Sound Design experience from project 1B

The sound design process was amazing fun, mostly because of the pure freedom involved. Sound recording is the true free process, where you find objects nearby and experiment, but the design is where you truely have control. You can change the speed, the direction, the pitch, etc. and fine tune a normal lack-luster sound into anything, from a spine tingling shrill screech to a light hearted bop or boing. Working with the group led to some pretty interesting ideas that I myself would not have thought of, some of which I loved and some I did not, but for the most part we tried to incorporate everything in. Nothing was out of the question due to the experimental genre in which we worked. From the very beginning I knew that the project would be a real hoot. A project called "Her Ultimate Vaginal Opening" is something that is truly random and destined to be entertaining. And we couldn't do wrong in this project. While we worked, it felt like some of the sounds were so odd and didn't quite match up with the style or idea of the complete track, but when it was placed together it made sense. An example of this for me is some of the clanky, metal sounds, such as the saw-like sound of the moving flask, but in unison with the others, it worked great. In conclusion to all of this, I feel that I have learned to think more outside the box when it comes to sound design and be open to new ideas. A sound is just a set of frequencies in unison and they can shift and shape into any mold. Sound is like audible clay, and as filmmakers and sound designers, we must become the sculptor and artist and create great symphonies to accompany our visual works.

Cymatics

As discussed in class last week, Cymatics is the process of viewing sound. Its awesome how sound moving through an object can show frequency patterns. Just like with many other lessons this semester, this was completely new to me. The process starts by putting sand or other small grain-like substance on a metal surface, then run frequencies through the metal to reveal sound designs/ patterns.
The possibilities are endless for what this type process could be used for. One that come to mind for me could be a visualizer for the next itunes or music player. You play the the current song through the metal surface and the sand moves to the music. Another use could be showing people who cannot hear what a specific frequency looks like.

Sound experience

Its very hard to explain how weird and fun sound recording is to someone who has either A) not ever tried recording sound or B) is not a raging film fanatic like most students in this major. Sound is one of the most important parts to any film project and when you need to get your own unique bits... is where the fun begins. It is amazing how much intensity can be built from a spoon hitting glass, surely a sound that Hitchcock would approve of. That goes for a lot of what my group used, such as pom poms, flasks and chip bags.

Bela Balazs and the Sound of Film

Oh how my eyes have deceived and betrayed me! The blessing of sight and the ability to see visuals has dampened the auditory sense of hearing. Sound is so unique and so very important to all of us as filmmakers. Bela Balazs has a very interesting description of sound, but my favorite part to read was the sections on silence. If it were me, I wouldn't think of silence as the integral part of sound, I just haven't ever thought of it in this way. "We feel the silence when we can hear the most distant sound or the slightest rustle near us." This stuck with me through the whole article.

The other portion I found to be very interesting and important to the theory of sound is the education we can give to our ears. I myself will be doing this more often and will incorporate it into my future works. Balazs states that sound is more difficult to recognize that a visual and that our ears are actually more sensitive to sound differentiation. Pretty cool stuff in my opinion and it just makes me think that when we are working on our projects, sound should equally be as important as the visual.

West Virginian Rest Area- a study of sound

One of the positive things about a roadtrip is the great amount of stops that must be made. On the second day of the trip, we stoppeda at a rest park for breakfast. I walked over to a starbucks and sat down. Quiet conversations were drowned out by the tired footsteps of truck drivers. The flip of page after page, heard from a book a few tables down. The cappuccino maker froths and bubbles and the barista fills the paper cup. The cash drawer opens with a slam and a ding. A woman taps her shoe slowly. There is someone swiping and pulling napkins from a container. In the distance, a blender is buzzing and crushing and mixing. The sounds are only suppressed by the fresh scent of my coffee being handed to me.

Walmart at 3am- a study in sound

If you have been on the road for hours and the end of your trip couldn't come any faster, you might find yourself at a random Walmart at 3am. And while you are there, you might find it to be the perfect opportunity to gather some information for the coming week's journal entry. I walked to the front of the store and sat on a bench, closed my eyes and listened. At this time of night, there are only a few handfuls of people shopping, which made it easier to hear clean and clear sounds. The ringing of flourescent lights buzzed above. An interlude of clashing cartwheels as they are pushed to the registers. The swipe and click of plastic on the credit card reader. An old man counting his change on the faux wood counter. In the distance there is a low whirring of a floor being cleaned and polished. The sounds harmonize and create the unique sound, an ode to a mega franchise. And hopefully, if you find yourself here at 3am, half asleep and listening to the sounds of the store, you bring someone with you, so that you can escape this semi-dreadful place.