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| IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . (1141749) | |
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IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by Gold_12TH on Sat Feb 25 19:18:08 2012  Bernie WagenblastHeard Underground, in Your Dreams There was a time when subway announcements sounded like this: “Gxxrschhh krrtzzz … Borough Hall … pbbbftttz qmmm … suspended … haargggrm.” It was hard to tell whose voice that was. Or even if it was human. Now subway announcements sound like this: “There is … an uptown … local … 1 … train … to Van Cortlandt Park-242nd Street.” The voice is instantly recognizable on any numbered line but the No. 7. It is a chipper, crisp, slightly plummy tenor belonging to Bernie Wagenblast, 55, of Cranford, N.J. It may be too chipper for the morning rush, but usually it’s as welcoming as a disembodied, amplified, reverberating sound can be. The repertoire, however, is limited. We thought straphangers and Mr. Wagenblast — at one time the voice of Shadow Traffic on WABC and WINS — might want to stretch the boundaries. We invited readers to suggest announcements they’d like Mr. Wagenblast to record. Nearly 200 responded. Many wanted to hear nothing, saying that announcements have become too frequent and unhelpful. But most embraced the idea with suggestions that ranged from gritty to romantic. Christopher Bonewitz of Brooklyn even wrote a rap for Mr. Wagenblast to, um, spit. We chose those we liked and Mr. Wagenblast recorded them last week in a studio at The New York Times. To complete the fantasy, we added ambient subway sounds and other effects. We also improvised a bit on Mr. Bonewitz’s composition. How did Mr. Wagenblast get on the subway in the first place? He didn’t answer, “Practice, practice, practice,” though he intimated as much when he recalled his youth in Cranford. “This may sound a bit nerdish,” he said, “but I would take The Star-Ledger and read it out loud when I was at home in summer, trying to perfect my voice.” He did a stint as public-address announcer in junior high. At Seton Hall University, he worked at WSOU, rising to station manager in his senior year. His big break came a year later, when he was recruited by a fledgling company called Shadow Traffic, which planned to provide traffic reports to the many radio stations that could not afford their own exclusive coverage. “I’m broadcasting on two 50,000-watt AM radio stations in New York City — the No. 1 market in the country — in rush hour,” said Mr. Wagenblast, still delighted and amazed by the recollection. “And I’m 23 years old.” (After a long hiatus, he can be heard again, on Saturdays, on WINS, WKXW and WRCN.) Shadow Traffic introduced him to the world of transportation officials, executives and consultants. Those bonds were strengthened at Transcom, an interstate, interagency task force for which Mr. Wagenblast worked from 1986 to 1996. There he met the Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials who were responsible for hiring him a decade later as a voice for the subway customer information system. The other prominent voice belongs to Carolyn Hopkins, who was profiled on City Room in 2010. He recorded short bites that are strung together as needed: “northbound,” “downtown,” “Brooklyn-bound,” “a damaged rail,” “an investigation,” “Church Street.” Just in case, he was asked to record the name of every numbered street, not just those at which stations are situated. It’s not easy to maintain an even but friendly tone, he said. “By the time you get to 151st Street, 152nd Street, you’re wondering — should I have a drink?” All that work has earned the dividend of fandom. “Mr. Wagenblast does a great job with the announcements; obviously, he has a very strong, clear voice, and he articulates superbly,” said Mr. Bonewitz, 29, an actor who made his New York debut in a Shakespeare in the Park production of “Hamlet” in 2008. He lives in Crown Heights and takes the No. 2 train to his day job in Manhattan. “I guess I probably spend more time than most — I don’t know, do other people think about these things? — listening to the way he delivers the messages, as well as their content,” Mr. Bonewitz said in an e-mail after we notified him that his hip-hop announcement had been recorded. "Writing this, it occurs to me that I should probably invest in some classical literature on audiobook. Or probably I should really get a girlfriend. But until then, I’m pretty sure I’ll keep keeping myself company with Bernie Wagenblast & Friends. I can’t help it — I spend so much time on the subway, and they’re the only ones down there that I run into on a regular basis!" ---Fantasy Subway Announcements recordings on NYTimes.com |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by R36 #9346 on Sun Feb 26 07:36:11 2012, in response to IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by Gold_12TH on Sat Feb 25 19:18:08 2012. "The AirTrain is arriving for Station D – Jamaica station, and Station C – Federal Circle.""The AirTrain is arriving for Station A – Howard Beach, Station B – Lefferts Boulevard, and Station C – Federal Circle." "The AirTrain is arriving for all airline terminals." |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by MATHA531 on Sun Feb 26 11:14:18 2012, in response to IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by Gold_12TH on Sat Feb 25 19:18:08 2012. Is this the guy who announces, "Stand clear of the closing doors." Boy he must get very tired at the end of a day making that annoucement thousands of time a day. |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by Spider-Pig on Sun Feb 26 11:21:21 2012, in response to Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by MATHA531 on Sun Feb 26 11:14:18 2012. No, that's Charlie Pellet. |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by Spider-Pig on Sun Feb 26 11:22:06 2012, in response to IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by Gold_12TH on Sat Feb 25 19:18:08 2012. Why not just concatenate the other street numbers? |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by WMATAGMOAGH on Sun Feb 26 11:34:52 2012, in response to Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by R36 #9346 on Sun Feb 26 07:36:11 2012. He also voices the AirTrain at EWR. |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by MATHA531 on Sun Feb 26 11:43:39 2012, in response to Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by Spider-Pig on Sun Feb 26 11:21:21 2012. ...was just asking. |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by Spider-Pig on Sun Feb 26 12:51:16 2012, in response to Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by MATHA531 on Sun Feb 26 11:43:39 2012. No problem. |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by G1Ravage on Sun Feb 26 14:56:23 2012, in response to Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by WMATAGMOAGH on Sun Feb 26 11:34:52 2012. And the M-7s? |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by R36 #9346 on Sun Feb 26 18:42:17 2012, in response to Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by G1Ravage on Sun Feb 26 14:56:23 2012. I don't think so. |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by G1Ravage on Sun Feb 26 21:10:36 2012, in response to Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by R36 #9346 on Sun Feb 26 18:42:17 2012. Kinda sounds similar.... |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by The Silence on Sun Feb 26 22:04:24 2012, in response to Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by MATHA531 on Sun Feb 26 11:43:39 2012. well he was just telling you.... |
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Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . . |
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Posted by WMATAGMOAGH on Mon Feb 27 02:54:16 2012, in response to Re: IRT Countdown Clocks voice over is . . ., posted by G1Ravage on Sun Feb 26 14:56:23 2012. No clue, I was only on an M7 once and wasn't paying too much attention. |
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