Unit 5: Sound Production

Lessons

Lesson 1 - Soundscape

Task 1 - What is a soundscape?

 A soundscape is a sound or combination of sounds that create an immersive environment.

Task 2 (Part 1) - Identify the Soundscapes shown

Sound 1

A thunderstorm (outdoors perspective)

Sound 2

A medieval battlefield

Task 2 (Part 1) - Explain what specific noises that you heard gave you this information

Sound 1

• Storm
• Rain
• Thunder
• Outdoors

Sound 2

• Swords clashing
• Male grunts
• Distant crowd yelling
• Intermittent stabbing sound

Task 2 (Part 3) - Could any other noises have been added to make it more obvious?

Sound 1

• Pattering on an umbrella
• Footsteps through puddles

Sound 2

• Screams of pain
• More gory sounds
• Sounds of horses (neighing, horse footsteps)

Task 3 - Find 2 soundscapes, pick 5 sounds within them and research ways that you could recreate those sounds in a controlled environment

Soundscape 1 - City Park

• Footsteps on grass (Grab some tinsel and step on it)
• Car engines in the distance (Turn on the car in your garage and record it's sounds)
• A football being kicked (Kick a ball)
• Swings squeaking (Record a rusty hinge)
• Dog paws against pavement (Cello tape clips to glove fingers and tap against a hard surface)

Soundscape 2 - An expedition up a snowy mountain

• Footsteps in the snow (Step in a sandpit)
• Wind blowing (Blow into a microphone, and raise the pitch in post)
• Ice cracking (Crush a pine cone)
• Large coat rustling (Get a thick waterproof material, rustle it, and rub objects against it)
• Climbing gear clanking (Hit two metal objects against each other)

Lesson 2 - Foley

Task 1 - What is Foley?

 Foley is the reproduction of everyday sound effects that are added to films, videos, and other media in post-production to enhance audio quality.

Task 2 - Make a Podcast:

 We got together in a small group, and in a podcast-like format, we filmed our group having a conversation about what Foley is, where it came from, and what it is that makes it so necessary in cinema. Unfortunately, after many attempts, I'm still trying to get a hold of the podcast footage from the person who filmed it. 

Lesson 3 - Score/Soundtrack

Task 1 - What is a Score/Soundtrack?

 A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film.

 A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game.

Task 2 - An Example of How Music Changes Context:

Task 1: Soundscape Analysis

Part 1

City Park

• Low humming of cars driving in the distance
• Children yelling/playing
• Dogs barking
• Tree leaves rustling in the wind
• People talking
• Birds chirping/squawking
• Small footsteps (children) tapping on the pavement
• High heels against the pavement
• Stroller rolling past against the pavement

Manhattan Apartment (Raining)

• Loud wind, suggesting high altitude
• Rain tapping against the window
• Car horns beeping
• Low humming from cars driving in the distance
• Metal hinges squeaking (likely from lorry or garage)

Part 2

City Park

 The combination of nature sounds, such as tree leaves rustling and birds chirping, along with the sounds of people and children, go together to suggest that we are in a park. However, we can infer that this park is in a large city due to the sounds of cars in the distance, and also the sounds of heels on the pavement, as usually people don't casually wear heels to the park, but they may if they are on their way to an office for example.

Manhattan Apartment (Raining)

 While the fact that we are in Manhattan in particular isn't explicit, it's still clear that we are in a large city due to the industrial sounds of hundreds of car engines and even horns. We can hear rain tapping against a window, which not only tells us that it's raining, but that we are inside a building. The high winds suggest we are at a high altitude in an apartment or tall building, though it may also suggest that it's simply just very windy. I think the combination of the winds and the distance of the cars is what gives the impression that we are high above ground level.

Part 3

City Park

 Removing the sounds of cars and heels could potentially remove the possibility that the soundscape takes place in a city. Removing the sounds of the people as well could make it so that we wouldn't even think it was a park at all, but maybe a small forest. Though if we added some sounds of water rippling and ducks, it could give us more insight into where we are in the park, and that we are near a lake/pond.

Manhattan Apartment (Raining)

 If the sounds of the cars were removed, we wouldn't be able to tell that we are in a city, and if the sound of the rain against the window was removed, we wouldn't be able to tell that we're inside. If sounds of phones ringing and people tapping on keyboards were added in the background, it would tell us that we aren't in an apartment, but an office block.

Task 2: Soundscape Planning & Design

 For this task, I was to initially come up with three soundscape ideas, but then execute only one of them. My three ideas were:

1. A restaurant where a waiter drops the food
2. A Georgian party where a guest collapses/is poisoned
3. A circus-themed amusement park where a clown goes rouge and kills all the children

 I chose the first option because I thought it was the most sensible and doable. The second option would have been difficult as I wanted a violin orchestra to play in the background to enforce the Georgian element, however, I cannot play the violin and we are not allowed to use audio from the internet, as well as the fact that I don't think we are even allowed music of any kind.

 While the insensitive nature of the third option wouldn't have stopped me from creating it, this one would have also required some kind of music to really drive the circus theme home, and so when the listener hears low laughter, they are more likely to assume that it's a clown. Maybe pairing a horn sound with the laughter may have been a good substitute, but I'd have no idea how to recreate that sound without an actual horn. There is also the fact that kids screaming and other gory sounds will have been quite difficult to achieve properly without the aid of sound effects from online.

 So, for the restaurant soundscape, I plan to create it using the following sounds:

•  People chattering
•  High heel footsteps
•  Footsteps on hard floor
•  Clanking of cutlery

 And for when the waiter drops the food:

•  Cutlery falling on the ground
•  (Possibly) Plates smashing
•  Food falling on the ground
•  Waiter grunts as he falls
•  Customers gasp

This is how I plan to create these sounds:

People Chattering

 I can record my own voice.

High Heel Footsteps

 I have pairs of heels that I can thump against a hard surface, or I can even wear the shoes and walk past my camera.

Footsteps on Hard Floor

 Same way to make the high heel sound, but with flat shoes instead.

Clanking of Cutlery

 I have cutlery that I can clank together, though any two light metal objects might do the trick.

Cutlery Falling on the Ground

 I will record the sound of me dropping an number of pieces of cutlery on the floor.

Plates Smashing

 I can break either an actual plate, or something else made from ceramics, though I don't know if I will follow through with this one as I'd rather not damage my own property.

Food Falling on the Ground

 Hitting a squidgy substance with moderate force would recreate the sound of something like mashed potatoes hitting the floor. I could also drop peas on a surface too.

Waiter Grunts as He Falls

 I can record myself making those sounds.

Customers Gasp

 I can also make these sounds myself.

Narrative

 Ordinary restaurant ambience is heard for around 20 seconds before a waiter slips and falls to the ground, bringing the food that he was carrying with him.

Inspiration

 I have taken inspiration from restaurant soundscapes such as these:

Sound List

•  People chattering
•  High heel footsteps
•  Footsteps on hard floor
•  Clanking of cutlery
•  Cutlery falling on the ground
•  (Possibly) Plates smashing
•  Food falling on the ground
•  Waiter grunts as he falls
•  Customers gasp

Recording Schedule

 Dates in brackets.

Task 3: Soundscape Production

Risk Assessment by Alex Temperley

 UPDATE 08.02.23 - Today I recorded the sounds of the clanking cutlery. I got two butter knives (as they are much less dangerous than regular knives), and began clanking them against one another whilst recording the sounds with my phone. I also recorded the sounds the knives made when placing them on a wooden table and picking them up. I dropped the cutlery on the hardwood flooring in the dining room too, to help create the sounds for when the waiter drops his tray. I made sure to keep my feet away from the area where I was dropping the butter knives.

 UPDATE 10.02.23 - I recorded the footstep sounds today. The shoes I chose for the ordinary footsteps had only small heels but we're quite loud, so I didn't feel the need to do the high heel sounds in the end. 

 UPDATE 11.02.23 - I felt the food falling on the ground and the plates smashing were just too risky for me, so instead I recorded the sounds of a tray falling to the ground and a plastic cup. 

 UPDATE 12.02.23 - For the people chattering, I ended up only recording one conversation, as I felt that too many conversations happening at once would likely distract from the other atmospheric sounds that I'd argue are more important. I also decided to do the people gasping today too, so there's no longer any need to record on another day, and I can get to editing sooner. 

The Final Result

Task 4: Evaluation

What Went Well:

- I completed the task at hand at the deadline

- I completely planned everything out

- No one was hurt during the making of the soundscape

What Went Wrong:

- Some things didn't go to plan, such as when decisions were made to not record certain sounds, or film them on different days than planned. 

What I Have Learned:

- There I a lot of thought and effort that goes into Foley

- You can create an entire atmosphere just from a few generic sounds, and the slightest additions of sounds or removal of them can completely change that atmosphere. 

What I Should Improve On:

- My ability do produce realistic and convincing sounds

- My ability to mix audio properly

 Overall, even though my expectations may have been a little high for this project, I think it turned out well. I just wonder if people will know what it is meant to be if they just listened to it with no context, and if they don't, I'd be interested to hear their interpretation.