The BBC radiophonic workshop and the Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy

Sound design in 'The Hitchhikers guide to the Galaxy' and the BBC radio phonic workshop. As a life time fan of the 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy' I have listened to the radio series many a time and every time it becomes more and more apparent to me how important the sound is to the overall success if the Series. Its writer Douglas Adams intended the series 'to sound like a rock album'. I have talked about Hitchhikers in my blog last year in terms of its sound, but I wanted to go into more detail this year and deconstruct the use of sound and research more into the work of the BBC radio phonic workshop. The one this that always sticks out for me in the series is that it sounds so unearthly. There is something about the soundscape used that makes it seem alien, especially when taken into the context of when it was first released. The kind of sound effects used would have been revolutionary when it was first released in the 70s. One example of this is how the voice of the guide is designed. Whenever the guide is narrating there is a strange electronic undertone. This lifts it from being a man reading out a book, to it being an electronic talking book. It also helps to give an alien quality. This help to put the audience in the position of Arthur the main character, like him we are being exposed to all these new alien ideas, finding it strange, exiting and slightly disconcerting. By giving the book this strange unearthly quality, making it feel more alien the listener is also plunged into a new world along with Arthur. The Sound effects also help make the world believable. The whirring of spaceships and atmospheres of distant planets needed to all be created in order to make Adam's world a real one. My favourite example of sound editing to create a believable atmosphere is when the heart of gold lands inside a giant marble cave. There is a lot of reverb put on the voices. The effects that are put over the voice recording make the atmosphere seem vast, empty and cold. It enforces the idea that the characters are lost as they are alone in this vast space. It makes them seem small which adds to the idea that they have no idea where they are and are completely lost. The whole series has this strange, electronic futuristic character. I think that this help to make the series even more believable and reinforce the theme of how behind the human race (represented by Arthur) are, he is surrounded by these strange beeps and whirrs. It also makes the absurdity of the story seem believable and completes the brilliance of Adam's script. The sound on Hitchhikers was produced by the BBC radio phonic workshop. It was founded by Daphne Oram and Desmond Briscoe in April 1958. The workshop was pioneering in its use of electronic sound. It's most famous output is probably the theme tune to Doctor Who. They often made do with what they could find and had to be creative in how they made sounds for example The tardis. "I spent a long time in planning the Tardis sound," says Brian. "I wanted a sound that seemed to be travelling in two directions at once; coming and going at the same time." The sound was actually made from the bare strings of a piano that had been dismantled. Brian scraped along some bass strings with his mum's front-door key, then set about processing the recordings, as he describes it, "with a lot of reverse feedback". (Marshall, http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/apr08/articles/radiophonic.htm). The Workshops co-creator Daphne Oram is a great figure head for the pioneering work of the workshop, even designing her own synthesiser. The workshop, over the years has been home to many pioneering sound designers. MARSHALL, Steve, (2008), the story of the BBC radio phonic workshop, last accessed 30/10/12 at http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/apr08/articles/radiophonic.htm BOTTI Nicolas, (2009), the hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy for beginners, last accessed 30/10/12 at http://www.douglasadams.eu/en_h2g2_notions.php MARSHALL, Steve, (2009), Graham Wrench: the story of Daphne Oram's optical synthesiser, last accessed 30/10/12 at http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/feb09/articles/oramics.htm WRENCH Nigel, (2008), Lost Tapes of Dr Who composer, last accessed 30/10/12 at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7512072.stm

Session 'Stereo location recording'

This was an enjoyable and informative session. Learning about the different methods of recording stereo Atmoses was interesting and useful. It was good seeing how you can get different effects from recording in different ways. For example clipping two tie clip mics to each of your jacket lapels, the sound you record can sound much more like it's from a characters P.O.V as the mics are relatively close to the ears so the recording is like what you would hear in real life. I had previously used the Rode NT4 stereo mic so decided to chose the hydro mic and tie clip mics when we went on the sound safari. I thought that it would be a good idea to try something new to get the most out of the session. I liked the sound that you get when recording with tie clip mics. It feel so much more like it's from the character's point of view which I think will be useful for my solaris clip and I am going to give in a try. It is also less conspicuous that a large rode stereo mic. meaning you are less likely to get asked to move on when recording in public. This session was great not just for learning, but also for experimenting with different techniques. In future for this project especially I think I will definitely be using some of these techniques.

Plans! Plans! Plans!

PLANS! PANS! PLANS So I have chosen the clip from Solaris for this exercise. I have chosen this clip mainly because it is set in the future and I thin that there is scope to play around with the sounds of things such as the train and the city scape to make them sound futuristic. Also there is a wide range of locations and action that will enable me to gain as much practice from this exercise as possible. I have broken down the clip down into five component parts. This made it more manageable and easier to sit down and think about how I was going to complete this project. The five sections I have identified are: • Bedroom • City • Train • Outside flats • Kitchen The next stage is to think about what was going to be included in each of these sectioned. My preferred method for this is brainstorming. I like getting lots of ideas down on paper and then from there I can pick out which ideas were good and which were not. It also makes life easier as I can see everything that is in the film in front of me at one rather than having to skip through the clip over and over again, there is only so much depressed looking George Clooney can take. I can instantly see what I need and where it needs to be. The first scene-the bedroom Starting with a shot of rain on the window, this need to be prominent in the mix as the shot is a close up. The rain on the window is the most important thing in the shot. When the camera cuts to an establishing shot of Clooney (completely still) in his room is to put on a simple room atmos, air conditioning. The fact that he is in the centre of the shot surrounded by empty space suggests to me that he is being signified as being alone, therefore this should be reflected in the sound design. I think it is an idea to keep noises from outside to a minimum, just the rain outside. And in the room just the gentle hum of the air conditioning and his breathing. The look on his face is serious and he looks trouble so I think that he should be breathing heavily to signify his thoughts. I think as well the overall mix should be quiet to signify the idea of him being alone, I think that it would be more effective than everything being high in the mix, it will also make a bigger contrast between him being alone in a room and then suddenly in the heart of the city. The second scene-the city I have decided that this scene is going to be loud, to be a sharp contrast to the previous scene. I did contemplate making the city atmos quiet and making Clooney’s footsteps and breathing louder, I think this could have made him seem more isolated and alone. However I think that having a lot of loud traffic and people around him shows that he is lost with in the din of it all. Also I want the volume to ebb and flow as I think a sequence that is quiet through out might seem boring. The third scene. –the train I think that in this scene I will make the atmos quite loud but not so loud that any sound of the main character is drowned out. There is some element of Foley here as well as he is fiddling with something that look like a small case that clicks shut, I will use a glasses case for this I think. The fourth scene-outside the flat block. There is a lot of rain so obviously there will be rain atmos. I am contemplating putting some rumble of thunder in as well; I think this will add to the moodiness of the scene. I will try it out and see what it looks like. In terms of Foley there is just the footsteps really these are on concrete and there is also the splash of the wet surface. I think I will create third by layering footsteps and small splashes. The fifth scene-the kitchen In this scene there are quite a lot of things to think about. There is a lot of Foley. Getting things out of the fridge, the fridge door, the chopping board, the tap, the telly walking across the room and a door bell. I think some of this can be recorded in the protools studio. However things like the ridge and the tap will have to be done at home. I think over all this scene will be quiet again, as I think that as the firth scene of the character at home is quiet I think I should keep this consistent, with occasional loud moments, (the fridge door, the doorbell), being loud (maybe). I think a lot of this will change as I start to work on the project but I think I have a solid starting point.

sync sound workshop

Now that the cinematography students are using different cameras, (Sony Z1) it was useful to learn how to record sync sound with the. The kit we needed was, a sennheiser 416 (to be used for all future location dialogue recording), a boom pole and to be able to control the levels a Wendt mixer. This is a much easier way than how we recorded sync sound last year, being able to control the levels externally from the camera makes life so much easier and means that there is a better result in the end. Avoiding the dreaded ‘fix it in post situation’ which is obviously a major no no. Also what I found interesting in this session was working together with the cinematography group as it gave us more of an idea what working in a big crew is like, It was also good working as a team of sound people as when working on the other projects in the narrative module it’s sometimes difficult as you seem to need 3 or four hands to hold all the equipment and press the right things at the right time. It was also good working in the studio as it was more like being on an actual set. I really enjoyed this session, I learnt a lot and got more of an Idea what being a sound recordist on a bigger more professional set would be like.

Folk festival soundscape

This summer I went to several folk festivals and discovered that there is something very distinct about the sound of a folk festival at different time of the day.
I think my favourite is the morning. To start with it's very quiet, a few shuffles of people beggining to venture from their tents. There's the sizzle of Bacon as every food stall owner knows that soon several hundred hungover folkies and morris dancers will descend upon them. There's the gentle mumble of groans from people who spent a little to long in the beer tent yesterday and the discordant tuning from many musicians, fiddles and melodeans seem to battle for dominance while tin whistles struggle to be heard, and everyone insists that the drummers please shut up. There is this gradual build of sound as more and more people arrive to the site, the zipping of tents and soggy footsteps. Then the bells, the chiming as the morris teams finally see the light of day, crawl out of their resting place and towards the beer tent and the bacon sandwiches. Then the gradual transition for seeming chaos to the rhythmical thunp and chime that accompanies them. then once again the bells grow quieter as the dancers move away to their first spot of the morning, leaving chattering festival goers to their breakfast.

Clockwork Orange

To begin my research for this module I've watched Clockwork Orange.
In general I enjoyed the film, I've not seen it in its entirity before and found it to be a gripping and morbidly fascinatig watch.
The sound design in the film is very effective and I think that it is incredibly important the film over all effectivness.
Right from the beggining it had me gripped with the strange electronic music that goes over the titles. the fact that then this goes into the opening scene set in a very modernist, surreal looking milk bar help to set the tone. It is clear that there is something from the start that there is something not quite right, it;s almost sickly mixed with the strange set design of shinywalls and tables shaped like nude women.
The thing that strikes me about the sound design in terms of music is the juxtaposotion between the electronic and the classical. This help to add to the tone of unease. The fact the classical music is layed over the scenes of violence only serves to increase this. The sound design in the fignt scenes seems both overexagurated and subtle at the same time. The sound of clubs hitting heads and chairs smashing are rather exagurated but the volume is not overpowering and is mixed well with the music and there is a balance. This I think adds to the idea of 'ultra violence' it enhances the violence with out making it comical which would detract from the films mood.
I think the film is a brilliant piece of work and the sound design is a big part of that.

Foley Workshop

Foley Workshop 2nd session 11/10/12

I really enjoyed this workshop. It was interesting and a good laugh. Foley is something I had previously been interested in and did want to find out more about.
We atarted by finding out more about what foley is about. We watched several short clips and thought about what sound would be required. As well as what sounds were needed, we thought about how to create certain sounds. Some were obvious like a rolling coin, just roll a coin. Otheres require more creativity for example some of the gorier sounds, like breaking bones, snapping celery. or probing wounds, musing up a banana.
In groups we seperated off an dexperimented with some of out own sounds. We mutilated some friut and veg to get a plethera of gory sounds.  For example stabbing a peeled clematime was quite a convincing sound of flesh being punctured. Also we tried the classic, plastic bag rustle to simulate the sound of a crackling fire.
As I said previously this session was a great insight on how you can create sounds from something that doesn't at first seem obvious.

First session 4/10/12

First Session 4/10/12

      
What is sound design?
Recording-

• Foley
• diolouge and voice over
• music
• atmos

Motifs/sound signiture- a repeated sound that eans something to the story.
adding perspective: mixing and EQ
Sound can create drama and suspense, it can scare the auduience or make them laugh or cry. It helps create mood and tone, which are dictated by the directos intentions.
All in all, Sound helps tell the story.

In this session I began to mark up and create a sound map for No country for Old Men. In However I have now decided to choose Solaris. As it is set in the future and there will be need for futuristic sounds I can see much more room to experiment which is something that I am very interested in.

This session was mainly a recap and an introduction to the module, after it I am looing forward to this project and the rest of the module.