Sound & Music Flashcards
Diegetic Sound
any voice, musical passage, or sound effect presented as originating from a source within the film’s world
Nondiegetic Sound
sound, such as mood music or a narrator’s commentary, represented as coming from a source outside the space of the narrativeE
External Diegetic Sound
sound represented as coming from a physical source within the story space that we assume characters in the scene also hear
Internal Diegetic Sound
sound represented as coming from the mind of the character with the story space
although we and the character can hear it, we assume that the other characters cannot
Synchronous Sound
sound that is matched temporally with the movements occurring in the images, as when dialogue corresponds to lip movements
Asynchronous Sound
sound that is not matched temporally with the movements occurring in the image, as when dialogue is out of synchronization with lip movements
Simultaneous Sound
diegetic sound that is represented as occurring at the same time in the story as the image it accompanies
Non-simultaneous Sound
diegetic sound that comes from a source in time either earlier or later than the image it accompanies
Sound Bridge
at the beginning of a scene, the sound from the previous scene carries over briefly before the sound from the new scene begins
at the end of one scene, the sound from the next scene is heard, leading into that scene
What are the main elements of a soundtrack?
dialogue, including voice-over narration
music
sound effects
What is sound mixing?
the combination of two or more soundtrack elements onto one single track
What is a sound designer?
individual response for all aspects of a film’s audio track, from the dialogue, music, sound effects, and recording to the re-recording (mix) of the final track
What are the functions of film sound?
engages our sense of hearing
can influence how the viewer interprets the image
can cue the viewer to form expectations
can cue offscreen space
can trigger emotional responses, particularly music
can highlight the occasions in which silence is used
What is the loudness of sound?
the amplitude of the vibrations upon our hearing - often related to perceived distance - the further the source of the sound, the quieter it will be
What is the pitch of sound?
the frequency of sound vibrations - often perceived to distinguish different sources of sound as well as different types of voices on screen
What is the timbre of sound?
the quality of a musical note or sound or tone that distinguishes different types of sound production be it the human voice or musical instrument - also called tone quality or tone color
What is rhythm?
the beat or tempo derived from the soundtrack, be it music, speech or sound effects
What is rhythm coordinated between sound and image?
the matching sonic and visual rhythms in a scene or sequence
What are rhythm disparities between sound and image?
the contrasting of the sonic rhythms with the visual rhythms in a scene or sequence
What is fidelity?
the degree to which a sound is faithful to the source, as the listener conceives it
e.g., the sound of a dog barking when accompanied with an image of a barking dog
not dependent upon how the sound is made but more how the listener perceives the fidelity of a sound
unfaithful sounds often used for comedic effect
What is diegetic sound?
sound that has its source from within the story world
source of diegetic sound can be onscreen or offscreen
What is nondiegetic sound?
sound that does not have its source from within the story world
What is external diegetic sound?
sound that has its physical source in a scene
What is internal diegetic sound?
sound that derives from the mind of a character
subjective aural point of view
What is sound perspective?
the sense of spatial distance and location provided by diegetic sound
What are the functions of dialogue in narrative film?
involved in the creation of the story world within the film
the individuating of characters through voice
can enact narrative developments
can communicate plot developments such as backstory
can reveal the inner life of a character
What is overlapping dialogue?
the simultaneous speech of two or more characters to imitate the natural rhythms of dialogue as opposed to the narrative clarity of turn taking
How is social categorization presented through dialogue?
the use of accents and dialects in dialogue to enhance the social dimensions of a character
speech can underscore class distinctions
speech can communicate ethnicity
What is diegetic voice-over narration?
the voice of a character heard on the soundtrack narrating or commenting upon events, often in past tense
What is nondiegetic voice-over narration?
the voice of a narrator heard on the soundtrack narrating or commenting upon events but is not within the film’s story world
What is synchronous sound?
the matching of sound and image such that the viewer hears the sound the same time it is produced in the image track
What is asynchronous sound?
the mis-matching of sound ad image such that the viewer hears the sound not at the same time it is produced in the image track
asynchronous sound can be used intentionally
What are different temporal relations of sound with image track?
sound simultaneous in story and image
non-simultaneous sound from earlier in story than image
non-simultaneous sound from later in story than image
sound bridge
What is sound simultaneous in story and image?
sounds occur at the same time in the story as produced in the image track
What is non-simultaneous sound from earlier in story than image?
sounds occurring earlier in the story than the action depicted on the image track (auditory flashback)
What is non-simultaneous sound from later in story than image?
sounds occurring later in the story than the action depicted on the image track (auditory flashforward)
What is a sound bridge?
the sound of one scene carries over into the next scene or the sound of the next screen commences before the image track of the next scene
used to smooth scene transitions
What are the functions of music in film?
during opening credits music can suggest mood and spirit of the film
music can assist in establishing setting and historical period
music can simulate the ethnic sounds linked to a specific geographical locale by incorporating the instrumentation, structures, and melodies that are associated with the music of region
can provide a sense of continuity over scene or sequence
through recurrent leitmotif (a melodic phrase, often associated with a character) and musical themes, can reinforce narrative unity
What is polarization?
when audiovisual interaction of the emotional tone of the music contrasts with the content of the images causing music and/or image to be reinterpreted
What is affective congruency?
the matching of the emotional tone of both the music and visuals, which can heighten the spectator’s emotional responses
What is non-diegetic music?
like sound in general, music can be diegetic or non-diegetic
non-diegetic music usually assumes the form of the film’s score
the classical orchestral score drew from the compositional conventions of nineteenth century operatic and symphonic music
a contemporary film scoring can be either classical, a compilation score, or a combination of both, or an exploration of other musical styles
What is a diegetic switch?
when diegetic music switches status and becomes non-diegetic
What is the compilation score?
lyrical and musical expression of character’s subjective state
What is diegetic music?
diegetic music can be heard through a record player or radio (or some form of media player)
or diegetic music can be performed by a character, most often in musicals
like non-diegetic music, often diegetic musical performances are used to establish character and express their subjective states during a particular moment in the narrative
What is the classical Hollywood musical?
dual focus narrative that progresses through a series of paired segments, usually involving song and dance numbers, which compare the male and female leads
the film normally ends with the union of the heterosexual couple, often with the union narratively taking place in a song and dance number
characterized by the audio dissolve: the transition from the diegetic track, such as a conversation, to the music track (appears diegetic but is actually post-synchronized, i.e., dubbed)
vocal stand-ins: a singer who dubs their voice over the actor in postproduction
What is music and postwar Indian film?
most Indian films contain song sequences
the sale of the music from the soundtrack is equally important as the box office from the film itself
the hybrid score: Indian scores would often draw from other national music traditions and combine with Indian musical styles
musical sequences were normally dubbed by playback singers who became stars
