Audio project

Museum of the Moving Image Assignment

During our tour of the Museum of the Moving Image, our guide spent the most time showing us an audio demo. There were two TV screens set up, allowing you to choose from a few classic movie clips. After you chose the scene (he chose  Hitchcock's "Vertigo") it gave you several choices for score. Providing the audience had never seen the movie, we were supposed to guess which one sounded better, and had the most continuity with the scene in question. He played each of them twice; some of them were too dramatic, others too subtle. We finally narrowed it down to two, which seemed like they could both fit. The scene was supposed to be suspenseful; the character was coming to some sort of realization during the course of it. Ultimately we narrowed it down to the correct one, because every time the camera would zoom in on something  you could hear a subtle "ping" to denote that it was important. The demo helped to illustrate how important audio is to moving image, and how choosing it is probably a very careful, tedious process. If the score or soundtrack is off, the whole mood of the scene, or entire movie can be ruined. The score can alter the entire experience of the film for the audience, both positively and negatively. This demo showed me that even the most subtle differences in sound can effect the work as a whole.

Sound Walk

When you think of New York City, my neighborhood is definitely not the first one that comes to mind. I live in the forgotten suburbs of Staten Island, in between a deserted beach and a major road that goes through the entirety of the borough. I decided to take advantage of this unique sonic landscape, and chose my street for the observation. I walked down the block, to the dirt path entrance of the beach, but opted to not go in so I get a variety of sounds. Two constant, ambient sounds were the ocean and the cars zooming by on the street. Whether it was the waves gently crashing on the shore or the car engines droning, both of these sounds were continually present. Ever so often you here a dog barking from a nearby backyard, a horn honking from Hylan Boulevard, and a once a siren rushing by. As I walked around, I heard gates opening, screeching against the concrete, leaves and pebbles crunching under my shoes, and occasionally cars that deviated from the main road and passed a few feet away from me as I walk on the street because of the lack of sidewalk. A family walking their dog passed, the dog panting and his collar jingling. In the distance, I surprisingly enough heard the sound of an ice cream truck jingle (yes, in October.) I most enjoyed the contrast the the sounds of the beach to the busy street parallel to it. I've lived here most of my life and it's something that I'm used to and take for granted. For two very different landscapes, they work well together and are almost soothing.