Page 11 - ION Indie Magazine November December 2019 Issue

KP: Regarding your music project Symphony North, describe your future plans beyond The Bell Ringer.

PO: Symphony North is at its core a band; a progressive rock band. We’ve been fortunate to have some amazing
talent record and perform with us, including former Trans-Siberian Orchestra members Jody Ashworth, Valerie
Vigoda, Michael Lanning, and Tim Hockenberry (who was also an America’s Got Talent semi-finalist). The album
also features current members of Dream Theater: vocalist James Labrie and keyboardist Jordan Rudess, who
was voted by Music Radar Magazine as “Best Keyboardist of All Time.” We incorporate a lot of string
orchestrations, some occasional brass, and piano is a part of almost every song. We have multiple singers with
different range and tones in their voices to give the songs distinct character. We feature a lead violinist, as well.
We try to perform a show that moves from big, anthemic tunes to songs more intimate and raw. I have several
more albums I intend to write. My hope is that once we get The Bell Ringer up and going, I’ll have time to get
back to my studio and begin.he next album.

KP: The Bell Ringer features a total of 24 songs. If you had to pick the one song that most speaks to you,
which would that be and why?

PO: What a great question! And what a difficult question to answer. My initial instinct is to say, “Every Doubt Has
an Answer.” On the album, it’s sung by James Labrie. I asked James to sing it because I needed a voice with
range to hit some big notes, but also with the ability to sound vulnerable. I also asked him to sing it, because
some of the source material on this one comes directly from my own life. I found an intersection in the narrative
of the story with something I was going through when I wrote it and the lyrics came pouring out. But there are a
few others that speak to me. “Yes, Fairytales” is one. That tune turns into a kind of fight song in defense of the
idea that we need to be able to have dreams, no matter how cold reality is around us or how much others tell us
to be practical. Also, “Street Kid (Pt II),” which on the album is sung by Tim Hockenberry -- Tim really helps
convey the song’s idea about everyone needing someone or something to turn to when life comes down hard.
That song has the bell ringer and a homeless kid on the street having an exchange. I won’t lie, when I tracked
the demo the first time, it was hard for me to get through. Lastly, the album’s final song, “Gift of Self,” hits an idea
that matters a lot to me. A pair of lyrics in that tune read: “When a heart needs lifting it’s not ours to wonder why
…listen to the invitation, then ask them how high?” Basically, it doesn’t matter why someone is down; the thing
that matters is being there to help them back up.

KP: Talk a bit about the recording process of The Bell Ringer.

PO: I wrote the music in Protools, except the drums. Then I bought time at a studio and hired an engineer so
that I could have the musicians come in and track live. Most of the vocalists, though, weren’t local, so I had to
have them send their files to me. I’d give them notes for modifications and we’d do a few rounds until it was right.
I did the first half of the album in 2017, took a break to write the novel of The Bell Ringer, then I finished the
second half of the album in 2018. We held it for release this year.

Peter Orullian with
The Bell Ringer cast