During this interesting time, when a lot of people are staying home because of the virus, TV binge sessions of are becoming more and more prevalent. While there is a lot of new, original content coming out on Netflix and Hulu, it wouldn’t be a mistake to revisit some of your favorite network shows, as well as giving some a second shot.

Tubi, a free streaming service owned by the Fox Corporation, is capitalizing on this with classics such as 3rd Rock From the Sun, Alf, and Degrassi: The Next Generation. Another series currently streaming is NBC’s Siberia, a supernatural drama shot in the style of a reality television show in which 14 contestants must survive in the Siberian territory of Tunguska.

To learn more about the series, we spoke with one of the show’s creative talents, composer Corey Wallace. Below, Wallace reflects on his time working on the series and much more.

The Roarbots: If there were had been more seasons of Siberia, where would you have liked to see it go? 

Corey Wallace: I’d love to see how the element of time gets played with. There’s a lot of evidence in Season 1 that suggests the characters are experiencing a fluid, nonlinear timeline, and I’m curious to see where that goes. One day, they’re in summer heat and the next day it’s bitterly cold, Daniel finds atomic clocks that are all set to different times, and it’s also suggested that the characters are present during the Tunguska meteorological event of 1908. One of the show’s strengths are these mysterious elements, and I’d love to see how they develop.

Roarbots: In a previous interview, you said you used an orchestra and choir for the main titles. Where did you record that orchestra? 

Wallace: We recorded the orchestra in Budapest, but I was listening remotely from my Los Angeles studio. That was my first time recording remotely overseas, and it was definitely an adjustment because I was so used to conducting my own scores and being able to communicate directly with the orchestra.

I love working with my LA musician community, and when I can, I always record here.  To get the epic sound of the main titles, we really needed to feel the big orchestra in the big room, and with our budget, we unfortunately couldn’t afford that locally. We did, however, record all the soloists and small ensembles here.

Roarbots: Why was it so important to you that the main titles have such an impact?

Wallace: The main titles are an announcement that your show is starting, and I know that when I love a show, that’s such an exciting and joyous feeling. I wanted to make something that could have that effect for fans of the show – something that would grab their attention, give them a groove to tap their feet, and a little tune to sing along with. Great TV themes have the chance to be iconic – Mission Impossible, Hawaii Five-O, Cheers, Friends, The Simpsons – they become more than theme songs, they become cultural phenomenons. That bar is set really high, but that’s what we were shooting for.

Roarbots: Siberia at first glance is a “reality show” that then turns in to something more. Do you think there is a stereotypical sound for reality shows? Meaning, does the score sound different for a reality show than it does for a drama?

Wallace: I think they do sound different, especially in broad stroke, stereotypical terms. We used many reality score conventions like cymbal swells and hits that punctuate the dramatic beats in a real obvious way. We also didn’t want the music for the reality portion to sound too compositionally sophisticated or be too tailored to the drama, since the music for reality shows often comes from music libraries and is edited to the picture. To that end, most reality music isn’t custom to the show, so there aren’t unique themes or sounds. Instead, those scores focus more on vibe, tone, energy, and pace.

A custom, dramatic score should sound more sophisticated, sound bespoke and more tightly knit to a particular story with identifiable themes and sounds. Ideally, it should only sound like that show. Production-wise, it should be elevated by recording live musicians instead of using a fake “in the box” orchestra from computer samples.

Roarbots: Tubi is now streaming the show after the original airing on NBC. Is there a show you didn’t watch during its original run but are watching now on a streaming platform? 

Wallace: Yes, definitely. Remember when that used to be called syndication? I never watched The Big Bang Theory at a prescribed, weekly time on CBS, but then it aired 2 to 4 times a day on TBS, which is how I got into it. It was the primitive form of binge viewing. I let Lost pass me by for years until it came to Netflix, and then I had my wisdom teeth taken out and watched it nonstop for days. Most recently, I watched Westworld season 1 for the first time, and I’m currently getting into Twin Peaks.

Having this unprecedented access to library content is extremely powerful, and I love it, but part of me misses the submissive aspect of watching something “just because it’s on.” Sometimes I turn on the first thing that Netflix suggests to me to simulate that experience.

Roarbots: When you heard that Siberia was getting a second life, what were your initial thoughts?

Wallace: I first thought that if there was ever going to be a chance again for a second season, this is it. I’m excited that more viewers will have a chance to discover it, and who knows, if enough do, it could spark an interest in finally getting season 2 off the ground. It was really cool that this show got a chance to be on a national network like NBC, but that means you’re counting on the right group of people seeing your show at the right time of day on the right day of the week. That can be a small target to hit, but a streaming platform like Tubi equalizes the playing field and gives anybody the chance to discover it at any time.

Roarbots: What do you think is the big secret behind Siberia? What are the “Valleymen” monsters?

Wallace: For the record, I honestly, truly do not know. I never asked creator Matthew Arnold while we were working on the show, and I’m not sure he would have told me if I did.

As I mentioned earlier, time seems very flexible, so possibly something prehistoric or aliens from the future? [SPOILER ALERT] The show gives us a glimpse into a research facility, and it appears that some genetic research with animals has taken place, so perhaps the Vallymen are a byproduct of that.

Roarbots: Are there any misconceptions about composers or the composing process you would like to clear up?

Wallace: That’s a great question. One that leaps to mind is the misconception that changing the edit “a little bit” will only affect the score “a little bit.” Crafting the perfect score is like making musical puzzle pieces. Once put together, they create a complete picture that feels seamless. When film composers write a cue, the timing from one sync point to the next is calculated, and that affects the tempo of the music and how many beats there are, which creates decisions about melody, rhythm, phrase structure, and so on.

Cutting even one second out of a scene can remove one or two beats of music, which can potentially destroy the integrity of the music and its relationship to the picture. OK, that may be a bit dramatic, but at the very least it takes time to address that picture change and figure out the best way to adjust the music. If an entire feature film is not picture locked and gets finely edited after the score has been made, it can take days to make all the necessary score adjustments.

Like everything else, there are fast, brute force ways to fix problems like that, and there are more sophisticated, elegant solutions that can take more time and thought.

Roarbots: Have any of your current projects been affected, production-wise, by the pandemic?

Wallace: Not yet, as far as getting projects. Luckily, everything I’ve been working on in 2020 was already in post when production shut down. I think the biggest impact for me will be later this year or in 2021 if production does not return to normal soon.

I have a long list of side projects I’ve been meaning to get to when I have more time, so there will definitely be a silver lining if that time comes. For my current work, I’ve had to adjust to new protocols just like most businesses. When possible, I’ve been doing things like score reviews remotely and using a live audio stream to broadcast my music in conjunction with a live video stream. For those directors who just have to be in the room with me, we’re keeping a maximum distance while constantly wearing masks, and I’m sanitizing everything thoroughly before and afterward.