THE GREAT HUMAN ODYSSEY

Humanity’s origin story gets even more impressive with a symphonic boost from the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra.

1 Origin Story In 2015, the CBC aired The Great Human Odyssey—a sprawling and epic three-part series that asked big questions about the origin of human thought. ”When did humans begin to think like us?” asks director and narrator Niobe Thompson. “When did the first human emerge that we would recognize as us? We call that the evolution of cognitive modernity.”

2 Symphonic Synthesis While most documentary projects lack the budget for a full symphonic score, Thompson worked with composer Darren Fung and the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra to craft one for The Great Human Odyssey. As they were editing the series for broadcast, an idea emerged. “As we were in the performance space in Edmonton recording the score—the film is projected on a screen above the orchestra and you’re listening to it live for the first time— we all realized that this could be an amazing performance,” Thompson recalls.

3 Evolution To transform a three-part miniseries into a night at the symphony is no easy feat, however. For starters, the series and its score had to be recut as a cohesive film project. “Then we had to take the music and repurpose it for the film and rearrange it for the symphony orchestra,” says Thompson. “Of course, this is the best sound you’re going to get while watching a movie.”

4 Make It Click Thompson noticed that other symphonic film screenings had trouble matching with their live musical cues. He and Fung therefore developed a strategy to keep their players on perfect time. “Every player has a set of headphones, and in those headphones is a click track,” he explains. “What that means with The Great Human Odyssey is that the players are going to be to the millisecond on-picture with the music…. It’s much more player-friendly, the orchestras love it and it makes for a much richer musical experience for the audience.”

5 Human Contact The Great Human Odyssey is an in-depth documentary, but it relies more on dramatic recreations than talking head interviews. Calling it a “visual feast,” Thompson says it’s perfect for this format. And as if there weren’t enough happening onstage, he also narrates the whole thing in person. “This is an adventure of discovery,” he says. “I am the person who takes the audience on this journey. So you see me in the film. And I’m also the narrator, so I’m giving you that narration at the front of the stage as you watch the film.”