Sound Design

1. Sound Design

2. Sound Design Vocabulary • Sound: artificially produced sound effects or music as well as the amplification of voices so they can be heard • Sound Crew: the group responsible for planning and preparing all sound effects needed for a production • Sound Plot: the plan of all the sound effects and music needed for a production • Cue Sheet: a chart or list showing all of the changes that will occur during a production

3. Sound Categories • Ambiences • Spot Effects • Wallas • Silence • Music

4. Sound Categories • Ambiences (atmospheres or backgrounds) – Background noise that provides a sense of place where, and perhaps of time when, events occur. Example

5. Sound Categories • Spot Effects - Indicate individual events • Brief individual effects, or composite of effects, specifically placed and timed for a single action. • Natural sounds of movement and business, recorded to match the action. • Some effects can be recorded live on the voice track. Many spot effects can be made with the mouth, the hands, or with small noisemakers. Example

6. Sound Categories • Wallas- Crowds. "Walla walla" of many people in a crowded situation, without specific voices or words being distinguishable. • Ball Game wallas differ from concert audience wallas, etc. Example

7. Sound Categories • Silence. A dramatic element. It can be very loud.

8. Sound Categories • Music. Can be used to set the mood, for scene changes, as a “theme song,” for ending credits, etc. Music should “match” the overall theme of the play.

9. Sound Effect Transitions • Transitions - How you get from one segment or element to another. • Segue • Crossfade • V-Fade • Fade to Black • Waterfall

10. Sound Effect Transitions • Segue - one element stops, the next begins. "Cut" in film.

11. Sound Effect Transitions • Crossfade - one element fades out, the next fades in. They overlap on the way.

12. Sound Effect Transitions • V-Fade - First element fades out completely before the second element fades in.

13. Sound Effect Transitions • Fade to Black - V-Fade with some silence between elements.

14. Sound Effect Transitions • Waterfall - As first element fades out, the second element begins at full volume. Better for voice transitions, than for effects.

15. Radio Plays! • Before TV, they listened to shows on the radio! • Picture your favorite TV show and imagine you couldn’t watch it. You could only hear it! • If someone walked in the room on the show, how would you know? Sound effects! • Yesterday we listened to the “A Perfect Touch” radio play and paid attention to the different types of sound effects they used to tell us what was going on!

16. It’s time time to…CREATE YOUR OWN! • Your group will write an original radio play and incorporate your own music and sound effects. • See “Radio Show Requirements/Guidelines” handout for the “rules!”

17. How This Will Work! • Step 1: Plan your plot! See handout (“Radio Play Planning Sheet”) • Step 2: Write your script! Include your sound effects! Example: • (Crickets are chirping in the background) • JEFF: Ugh, I hate camping! • SANDY: Come on, it’s not so bad. • JEFF: It’s creepy being in the middle of nowhere with wild animals all around you. • SANDY: Don’t be dramatic • (owl hoots) • JEFF: See what I mean?!? • SANDY: Oh, come on. What’s an owl gonna do? • (bear growls) • (silence – a “beat”) • JEFF: I hate you.

18. How This Will Work! • Step 3: Go through your “Radio Play Requirements/Guidelines” handout and use it as a checklist to make sure you have everything. • Step 4: Rehearse! Your team needs to be very familiar with your script!

19. Resources • http://www.greatnorthernaudio.com/audio_theater/Sound_Effects.html#kinds • http://www.balancepublishing.com/freekit.htm