“I remember a chill going up my spine when I heard Little Leota at the end of the ride, for the first time. Her words, tone of voice and the creepy music in the background left a memorable impression. I can’t imagine going through the Haunted Mansion without the soundtrack,” Mysti said.
It was only fitting that, as a student in a master’s program for sound design and music for visual media, I would find inspiration in our mutual interest and propose building music and SFX designed for a haunted attraction as one of the five projects required for my thesis. Students were encouraged to work with other artists and community groups in order to fulfill requirements, so I enlisted the help of musician and veteran psychic Mystikka Jade.
Upon approval from my schools committee, we put an ad on Craigslist offering music and sound services and were contacted by a local organization looking to put on a haunted attraction event. I took a tour of their grounds while they mapped out the walkthrough for a total of eight uniquely-themed rooms. Later, we went over my notes and immediately began constructing the sounds.
Prompted by the success of our first music and sound installation, we decided to create a full album under our music outlet Citrine Metaphor - as our first official LitWave Entertainment project and release. We aimed to craft a CD that could be used in almost any haunted attraction, either standalone or as a base sound the attraction creators could expand upon for a more customized experience.
I gained more knowledge from creating House of Hexes and working hands on, alongside Mysti, than I did in my entire post-graduate studies. I began to reevaluate the effectiveness of my academic involvement. After much consideration regarding the quality of my education as well as the devastating financial effects it was having on my future, I dropped out of my master’s program a semester before my presentation (and potential graduation) with a lifetime of debt the value of a small house. Kids, do your wallets a favor and don’t stay in school.
