 recorder, with azimuth and speed adjusted for this particular tape. It was digitised and then cleaned up and re-mixed using multitrack DAW software.
London Airport Documentary
A short documentary about London Airport recorded by Denzil during two visits to the airport on 8th August and 9th September 1952. It includes an interview with the Commandant of the Airport, Air Marshall Sir John D’Albiac, as well as recordings of the “Ground Control Approach” radar truck and take-off of the De Havilland Comet.
Read more details about this documentary on the Curators Blog
Technical Notes
Broken splices in the original 1/4 inch tape recorded in 1952 were repaired, and then the tape was played on a Revox B77 recorder, with azimuth and speed adjusted for this particular tape. It was digitised and then broken down into separate segments and these were individually processed to remove hum and background noise. The segments were then digitally re-mixed.
John McCallum “Melba” Interview
On 18th September 1952, Denzil visited Nettleford Studios at Walton on Thames where Sam Spiegel (producer) and Lewis Milestone (director) were filming “Melba” in Technicolor. The film featured Metropolitan Opera soprano Patrice Munsel in the title role, supported by Robert Morley, John Justin, Alec Clunes and Australian actor John McCallum in the role of Melba’s husband, Charles Armstrong. Denzil recorded this short interview with John McCallum.
Read more details about this interview on the Curators Blog
Technical Notes
This short programme survived on 1/4 inch tape, which was played on a Revox B77 recorder, with azimuth and speed adjusted for this particular tape. It required only addition of some EQ.
Googie Withers and John McCallum at Home, London 1952
On 20th October 1952, Denzil and Dot visited Googie Withers and John McCallum at their home in St John’s Wood in London. Denzil noted in his diary: “We met also their young daughter, Joanna, and Muntz, a magnificent bull mastif. After an enjoyable afternoon tea and a chat, we recorded a three way interview.”
Read more details about this interview on the Curators Blog
Technical Notes
This short programme survived on 1/4 inch tape, which was played on a Revox B77 recorder, with azimuth and speed adjusted for this particular tape. It required only minor repairs and addition of some EQ
Clifford Guest at the London Palladium, 1952
Denzil interviewed Australian ventriloquist Clifford Guest at the Palladium in London on 5th June 1952. Clifford Guest, who had recently returned from 5 years in the USA, was appearing in a show with Lena Horne.
Technical Notes
This interview is one of a series on “Tape Number 3”. Old splices were cleaned and repaired. Then the interview was digitised using a Revox B77 with azimuth and speed adjusted for this tape. The interview had significant hum and background noise from machinery. These were removed using iZotope RX and some eq was added.
Alan Rowe, London 1952
Denzil interviewed Australian performer Alan Rowe who came for dinner at 45 Nevern Square, where Dot and Den were staying during their time in London.
Technical Notes
This interview is also one of a series on “Tape Number 3”. Old splices were cleaned and repaired. Then the interview was digitised using a Revox B77 with azimuth and speed adjusted for this tape. Hum was removed using iZotope RX and some eq was added.
Sefton Daly, Composer, London 1952
Denzil interviewed Australian composer Sefton Daly on the morning of Thursday 12th June, 1952. They discussed how to get a break with the BBC and the variety of work Mr Daly was doing in London.
Technical Notes
This interview is also one of a series on “Tape Number 3”. Old splices were cleaned and repaired. Then the interview was digitised using a Revox B77 with azimuth and speed adjusted for this tape. Hum was removed using iZotope RX and some eq and level balancing was added in Soundtrack Pro.
Anne Crawford, Actress, London 1952
Denzil interviewed British actress Anne Crawford at Chelsea, London on the evening of Thursday 2nd October, 1952. Ms Crawford was on set for the film “Street Corner” about the work of female police officers. Denzil wrote in his diary: “The unit was shooting outdoor night sequences. Owing to the fact that earlier shots had been taken on a wet night, the road on this perfectly fine night had to be wet, so the fire brigade was called in to completely douse the road surface, and gentlemen with watering cans doused walls and footpaths in the line of the camera.”
Read more details about this interview on the Curators Blog
Technical Notes
This interview was digitised from the original 1/4 inch reel-to-reel tape, using a Revox B77 with azimuth and speed adjusted for this tape. Eq was done in iZotope RX and level balancing was added in Soundtrack Pro.
Don Banks, Australian Composer, London 1952
In June 1952, Denzil interviewed Australian composer Don Banks in London. They discussed the newly formed Australian Musical Association. The Australian Dictionary of Biography states: “Proud of his Australian identity, in the early 1950s Banks had founded—with Margaret Sutherland—the Australian Musical Association as ‘a platform for Australian performers and to get exposure for Australian composers’.”
Read more details about this interview on the Curators Blog
Technical Notes
This interview was digitised from the original 1/4 inch reel-to-reel tape, using a Revox B77 with azimuth and speed adjusted for this tape. Eq was done in iZotope RX and level balancing was added in Soundtrack Pro.
Ada Reeve, Actress, London 1952
Denzil interviewed well known British actress Ada Reeve in London on 25th June 1952. Miss Reeve would have been about 78 years old, but comes across as a lively and energetic lady. In the interview, Miss Reeve talks about her fondness for Australia and sends a greeting to her two daughters living in Australia. Denzil’s tape identification is included at the start.
Read more details about this interview on the Curators Blog
Technical Notes
This interview was transferred from a reel-to-reel tape recorded over 60 years ago and since stored in all manner of places, hot and cold. When I started working on it, it was poorly wound and had numerous splices made with red sticky tape in 1952. The sticky tape had lost its “stick” and the splices would come apart during playing or fast winding. These were repaired with new splicing tape and the tape was re-wound tightly on a Rola 77 tape recorder. The interview was then digitised using a Revox B77 with azimuth and speed adjusted for this tape. Eq was done in iZotope RX and level balancing was added in Soundtrack Pro.
The Flight of the Uiver — Parts 1 and 2
The 1934 “Centennary Air Race” from London to Melbourne attracted numerous entrants from around the world, including KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. Keen to exploit the possibilities of world air travel, KLM entered a DC2 aircraft named the Uiver. On its way to Melbourne, the Uiver became lost in a heavy storm and was forced to make an emergency night landing on the racecourse at Albury, New South Wales.
The story of how the local ABC radio announcer alerted the townsfolk of Albury to set up an emergency landing strip on the local racecourse, illuminated by car headlights, has become part of aviation folklore and a celebrated part of Albury’s history. During the 1984 re-enactment of the landing, Denzil Howson made two radio documentaries as part of his “This Australia” series.
Read more details about this documentary on the Curators Blog
Enjoy the story of the Uiver — in two parts.
Part 1 — The Flight of the Uiver
Part 2 — The Uiver Flies Again
Technical Notes
The original four-track component tapes were copied using a TEAC four-track recorder onto an Edirol four-track digital recorder, then transferred into a digital audio workstation (DAW). The tracks were cleaned up, equalised and re-mixed. Being a generation closer to the originals, these new transfers should sound even better than the original analog mixes.
“Assignment in April” — A 1950s Australian Radio Thriller Hinting At Post-War Nazi Intrigue
“Assignment In April” focuses on two young Australians, played by Bob Peach and Sidney Conabere, who are in London circa 1956 and who are and planning to make a return journey to Australia via the Continent. Through a chance meeting with an attractive young German woman, they find themselves drawn into a web of intrigue.
This pilot episode was written and produced by Denzil Howson during his tenure at Australian Radio Productions.
Here are parts 1 and 2 of Episode One of “Assignment in April” as it was recorded in 1956. Enjoy this trip back in time to the pre-television era when radio drama was a popular source of entertainment.
Read more details about this radio play on the Curators Blog
Assignment In April Episode One — part 1
Assignment In April Episode One — part 2
Technical Notes
Denzil Howson’s tape library contained a reel-to-reel recording of the two-part pilot episode of “Assignment in April”. This was copied on a Revox B77 with azimuth adjusted for optimum highs from the original tape. Audio was captured on an Edirol digital recorder. Izotope RX was used to remove hum, clean up unwanted artefacts and add some equalisation. Gain adjustments, trimming and export to aiff and mp3 formats were done in Logic Pro X.
Barossa — The Musical That Almost Was
In 1952 Denzil Howson caught up with and interviewed for Australian radio three young Australians with high hopes of making it big in the West End with a stage musical about Australia. The musical was called “Barossa” and the three Australians were Norman Woollard, Les Patching and Frank Wilson. Denzil’s tape identification is included at the start.
Read more details about this interview on the Curators Blog
Technical Notes
This interview was digitised from the original 1/4 inch reel-to-reel tape, using a Revox B77 with azimuth and speed adjusted for this tape. Izotope RX was used to remove hum, clean up unwanted artefacts and add some equalisation. Gain adjustments, trimming and export to aiff format was done in Logic Pro X. Mp3 format created in Fission. Ogg format created in Amadeus Pro.
Dr John Grierson, Who Invented the Term “Documentary” Film
Another 1952 interview, this time with Dr John Grierson, who is credited with inventing the term “documentary” film. “A prolific director and producer, he was particularly influential through his creation of film units within the Empire Marketing Board and the Post Office, nurturing a whole generation of documentary makers.”
Read more details about this interview on the Curators Blog
Technical Notes
This interview was recorded on quarter inch tape, probably on a Australian Pyrox half-track tape recorder, of which Denzil Howson had two with him on his 1952 trip. These enabled making copies of edited tapes for dispatch back to radio stations in Australia. The recording had a very high level of 50Hz hum. After digitisation at 96kHz sampling rate, spectral analysis revealed the very strong hum at approx 50Hz. Amazingly there did not seem to be any higher harmonics. A single 50Hz hum filter in iZotope RX effectively removed all the hum. There were also numerous low-frequency traffic noises. These were also removed or reduced in iZotope RX. Denzil’s intro and the interview were joined in Logic Pro X and end fades were added. I applied a limiter and exported both aiff and mp3 bounces.
The School of Total Education — A 1982 Radio Documentary
At the start of 1977 The School of Total Education opened its doors in the Melbourne inner city suburb of St Kilda and in 1981 a sister school was established in the Queensland rural township of Warwick. Denzil Howson chose the school as the subject matter for this short radio documentary, originally broadcast on ABC radio.
Read more details about this interview on the Curators Blog
Technical Notes
The 1982 landline interviews were recorded at the ABC in Melbourne on 1/4 inch reel-to-reel tape. Denzil’s interviews at the Melbourne school campus were recorded on cassette and transferred to reel-to-reel tape. The linking voice-overs were recorded at Denzil’s home studio on reel-to-reel tape. Denzil had spliced these elements together into a composite reel, with gaps left for insertion of sound effects and elements requiring overlaps. A final mix from this composite tape and one or more effects tapes or discs had been made onto a full-track master. This master tape was not present in Denzil’s collection — having probably been sent to the National Film and Sound Archive in the 1990s.
But the spliced composite tape was present and formed the starting point for this restoration. The tape was played on a Revox B77 and digitised on an Edirol R44 at 96kHz and 24-bit. This file was taken into iZotope RX for extensive cleanup that included: removal of intrusive hum and spurious noises; surgically removing numerous telemetry beeps from the landline recording; and reducing room reverberation on the Melbourne campus recordings.
Fortunately I did have a (rather hissy) cassette copy of the final master mix to use as a guide in restoration and from this was able to retrieve the classroom discussion audio, which required pitch correction in iZotope RX.
There were missing sound effects which could not be copied from the cassette of the master mix because they needed to be faded under other material. Hence these needed to be replaced.
I found a suitable effects track of school playground sounds and for the school orchestra a beginners Suzuki classroom group was a suitable substitution (the Suzuki method was taught in the school in its early days).
All of these elements were brought into Logic Pro X, split into separate clips and tracks and carefully re-assembled and re-mixed. Finally clip gain adjustments were made to even out overall level and loudness readings.
In addition I added the music at the end — an excerpt from The Well Tempered Clavier by J.S. Bach, to punctuate an otherwise rather abrupt ending.
The final mix was exported from Logic Pro X, downsampled to 44.1kHz in iZotope RX and from there exported as an mp3 file. Tags were added in Music Tag Editor Pro.