Essays :
Sound In Media PA5011
In this module we were asked to create music for different projects including video clips, adverts, stings, programmes, podcasts etc.
Each type of project requires a different style of music and more so requires a specific ‘affect’ like the project requires.
Each project requires a certain emotion/affect to be expressed or to invoke within the listener.
For instance in the programme music it supposed to evoke certain images in the mind. Also it leaves and impression of what could be taking place. With mine I tried to evoke positive emotions and then something unsettling like of an impending doom. It definitely had to do with the chord. At bay the track seems pragmatic but focusing on it for a bit you grasp an ominous vibe to it. My advert (furniture) is one that demanded something positive, fast pace, up beat, fun and colourful. Something that would make the listener (customer) feel warm and fuzzy inside and would comfortably make these big purchases. The music I made for the sting (cop-15 Copenhagen) which was a biodiversity conference. This sounds a bit scientific, alien like. I obviously don’t have the right words for it but a science fiction type affect was what I was definitely going for.
The music I made for the pod casts, the theme song has a happy, tropical vibe with the usage of shaker and Tabla. It would be suited with a podcast which is ethnic or covers general topics. The positive track is quite warm and upbeat whilst the negative one is a bit more slow, sad and suspenseful. Similarly we had to create three types of empathetic music for one clip. The clip itself can be interpreted in many ways so the music could not swing in any extremes. For the happy it was more neutral with an upbeat vibe. For sad it was slow and gloomy and portrayed some form of heart break or disappointment. For threatening it sounded very eery, loud, villainous and mischievous. This is how I attempted to convey affect through the music I created.
I would like to discuss a couple of artists who inspired me to want to pursue a career in a music; they are Lady Gaga and Avril Lavigne.
I wouldn’t know how to exactly compare my current work to their’s but I can certainly speak on how their work has inspired me to pursue music as a career. Lady Gaga is known for her musical versatility of her eccentric personality and her outrageous fashion. She is a very dedicated performer and a very talented singer. But what sets her apart from any other musician especially when she first came out on the scene is that she was never scared to make bold statements with her music. ‘Gaga has retained public interest over the years due to a multitude of factors. She’s been able to constantly rebrand herself throughout every era of her career, creating a new persona or style with each project she releases’(The Daily Targum, 2022). She started creating a legacy from the very beginning and it’s gonna live forever. Her most impactful work that she wants to be remembered for and made a huge impact not only in pop culture but in society in general was her song ‘Born this Way’ . It’s not only a song about self acceptance but it blatantly addresses the minorities and marginalised groups in the world especially the LGBTQIA+ community, she also mentions race, skin colour and disabilities. ‘Gaga is known for her powerful voice and overt sexuality as well as her messages of self-acceptance and love. Gaga has always been outspoken in support of LGBTQ+ people, spreading love and defending the community in times of hardships’(The Daily Targum, 2022). She has grown up in the queer club scenes and her work definitely reflects that has had a massive social impact as well. Lady Gaga herself said that what sets her apart is not her talent but it’s having the nerve to go after what you know you were meant to do in this world. And I feel like who deep down I feel like I have the same kind of nerve as I am a South Asian woman who is pursuing music instead of a conventional career.
My second inspiration being Avril Lavigne who is the Canadian singer songwriter. She paved the way for female driven, punk influenced pop music (Wikipedia). Hers free spirit, lightheartedness, playfulness and girliness really resonated with me deep down. Just like her as a teenager I would wear t-shirts and short plaid skirts and I wasn’t allowed to colour my hair, but I would try to copy her hairstyle and couldn’t wait for the day I could be blonde and would have pink and green highlights. Her songs had helped me to express my wild and free side and also her album ‘Goodbye Lullaby’ got me through my first and biggest heartbreak.
Lavigne highlights the fun and angsty nature of pop punk. 'You could sing about your parents divorcing and the woes of youth whilst simultaneously mooning the camera in your music video. Inspired by the emergence of Jackass around the same time, boyish immaturity became aspirational and almost synonymous with the pop punk genre of the time, and its desire to lean into youth and the lack of responsibilities it affords. But the playing field wasn’t level' (Mean muse magazine 2022). Lavigne was uninterested in confirming to the good girl pop star image. Her style and attitude not only resonated with me but teenagers across the globe.
From this practical production process I have learned that a lot is possible with sound and music I have had obviously seen and heard music being used in various ways subconsciously. But this is the first time I was challenged to come up with music under a particular theme.
The artists I mentioned above are mainstream artists and also share one of the most popular genres i.e pop music. But still they have impacted pop culture differently. The affect their music has creates is different. But both of these woman have empowered me through their music and the emotions (affect) they create. Gaga’s music always made me feel free, brave, joyful, creative and fearless. Avril’s music resonated with me through heart break, romance, rebelliousness and cheekiness. We relate to every artist differently and they understand different parts of us.
References and Bibliography :
Jeremy Gilbert, 2022
Thinking About Affect
Song Writing
PA 5020
Cormorant Garamond is a classic font with a modern twist. It's easy to read on screens of every shape and size, and perfect for long blocks of text.
I would like to discuss two different singers/musicians whose work fascinate me and influence my work.
For me these artists are Taylor Swift, Lana Del Rey.
The American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift has dabbled in multiple genres like country, pop, alternative and pop. Swift is known for her evocative story telling through her songs and have developed a musical language of her own. Swift has mentioned what keeps her fascinated is that inspiration hits her differently every time. ‘Her breakthrough hit, Tim McGraw, came to her during a high school maths class. Ronan was inspired by a mother's essay about her son having cancer. Tolerate It was inspired by the book Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurie.’
As a teenager when I decided that what would make me the most fulfilled would be pursuing a career as a singer-songwriter; it was not only because I wanted to express myself or my artistic abilities and to put a message across, it was also because I stood for a lot of things and me conveying that to the world in a musical form would probably make a difference. Swift puts it beautifully ‘Who live for that rare, pure moment when a magical cloud floats down right in front of you in the form of an idea for a song, and all you have to do is grab it. Then shape it like clay. Prune it like a garden. And then wish on every lucky star or pray to whatever power you believe in that it might find its way out into the world and make someone feel seen, feel understood, feel joined in their grief or heartbreak or joy for just a moment’. Earlier on through her music, Swift captured the innocence of her adolescence then as her albums progressed she showed a more matured side to her and finally she was unafraid to disappoint the status quo; she partook in the narrative of being a villain. Swift loves to cloth metaphors which is very enchanting to me.
One of my musical inspiration would have to be Lana Del Rey. Her lyric writing is what inspires me the most. The way she romanticises the good and bad in life is very beautiful to me. She expresses her deepest desires and life’s fulfilment in such a shameless way that it is extremely brave. She is not afraid to be vulnerable. And her unconventional lyrics never fail to paint an image in my mind and I can always understand how she exactly feel about everything. She inspires me to live life in the present moment and to write songs with authenticity. Lana’s aesthetic is 50s Americana, vintage.
When Lana first came to the scene she was told by her team to sing slow and in a lower voice to separate from her from the other artists at that time. Bubblegum pop was very popular she brought a refreshing change and had shifted the direction of pop culture.
Lana had a cult tumblr following, her followers used her first albums Born to die and Ultraviolence to romanticise their depression, abuse and eating disorders.
Critics now praise Born to die and Lana in general because of her impact and how fans have always stayed even though she was never a huge hit maker.
It impacted many artists such as Billie Eilish and Taylor Swift who mention her as an influence. Lana and Taylor even share a producer called Jack Antonoff. He produced ‘Venice Bitch’ for Lana which is considered his best work by many critics.
Her lyrics in the song ultraviolence was considered very controversial as it seemingly was romanticising physical abuse. ‘He hit me and it felt like a kiss’ sounds like she’s talking about abuse which could be the case but mainly shes talking her relationship with alcohol, the name “Jim” is mentioned throughout & it sounds like a man but what she’s actually talking about is jim beam bourbon.
I struggled with severe depression amongst other mental illnesses. Her song ‘ Get free’ cut most deep for me. I felt stuck and hopeless and some of her lyrics expressed exactly how I felt which brought a sense of comfort to me.
‘Sometimes it feels like I've got a war in my mind
I wanna get off, but I keep riding the ride
I never really noticed that I had to decide
To play someone's game, or live my own life’
‘There's no more chasing rainbows and hoping for an end to them
Their arches are illusions, solid at first glance
But then you try to touch them
There's nothing to hold on to
The colors used to lure you in
And put you in a trance’
I am a beginner at music production so I wouldn’t be able to tell how exactly each of these artists instrumentation affects my work. But the way they sing and write impacts me immensely.
The two styles of music I sing and create have major influences from these two artists. Sometimes I story tell and break into a ballad like Taylor. And sometimes I like singing like I’m whispering and painting and image with my words and expressing my feelings through descriptions of objects and scenarios like Lana.
Tricia Rose in the book black noise urban culture and rap’s racial politics. Rose observed that rap music remained vibrant with its own aesthetic. I have discussed two cis-gendered, white artists above who also have their own aesthetic.
References and Bibliography :
Tricia Rose,1994
Black Noise
www.bbc.co.uk
www.coolaccidents.com