Michigan members of Loomis’ Battery and the 1st South Carolina has the opportunity to do some unique shooting for a 20th Century Fox sound recording project to accompany production of the motion picture “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World,” which was filmed in the summer of 2002 and released in November 2003.
The motion picture displays the most detailed representation of naval combat involving square-rigged sailing ships ever filmed. Russell Crowe plans the role of Jack Aubrey, a character featured in Patrick O’Brian’s novels. The script combines parts of two novels, Master and Commander and The Far Side of the World and involved graphic naval combat.
Filming took place at the same studio complex in Mexico where “Titanic” was filmed several years ago. With this kind of production the sound track must be totally recreated after filming is complete. Large jet engines were used as wind machines to fill the sails, so none of the original sound recording will be heard in the theater. Sound production began in the last fall of 2002. Director Peter Weir favored creation of authentic sounds wherever possible.
After initial contact with Gordon Laco of Midland, Ontario, a historical consultant on the film, we developed an agreement to make a supply of round shot, grape shot, bar shot and chain shot, in both 12-pdr. and 24-pdr. calibers and provide field pieces to fire for the sound recording. The agreement was accepted by Richard King, sound director for the production. Arrangements were made to do the firing at Camp Grayling, Michigan, in early February 2003.
As far as we can tell this was the most extensive firing of this kind of large naval type muzzle-loading ammunition in more than 1256 years. Firing took two full days with more than a dozen and a half microphones set around the gun firing position and down range to record the in-flight sounds and, in some cases, the breaking of wood as it was hit.
A light wood structure made of old shipping pallets was set at 100 yards. Grape shot was recorded as it shattered through the structure. When powder charges were lowered to slow the grape shot, a might tighter pattern was noticed. Two shots of 24 pdr. bar shot leveled the target before we went on to longer ranges.
The majority of other shooting involved firing over the microphones at varying heights, about 400 yards from the firing position. Although accuracy was not a goal, it was interesting to note that the bar shot tended to rotate slowly while in flight in kind of a seesaw pattern.
Norm Gibson of the 1st South Carolina used his 12-pdr. CS iron Napoleon replica and indicated that the bar shot flew about as well as solid shot at 400 yards. Loomis Battery fired an original bronze 24-pdr. field howitzer from the collection of member Matt Switlik. It was never equipped with sights, so estimates of accuracy were harder to make.
To avoid damage to gun bores, the chain shot was assembled with a wood collar encasing the chain while it was in the gun bore. This worked very well — the wood splintered at the muzzle and launched the chain shot which tended to make lazy rotations but flew with the chain taut in all but one case, in which the balls separated, probably due to a bad thread in the eyebolt location.
Since these were lightweight field guns firing ammunition normally used in heavier naval guns, powder charges were kept a bit light and the chain shot balls were cast in aluminum to keep the total package weight within field gun proportions. Much of the shooting was done with half-charges of powder at the request of the sound director who wanted more swell time for his recorders as the projectiles flew over.
At 400 yards a heavy timber wall was constructed of 6x6-inch pine with the intention of recording the crunch of solid shot on heavy wood. This was saved for the very end of the 80-round program. Unfortunately, the two days of shooting did not leave time to destroy it as planned. By accident one of the 24-pdr. chain shot rounds hit short and ricocheted into the timber target.
Chain shot was fired from a light (one pound) charge and was made of two aluminum balls weighing only about one-third the normal mass. One ball easily broke out a timber, the second ball hit on the joint of the two timbers and did not break through, but the chain left an impression spanning both points of impact. No doubt this was a very effective form of ammunition when fired as designed.
Super-sensitive microphones were used and efforts were made to dampen noise from the field carriages as they recoiled. All moveable parts on the carriages were taped up with rags to quiet their rattle. The characteristic “bell” sound of the bronze field howitzer was dampened for most of the shots by wrapping and duct taping a heavy piece of old carpet to the chase and muzzle of the howitzer.
While bronze naval guns probably have this sound signature, most of the naval ordnance was iron, so quieting the ring was a priority for the authenticity-motivated three-man sound crew from California.
It would seem that the sound recording efforts have drawn a fair amount of attention to “Master and Commander.” National Public Radio produced an interview with Richard King on Nov. 13 as a segment of their “All Things Considered” afternoon program. King described his various sound creation efforts including the shooting and played some of the sound effects.