If a Tree Falls?

Looking back on the semester, and having taken a course dedicated to sound I thought that I had to bring up this classic philosophical riddle: If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?
Now while I do not profess to know the answer to this question, I will attempt to analyze it using the attributes of sound I learned this semester.
Now, from a physics stand-point, sound is created by something (whether it be a voice or an action) that disrupts the elastic molecules in the air causing them to part (making the crest of a sound wave) and then springing back together (forming the trough). However, it is my understanding that this does not actually correlate into a specific sound but rather forms the sound wave. From there, the sound wave travels to the ear where the "sound" of the sound is actually created through the inner workings of the ear. Thus, if no one is around to pick-up the sound waves then I am not convinced that there is actually a "sound" but rather just a "sound-wave".

Types of Microphoes and Functions

Omni-directional microphones: These mics will capture incoming sound from all directions. This means that these mics would probably be ideal from such practices as recording ambient sound, sound scapes, backgrounds. They would also most probably be good for recording chorus and vocals because the mic will receive all the information from around the space.

Uni-directional microphones: These will capture sound from only one direction. The most common of these are called cardiods because the pick-up pattern of the mic resembles the shape of a heart. These are most commonly used for foley work and for sound technicians because these mics allow for a very concentrated and specific isolated sound.

Bi-directional microphones: These will capture sound evenly from the two parallel sides and were most commonly used for classic radio journalism where the interviewer would sit on one side of the mic while the interviewee would sit on the other.

A Summary of Michel Chion's "The Three Listening Modes"

There are at least 3 modes of listening each of which address different objects. Causal listening, semantic listening and reduced listening.
Causal listening is most common. When the cause is visible sound can provide supplementary information about it.
We rarely recognize a unique source exclusively on the basis of sound we hear out of context. The human individual is probably the only cause that can produce a sound, the speaking voice, that characterizes that individual alone.
At the same time a source we are closely familiar with can go undefined. We can listen to a radio announcer without knowing any physical attributes or name etc.
Sometimes we do not recognize an individual or unique source but rather a general category such as human, mechanical or animal cause.
Sound often has not just one source but numerous. Eg: writing with a felt pen, the first two sources are the pen and paper. Hand gestures also count as well as the writer himself are also sources. If the sound is recorded the loudspeaker and the audio tape are also sources.
Semantic listening- that which refers to a code or a language to interpret a nessage (often spoken language).
- causal listening to a voice is to listening to it semantically as perception of the handwriting of written text is to reading it.
Reduced listening- focuses on the traits of sounds itself separate from its cause and meaning.
-In reduced listening the descriptive inventory of a sound cannot be compiled in a single hearing.
- an example of reduced listening is loking at the pitch of a sound. It is independent of the sounds cause or meaning.
- reduced listening opens our ears and sharpens our power of hearing.
- These three listening modes overlap and combine in the complex and varied context of the film soundtrack.

The Functions of Sound in the film "Singin in the Rain"

Throughout the course of the cinematic masterpiece entitled “Singin in the Ran”, directors Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen utilize the cinematic technique of sound in order to help create and shape the emotional arc of the audience, aid in the creating continuity throughout the film as well as to heighten the viewers understanding of the images being projected on the screen. These roles of sound within the film, which have been identified above, are achieved through the culmination of the various characteristics and aspects of sound which result in the creation of a specific effect for the film or affect on the viewer. Through the close-analysis and interpretation of two specific scenes from the film, Don’s back-story and the screening of the “Dueling Cavalier”, the role and function sound plays in the context of the overall film form will become clear.

In the scene depicting Don’s backstory within the film “Singin in the Rain”, directors Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen present the viewer with a prime example of the true importance which sound plays in the context of film form. In this scene sound is used as a tool responsible for numerous functions including; helping to create continuity between the shots, heightening the mood of the scene and working with other elements of the films formal system in order to create a specific effect or help in conveying a certain affect onto the viewer.

The interconnection between numerous elements of the films formal system working together is present at the beginning of the scene when Don first starts his speech. Two elements of sound, in combination with camera movement and mise-en-scene create the affect of intimacy between the audience and Don, causing one to take what Don is saying at face value. The two elements of sound being employed in this shot are dialogue and music. As the camera tracks in to a close-up shot of Don at the microphone, he begins to recount his backstory, providing the shot with its dialogue. Furthermore, as the camera tracks in, a sappy piece of non-diegtetic violin music is playing and Don is looking almost directly in the camera lens. The music gives the shots a nostalgic mood while the eye contact between the viewer and Don causes the viewer to believe what he is saying. The importance of analyzing this shot in particular is that it perfectly encapsulates the way in which sound interacts with other elements of the film’s formal system in order create a desired effect.

Furthermore, in this same shot, as the camera tracks in towards Don it pans slightly to the left to capture Cosmo Brown’s reaction to Don saying that, “I’ve had one motto that I’ve always lived by; Dignity! Always Dignity!”. The directors consciously decide to show Cosmo’s shocked reaction to Dons opening dialogue because it functions in setting up the disunity between the explicit understanding of Dons backstory being told and the true implied one being shown on screen. In other words, Cosmos reaction is crucial in separating the range of knowledge between the fans listening at the premier and Cosmo, Don and the viewers. This is due to the fact that only Cosmo, Don and the viewers will ever know that Don’s motto of dignity does not, in truth, reflect his life. The voice-over narration, during the flashback sequences, provides the viewer with comic relief because of the fact that what is being said and what is being shown do not correlate with one another.

The humour provided by the disunity between the backstory being told by Don and the backstory being shown to the viewer once again exemplifies the way in which sound and other elements of film interact in order create an specific effect or create a desired affect. Some instances in this scene wherein the cinematography and sound contradict one another, resulting in humour include when: the viewer hears Don say, “We rounded out our apprenticeship at the exclusive Dramatics Academy” when in reality the viewer sees a sign advertizing “Amateur Night” followed by a clown tramp routine by Don and Cosmo which ends with them getting hooked off of the stage. Another instance occurs when Don says “In a few years Cosmo and I were ready to embark on a dance concert tour. We played the finest symphonic halls in the country!” and the viewer sees two images layered on top of one another. On the bottom Cosmo and Don are performing their “Fit as a Fiddle” routine while on top is the montage of the signs of the towns where they are performing, which include: Dead Mans Fang, Arizona and Coyoteville, New Mexico with a population of 36.

Another function of sound employed by Kelly and Donen in this scene is the use of sound as a bridge between shots. The directors use sound as a bridge in this scene in order to help maintain continuity between the seemingly unrelated shots of the flashback sequences. By having either the voice-over narration of Don or other another sound start during on shot, continue through the transition, and finish in the new shot creates a more powerful connection between the two images then just the transition effect alone. An example of sound being used as a bridge between two shots in this scene occurs between the first two flashbacks of young Don and Cosmo. At the end of the Pool Hall shot Dons voice-over is present and continues through the cross-fade and into the shot where they sneak into the theatre. This bride seamlessly creates a smooth transition and obvious connection between the shots.

In this scene sound is also used in order to convey emotional tone and characters emotions. This is presented to the viewer in the flashback sequence when Don introduces himself to Lina Lamont. At first Lina will not interact with him because he is a measly stunt man. As a result, the non-diegetic music is sombre and sad violins. However, following Don’s encounter with Mr. Simpson, the head of the studio, who offers him an acting contract, Lina is all over Don. This change in Lina’s attitude towards Don is correlated through the change in music which is now fluttering flutes as Lina flirts with him. Furthermore, after Don turns her down a low bass bassoon sounding instrument kicks in timed with Don’s footsteps expressing his superiority and when Lina kicks him there is a quick crescendo of the instruments followed by a moment of silence. The effect of this sudden crescendo is that it reflects Lina’s feeling of annoyance whereby the silence that follows is there to draw the viewer’s attention to Don’s reaction. The importance of this shot is that it is a prime example of how sound is used in many films as a way of expressing the emotional tone of a particular shot or scene and as a means of representing the emotions of a character on the screen.

In Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen’s film “Singin in the Rain”, sound is employed by the directors in order to aid in the overall creation of the films form. The scene of the screening of the “Dueling Cavalier” is an excellent example of how the directors use the acoustic properties of sound to convey the affect of humour upon the viewer. Once again, however, it is the relationship between the sound interacting with other elements of the films formal system that truly allow for the humour to be created.

This is evident during the first shot of the “Dueling Cavalier” where the acoustic properties of volume, pitch and timbre are purposely employed poorly by the directors in order to evoke feelings of humour in the viewer. This occurs when Lina’s character first enters the frame and the volume levels of her footsteps and the pearls she is fondling are much too high. What is more is that these improper volume levels are identified by Mr. Simpson when he asks the director, “What’s that? The thunderstorm outside?”, in relation to the volume of the necklace, to which the director replies: “it’s those pearls Mr. Simpson”. Furthermore, within this opening shot when Lina begins her dialogue the combination of the high pitch and the nasal timbre quality of her voice results in a sound that is both distracting and humorous because of the fact that it does not correlate with the accent of the place and time the film is set.

Humour is once again created by the sound and certain elements of the mise-en-scene working together when Don’s character first enters the frame. As a result of the fact that Don is not accustomed to having his every movement and action heard his props, costume, acting style and stage movements produce, once again, uneven volume levels which result in humour. When Don enters the screen the rubbing together of his pant legs is picked up by the microphone; which is traditionally not a sound one hears in real life thus meaning the fidelity of the sound is off. Another volume level that is much too high occurs when Don throws his cane and its lands off screen with a loud, high pitch, bang. Before the invention of the talkie film, however, this action on its own would not be humorous. This is because without the sound to accompany the action the throwing of the cane would visually be seen as dramatic. Furthermore before the invention of the talkie film, actors used grandiose movements and facial expressions to convey feelings and emotion onto the viewer. However once the sound is added to the film, that very same action becomes cheesy and humorous because the viewers attention is now drawn towards the unnecessary action of the thrown cane which accomplishes nothing other then disturbing the sound of the scene.

The mise-en-scene element of acting in combination with the sound of dialogue once again creates humour for the viewer later in the scene. This occurs when Don and Lina are first interacting with one another. Because neither actor is used to speaking towards a microphone the volume of the dialogue is very uneven during this sequence. This is because when they are reciting the dialogue they are accustomed to making grandiose movements and not speaking directly to the other person. Because of this, every time Lina turns he head away from the microphone the volume levels drop substantially and when Don move away from the microphone and speaks towards the camera his volume levels are nearly inaudible because he is both facing away from the microphone and is, in terms of space, far away. Neverthless, as Don moves around Lina the sound of his rubbing pants is the only sound whose levels are constant throughout the shot; this, of course, further distracts the viewer.

Another example of how the sound in this scene creates humour for the viewer occurs when Lina hits Don on the shoulder with her fan. Traditionally it is understood by the viewer that this action should hardly make a sound at all, however in this shot the fidelity of this sound is askew. Nevertheless the sound produced by the fan hitting the shoulder is one of large amplitude with reverb and echo causing his shoulder to sound hollow.

One final instance wherein the directors use sound in this scene for humorous affect is when they have the reel skip during the screening of the film which causes the sound to become asynchronous. The resulting humour lies in the fact that when Lina is captured by Rouge Noir and forces himself on her because the dialogue is out-of-sync it makes it seem as though Lina is speaking for Rouge Noir and vice-versa. After the in-depth analysis of two scenes from the film “Signin in the Rain”, it is now evident that directors Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen utilize the cinematic technique of sound as a means through which to achieve numerous functions such as creating a specific effect for the film or affect on the viewer. Despite the fact that one could write much more on this topic it is clear that sound plays a crucial role in the development of this films form.

Brief Word on "The 400 Blows"

The film entitled "The 400 Blows", directed by Francois Truffaut, like most new-wave French films, attempts to create a strong sense of reality. One of the ways in which the accomplished this was through the use of a prominently diegetic sound track. Take for example the scene right near the beginning of the film as the students are passing the provocative calendar photo around the class and the teacher catches the films protagonist, Antoine, with it. In a Classic Hollywood Narrative version of the film there would have been, most likely, some non-diegetic sounds of tense music in this scene as the students are passing the provocative calendar photo around the class and when Antoine is caught with it. Nevertheless, since this film is a prime example of the European art cinema style the use of diegetic, natural sound is favored heavily over the use of music or other added sounds. The effect that solely the use of diegetic sound has on the viewer is quite powerful because it truly captures the reality of the school classroom when the students are working individually on an assignment. In truth, throughout the course of the film there are only a few select parts where Truffaut inserts music into his film. Had The 400 Blows been produced in Hollywood there would have been music added in numerous scenes throughout the film where there is currently only diegetic sound when important events occur, such as when: Antoine takes the typewriter from his Father’s desk at work, when Antoine brings the typewriter back and gets caught by the security guard, when Antoine and Rene are skipping school and he sees his Mother and finally when Antoine is escaping from the corrections facility and running away from the soccer field.