Gymnopédie No 1

Recently, I've been revisiting my love of classics and one that struck me when I reheard it was Gymnopédie No 1 by Erik Satie. I think what I like most about it, is how peaceful it makes the listener. Immediately, any bad feelings are immobilized, everything becomes lighter just from the first few notes. This is perfect relaxation music for me; it encompasses everything that I love about the flowing and fluctuating rhythms of music and it seems to make everything else in the world feel distant. The feeling that I get most when I listen to this is an uplifting of spirit and a general happiness.

Typing Error

One of our ideas for the office space was to have an error occurring to a worker whilst they are typing, so that you hear the typing halt at the sound of the error and then the sound of repeated and progressively angrier button presses to try to get rid of the error, making it appear more often! Here is the edited sound effect that we want to use. It is a little quiet at the moment, so we will use a compressor to boost the volume.

Timeline

Here is a very rough timeline for the idea. After recording some sounds, we have some ideas of what to include but I think this will probably change when we put everything together!

We need to talk about Kevin

I recently saw 'We need to talk about Kevin'(2011) directed by Lynne Ramsey. The film was interesting and quite psychologically involved in that you are viewing one characters psychology through the turn of events that occurred. I enjoyed the cinematography and felt that the casting was spot on, especially the parts of Kevin (Ezra Miller) and Tilda Swinton (Eva Khatchadourian).

One thing that struck me and resonated even as I was sat at home that evening, was the sound design. One particular repeated effect of sprinklers that was present in parts of the film then linked in with the ending so that it foretold the events that were to be revealed to the audience. This is even more interesting because the events that are revealed at the end of the film actually happen to the character before we even join her at the beginning, therefore, the sprinkler sounds can actually be attributed to her own beliefs and links of those events to the ones we discover at the end, as if she has actually included them in her recollections of her past and actually made a connection in her mind. This signifies that she is searching for a cause of the big event and those are the ones she has picked out as points in time that could possibly have contributed in her opinion.

There was also an interesting sound link where the sounds from the next shot are woven in with the actions of the current shot so that you know that action should not create those sounds but because it then links with the next scene it's preempting what's to come and almost makes sense to be used with that object.

The style of the film really allows for a psychological exploration and journey through a characters mind and justifications for just one event. The reveal at the end of the film is justified because it allows you to feel the psychology of the character, trying to make connections, trying to make sense of why this has happened and not fully understanding or being able to accept what has actually happened until the very end of the film when you discover almost as she does.

I would really like to include some of these sound techniques in future projects, as I feel linked with an image, it can create connections within the text and give room for extra thought, even after the film has ended.

Feedback from our Tutorial

One point that has stuck with me from the tutorial with Esther today, was to use the internal commentary of a cleaner. Our original idea had included an office workers occasional comments but I can see how the use of a cleaner could create an interesting dynamic to the piece, a different viewpoint and therefore the piece could have a completely different outcome. It's a small change but significant in that the entire shape of the work will be different and include different points. Hannah has worked as a cleaner and I've worked in an office, so between us, I think we can imagine some scenarios that can be commented upon throughout the piece.

Also, this aspect changes some of the sound effects the piece will incorporate, such as the use of hoovering, sweeping and spraying. Not only do the sound effects become more varied but the environment can be changed now due to not having the restrictions of an office worker - the cleaner will visit many more places in a day than a worker and so this can work for us in terms of different atmospheres and scenarios.

Outline for Idea

We also discussed an outline for our idea to present to Esther tomorrow. I'm quite happy with it although there isn't a clear sequence at the moment, just some ideas that aren't particularly in sequence:

Outline for Idea - “Office Space”

Our idea is to show our spaces progression through time, from starting midmorning in an office setting through to the evening when the office becomes a cleaning ground and finally the buzz of machines left on overnight, with a light switch being turned off to signify the end of the track.

So far, we have thought of varying stages through the day where an office’s sounds may fluctuate such as, tea break, smoking breaks, lunchtimes and then when the day would be busier such as peak call times just after lunch. We also think the atmos track can be made of two layers, the sounds of the machines - typing, whirring and the sounds of workers talking - on phones and to each other.

To introduce the piece, there will be a solitary phone ringing and then we want to use a female voice that announces “Good morning, you’re through to (name) at (company name)” then fade up the atmos around her. She will be the main voice throughout the piece to situate the viewer at points in time, such as cigarette breaks and asking if anyone wants tea followed by a kettle boiling. Although she will be the main voice, we would like to include snatches of conversations, i.e two office workers talking about another worker etc.

We want to try using the hydrophone to capture some interesting sounds of “tea” being poured into a cup. Also, following our workshop on Monday, we want to use the cover to try capturing ‘below the surface’ noises such as machines whirring.

Other noises we will include will be close up sounds of typing, photocopying and phones ringing. Also, we could have the sound of refilling paper in a printer, accompanied by beeping noises it makes due to a malfunction which introduces room for our main voice to say “Stupid thing” and start rattling the drawers/banging on machine. We could also use fax noises, like the sounds of incoming fax.

We’d like to introduce the boredom of the space too, by using sounds of a clock ticking and then a pen tapping on paper in the anticipation of lunch which would be made clear by the voice declaring lunch time after the ticking of the clock. At which point we were thinking to fade out the voices to indicate them leaving for lunch and then just having a silent point in the piece. This would signify the intensity of the office environment and then the break from the stresses of the busy day that occurs there, we want this to make the audience feel the relief of the room, as if it gets a break too.

Could also have a window opening and the noises from outside coming through, such as traffic noises, which later could be closed when a worker complains of cold? Giving a sense of temperature to the piece.

During a break where some of the office leave - such as cigarette break, the quieter environment of the few office workers left can be punctuated with close up sounds of a crisp packet being opened and then the crunching of eating them.

The end of the day will be signified by goodbye’s and then the whirring in between cleaners arriving, then spraying sounds of cleaning solution being spray, then hoovering and finally emptying bins before the ending light switch. Might include the finality of relief from a worker signified by a lighter being used and then a deep breath inhaling and exhaling.

Schedule

Just met with Hannah and finished a Schedule for the production:

Schedule

Week 17 - Planning

23/11/11

Meeting to discuss initial ideas.

Book equipment following meeting

Draw up mindmaps and schedule.

24/11/11 - 28/11/11

Source office specific sound tracks - i.e films that incorporate office sound sequences, sound tracks about offices etc.

Review at least 1 sequence

Week 18 - recording sounds

28/11/11

- Get equipment out

29/11/11 - 01/12/11

Record and log sounds

Week 19 - editing track - rough edit/final edit

5/12/11 - 7/12/11

- Rough editing

Week 20 - Contingency time and Presentation

12/12/11 - 14/12/11

Contingency editing time

Plan presentation

15/12/11

Present

Techniques

Walk thru Autumn Leaves by Piotr Zebrowski is a short clip that has a rhythmic quality.

This sound has inspired me to use the close up microphone technique. It's simple yet creates a much crisper sound and is helpful in defining the sense of space that the piece will need.

Cafe Noise

So, I sat in a Starbucks with a pad of paper and a pen to take down some notes on the sorts of sounds that are heard.

The general atmosphere is a buzz of conversation from all around the cafe, punctuated by the sounds of the coffee machine letting out steam or pouring a coffee. Next you can hear the till being opened and closed, the clink of money being set down on a counter and the rustle of food being bought. The scraping of chairs as people begin to leave or sit down can be heard if you listen for it.

However, when you get those obvious sounds out of the way, the noises begin to become quite repetitive, there isn't really enough variety to get you through three interesting minutes of soundscape so this germ of an idea is being left behind.

Jarman's Garden - Produced by Sherre Delys

The start of the track immediately creates the sense of pebbles underfoot and the close up recordings of wind chimes immediately creates the sense of a relaxed atmosphere. The introduction of the voice is not harsh, as the voice itself seems mellow and relaxed and begins to build up a picture of the location in our mind. The piece is building a space within the listeners imagination by using textile noises - noises that create a sense of feeling such as the pebbles crunching underfoot.

The voice is not the focus of the piece, this is clear by the fact that it isn't present throughout and is fragmented, sometimes not clear or easily understood. When listening, there isn't much of an accent creating a character or any insight in the words he's saying into his own personality or experience of the place - merely a description of the place as it's seen.

The build up of layers and voice through the beginning of the piece creates the garden as if we are walking through it. I feel that the piece uses multiple layers to it's advantage to get the listener to become aware of the surroundings. I feel it's not as immersive as 'Ol-Olool-O' because the voice is a constant reminder that we are not there but imagining the place as it is being viewed.

As well as the natural sounds of the pebbles falling, noises of clanging and walking over pebbles - there is a simplistic tonal layer which fades into the piece every so often. I get the feeling that the piece is impressionistic of the place and therefore uses these tones to enhance the relaxed feeling that is present.

Then ending part of the track is the most characteristic of the relaxed atmosphere - with the occasional bird call but mainly the sounds of the waves crashing onto the beach and the padding of walking through the sand. The tinkling of bells from the garden reappear in this section which reminds us of the garden not far from this peaceful beach. There is a recurring low tone under the sounds of the wave which gives the tone of the place - a monotone atmosphere.

I like the track because of the varying techniques used to make the listener picture the garden and then the surrounding coastal area in the ending section.

"Ol-olool-O"

Chris Watson's "Ol-olool-O" from the album "Weather Report" was a very dimensional track. I feel it's a very immersive track utilising close recordings and atmos tracks to make you feel as if you are there as it progresses and the exotic sounds create the rainforest atmosphere. There are sounds that pass by the listener - cattle are driven along, the sounds of cattle bells and the foreign languages being spoken by the drivers as they pass by behind the cattle instil the feeling of the movement. It's a nice moment that disrupts the previous peace that had been built up with forest sounds where the listener feels comfortably solitary, this disruption carries the piece forward and makes the listener more aware of an active environment.

There's a nice transition to a close up recording of flies as if they are buzzing round the listener, which again reintroduces the immersive techniques of the sound artist. Finally an aeroplane in the distance gives a sense of a far off civilisation from what we've been experiencing.

To create the rainforest, an atmos track was used which incorporated cricket sounds but there are many other sounds that create a sense of the exotic such as the first noise of an ox. The final piece has many layers of sound that are introduced and faded as we progress, including those of the flies and cattle.

I liked this piece because I felt completely immersed in the space created by the exotic sounds and could imagine the cattle walking by as I heard the noises. The voices of the cattle drivers created an interesting dynamic by introducing other humans but still maintaining a distance from them as a listener. I pictured them as I listened but I didn't get a sense of character because they were talking amongst themselves and in a language I don't understand; I felt this worked as it made you feel that you are there watching them. The piece is successful in creating a dimensional world in the audience's mind by using dynamic recordings and layering to place the listener in it's space.

Sense of Space

The new assignment is to convey a sense of space through a 3 minute track. When I read the brief, I couldn’t wait to get started! Far from finding the task daunting, despite having little experience with creating sound tracks and recording sounds, I find myself quite enthusiastic and have a few initial ideas in mind already. To further this, I plan to spend some time this weekend sitting in some of these spaces to try to get a sense of the place and what sounds there are, which ambient noises and atmos tracks I could use and whether there are any intermittent sounds that could be used to effect.

I quite like the idea of exploring the space in a cafe using sounds such as clinking of cups, the coffee machine, the chattering buzz of talk as an atmos track and the occasional sound of the till being opened.

Another interesting space could be a central area or busy road but graduating from early morning where there are fewer sounds to a crescendo of activity - namely the workers commuting to work. This could involve an increasing noise of trams, different car engines, a car horn, hearing the footsteps of hurrying workers as they rush to get to work juxtaposed with the beginning which could be the cleaning carts that go around the city, the rustle of leaves on the ground, a tin can being blown across the street.

Finally, I thought of an office space. The clacking of keyboards, the drone of workers answering phones, a ringing noise, the sound of notes being written and noises of photocopying. Again this could build up from an early morning scenario with the sounds of a hoover to indicate the cleaners, a blind being drawn and then the first workers arriving - the click of the kettle from tea being made. The whirring of the machines and fans could also be used throughout the piece to indicate periods of still.

Final Edit

Today was our final edit and despite the fact that the piece is still not 3 minutes, I'm happy with the 2:28 mins we have got because I feel that it doesn't feel that it's extended and the pace is still there. The narrative is clearer and has a bit more added to it thanks to the suggestion of footage usage by Esther in our feedback, as we feel that it worked and some other footage that we reviewed and decided could be used after all. I'm confident that on Thursday we can present the final product and the audience will be able to understand our objectives to express the journey of the pebble. I feel that the ending is open to the viewers interpretation as you are left to wonder is the end shot the same pebble, a new pebble or a new leg of the pebbles journey and if it is, how did it get there? Despite the difficulties with footage and planning, I think the project has developed as we've gone along and is presentable. However, I have learnt a fair few points about what to film and how much to film. This first project has also given me experience with the XM2 and Final Cut Pro; I'd never used either before and so it's been quite a learning curve but I feel more confident in finding my way around final cut pro and the XM2 because of this!

Feedback

After our feedback session with Esther, I am feeling very positive that the film can be increased in length whilst still retaining it's overall narrative and objective. There were some good points about what worked and what didn't that watching it back in a final project revealed to us and Esther was able to make suggestions about adding in another section of footage we didn't think was usable in a different area so that it might work. We will definitely be trying this in our next edit next Tuesday. Aside from this, she was able to comment on the narrative of the piece so I feel successful in communicating that this is a pebbles journey and the different things that happen to it to move it around the location. She made a great point about a possible shot incorporating the farmers walls that the pebble could have chipped off from, that had we thought of it in advance, I think would have enhanced our film, however, the absence of this type of shot only serves as a reminder of my previous thought to make sure to film extra shots than you originally think of that may help to improve a narrative.

Editing

We're finally in the edit stage and I'm very excited to see how everything turns out.

After today's session however, my fear that we hadn't captured enough footage has turned out to be true - we can only just put together about 2 minutes of the 3 minute film. I'm a bit concerned that we've used practically all of the usable material and it's still not even close. If anything, I will take this forward into my next project so that I will have a wide selection of shots to choose from and enough to make the film the correct time. Another good point is that although we have different shot styles, we perhaps needed to use a more varied approach in specific scenes; for example, we have a long shot of the pebble on a road and in the edit we could have done with a close up too, which we hadn't thought of during the filming process. In future projects, I will definitely get more shot types of the same scene than I think I'll need in edit because not only does it help when trying to create pace in a piece of work, you never know what works and what doesn't until you try it and it's better to get more than you need than to be stuck with too little for a final project. Having said this, I am positive that the narrative is clear and our aim of portraying a stone's journey through Edale is communicated in the rough cut we will show to Esther on Thursday. Hopefully with some feedback we can expand the time of the final project to show in our presentation.