MRH: I think you raised an interesting issue where there are a number of music and sound effects libraries from which composers, sound designers, and sound effects guys draw, and you’re among a number of composers that have noted overused sounds in film, TV or commercials, and I guess that partially pushes you to find and create something new and fresh because you don’t like hearing the same thing again.

PC: Yeah, for sure. A lot of those libraries I find are what sort of inspired me to start taking things in that direction. There’s a pretty famous one called Omnisphere which, when it first came out, was pretty mind-blowing, but now it’s like you can’t turn on the TV without hearing it.

Its whole thing was really weird found sounds and manipulated stuff. A bit of it comes from them taking those sounds and processing them in a way that no one can really tell.

I actually had a funny conversation with a composer last summer, and he was saying ‘Yeah, sometimes you do sort of feel bad because you basically sat back and pressed one key and just made a freaky drone for however long, but at the same time you definitely pay for it on other cues when you’re sweating over a day to get 20 seconds of the right music.

MRH: In your bio it says you also use vintage synthesizers and electronic instruments.

PC: Yup, I’m a big fan of that stuff for sure.

MRH: How hard is it to maintain some of them, because they were pretty complex machines?

PC: It can definitely be hard. Rule No. 1 is you don’t take them to gigs - that’ll ruin one pretty fast.

This is terrible, but I have an old Oberheim synth that I got recently which I love, but every once in a while one of the oscillators will stop working, and the way I’ve found to fix it is you hold down the oscillator that’s not playing, and then you just sort of lift the keyboard up and drop it, and then it usually starts working again. I think it’s just a loose chip. There are synth-heads out that that’ll probably kill me for saying that.

For a lot of synths you just sort of get used to them. [With another type I have], you’ve got to turn them on 15 mins. before you play them because they’re going to start going out.

There are quite a few good techs in Toronto that actually restore them and do quite a good job. I used to work in a vintage instrument store called Paul’s Boutique, and we worked with a lot of repair guys that dealt with a lot of that stuff, so it’s not pretty bad. The only time it’s pretty bad is when it’s parts that just aren’t available anymore, but I’ve been pretty lucky so far.

MRH: Do you find it has been advantageous to be a composer in Toronto, or does it matter what city you live in at this point?

PC: I’ve only lived in Toronto while I’ve been a composer. I do think it would a make a difference where you would live.

 I grew up in Halifax and I love Halifax, and there’s always a part of me that always wanted to move back. However, I don’t know that I could have the same kind of career in Halifax that I do here. I don’t think there’s as much work going on there, in terms of this, whereas here there are whole sections of this city that are dominated by production companies and ad houses.

I hear ‘the next step’ is to move to L.A.… I’ve a friend that lives in L.A. and is constantly trying to make me [move down] just so he can have another friend there, but I don’t know if L.A. is my scene.