LO1 - Sound conventions in radio.

Radio sounds Index:

Foley - A technical process by which sounds are created or altered for use in a film, video, or other electronically produced work.

Sting – Musical/Audio punctuation to show a break or change in a program.

Bed – Instrumental music played in the background of an audio product or promotion.

Jingle - A produced programming element usually in the form of vocals to accompanying music often produced in-house to identify the show, DJ or the station.

Pre-Rec – A pre recorded element played into a live show, this may be to add to a factual item or segment,

Vox-Pop  - literally voice of the people, a pre recorded sound clip getting public opinion on a topical issue. 

Ident – A station's name often accompanied by music, a jingle or an animation.

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Task: Explore the use of sound within three different pieces of radio programming. 



Programming piece one: 

Radio 1's Life Hacks

The first piece of radio programming given to me was titled "Kicking down barriers in football" and was presented by BBC 1 on the 22nd of January 2018. The piece makes use of a "Bed" of sound which consists of a piece of music which plays under the entire programme. As well as this there is also a "Sting" before Liv Cooke starts seeking. The use of a sting makes it clear that the focus is changing to the audience.

Programming piece two: 

James Acaster's Findings

This second piece of programming is much different to the first for a few reasons.firstly because it is comedy programming secondly because it is comedy programming the elements of sound used are being used as to parody typical radio conversions rather than re-enforcing them. This is at its most clear when the host James Acaster doesn't let the opening sting ring out before delivering the title "Fruit."

Programming piece three: 

                                  




The Archers

The third and final piece of programming is an episode of BBC's "the Archers" (13/02/2018) the sound in this is much more subtle as that it is narrative based unlike the other two pieces of broadcast. This means that it relies on a lot of foley sound and sound alteration/ effects (which can be seen with the opening phone call.)
The foley sound can be seen in the ambient noise (conversation and sound in the background) as well as this is the opening and closing of doors.                                                                                                  

LO1 P1: Produce a report which describes how sound elements are used in varied media products

Media product 1: Jurassic Park

In this scene the score of the film is used to add  atmosphere and tone to the scene in which it is presented. At the beginning of the scene John Williams ushers in the score for the island with it coming to a peak at 00:57 of the video I have placed above. This gives the audience an impression of the scale and magnitude of the setting that they are being presented with without actually being shown anything.
The music constantly changes throughout the scene as to show the audience how they should feel about the dialogues and characters being presented. One example of this incidental use of sound is in the conversation between the two men in the jeep at  02:30. Before the beginning of the dialogue the music is phased out until it quiet enough to hear the characters speak. Not only this but Williams also made this section of the musical accompaniment sound darker as that the park is under threat of being shut down. This makes the audience side with the protagonist in the situation John and the concept of the park.
Finally perhaps the most impactful moment of the sequence is the music following the line "Welcome to Jurassic Park" which is the signature musical motif for the dinosaurs in this film. The use of this music here helps to replicate the shock that the characters are feeling within the audience. As well as this the sound is repeated later on in the film to show the audince moments when they should feel amazazed at the scale of the park. It is very common in hollywood films to contain

   

 Media product 2: Doom (2016) 

                                           
                               

The video game doom makes use of many different sounds in order to create its dark tone in the menu, waiting and game play sections of the game's experience. The sounds include high pitched strings as well as "Infrasound" which is a type of high pitched noise often used in horror films to add to the audiences tension. As well as this there is a heavy reliance on sound effects such as gun shots and the sounds of enemies dying which is usually a wet squelchy noise as that they are being killed by the main character at close range. 

Finally the sound effects are used to immerse the player in that they are dependant on movements (Footsteps, reload sounds, gunshots, Etc.) 

Media product 3: Inside America's Largest Right Wing Militia

                   

This documentary (made by Vice) makes use of a lot of different sound for a range of purposes. Firstly the opening conversation between the family is in complete silence ( there is no background music) as to emphasise what is being said. This is because this conversation will be of vital importance later on as to understand the views of the Georgia III% Defence force (the right wing militia which the documentary is focused on.) The final line of this conversation is played over a different shot to the one which the viewer is introduced to at the beginning which makes the whole product appear more cinematic. This theme of making the documentary look and sound like a movie continues from this point onwards through Chris Hill's opening monologue. This technique is done several times at the following times (53- 1:13). Using a backing peice of music is very impactful in a peice of film such as this one as i have stated it makes the audiace feel like thaey are watching a film which would make use of the same types of  sound. The use of orchestra music in addition to the soaring landscape shots and quick cuts match the conventions of an action film which also matches the idea of an incoming world ending event which Is constantly referenced by members of the III% movement.
Overall the product uses several different types of sound in order to keep the audience interested in the story that Vice is trying to present to the viewer.

Media product 4: The Archers:

The Archer's is a daily Radio drama which is broadcast on the BBC daily and has been since the 1st of January 1951. The program makes use of many different types of sound in order to create verisimilitude. For example in this particular episode there is a dialogue scene which takes place in which a listener can hear the sounds of the wind and of animals in the fields surrounding the setting of the narrative. This is a clear use of atmospheric sound. 

As well as this the programme begins with a theme tune which convays a mellow message to the listener which is very in line with the tone of the programme in general. This will apeeal to the prtedominalntly 45+ audince.