Forum: Listening to Soundscapes

[benmiller314]

After completing the reading and listening portions of the homework after lesson 03, come here and record a few thoughts. What do you notice, i.e. what stands out while reading or listening? What does that suggest, or what does it make you wonder?

As always in forum posts, responding to each other is optional but encouraged: you can use the @ symbol to mention someone by name, and they'll receive a notification.

[AlexaSpaventa]

I found that all of the soundscapes were able to create a narrative simply using sound. Both the “Coffee Shop Conversations” and “Day in: Day Out” projects had very little conversation or talking in them but the everyday sounds they both contained made it clear that they were portraying daily life. I found that “Day in: Day Out” utilized this really well by replaying the sounds heard in a typical day to highlight the monotony that the character/listener felt with regards to the routine they experienced. This also made the ending more memorable since it deviated so strongly from the rest of the soundscape. “A Haunted Halt” and “Expedition to Planets Unknown” took on different genres (horror and sci-fi) and they also included more talking/conversations to tell their story. I think this format worked well for them since unlike the more mundane daily sounds the first two soundscapes used these soundscapes used sounds that the audience is likely to be less familiar with and thus it was useful that they used the sound of a person talking/explaining events to describe what was happening to some extend. The opening to “Breaking Bad” had intense music, glass breaking, and the sound of someone running that was out of breath. Without any visual context, this makes it clear that the show is very action-packed. Since it is the opening of the show this will likely encourage viewers to continue watching since it is more attention-grabbing than a slower opening scene. Unlike “Breaking Bad” where I had a general idea what was happening I was unsure of the beginning for “Battlestar Galactica” The soundtrack definitely had a sci-fi/space feel to it and there were sounds of metal clanking and what may have been rockets/spaceships. For this reason, I was pretty intrigued by these sounds and wanted to see the visuals that accompanied them. Overall, I found that I was normally able to gain a pretty good idea of the narrative the soundscape was portraying without the addition of another form of media such as visuals. This didn’t surprise me too much since I’ve listened to some old-time radio shows that also manage to tell surprisingly engaging stories across a variety of genres without the use of any other form of media.

[briansostek]

My favorite of the soundscapes was "Expedition to Planet Unknown." I found I could easily picture the setting the author was trying to convey. I loved the dripping sound that was taking place in the back. Personally, I found that the frequency of the steps that the main character made while he was running sounded a little too fast to be realistic. But I loved how I could picture what the author envisioned. In the Breaking Bad soundscape, I remember the scene, because Breaking Bad is my favorite TV show. But I took more attention to the visuals and not the sound. I noticed that there isn't any dialogue until Walter exits the car, and listening to it without the video seemed almost like I was experiencing it for the first time again. Maybe I should do this with some of my other favorite TV shows/ movies because it really adds a new effect to it that you wouldn't normally expect. The idea of telling a story through sound only is a new idea to me, I've only heard of podcasts before, but not many narratives with acting. One example I can name is Orson Welles' War of the Worlds radio broadcast from the 30s, and the acting was so good that people thought it was really happening when they tuned into the station. All the ideas shown in the examples were really brilliant and original. It'll take some time for me to come up with a good idea.

[LLP37]

I think it was really interesting too listen to all the different clips that were able to tell stories without tons of words. Most of the things I watch/listen to have a visual element to them where you are able to follow the story through sound but also with visuals. Those videos are normally TV shows or music videos where they also do a lot of talking to get their points across (unlike the clips we watched). All the of the clips we listened to for homework did not need this though, I was able to follow along without any visual aspect. The closest thing I know to this would be podcasts, but podcasts are mostly just one person talking and involve many different types of sounds to tell a story. For example, “Day In: Day Out” involves barely any talking, but through the different sounds like an alarm, water running, etc. I was able to follow someone through their entire day. This proved to me that even though I don’t necessarily think of the sounds I make in the morning, I’m actually able to place more sounds than I imagined. In addition, I enjoyed “Coffee Shop Conversations”, I could hear things such as coffee being made, general chatter in the background, people giving their orders, etc. which made me feel as though I actually in a coffee shop if I were to close my eyes which definitely made it stand out. I felt that the creator did a great job of layering multiple sounds on top of each other, which showed how hectic coffee shops can get. Meanwhile, “A Haunted Halt” and “Expedition to Planets Unknown” involved the main characters speaking more to move the story along, but I think that they also incorporated more unique sounds unlike normal sounds such as an alarm clock ringing which I though was really cool and different. It makes me want to make a clip with a mixture of more unique and mundane sounds to see if I could make a blend of the two types. In the "Breaking Bad" clip, it had pretty intense music with a heavy beat which kept the clip feel as though it was moving at a fast pace which I think helps to keep the listener engaged. Lastly, I think one thing that stood out to me in “Battlestar Galactica” was that it felt a bit slow to me. I think after watching all of the clips I was expecting lots of different sounds that switched off quickly, so these clips caught me by surprise as some of the sounds played for longer than I thought they would and at some point I couldn't hear anything at all. This made me wonder what was going on visually in this scene and I definitely missed having a visual since the clip felt like it was moving slowly. Therefore, I think it will definitely help in the creation of our clips to have many different sounds, so that the listener stays intrigued since there is no visual element to keep their attention.

[LDib]

What struck me most about these soundscapes was their use of specific sounds that evoke certain images and connotations. I guess you could call these idiomatic sounds, or something like that, I think I'm searching for a word to describe them that I can't come up with. They're sounds that, (within a certain culture, probably) have widespread associated images or stories or emotions. "Day In: Day Out," with its nonverbal storytelling, made heavy use of these types of sounds. A good example is the sound of a shower or a cup of coffee or tea being poured. In conjunction, and as the listener grasps what's occurring, it is pretty clear that these sounds of falling water are supposed to represent said functions. But if you could imagine a person who came from a completely different culture than ours, where there are no showers and a hot beverage is not a typical morning drink, these may just sound like falling water. Truly, that's all they are, but "Day In: Day Out" draws on our common experience and juxtaposes them in a way that tells a story. There are many other examples of this type of sound that I think worked really well, and it can include words, too, like in "Coffee Shop Conversations." If someone had missed the title, hearing someone ask for a grande (insert flavor here) would almost certainly clue them in to the setting of a coffee shop. I think I'm just getting at the fact that, when there is no visual component, audio has to do more heavy lifting (not that it doesn't do a lot of work when there is a visual component), and these examples were very economical as far as communicating as much as possible with one or a couple sounds. Interestingly, having watched Breaking Bad, I feel like the fact that the audio is supposed to go with the visual beginning of that show was apparent. I think it would've been very hard to get a feel for what was happening with just the audio portion of the beginning of that drama.

[leiawerner]

While listening to the soundscapes, I was reminded how powerful sound can be. I feel like when we are trying to tell a story, we think about having as much detail as possible when in reality, its possible to tell a story with just sounds. In "Day In: Day Out", there was a large variety of sounds that were recognizable and easy to put with the task it represented. There was no help from dialogue to tell the story. We had to rely on listening and placing the actions in our mind. We can listen to podcasts with only dialogue and hear a story, but it's rare that it would be ONLY sound, which is why I really liked this particular soundscape. In "Coffee Shop Conversations" there was a repetition of sounds (background music, talking, coffee being made) but there was a still a continual story. What I like about all of the soundscapes, is that I felt like I was really there. They used an overlap of sounds to really create a mood/environment. For the coffee shop, they have the voices, the coffee, but also background movement and music. I felt like I was standing right in the middle of a coffee shop. "A Haunted Halt" created an exceptional mood. I was feeling a bit anxious listening to it, as the sound effects and music were right on brand with the story. All of the cohesion that was put into these soundscapes really brought their messages and tied them in a bow. I could easily visualize each scenario, and I think that's important. Sounds are limited, but they can tell a story.

[kevdliedel]

While I was listening to the soundscapes, I realized that in the ones like a haunted halt and coffee shop conversations, the actual words being spoken were less important for immersion into their world than the underlying sounds and music. Through the background noise of chatter, brewing coffee and jazz music, coffee shop conversations manages to make it feel like you're really in a coffee shop. A haunted halt does a really good job of using jarring ambient noise and horror-themed sounds in a way that actually manages to put you on edge. It's interesting how a low-pitched synth sound can make you feel as though something bad is going to happen. The opening sounds for breaking bad and battlestar galactica are interesting in how different they are. Breaking Bad is aggressive and loud from the jump, with cars revving and glass breaking and people panting, which gives one good insight into how the show is going to feel. The intro for Battlestar Galactica is much longer, more subtle and quiet. I haven't watched it myself, but it gives off the feeling that the show is different from breaking bad in the sense that you wouldn't have constant, high energy action. It also contains slow string music which is common in sci-fi and fantasy film.

[hjo6]

Through all of the recordings that we had to listen to, I feel the elements which hooked me the most were those that were able to completely change the tone of the stories. The best example in my opinion was in Coffee Shop Conversations. There are two examples in this piece that I think make it really interesting and great. The first one happens about a minute and a half into the recording; two people are having a conversation about flying to space and being isolated from people. The speaker's voice becomes the center of attention and a reverb effect is added to make it sound like the speaker is in space. The background noise and music also drop to very low levels to give a sense of isolation, while still remaining perceptible as to convey that we are still sitting in the coffee shop, we're just invested in this particular conversation. It was a stark contrast to the first minute and a half of the recording, which made it very interesting. About a minute later, the background music cuts out, while a worker's voice can be heard saying "Hi, how can I help you?" with reverb to give the idea that the we are stuck "in a loop" so to speak, as the conversation is conveying. The background noise (people having undecipherable background conversations) remains and the music cuts out, and another person saying "Excuse me" over the conversation that's happening crescendos until we are brought out of this "loop" and back into the coffee shop. This gave me a sense of unease, which is really an incredible feat when the recording is about coffee shop conversations! The creators in all of these were able to use effects and layering in order to provoke a sense of emotion, story, and place. Regardless of if I was listening to the sound of someone going about their daily routine, or the sounds and creepy beings that inhabit a haunted house, or taking off on an interstellar mission to find alien life, I was able to picture the scenes in my head. These examples show how extremely important sound design is in all mediums, because sound alone can project a sense of place, of being, of feeling, and most importantly of story.

[carlystanford]

While listening to the example soundscape narratives, what I immediately took note of while listening was the use of repetitive and unique sounds. In most of the examples, the creators used repetitions of sounds in the backdrop of their piece for various reasons. In Expedition to Planets Unknown, the creator used a sort of low thumping noise in the background of the second half of the piece to convey a feeling of urgency and anxiety. In Coffee Cart Conversations, the creator used the sounds of jazz music, coffee pouring, chatter, and a register drawer closing to set a scene in the listener's mind. When you hear these familiar sounds, you immediately associate them with the warm ambiance of a coffee shop. In Day In: Day Out, the creator uses very typical, everyday-type sounds such as alarm clocks, hair brushing, and cars honking to convey a feeling of mundane repetition that makes the listener feel the sense of going through the motions of daily life. In these pieces, the use of repetitive sounds in the background of the overall narrative really helped set the tone of the piece and provide a setting. On top of the repeating sounds were often more unique sounds to disrupt the background noise and further push along the narrative. In Coffee Cart Conversations, for example, snippets of conversations between both coffee shop employees and patrons were laid over top of the jazz music and chatter to display the difference in questions asked by customers and employees. In Expedition to Planet Unknown, there is dialogue from two different characters as a narrative to walk you through the scene. In A Haunted Halt, there is dialogue from one character, also to walk you through the scene of the narrative. The one exception to this overlaying of unique sounds and dialogue over background noise was Day In: Day out, which had almost the same sounds for the entirety of the piece. It was not until the end, with the sound of the car crashing that these sounds are disrupted. It was interesting to hear how each of these creators used unique sounds in contrast with repetitive sounds to tell their story, how these sounds overlapped with each other to convey different moods and messages, and how diverse stories can be using only sound.

[bschatz17]

The soundscape narratives told many stories through sound. "Coffee Shop Conversations" accurately portrays a coffee shop scene full of interactions between barista and customer, and between the customers talking. There is a pattern of someone ordering their drink, talking with the barista, and then switching to the customer's conversation at their table. These conversations discussed random topics, as a conversation over coffee would be about. "Day In: Day Out" is my favorite of these soundscapes because it creates an entire storyline without any speaking. The clip starts out with an alarm ringing, followed by the sounds of the morning routine. This routine consisted of a shower, zipping up a bag to go to work, and making/drinking coffee. On the way to work we hear the radio and traffic. While at work, we hear that the character is in an office setting, made clear by the phones ringing and fax machines chirping. They take a lunch break, as denoted by the microwave, and go back to work. The sounds on the trip home from work bring us to a gym or treadmill of some kind. We go back home, shower, make dinner, clean up the plates, brush teeth and go to bed. This entire sequence repeats and speeds up the tempo. The third time around on this repetitive cycle, the main character gets into a car crash and is transported to the hospital. I find it fascinating how this soundscape goes into such detail without having to speak a single word. A great part of writing is being able to show the audience instead of telling. "Day In: Day Out" is a great example of using this logic and applying it to other works of art, such as a sound clip. Every detail of this soundscape is accessible and clear to the audience.

[peekssezin]

One thing I was able to pick up on between all of these audio soundscapes was the idea of mundanity. The key example I found came from Day In: Day Out. The story starts as going through a normal day of an individual. After the first minute however, the sounds start to repeat. You hear the same song play over and over multiple times throughout the entire peace, and forces this idea of brute repitition on the listener. It even gets to a point where the listener may even begin to get board. The creator of the piece seems to recognize this, and event throws in a curveball in the form of the main character getting into a car crash. The use of the car crash not only serves as a way to add a conflict to the mundane repeating series of events, but also snaps the listener out of the trance they were put into by the previous series of events. Then, within the last few seconds of the piece, the same song can be heard playing inside of the hospital that has been playing multiple times throughout the rest of the piece. This staples in this idea of mundanity and repitition. No matter what may happen, you can be stuck in the same loop forever.

This idea of mundanity can be translated in multiple other ways. For example, the Battlestar Galactica takes a seemingly intricate and exciting story genre, but the opening audio soundscape offers very little in terms of distinct sounds. The near five minute file only consists of a quiet ambient drone and occassionally swells in volume, but nothing else; no significant sound affects or audio cues. Coffee Shop Conversations takes the style of storytelling that Day In: Day Out does, but takes the angle of mundanity from multiple different perspectives. The overall comparison between all of the individual conversations leads to an overall greater sense of mundanity; everyone talking seems to be in the same environment and same social structure.

[Maials268]

While listening to the different recordings I really noticed how the layering of sounds managed to create a certain atmosphere. Hearing particular sounds played back to back or on top of each created a narrative. Although I couldn’t see what was going on like in a movie or read it like in a book I was still able to grasp a story. In the “A Haunted Halt” recording, I found myself especially able to sense a storyline due to how the creator situated certain noises within the recording. The repetition of certain sounds like a car door closing, the ringing of a telephone, and the sound of a coffee allowed me to understand that passage of time was occurring, that I was hearing someone go through their daily routine. Additionally, the noises of a car crash, the sound of a news reporter, the beeping of someone on life support, and even the small sign someone made, conveyed to me that a car accident had occurred and due to the arrangement of those particular sounds I felt myself being transported to the scene of a hospital. The entire clip was so interesting to listen to because I feel like sometimes you forget how certain sounds have the ability to evoke a range of emotions in you as well as transport your mind to a certain environment despite the fact that there is no visual element to it. Moreover, the narrative created in “Expedition to Planets Unknown” also proved to have the ability to evoke emotions as I felt anxiousness and curiosity through the recording. While listening to that particular recording I also really started to think about how some of these soundscape projects can be akin to how old public radio used to broadcast stories to the public as a form of entertainment before movies and television.

[JTH74]

While listening to the various soundscapes I noticed that these narratives are deep but without images being given to the listener to stop imagination. I found myself listening to the stories and was given free will to pretty much believe whatever I wanted to. This made the experience personal and in deeply listening to everyday sounds I realized it is personal. I took this one step further and watched parts of a movie(scott pilgrim) with only the audio to really understand the stories. This movie is an editing masterpiece so it wasn't hard to hear the story but it made me use more imagination which was really interesting. I also noticed the power of repetition in soundscapes. The repetition allows the storyteller to emphasize a point and create an overhauling theme to bring together all of these noises. Take a war story, for example, I would imagine hearing a lot of gunshots or the loud screams for a medic or soldiers celebrating their victories. These themes would be very powerful in the form of a soundscape. I really enjoyed how personal all of these felt.

[heh44]

While listening to the examples, I noticed how much storytelling can be done through audio alone. One soundscape example had zero dialogue and still had the ability to carry the listener through a plot. More importantly, soundscapes and audio files give the listener a chance to project their own imagination onto the audio. During the soundscape titled, " A Haunted Halt" I often found myself imagining what visuals would accompany the audio. I wondered what the interior of the cabin/house would have looked like. Would the house be well kept? or slowly deteriorating? In the "Expedition to Planets Unknown" I found myself imagining what the alien looked like. Because I have seen a few of the films from the Aliens franchise, I personally imagined the alien to appear like a facehugger. This makes soundscapes unique. They are form of media that allows for a personalized interpretation between every viewer. I may project the memories of a movie to form my interpretation of the soundscape, while the next person may project their memories of a comic book or video game to form their interpretation of the soundscape. Two visualizations may be entirely different between two classmates. This same idea cannot be as easily replicated in other forms of media. A movie presents audio and visual simultaneously and leaves less to the imagination. In a way, soundscapes remind me of silent movies. Every viewer has a unique version of the media playing in their mind.

[shreyababu]

While listening to the soundscape narratives, I found that they all were able to evoke some kind of emotion out of me. The Coffee Shop Conversations and Day In and Day Out pieces were very simplistic, mainly composed of just everyday sounds you might hear, but it made me feel very comfortable and honestly kind of nostalgic for pre-COVID days, because I have definitely come to appreciate the ordinary everyday things that I used to do that I would not have thought twice about before March. Even just the sound of an elevator ding somewhere on campus in Day In and Day Out brought me back to a different time. In A Haunted Halt and Expedition to Planets Unknown, the tone was more fear-inducing and tense, but these narratives were still able to evoke emotion from me, just obviously in a different manner from the first two. I am notoriously known for being way too scared to watch horror movies, and a big reason for that is that the sounds during such movies really freak me out, and these last two narratives did a really good job of creating that same creepy auditory sensation that horror movies do for me. They actually made me nervous at one point or another with eerie music and other elements, especially the Haunted Halt with the very pointed footsteps and music. I was appreciative of the fact that there does not have to be a visual accompaniment to create an immersive experience for the audience.

[trinitymccool]

All of the soundscape narratives were all fascinating to me, mostly because they all told completely different stories and conveyed completely different emotions. My favorite ones in particular were the Coffee Shop Conversations and A Haunted Halt, but they were all really great. I loved Coffee Shop Conversations because of how realistic it is and how it keeps your attention through the whole thing, mostly due to the unique questions people are asking. I used to work at Starbucks, so this is truly a good representation of a coffee shop. The repetitive "Hello, how can I help you?" and all of the different unique orders brought me back to my barista days for sure. In the cafe area, people usually were studying or having conversations exactly like this. I loved this one so much because this simple 4 minute long audio made me so nostalgic for when I used to work at Starbucks; I didn't need any images at all, I just pictured it all in my head. A Haunted Halt was fascinating as well; I feel like it would be hard to convey horror solely through sound, but this person did it super well. I am a huge fan of the horror genre, so it is hard to spook me, but this one scared me a little!! The influx of sound near the end and the screams is super effective. It is super easy to be scared while listening to this soundscape because since it is a real-life fear of many people, it is easy to picture the scenario in your mind while listening to it.

[KyleMaxwell1224]

The soundscape narratives were all very interesting to listen to, but my favorite one by far was the Breaking Bad audio track. As a huge fan of cinema, I like to watch a lot of different TV shows and movies. However, my favorite TV show of all-time is absolutely Breaking Bad. The show combines both visual and audio elements to create a cohesive story. When the video is removed and only the audio remains, like in the track that was listed, it takes away a major part of show as a whole. That being said, this track was unique among the other tracks I listened to because I have a visual reference to the audio. Despite not being able to see it, my familiarity with the show enabled me to hear the audio and actually see the scene, albeit not exactly as it happened. For example, when the RV began to screech in the audio track, I could already envision Bryan Cranston driving an RV meth lab through the desert in New Mexico. By using meta-knowledge that I already had about the show, I had a complete picture of the video. Without the video, it definitely added more focus on the audio, since that was the only stimulus available to consume, so I was more attentive to the audio.

[raisedDeadWizard]

While listening to the audio tracks I noticed similarities between a few. Both the battlestar galactica clip and the "A Haunted Halt" project both built up their audio stories with suspenseful music and dramatic sounds. This included the suspenseful background music as well as doors creaking/slamming, footsteps echoing, and whispering voices. The coffee shop soundscape and the breaking bad soundscape both focus on making a scene, every overlapping sound is meant to put you in the place the composer intended you to be in. With the coffee shop the unrelated conversations keep your attention while the occasional orders and background sound remind you of what place you are in. With the breaking bad clip, each and every jostle of the RV and cliping of bushes, helps to describe the current situation. The heavy breathing of the driver to the squeaking of the driver's fingers on the mask all help to set the scene. The remaining soundscape projects all do their best to share a contiguous story through sound. The day in day out soundscape tells a story from the moment you step in the car to when you get out and back in, and eventually ending the story in a crash. All of these soundscapes are able to transport the listener in some way but each focus on different aspects of what to share with the listener.