Sound design

Sound design is the practice of creating and producing the audio elements used in films, television, theater, and other forms of art. In essence, sound design is the process of placing a clear and comprehensible sonic stamp on a production. Sound designers are responsible for everything that makes up the soundtrack of a film or stage production, including music, dialogue, sound effects, and more. In most cases, sound design is a group effort in which a whole group of audio professionals work together to produce a soundscape that is combined with visual elements to create a compelling and immersive audience experience.

Sound design has a long history that dates back to the ancient world's early theatrical productions. Later, sound design came to be closely associated with film, television, radio, and other audio/visual mediums like video games. In the modern world, sound design is a virtually ever-present part of daily life that can easily influence how people experience the world around them.

Background

The history of sound design begins in antiquity. From the time that the concept of theater first arose in the ancient civilizations of India and China, theatrical productions were accompanied by music and sound. The same was also true in ancient Greece and Rome. Many of the classic Greek tragedies and comedies involved the use of audio effects meant to evoke the sound of storms, such as thunder. These effects were produced with the help of special machines. The Romans used a machine that dropped brass balls onto dried hides stretched out like a drum to create a thunder effect. The Greeks and Romans also pioneered the idea of architectural acoustic design. Based on their understanding of how sound is transmitted to an audience, the Greeks built theaters with stepped seating.

Many of the sound machines first used in Greek and Roman plays continued to be used as theater evolved over time. In medieval religious plays, these machines were often used to compliment depictions of God or hell. Music also became a bigger part of theatrical sound design during this era. Along with sound effects, sung and instrumental music added to the overall atmosphere of medieval plays. The importance of this atmosphere increased in and following the Elizabethan era as theater began to move into more controllable indoor environments. As a result, sound design became a crucial part of theatrical productions that went a long way toward immersing audiences in the theater experience and bringing plays to life.

New advancements in sound design were achieved as modern theater began to emerge in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. A wide array of new mechanical devices like thunder sheets and rain makers offered many new opportunities for theatrical sound effects. As more of these devices found their way into theaters, productions began to employ large sound crews responsible for overseeing sound effects. Technological advancements also contributed to the evolution of theatrical sound design. Among the most important of these advancements was the introduction of recorded sound in the late nineteenth century. Recorded sound allows for the inclusion of a seemingly endless array of effortlessly reproducible theatrical sound effects.

As theatrical sound design continued to evolve in the twentieth century, a new medium in which sound would eventually play an even more integral part appeared: film. Even before motion pictures incorporated spoken dialogue or traditional sound effects, sound was an important part of the film experience. Most silent films were accompanied by live music that provided the auditory ambiance necessary to help bring the story to life. When "talkies" were introduced in the 1930s, sound design came to be a critical element of cinematic art. As a result, the sound designer – a position first formally credited in the 1979 film Apocalypse Now – assumed one of the most important roles in the filmmaking process alongside the director and the production designer. Over the years, sound design has also become a critical part of the production of television, video games, and other forms of audio/visual media.

Overview

Sound design is an essential element of theater, film, television, and other similar forms of entertainment. Simply put, sound designers are responsible for everything audiences hear during a performance or screening. This means that good sound design is potentially crucial to the success of a production.

The value of sound design lies in the importance of sound itself in the human experience. Sound is critical to the way people perceive the world around them on both conscious and unconscious levels. When people imagine a place, they think about everything they associate with that place. That includes all the sounds they hear while they are in that place. Sound helps people to construct a sense of place that would be incomplete if the appropriate audio ambiance were absent. As a result, a place can only be accurately recreated in film or theater if the normal soundscape of that place is also accurately recreated. In addition, sound is also a critical part of memory. This means that skilled use of sound can help take people back to another point in time and, in doing so, further immerse them in a film or theater experience.

Most film and theater productions include several types of sound. The most important and obvious types of sound in film and theater productions are the dialogue and background music. Dialogue tells the story of a movie or play and helps to move the plot forward. Background music sets the tone and contributes to the storytelling process. Equally important, but perhaps less obvious than dialogue and background music, are sound effects and atmospheric noise. Sound effects and atmospheric noise help to make the film or theatrical experience more immersive for the audience by making the depicted locations seem as realistic and natural as possible. Though they may seem trivial at first, sounds like traffic noise, wind, and background chatter make scenes come alive for audiences in ways that would not otherwise be possible if such ambient sounds were not included.

In film and theater, sound designers usually have a number of different responsibilities. Most importantly, a sound designer creates sound effects, atmospheres, and ambiances that help construct the world in which the story is set and strengthen the audience's connection to the story. Sound designers also select, edit, and mix the music to be used in the production and work alongside composers and performers in the creation of original music. Sound designers additionally work to ensure that all dialogue is audible and comprehensible. In some cases, sound designers may even be responsible for creating the sound system used to oversee all the sound elements used in a particular show.

One of the biggest jobs for sound designers is acquiring all the sounds that will be needed for a given project. While many sound designers eventually accumulate large libraries of pre-recorded sounds that they can rely on in most circumstances, they often have to record new sounds as projects require. This can be done in several different ways. Some sounds are recorded on location so as to accurately recreate the natural sonic environment of the sites where scenes take place. During location recording, a sound designer or another member of the sound crew will record various sounds around a location that would probably be heard during a scene. Editing these sounds into the audio track later in the filmmaking process will help to make the scene as realistic as possible. Another method of recording sounds is known as foley. Foley is the art of reproducing and recording sound effects in a studio. Foley artists watch a scene and use various surfaces and props to recreate the sounds that would be heard in that scene. Using this method, foley artists can create and record the sounds of walking, running, breaking objects, and more. In some cases, sound designers must also improve dialogue audio through Automated Dialogue Replacement (ADR). It is often difficult to cleanly record dialogue on location. As a result, dialogue recorded on location usually has to be replaced in post-production. This means that actors have to re-record their lines on a clean track that the sound designer can then edit into a scene so that audiences can clearly understand what is being said. Although some filmmakers prefer not to use it, ADR can be an important part of the sound design process.

Sound design also has applications outside film and theater. Many television shows make use of sound design in the same way that films do. In addition, sound designers can play an important part in the production of commercials. Many commercials use sound as a way to help viewers build a familiarity with products. Jingles and catchphrases make it easy for people to identify with and remember a product. Sound design is also a key element of video games. Good sound design draws players deeper into a video game universe and makes the experience of playing a video game as immersive as possible.

Bibliography

Finan, Kate. "The History of Sound Design." Boom Box Post, 16 July 2017, www.boomboxpost.com/blog/2017/7/16/the-history-of-sound-design. Accessed 6 Mar. 2018.

Hill, Katie and Kate McDonnell. "What Is Sound Design?" 4 Dec. 2017, Misc Magazine, miscmagazine.com/what-is-sound-design. Accessed 6 Mar. 2018.

"History of Sound in Theatre." Theatrical Sound Designers and Composers Association, tsdca.org/history. Accessed 6 Mar. 2018.

Moss, Charlie. "The Oscar Nominated Sound Designer Behind 'Baby Driver' Explains the Difference between Editing & Mixing." Thrillist, 4 Mar. 2018, www.thrillist.com/entertainment/nation/sound-editing-vs-sound-mixing-oscars-baby-driver. Accessed 6 Mar. 2018.

Pavlov, Antonio. "Sound Design: How Sound Helps Tell Your Visual Stories." Videomaker, 28 July 2017, www.videomaker.com/article/f04/19052-sound-design-how-sound-helps-tell-your-visual-stories. Accessed 6 Mar. 2018.

"The Sound Designer's Job." American Association of Community Theatre, courses.lumenlearning.com/culturalanthropology/chapter/hijra. Accessed 6 Mar. 2018.

"What Is a Sound Designer For Theatre?" Association of Sound Designers, www.associationofsounddesigners.com/whatis. Accessed 6 Mar. 2018.

"What Is Sound Design?" Soundfly, 5 Dec. 2017, flypaper.soundfly.com/produce/what-is-sound-design. Accessed 6 Mar. 2018.