Perhaps your school year has already wound down or maybe you’re just about there. Here’s a brief post to share an artist with whom you may already be familiar — and if not, I think you are in for a treat because I believe he is one of the most dynamic multi-media presences of the past few years: Stromae. He is first and foremost a musical artist, but the place of visual expression in his output is key to his message and to his success, like many performers today. I recommend these videos because of their extremely high degree of thematic force and visual impact. There is a total command of motion picture language throughout the work he creates with his collaborators, from the animation of Carmen (by Triplettes de Belleville director Sylvain Chomet) to the art direction of Papaoutai to the cinéma vérité tour-de-force of Formidable (with a song that is profoundly reminiscent of Belgian icon Jacques Brel, who was also a multi-media giant) to Tous les Mêmes, which brings most of thèse qualities together in its eye-popping, thought-provoking glory. And like many artists today, Stromae needs to be pretty good at self-deprecation, which is quite apparent in his very funny (for those who understand French) video alongside French comic Jamel demonstrating the mock creation of his first mega-hit Alors on Danse. And the original video to that one too — Alors on Danse — is stunningly original, particularly alongside standard music videos, rap or otherwise.
Archive for the ‘Music & Sound Design’ Category
End of the Year Inspirations: Stromae
Posted in Chapter 5, Music & Sound Design, tagged Alors on danse, Carmen, Formidable, Papaoutai, Stromae, Sylvain Chomet, Tous les memes on May 31, 2015| 1 Comment »
Invention of Sound in Movies
Posted in Chapter 3, Music & Sound Design, tagged Film sound recording, filmmakeriq.com, Foley Effects, Invention of sync sound, John P. Hess, Optical sound, Sound Design on November 30, 2014| Leave a Comment »
Pioneer director Alice Guy directing a Chronophone sound film in France
Looking for further resources on the invention and development of sound recording? Here is an excellent half-hour video by John P. Hess on that subject (covering such topics as optical sound and Vitaphone and pioneers like Lee DeForest) by filmmakeriq.com, which is an exceptional resource for film students and developing filmmakers. For additional info on sound, here are earlier posts on Sound Design, Foley Effects, and the fine art of Dubbing.
The Foley Artist
Posted in Chapter 3, Music & Sound Design, tagged Ann Scibelli, Foley Artist, Foley Effects, Gary Hecker, Hunger Games, Jack Foley, Lon Bender, Los Angeles Times, Nerses Gezalyan, Rene Clair, Spartacus, Stanley Kubrick on November 27, 2013| 2 Comments »
There are few things more fun to watch in the filmmaking process than observing a skilled foley artist at work. As we explore the various elements that make up the tools at the disposal of the sound designer, foley effects can be among the most expressive and vital components of the contemporary sound mix. The history of this type of sound effect is another enlightening window into the development of communicative techniques in motion pictures, going back to the powerfully inventive sound mixes of the films of director René Clair (such as Le Million, À Nous la Liberté, and Under the Rooftops of Paris) and to the source of this title, sound innovator Jack Foley, whose legendary boots and keychain were the hidden secrets of many of the most famous walks in Westerns, and whose work on his final film, Stanley Kubrick’s Spartacus, was transformative.
For a brief introduction to the craft of foley artists, this Los Angeles Times short is excellent. There are also two revealing portraits available that highlight the work of foley artist Gary Hecker (and his mixer Nerses Gezalyan) – this one that starts with his work on Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood (with sound design by Ann Scibelli) and breaks down the elements of a sound effect mix very well – and an even more inspiring piece produced by the LA Times for their Working Hollywood series, in which Hecker demonstrates exceptional foley work for Hunger Games (with sound design by Lon Bender) and the creation of a wolf growl for Twilight: New Moon that is quite jaw-dropping.
I’d like to add thanks to Frank Baker for pointing out the LATimes piece on Gary Hecker during our panel presentation at the NCTE Convention in Boston; it was a perfect complement to the other review materials for Moving Images Chapter 3, Sound and Image, that I have been exploring with my media literacy classes this month. Along with my earlier post titled Sinking Into Sound, I also recommend this piece for PBSs Art Beat and this documentary on the history of the integration of recorded sound with motion pictures (included on the second DVD of the Jazz Singer set).
Sinking into Sound
Posted in Chapter 3, Music & Sound Design, tagged Ben Burtt Wall-E, Chris Newman, Coen Brothers Raising Arizona, Ed Novick, Gary Rizzo, Gary Rydstrom, Inception Sound Design, Jeff Seamster, Lora Hirschberg, Preston Sturges Sullivan's Travels, Sound Designer Richard King, Tom Fleischman, Touch of Evil, Walter Murch on December 27, 2012| 4 Comments »
The Conversation: Sound Design Walter Murch
Do you want to know more about the basics of sound in contemporary moviemaking? Here is an excellent talk titled 40 Years of Sound for Film given by Chris Newman (production sound mixer on such movies as The Godfather and The Silence of the Lambs) and Tom Fleischman (re-recording mixer who received the Academy Award for his work on Martin Scorsese’s Hugo). In the piece, they discuss classics such as The Godfather and McCabe and Mrs. Miller and explain their perspectives on what digital technology has brought to the world of sound. It is an excellent introduction to the current state of sound and can serve as video accompaniment to Moving Images Chapter 3: Sound and Image.
Among the movies suggested for analytical work in the Moving Images Instructor’s Resources, a trio by the Coen Brothers is worth highlighting for investigation in the context of sound: Raising Arizona, O Brother Where Art Thou?, and True Grit.
Sound Designer Skip Lievsay working with Avid MC Mix for True Grit
All three feature the work of renowned sound designer Skip Lievsay and are also rich examples of the distinctive brand of “American Tales” that are at the core of much of the Coen brothers work, in which they have continued to explore and develop deep traditions of regional storytelling featuring distinctive narrative voices and exploring complex themes at the heart of the frontier experience and American culture. They also offer strong links with cross-curricular connections: the short stories of Mark Twain, Bret Harte, Ring Lardner and other darkly comic narrative masters compared and contrasted with Raising Arizona; Homer’s The Odyssey for O Brother, Where Art Thou? (or Preston Sturges’s Sullivan’s Travels, the cinematic source of its title); and the original Portis novel for True Grit; meanwhile, social studies connections also abound in these movies, particularly for O Brother. Depending on classroom context and objectives, other movies from the Coen Brothers’ filmography can be quite worthy of investigation, such as No Country for Old Men and Fargo, but these first three are more appropriate for use in a high school classroom (all are PG-13). Here is an extra for teachers – a worksheet for use with Raising Arizona: Critical Notebook 3c Raising Arizona.
Director Christopher Nolan with Leonardo DiCaprio and Ellen Page on Inception
Another recent award-winner with rich classroom applications is Christopher Nolan’s Inception, whose sound teams won the 2010 Oscars for Sound Mixing and Sound Editing. For the first award, three people were there to receive Oscars: Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick. Why three? Lora Hirschberg is re-recording sound mixer for effects and music, Gary Rizzo is mixer for dialogue and foley effects, and Ed Novick is the production sound mixer. For Inception’s second sound statuette, sound designer Richard King won for editing. Here are interviews with Lora Hirschberg and Ed Novick, and this is a page with many articles for Gary Rizzo on the site Designing Sound; in addition, here are a print interview and a short video about sound design with Richard King.
Ben Burtt and director Andrew Stanton at the French premiere of Wall-E
Excellent resources for interviews, technical information (such as SFX libraries), and more are available at filmsound.org and designing sound.org. Among pages about such respected sound designers like Gary Rydstrom and Randy Thom, there are useful articles for a movie that was featured in an earlier blog post on this site: Wall-E.
Creative and Educational Inspirations with Henry Mancini
Posted in Chapter 3, Music & Sound Design, tagged Blake Edwards, Henry Mancini, Jack Lemmon, Julie Andrews, Moon River, Music Education, Wait Until Dark on November 19, 2011| 3 Comments »
Henry Mancini conducting a studio orchestra
During the production of Moving Images, one of the many pleasant experiences I had was through my dealings with the Henry Mancini Estate. They were extremely helpful and generous with their support of our educational mission, and two images from their archives ended up in the book (figs. 3-14 & 3-15 in Chapter 3: Sound and Image). This is quite apt because Henry Mancini’s legacy is one of the most inspiring examples of boundless creativity, exceptional attention to one’s craft and medium, and deep generosity towards one’s collaborators and peers. Looking for insights and inspiration? I highly recommend a visit to the Henry Mancini website established by the Mancini Estate (which has experienced an interesting evolution over the years; they have clearly worked hard to make the site exceptional).
The video archive of material represented here is particularly rich (click on “Video Clips” from its main page). The discussions of the creative process by Jack Lemmon and Mancini himself are quite interesting and inspiring; the explanations by Mancini, sitting at the piano, of the origins of his most well-known melodies should be treasured by anyone who appreciates the creative process and composing. Any of them can be very useful for classroom use; for a film class, the video on the far right, “Thoughts on the Creative Process,” also features clips from a Blake Edwards film in production and the most in-depth insights on the particulars of composing for the screen.
For educators, there is one clip that is of great value. At the top of the left hand column is “On Music Education,” which is a jaw-droppingly appropriate discussion of the priorities of education in the United States and the profound values of arts education. I’m guessing that this video is from the 80’s, but its message could have been recorded yesterday. Check it out.
These materials center on Mancini’s gifts as a melodicist, but I would like to add that his talents as an arranger and sound innovator are too often neglected. He explored the possibilities of the studio orchestra like few other movie composers in history, and his use of the range of tones, colors, and quirks of the widest possible scope of instruments gives such richness to his scores. Whether writing for French Horns, mallet percussion, the full families of clarinets or flutes, or Plas Johnson’s sax, he explored their capacities and articulated a boundless range of emotions and expressions of life’s rhythms, movements, and mysteries. While he is most famous as a composer of “light” music, he could write in any vein. He could compose dark, eerie material right alongside specialists in that genre, and there has never been a better scorer of comedies.
When pianist and composer Roy Budd had a sudden opportunity to make a break into the movie scoring business at the age of 23 in 1970, the already successful jazz musician knew that the only way he could fake it was to buy Henry Mancini’s book, “Sounds and Scores,” and learn from the master. Budd got the job and went on to compose some of the greatest scores of the 70’s. He was right in looking to Mancini for guidance. As I indicate in Chapter 3 of Moving Images, the partnership of Henry Mancini and Blake Edwards is one of the most successful collaborative partnerships in motion picture arts history, and a study of how their talents merged so dynamically is very enlightening. (Here is a particularly moving story about Henry Mancini’s last days by Blake Edwards.)
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