Projections of Sound on Image/Acoustic Ecology

Projections of Sound on Image:

The first reading “Projections of Sound on Image” is an interesting read.  I have heard a lot of people discuss how the silent film era gave better performances than in the sound era.  Some may agree with that statement.  This article seems to argue how sound is a very useful tool in making the audience “feel” what is going on in a film.  The author discusses how the ear processes quicker than the eye.  They continue to discuss how spoken words make the ear work faster.  This idea seems to be over looked by people who argue the statement made by the silent film era.  Those people maybe right, but it seems that they are quick on what they say.  I feel they do not give sound the credit it deserves.

   The author does a great job at explaining how an audience gets an impact on sound.  By using the example of Bergman’s Persona in which a hand is impaled by a nail.  The author talks about if one was to take the sound away the audience may still be shocked. By adding the sound the audience is able to hear the sound of the nail being driven in the hand one, thus making the experience more gruesome and realistic.

Overall I found the article very interesting.  The author discusses more about sound/music with the definitions of “empathetic” and “anempathetic music.”  It was very informative and I hope to read more articles like this in the future.

Acoustic Ecology:

“Acoustic Ecology” was not as effective as the “Projections of Sound on Image” reading.  I felt that this article was not really teaching me anything.  The author basically talks about different ambient sounds.  I know about ambient sounds, so I really do not need to read about what they are.  The article spends almost an entire page about different sounds in different locations.  For example, “the sounds of the meadow and its surrounding hills are subtle.”  Well… of course they are!  Anyone who has been out on a meadow or field can tell you that there is not a lot of sound.  It’s not just this.  The author discusses other sounds in other places.  Why waste my time?  I know what certain things sound like, therefore no need to describe them to me.

In the end, I really didn’t find this article very useful.  If I didn’t know what ambient sounds are… then maybe I would have needed to read this article.  But, I really don’t think anyone needs to have the sounds of a meadow or anything else described to them.  If so, then that person needs to get out more…