AUDIO

1.BasicphysicsofSound
2.TypesofSound
3.Reception:ModesofListening
4.SoundArt
5.Recordedsound
6.AudioExamples

Whatissound?
Itisbasicallyapatternformedinthe
vibrationormovementofmoleculesof
air.

Whatissound?
Itisbasicallyapatternformedinthe
vibrationormovementofmoleculesofair.
Whenasoundismade,airmolecules
moveoutfromthesourceinwaves

 Whenasoundismade,airmolecules
moveinwaves

 Thewavesradiateout360degreesand
in3dimensionsfromthesourceuntilit
dissipates

 Whenasoundismade,airmolecules
moveinwaves
Thewavesradiateout360degrees
fromthesourceuntilitdissipates
Analogoustoadropofwaterinapool

 Soundisintentionalvs.noisewhichis
unwantedorunintentional

Inverygeneralterms,asoundwavehas
twoimportantcharacteristics:
Intensity
Pitch

INTENSITY
Intensity=waveamplitude=volume
=loudness
Thisisameasurementoftheheightof
thesoundwave

 Measuredindecibels=dB
Thehumanearrespondstoagreatrangeof
soundintensitiesfrom0dB(thresholdof
hearing)to135dB(thethresholdofpain)
VUmeterinsoundproductionisavolume
unitmeasure

TypicalSoundLevels

Jetaircrafttakingoff....125dB
Rockconcert120dB
Heavytraffic.90dB
Interiorofacar@40mph.80dB
Normalconversation.60dB
Broadcaststudio20dB

PITCH
=Frequency
Referstothecharacteristicofthe
sound

PITCH
=Frequency
Referstothecharacteristicofthe
sound
Forexamplewetalkaboutwomens
voicesbeingahigherpitchthana
mansvoiceoraviolinishigher
pitchedthanacello

PITCH
ItisNOTadifferenceinloudness
(amplitude)butoftonalquality

PITCH
ItisNOTadifferenceinloudness
(amplitude)butoftonalquality
Pitchreferstohowoftenthewave
repeatsitselfinonesecond.
Eachcompletepatternofthewaveis
calledacycle

PITCH
Measuredinthenumberofcyclespersecond
=Hz
Thelowerthenumberthedeeperormore
bassthesound
afrequencyof20Hzwouldsoundlikeavery
lownoteonapipeorganalmostarumble
2020000Hzcoversmostaudible
frequencies

TemporalTerms
asoundorsoundeventhasastructure
andatemporality

TemporalTerms
asoundorsoundeventhasastructure
andatemporality
theinitiationofthesoundiscalledthe
attack

TemporalTerms
asoundorsoundeventhasastructure
andatemporality
theinitiationofthesoundiscalledthe
attack
thisisfollowedbyasustain:Howlong
isitheld?Howlongisitatfull
volume?

TemporalTerms
asoundorsoundeventhasastructure
andatemporality
theinitiationofthesoundiscalledthe
attack
thisisfollowedbyasustain:howlong
isitheld?Howlongisitatfullvolume?
finallythesoundfadesaway=decay

TemporalTerms
These3stagesarepartsofthe
soundenvelopeandapplytoanyandall
sounds

Canadiancomposer,artist
R.MurraySchafer
InhisbookVoicesofTyranny:Templesof
Silence,1993isanessaycalledIvenever
seenasoundwithsomewonderful
thoughts:

NosoundcanberepeatedexactlyNot

evenyourownname.Everytimeitis
pronounceditwillbedifferent.Anda
soundheardonceisnotthesameasa
soundheardtwice,norisasound
heardbeforethesameasasound
heardafter.

Everysoundcommitssuicideandnever
returns.Musiciansknowthis.No
musicalphrasecanberepeatedexactly
thesamewaytwice.

Soundscannotbeknownthewaysights

canbeknown.Seeingisanalyticaland
reflective.Itplacesthingssidebyside
andcomparesthem(scenes,slides,
diagrams).ThisiswhyAristotle
preferredsightastheprinciple
sourceofknowledge.

Thereisnosilencefortheliving.
Wehavenoearlids.
Wearecondemnedtolisten.

Everythinginthisworldhasitssound

evensilentobjects.Wegettoknow
silentobjectsbystrikingthem.Theice
isthin,theboxisempty,thewallis
hollow.

Hereisaparadox:twothingstouch
butonlyonesoundisproduced.Aball
hitsawall,adrumstickstrikesadrum,
abowscrapesastring.Twoobjects:
onesound.

TypesofSoundinFilm
3maintypesofsound
voice
soundeffects
music

Voice
dialogue
interview
narration
voiceover

SoundEffects
addrealismtoascene
synchronous:soundmatcheswhatwesee
(ie.someoneplayingthepiano,thesounds
ofapianoareheard)

SoundEffects
synchronous:soundmatcheswhatwesee
(ie.Someoneplayingthepiano,thesounds
ofapianoareheard)
asynchronous:wedontseethesourceof
thesound(ie.thesoundofanambulanceis
usedasbackgroundsoundwhiletheimage
portraysanarguingcouple)

SoundEffects
Ambience&Presence

Ambienceisusuallythebackground
soundsavailableintheenvironment
canberecordedintheoriginalproduction
oritcanberecordedseparatelyand
deliberatelyaddedtothesoundtrackto
provideacousticspacearoundtherestof
thedialogue

Presence
alocationsauralfingerprint=
nonspecificsoundsontheupperend
(around2,0008,000Hz)

Presence
alocationsauralfingerprint=
nonspecificsoundsontheupperend
(around2,0008,000Hz)
eachroomhasadistinctpresenceofsubtle
sounds

Presence
alocationsauralfingerprint=
nonspecificsoundsontheupperend
(around2,0008,000Hz)
eachroomhasadistinctpresenceofsubtle
sounds

Presence
providesacontinuoussoundingbackground
maysmoothpausesindialogueandgivethe
feelingoflifeinadeadenedstudio
recording
>>otherwisewewouldperceivetheretobea
failureofthesoundsystem

Music
backgroundmusicaddsemotionand
rhythm

Music
backgroundmusicaddsemotionand
rhythm
notmeanttobenoticeable

Music
backgroundmusicaddsemotionand
rhythm
notmeanttobenoticeable
providesatoneoremotionalattitudetoward
thestoryand/orthecharactersdepicted

Music
backgroundmusicaddsemotionand
rhythm
notmeanttobenoticeable
providesatoneoremotionalattitudetoward
thestoryand/orthecharactersdepicted
couldforeshadowanevent,anapproaching
menace,etc.

Music
backgroundmusicaddsemotionandrhythm
notmeanttobenoticeable
providesatoneoremotionalattitudetowardthe
storyand/orthecharactersdepicted
couldforeshadowanevent,anapproaching
menace,etc.
canbeusedtolinksscenes(ie.amotiffora
particularcharacter)

Frenchsound
theorist
MichelChionhas
described

3Modesof
Listening

 CAUSAL
SEMANTIC
REDUCED

CAUSAL
themostcommonformconsistsoflistening
toasoundinordertogatherinformation
aboutitscause(orsource)
thesourcecanbevisibleorinvisiblewith
similareffectsonus
thinkofaphoneringingitcanbeinthe
sceneoroffscreen

CAUSAL
canalsobemoreambiguousinthatwhat
werecognizeisonlythegeneralnatureof
thesoundscause
forinstancewemay(unconsciously)tell
ourselvesthatmustbeamechanical
soundorthatmustbesomehuman,etc.

SEMANTICLISTENING
referstoacodeoralanguagetointerpreta
message:spokenlanguageaswellasother
kindsofcodes
itissomethingweinterpretinaidofthe
narrative
aspokenwordisnotabstractithasa
linguisticmeaningregardlessoftoneor
accent

REDUCEDLISTENING
amodeoflisteningthatfocusesonthetraits
ofthesounditself,independentofitscause
oritsmeaning

REDUCEDLISTENING
amodeoflisteningthatfocusesonthetraits
ofthesounditself,independentofitscause
oritsmeaning
ittakesthesoundverbal,musical,sound
effectsorwhateverasitselftheobjectto
beobservedinsteadofasavehiclefor
somethingelse

REDUCEDLISTENING
Thedescriptiveinventoryofasoundcant
beunderstoodinonelistening
oftenusedforambienceorpresenceor
moreunconsciouseffects
veryimportantinrelationtoSoundArt

SoundArt
Made by artists whose materials
include physical media, sound, and
environments.

SoundArt
Sound artists tend to be poorly
represented by the modes of discourse
that seem satisfactory for "pure"
musical or visual art
They are poorly represented by the
forms of presentation available

 There are an infinite number of concerns,

methods, styles and approaches
Some sound artists work with their sound
physically, allowing the physical contact with
materials to influence their choices. Their
work is a dialogue between the creation of
physical objects and the sound generated by
those objects.

 Because sound art falls between musical

and visual realms, approaches to the
materials can incorporate what the artist
desires from either tradition
For example Robert Racines Sound
Signatures that uses the recording of the
sound of 22 signatures

 Johan Goedhart has created installations using

large amounts of computer printers continuously
printing.
In addition to spitting out reams of paper which
was eventually fed back through the printers, the
sounds generated were processed and made
audible again through various media.
The choice of documents to be printed in such
an installation then becomes a compromise
between the visual and audible output from the
printers.
The sound is a direct result of the artist's choice
of physical materials.

 Whileothersareinterestedinrespondingtomediated
soundeventsthroughappropriation,sampling,re
recordinganddigitalmodificationofthoseevents
ForinstancetheworkofV.Michael(akaThe
Spacewurm)usesmodifiedpolicescanners,intercepts
cellandcordlessphonecallsanddigitalmessaging
systems
OrFredSzymanskiwhosesourcesforFeeder#8are
computergeneratedcyclesoffeedbacksoundsfrom
computersthemselvesspinningharddrives,etc.

 Othersareinterestedinusinglanguageto
breakdownsemanticlisteningmodesorto
buildonthem
SuchasdubpoetPamelaZsGeekspeak
OrhighlyconceptualworkslikeBrandon
LaBellesuseofRolandBatheswritingin
TopophonyoftheText

SoundArt&Space
Sound artists attempt to create environments as a
sculptor might, but which are animated with
sound. Some of them create sound sources which
highlight architectural features, some deal with
concepts of room acoustics.
In addition to altering aspects of physical spaces
which we inhabit, some sound artists present
sounds from foreign spaces where we have never
been

 these may be imaginary, created spaces or spaces

inside objects and bodies.
Alvin Lucier's Music for Solo Performer amplifies
brain waves
John Cage and David Tudor amplified a variety of
internal sounds from plants and machines
Richard Lerman also has created a large body of
work dealing with internal sounds of unexpected
objects, like bridges, plants
They are exploring and exploding concepts of the
transmission of sound through different media

Remember...
Thatsoundisaspatialandtemporalevent
Techniquesofrecording,reproduction,
interventionandeventhemodeofoutput,
willallimpactitsspatialandsonicqualities.
Trytocapitalizeonthisinyourproject

Remember...
...thatsoundoftenhasnotjustone,pure
sourcebutatleasttwo...three...andeven
more.

Remember...
...thatsoundoftenhasnotjustone,pure
sourcebutatleasttwo...three...andeven
more.
forinstanceasIamtypingthesenotes,
thereisthesoundofmyfingersonthekeys,

Remember...
...thatsoundoftenhasnotjustone,pure
sourcebutatleasttwo...three...andeven
more
forinstanceasIamtypingthesenotes,
thereisthesoundofmyfingersonthekeys,
mywatchhittingthetable

Remember...
...thatsoundoftenhasnotjustone,pure
sourcebutatleasttwo...three...andeven
more
forinstanceasIamtypingthesenotes,
thereisthesoundofmyfingersonthekeys,
mywatchhittingthetable,mybreathing

Remember...
...thatsoundoftenhasnotjustone,pure
sourcebutatleasttwo...three...andeven
more
forinstanceasIamtypingthesenotes,
thereisthesoundofmyfingersonthekeys,
mywatchhittingthetable,mybreathing
andincidentalsoundssuchasthe
ventilation,theclocktickingandsoon

MICROPHONEBASICS
therearedifferenttypesofmicrophones,butthey
alldothesamething
theytransformacousticalmovements(the
vibrationsofaircreatedbythesoundwaves)into
electricalvibrations.Thisconversionisrelatively
directandtheelectricalvibrationcanthenbe
amplified,recorded,ortransmitted.

TYPES
Decidingonkindofmicrophonetouse
dependsonwhatyouwantandwhereyou
arerecording

 Omniwillpickupsound360degreesaroundit
thereforedoesntemphasizeanyonedirectionor
location
Cardiodwillnotpickupverymuchsoundfrom
behindit.Usedforconcerts,speeches,lapelmic
Shotgunmicrophonewillpickupthevoicesof
thetalentwithacomfortableamountofthe
surroundingambientsound.Unlikethesterile,
closemic'dsoundthatistypicalwithalavaliere
microphone,theshotgunmicusuallyexhibitsa
fuller,richerandmorepleasingsoundquality.

REALISM?
Livesoundisverydifferentthanrecorded
sound
Inreallifewearemarvelouslyabletocut
out(fromourhearing)anyextraneous
soundsandfocusonsinglesounds

REALISM?
Livesoundisverydifferentthanrecorded
sound
Inreallifewearemarvelouslyabletocut
out(fromourhearing)anyextraneous
soundsandfocusonsinglesounds
Imagineanoisypartyinwhichyouare
havingaconversationwithoneperson

REALISM?
Thisprocessofselectivelisteningis
actuallyknownastheCocktailPartyEffect

REALISM?
Thisprocessofselectivelisteningis
actuallyknownastheCocktailPartyEffect
Thisbecomesverydifficulttodoasa
listenerofrecordedmaterialthatswhere
audioeditingcomesin

REALISM?
Thisprocessofselectivelisteningis
actuallyknownastheCocktailPartyEffect
Thisbecomesverydifficulttodoasa
listenerofrecordedmaterialthatswhere
audioeditingcomesinyoumustmimic
howwehearandthatrequiresrecreatingor
reconstructingHOWwehear.

Sound&Image
Theyhaveaverycomplexinterrelationship
TheyareBOTHillusionsconstructed
withinasystemofproduction
Weallparticipateinanaudiovisual
contractonewelearninordertowatch
films,videos,TV

VALUEADDED
Isoneofthemostimportantrelationshipsin
theaudiovisualcontractbetweensound
andmovingimage

VALUEADDED
MichelChionstatesthatValueAddedis:
theexpressiveandinformativevaluewith
whichasoundenrichesagivenimage

VALUEADDED
MichelChionstatesthatValueAddedis:
theexpressiveandinformativevaluewith
whichasoundenrichesagivenimagesoas
tocreatethedefiniteimpression,inthe
immediateorrememberedexperienceone
hasofit,

VALUEADDED
MichelChionstatesthatValueAddedis:
theexpressiveandinformativevaluewith
whichasoundenrichesagivenimagesoas
tocreatethedefiniteimpression,inthe
immediateorrememberedexperienceone
hasofit,thatthisinformationorexpression
naturallyspringsfromwhatisseen.

VALUEADDED
Givesthe(eminentlyincorrect)impression
thatsoundis:
1)unnecessary
2)merelyduplicatingameaningwhichin
realityitbringsabout,eitherallonitsown
orbydiscrepanciesbetweenitandthe
image

 IngmarBergmansPersona(1966)
Wellwatchtheopeningsequencetwice.
Thefirsttimewithsound,thesecondtime
withnosound.
Makenoteofthedifferencesinhowyou
perceivetheimageswithandwithout
sound.

Resources
www.filmsound.org
www.ubu.com
MichelChionAudioVision