Introduction
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Sound and image have been media which have been cross-integrated for centuries with a range of methods. My investigation will delve into the theoryPractice?? behind the multi-modal within filmic theory and how this has manifested overtime into live musical performances. Similarities can be drawn between cinema and music with many of the studies into cognitive processing. Although the information received are entirely different, the viewer as a “standard biological audio/video processor” takes in audiovisual content channelling them towards a form of emotional response. As stated in The Reality of Illusion - An ecological approach to cognitive film theory, “The motion picture can be thought of as a program. And it is more precisely a program than either a language or a mere set of stimuli. It is a very complex set of instructions utilising images, actions and sounds, a string of commands to attend to this now, in this light, from this angle, at this distance, and so forth”. The essence of my research entailed having a number of approaches to cinema in mind while researching contemporary music performance. List chapters briefly and explain what practices I am exploring
The use of sound in conjunction with visual media has been used in a variety of ways for centuries as a means to add emphasis to performative acts. In film, sound can be used as a variable aspect allowing for ambiguous interpretation of any visual stimulus. Charlie Batten of BFI wrote that “visuals are what the viewer tends to mostly focus on and the sound subconsciously alters how the visuals are perceived”. In my investigation I intend to gauge the different emotional responses sound can have over music, informed by filmic theory. Furthermore, in recognition of the complexities of the brain as a processing centre for such things, I wish to look further afield at people who study connections (or lack of) between the senses and how this can be channelled in creative responses.
When regarding the pairing moving image with music, it is arguable that such practice is human nature. Dr. Haig Kouyoumdjian of Psychology Today argues that the brain is primarily an image processor. Thus, for performing musicians and their audiences, visual cues would in a way bridge a void and create more authentic responses. A study in sight over sound judgments in Virtuosi dance experimented into musicians and their ability to anticipate winning dancers with muted clips. The study concluded that paired with music, participants were able to identify the winning pieces and, In vice versa, it found that visual stimulus “could confound listeners' ability to make judgments of the quality of the music being performed”. Such data represents the complex interplay between all of the senses and justifies that within performative acts, stimulating audiences with multimodality is a sure way to boost their engagement in an act. This translates to live music because often a large audience cannot engage with a performer: To accompany the music and essentially fill a temporal gap, large spectacles of light, projection and gestural movement are applied to assist in dramatising a performance.
Outline exact investigation, What topics will i research?
What question am I asking?
A brief History of sound and image in cinema Stick to relevant theory
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Behind the vision of all filmmakers there is an ulterior motive which through time has evolved the way we look at film. Nowadays these intentions are diverse because film is more artistic, different in form and meaning with every manifestation. In the early 1900’s however, film was valued in the way that it could transfer observations of the world we live in by commenting on a certain political ideology or human characteristic. For example, Andre BazinFind contradictory opinions to compare implied that film was a “photochemical record of reality”, where writers can “appropriate the language of psychoanalysis, Marxism, or any pop culture Earlier opinions less relevant to my questionmovement or special interest cause, without assuming responsibility for their theoretical imperatives. Such writers may claim adherence to no theory at all.” This essentially states that films were exclusively made as a commentary on a political outlook or an observation of society, and how film can transcribe these imperatives with minimal consequences because the filmmaker can be somewhat removed from the subject matter of the film. More selective quotes needed
Contrary to this early view on film, my explorations will take a more modern approach because my theory takes on a looser form and narrative. Therefore, more contemporary approaches will assist me in my investigation because they will be[ easier ]changeto apply to musical performance. Such approaches can be seen after the mid-eighties. This time saw an evolution in the way cinema was perceived as “a few courageous film theorists suggested that cognitive science might be a more productive path than the then pervasive, psychoanalytic/Marxist approach to film study.” Such theorists are referred to as “courageous” because they opposed the ideals of their predecessors. America for example was believed to “propagate concealed assumptions of Capitalism”Be more specific when using triangulation - home in on the question and have more relevant opposing opinions within its film industry which is apparent in much of the content we consume. However there is now additional intent behind film, where much more care is taken over the overall aestheticism and form, rather than the sole meaning being political undertones or something of a similar nature. This can be seen in the immense care that is taken over every aspect of cinema to translate an inventive look and message which are symbiotic with each other. Such approaches engage audiences more and are driven by elements such as sound design, which is seen as an integral part to the emotional drive behind a film. This extends to minute details of sound to entire soundtracks.
More solid evidence needed related to practice and opposing theories
Electronic: From Kraftwerk to the Chemical Brothers - report
Why is it important that cinematic theory relates to this?
A/V opposes how it is important because it is digitally rendered meaning that cinematic theory is irrelevant
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Electronic: From Kraftwerk to the Chemical Brothers - report
Paragraph linking my observations in relation to title
Make sure it is clear how it aids my theory and practical
Before visiting the exhibition, I had selected a handful of Chion’s theories about audiovisual symbiosis within film. With these in mind I was able to apply such theory to the fusion of art, design and music represented at the show because sound superimposed over film has ties with visuals over music; the only difference being that between the two cognitive pathways there is not a 1:1 correlation.
Chion argues that there are three aspects to consider when looking at temporalisation in film, the first approach being tightly synchronous sounds. Within the Electronic exhibition the best example of this was in any of their A/V demonstrations. When watching a Kraftwerk live performance, I noticed that the futuristic calculus and space-age words being projected behind the four performers matched tightly with the music with digital precision, Initially counting to four with each individual beat and spanning to morse code and a selection of random words. There was a clear correlation between the music and the visuals because each visual cue was matched perfectly with a specific point within the music.
A/V visuals are common within musical performance as they can be programmed synonymous with sound. This approach makes sense because, as is the nature of all music, one is able to break a symphony down to individual notes and adding visual stimulus in time with these notes is satisfying for an audience watching them. In an article with Ableton, it is described how A/v visuals “share a common geometric design language, which is almost always synched to the music.” Relating this back to Chion’s first theory, it represents the most basic of applications of sound within film. For example this would manifest when the image shows an explosion, which naturally would be paired with a loud bang. This approach is still useful to my practical work however, as part of the visual stimulus I display can match individual beats, and can do so in more diverse ways than film because of the multitude of audio cues within the electronic music I will explore.
The second theory applies a different and more elusive theory to audiovisual fusion, wherein we look at sound “directing our attention to a particular visual trajectory” and “temporal linearisation”. When a film plays, it is essentially a continuum of sound and image running at the same time working hand in hand to assist in the overall feel of the film. A succession of three shots could be linked together by the sound of footsteps or breathing (anything to give the shots a sense of succession). Many filmmakers will use such techniques to give a scene a sense of momentum. Often this theory can be manipulated as an illusion for an audience, with actions happening offscreen being cued in using audio. Simplified versions of this theory manifest in silent film, where music was the only audio stimulus to accompany footage and tie it together in a linear fashion. At the Electronic show, this theory interested me greatly as I observed a few of the exhibits. The first of which being The Square Cube, 2007, a small scale replica of 1024 Architecure’s projection mapping piece for the electronic artist Etienne de Crecy’s Beats ‘n’ Cubes tour. As I watched the various tessellations and folds within this light demonstration, I took audio stimulus from two different sources; the first being Laurent Guarnier’s dance set, which was the background music to the entire exhibition. As I viewed and listened to the two unrelated stimuli, I was stunned as it seemed each movement the cube made had some correlation with the music, which I theorise as the brain making cognitive links between the minute notes within the music and the transformation of light in the installation piece. The second way in which I observed the piece was by plugging my 9mm headphone jack into the piece which played the music the cube was accompanied with. It astounded me to find little difference between how I viewed the cube in relation to music designed to be in time with the visuals, and completely separate audio. I believe this relates with Chion’s theory because the temporal linearage of the sound and image which do not correlate are connected by the viewer as a processing centre. This is a theory I will also test in my work by creating visuals which differ from tightly timed A/V animation and experiment with ways we can process temporalization within audiovisual performance, essentially testing our cognition in a looser way.
Define the points of each section of the essay
Anchor in an informed opinion to which supports my theory
Find more sources agreeing and a few which disagree
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