Experimental - FST 302

After reading The Absolute Film , I couldn’t help but think about the light show that travels around the world that is synced to Pink Floyd’s music. Why is it that our eyes are so drawn to lights and drawings synced up to music? Part of me wonders if it’s because it’s less work our mind has to do to visualize with the music, for it is done for us with the lights being projected or with some kind of animation that is synced as well. The other part of me wonders if it’s because music is pleasing to the ear, so why not give something flashy to match it, such as lights? Perhaps I will research why humans are drawn to lights, for now I am very curious about the subject. 

Cymatics are cool. End of story. How bizarre is it that we are physically able to SEE sound? Like, not just seeing what makes the sound but, seeing the sound itself. Absolutely astonishing. I felt as though the coolest part of the entire video (the Science vs Music video specifically) was the cymatics with the flames. Fire already dances around to its own discretion and to see music and sound bounce it around was awesome. Synesthesia was always been interesting to me. I think it’s pretty neat, to be able to sit and see the music that is playing. I have actually conducted an experiment with such. I once tried to draw out a song as it was playing. It end result was not very pretty I will say, but an interesting experiment to say the least.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the assignment. I’ve seen many behind the scenes videos on Foley work and sound design, so I was ecstatic to be able to try it myself.   One thing that I learned during this project is how much we tune out every day sounds, mainly the air conditioner. It was also difficult, in my opinion, to get the room completely silent, for there always was some kind of ambiance in the background. Recording the sounds was fun. The only part that was challenging in that regard was to keep quiet and not laughing during some of the takes. The vocal portion is what was most hilarious. Boy, did we have some interesting sounds there! When and if there is another sound design project, I will definitely make sure my phone is off… it ruined one of our takes. Whoopsie!!

It’s really strange to think about sounds and how each one has a specific place, and to think about how much sounds can be manipulated into sounding like something else. In addition to that, how well trained an ear can be. We as humans can distinguish a sound a dog would make from one a cat would make. This article was really fascinating. It made me realize sound isn’t just what we think it is. The ability to hear and recognize sound is a literal gift. I never thought of silence as how Belazs describes it. The idea that silence doesn’t just mean no sound, that minuscule sounds could be categorized as silence. To be honest, being in silence scares me. I hate silence. There’s just something eerie about the ambiance of a room that creeps me out to no end.

My fiancé and myself are regulars at this establishment. A very familiar “WELCOME TO MOES!!” breaks the silence as we walk in. There is a jumble of sounds upon entering. The various voices that fill the air, the sounds of utensils being used, as well as the roar of the grill as it is busy cooking a variety of meats. As we pay for our meal, I notice the loud crashing of ice as the ice maker does its thing. Not only did it startle me, but also the little girl who was trying to refill her cup. The soda machine makes a recognizable whirr sound as it dispenses. As we sit down to eat, there is an abundance of noise, even more than before. The lunchtime rush has just begun, so there are quite a bit of people here now. A chorus of voices fill the room, even more than before, this time including a small child crying. Its just enough sound to where it’s not overbearing, but it’s not like completely silent either. I don’t mind this.

As I am sitting in my room, more sounds are starting to stand out to me. Normally, I do not hear the AC unit turn on, but in this case, the sound of it starting blasts through the silence in the room. I can hear the upstairs neighbors bickering over god knows what. There is a back and forth exchange of a bass voice and a higher pitched voice.  I have noticed that I am hearing a lot more creaks and pops coming from the ceiling. I mean, our neighbors stomp a lot and of course we hear that nonsense, but as for all the random faint creaking of the ceiling, I wouldn’t have ever noticed until now. I guess I’m too noisy to hear all of the normal ambiance of the room. Something that is actually starting to bother me now that I can actually hear it is the ceiling fan. Goodness, what a racket. Now that I am aware of it’s sound, I am finding it very hard to ignore again. How might one go back to ignoring this? Any suggestions???