Evaluation

Evaluation 

For my podcast I made sure that the language used was suitable for my target audience which was teenagers in between the ages of 14-19 and my secondary audience who were those who were interested in the African culture and dance. I did this by using formal language within the introduction of my podcast and informal language during my interview and my conclusion. I stuck to my topic throughout the whole podcast and made it clear that it was mainly about the African dance culture and two dance groups.

I had a clear beginning, middle and end which also helped me with the format of my podcast allowing me to know what had to be done during each period for example, I knew that within period one I had to give myself enough time to do my introduction and sound check, during period two I was able to complete my interview and in period three I finally completed my podcast with a conclusion and words of wisdom to my fellow young viewers. This then allowed me to have enough time in period four to have a layout of what I would do for my podcast and create ideas by finding music which will fit well with my podcast. Once having my plan sorted out I was able to put it all together by editing it through Logic.

My strengths were having a script which helped me with my podcast and having a character play the role of DJ Kwamz original to complete my interview. Another strength was having a creative introduction to DJ Kwamz Original which would be a familiar voice over for those audience members who are familiar with the DJ. Improvements that could've been included to make my podcast better was having a theme tune in the beginning to introduce the Podcast just like a radio station or news channel would have; for example, BBC news have a familiar theme tune at the beginning of ever broadcast which is a familiar sound to their audience and even if they cannot see what's going on their television that theme tune makes them aware that BBC news is being aired at that particular moment.

Podcast

Uses and purposes of digital audio production

Serial season 1 episode 1 from Blessing Anakambi

Pre-production

Dialogue/sound script:

Dance

Presenter/ Interviewer: Dance is a performing art form involving of movement with the human body which creates the beautiful artistic work of dance. This movement has artistic and representational value, it is recognised by dancers and spectators (the audience) within the African culture and those interested in the African culture. I spent day with both dance groups within their dance studio when both dance groups and soon after realised that they both get along pretty well although they may seem as if they are rival groups when they are battling for the title of ‘Who is the best in East London?'

Both dance groups (WANF and AfroUK) use hip-hop and street dance within their dance routines however, they mainly have an African style within their style. This is what makes them one of the most loved Afrobeat dancers in London. African dance refers mainly to the dance of Sub-Saharan Africa, and more appropriately African dances because of the many cultural differences in musical and movement styles. These dances must be viewed in close connection with Sub-Saharan African music traditions and Bantu cultivation of rhythm. Throughout the years African dance moves have combined with hip-hop and street dance to be as popular as it is today.

Today, we invited a guess who goes by the name of DJ Kwamz Original AKA K.O who is also a dancer and popular DJ in London.

Presenter/ Interviewer: “So how do you feel about your opposing dance group?”

K.O (Kwamz Original): “Personally, there is no hatred between both groups whilst we battle in the dance studio or when we upload dance challenges onto different social media applications to show the target audience who is better. However, things could get a bit heated as we are all a bit competitive and always try to be better than the rest.”

Presenter/ Interviewer: “Why do you think people within the groups feel as if they should be better than the other?”

K.O: “As we have supporters all over London they always want to be the talk of the crowd or otherwise known as the most popular dancer known within London and outside London. “

Presenter/ Interviewer: “Alright. So from resources I gained before I came to Pembury circle community centre, I came to realise that sometimes AfroUK and WANF LDN get together to do a dance choreography to include it into some music videos.”

K.O: “When it is time to be serious within business we stick together and work hard. People may not see it as they think there is strong tension between us but we are friendly towards each other.  We have fun and work well together to create a choreography our supporters will enjoy.”

Interviewer: “What inspired you to become a dancer and how did WANF LDN begin?”

K.O: “When I was in secondary school I always wanted to be a part of performance within any event in school and outside school. Whenever I has the opportunity to gather my friends and make a dance routine from scratch or from well-known choreographers I would attempt to do it and make it better gradually. Those who knew me before know that my dance skills weren’t the best but over the years they’ve improved and now I have people asking me to hold dance classes for them to teach them a few moves. Not only did my hard work push me to be at my level today but the support from friends and family. Without them, honestly, I would’ve gave up after my Year 11 final performance due to the fact that people laughed whilst I was on stage and it was embarrassing. But, now I am seen as one of the best dancers and I’m only 17. WANF LDN began in 2014 when I was just a DJ learning the basics. But eventually I became a dancer too producing not just DJ mixes but music videos too.”

Presenter/Interviewer: After my short interview with Kwamz original I was able to gain more information based on the rivalry of AfroUK and WANF LDN. He taught me that although there may be abit of pressure within the dance studio there will always be seriousness when it comes to business. In addition to that teenagers should not feel the need to stop their dream according to those who don’t support their movement because sooner or later they’ll be able to be better and have the last laugh.

Timing

Introduction: 2mins approx.

Interview: 3-5mins approx.

Outro: 1min approx.



Television and film

Call the midwife

In the beginning of the show there is a selection of images shown in black and white  symbolising to the audience that this is a show which is set in approximately before 1966 .A theme tune is played at the beginning of the show which identifies what show is being aired at that moment. We hear diegetic sounds such as busses, trains, dogs barking people talking etc. Fast upbeat aural motif music is used as one of the midwife’s announce Shirley is due to give birth; This is because it creates tension to the audience and excitement and the fast upbeat rhythm portrays the rate of the heart beat.


Dialogue is then used in the opening scene “Don’t leave me mum” illustrating that the lady is going to give birth. Upbeat music is played behind the dialogue of the lady giving birth and the nurses surrounding her. This symbolises the build up of the birth. The slow music had a happy vibe as it included pleonastic sound as she gave birth happily. The incidental music changes into a slow happy instrumental and the baby is born. There is then a voiceover explaining the story so the viewer understands what is going on.


Sound effects is used such as a beep from a horn symbolising the area they live in could be busy. Sound effects of the baby crying, footsteps have been used so the viewer understands the environment of the show. The first lady that gave birth had a eastern accent which could represent her class in society. In another scene the next couple had a posh accent representing that they come from a better background and lifestyle. Noise is used such as the dialogue and the children playing and skipping in the road. This is used to give a naturalistic look on how all the midwifes and community live. Music is then used to set a happy mood as the children were having fun and socialising with each other. When the posh couple get intimate the music starts to play again symbolising their romance and love for each other. One of the midwifes is having a incoming “important call” the two other midwifes sneak behind the wall and try to over hear what she is saying on the phone. Incidental music is played whilst they are whispering to each other.


The music used was slow and had a mysterious touch to it as they are spying on her. It sets a suspicious mood for the viewers as everyone wants to know what is going to happen next. The cockney lady who gave birth is conversing with one of the nurses. During the discussion they tend to pause in silence due to her losing a baby before her recent pregnancy with her new-born. In the next scene we see the cockney lady and her husband running for the bus, they use incidental music which is very upbeat.


The dialogue is of them both laughing setting a funny but entertaining mood for the audience watching. The posh couple is then seen together, the pregnant lady is watched by her husband playing the violin which is seen as very high classed back in those days. They are a educated couple, they also talk in a good manner. The posh pregnant lady goes to the hospital whilst the Cockney lady who just had a new-born is seen sitting down in the waiting line. The posh lady then looks at the noisy children making noise and sits down next to the lady. The noise is very loud as it is a group of children and babies. There is Foley noises of a lady slapping her child as she is misbehaving. There is a scene of one of the ladies bumping into a police officer. The policer officer offers the lady if she wants to go to the ‘pictures’ again. This is when incidental music is used such as slow music symbolising romance.



level 2 TV drama for sound from Media Leyton on Vimeo.

Task 3- Professional recordings, editing equipment and recording techniques

Professional recordings, editing equipment

 and recording techniques

When you’ve recorded your sound,  you will then be able to access a software called Logic which is only available on a Mac computers only. On Logic, you can do many things with the sound that you recorded. For example, you can change the tone of voice of your recording so that it can sound as if you are in a auditorium/bathroom/ on the phone. You can make the sound a very low pitch or you can make the sound very high pitch. In addition to that, you can edit the sound which you have selected to cut out any irrelevant pieces of sounds you may not need within your podcast. When recording, you can also include a multi-track; A multi-track is when multiple sounds is being recorded at the same time (like a dialogue with a group of people talking at once or a live performance with many instruments being used at once). It can be positive when you are recording for example an argument when you want hear what everyone’s saying and when people are talking over each other. However, a negative could be that multi tracking can pick up any little sound whist recording for example, the air conditioner may make a humming noise which may be picked up easily or computers within a room which make a noise once it is switched on . 

When you are about to record, you must check the level of the recorder to prevent distortion. Distortion is when you speak to close to the recorder when the level is high meaning when the level is over its peak. This will happen because you didn’t do the sound checks. Make sure that it’s at 0dbu so that you don’t create distortion. When there is distortion, it means recorder wasn’t checked. Also when you’re recording, be aware of the environment that you’re in because the microphones are very sensitive and they pick up the smallest sounds. When you want to sync audio footage, you would use clapper boards. This will help you whilst you’re recording. As technology develops, they’ve invented a way where you don’t need to use the clapper boards but people still tend to use them as it is more traditional and more people are used to it.

Task 2- Microphones

Microphone

A microphone (which is also nicknamed mic or mike) converts sound to an electrical signal through the sound waves and vibrations.

There are many types of microphones which are used for interviews, live performances, dialogues, group debates, conferences, presentations and audience interaction.

Types 

Handheld

A wireless microphone is a microphone without a physical cable connecting it directly to the sound recording or amplifying equipment with which it is associated. A dynamic microphone is also handheld however it is attached by a cable which may be either mono or stereo. A microphone in which the sound waves cause a movable wire or coil to vibrate in a magnetic field and thus induce a current.

Lavalier

A lavalier microphone or lavalier (also known as a lav, lapel mic, clip mic, body mic, collar mic, neck mic or personal mic) is a small microphone used for television, theatre, and public speaking applications in order to allow for hands-free operation.

Direct connect

A DI unit is an electronic device typically used in recording studios and in sound reinforcement systems to connect a high-impedance, line level, unbalanced output signal to a low-impedance, microphone level, balanced input, usually via an XLR connector and cable.

Boundary microphone

A boundary microphone is a small omnidirectional condenser mic capsule positioned near or flush with a boundary (surface). The arrangement provides a directional half-space pickup pattern while delivering a relatively phase-coherent output signal.

Parabolic

A parabolic microphone is a microphone that uses a parabolic reflector to collect and focus sound waves onto a receiver, in much the same way that a parabolic antenna (e.g., satellite dish) does with radio waves.

Noise cancelling

A noise-canceling microphone is a microphone that is designed to filter ambient noise from the desired sound, which is especially useful in noisy environments.

Radio microphones

A wireless microphone is a microphone without a physical cable connecting it directly to the sound recording or amplifying equipment with which it is associated.

Construction

Dynamic- Speakers as microphones. A loudspeaker, a transducer that turns an electrical signal into sound waves, is the functional opposite of a microphone. Since a conventional speaker is constructed much like a dynamic microphone (with a diaphragm, coil and magnet), speakers can actually work "in reverse" as microphones.

Condenser- A capacitor has two plates with a voltage between them. In the condenser mic, one of these plates is made of very light material and acts as the diaphragm. The diaphragm vibrates when struck by sound waves, changing the distance between the two plates and therefore changing the capacitance.



Characteristic

 Polar response is a spectrum with omni-directional at one extreme and figure-of-eight at the other. Cardioid and hyper-cardioid are simply convenient way points. To explain these patterns further, fairly obviously an omni-directional mic is equally sensitive all round. The cardioid is most sensitive at the front, but is only 6 dB down in response at an angle of 90 degrees. In fact it is only insensitive right at the back. It is not at all correct, as commonly happens, to call this a unidirectional microphone. The hyper-cardioid is a more tightly focused pattern than the cardioid, at the expense of a slight rear sensitivity, known as a lobe in the response. The figure-of-eight is equally sensitive at front and back, the only difference being that the rear produces an inverted signal, 180 degrees out of phase with the signal from the front.

Proximity effect

The proximity effect in audio is the increased in bass or low frequency response when a when the sound source is too close to the microphone.

Task 1- Sound

Sound

Sounds are vibrations moving through the air and it is measured in decibels (dbu), In addition to that it is represented as a wave which may be either small( soft) or big (hard). They are small or loud to present whether the noises being produced are loud or quiet. Sound waves are longitudinal and travel in the same direction. These sounds can be produced through speakers, ear/headphones and your voice.

Acoustics are surfaces within a room which help the sound reflex in different ways (hard or soft). Acoustics are designed to absorb sound and control it for example, within a small room with hard walls you will be able to hear the sound almost ping off the wall and sound harsh. Acoustic treatments include acoustical absorbers, diffusors, sound barriers, construction materials, isolation platforms and complete room treatment systems. It helps the sound dead and not have this echo type sound as if you are in bathroom therefore the sound projects back and forth until it finally dies out. Whilst producing sound there may be noises in the background which may be irrelevant and not needed within your recording therefore people tend to use acoustic screening (soundproofing walls) to block noises whether you are outside (traffic) or inside (offices).

The acoustic aspects within a recording studio are opposite to an auditorium. Instead of reverberation, it is usually needed for the recording studio to be acoustically "dead". This is done by have a short reverb that makes it short and snappy. All though reverb in a small room is preferred as it’s shorter and doesn’t have an echo effect but soundproofing walls are also preferable to block noise that may be in the surroundings of the room from getting in. For soundproofing to work the main structure of the room will need to have double walls to prevent sound destroying the recordings. Having two walls will minimize the amount of noise that will usually be able to be heard if there was a single wall.

Sound bites are extracts from speech’s and music which are often used to be a preview version to the audience. Background Atmosphere is when you record within a scene which goes according to the storyboard. For example, if you want to record a scene within a family meeting you cannot record inside a bathroom as the background noise is entirely different to a family having a conversation in the living room. Unwanted noise is the noise within a scene that was not meant to be included. For example, if you were to record a YouTube video then you have children in the background screaming and shouting it was not intended to be included within the recording but unfortunately is was. Therefore to avoid this you must record somewhere where it is completely silent that you could almost hear a pin drop so that you will not have unwanted noises which could affect your recording. Unwanted Ambience Similar to unwanted noise however, it is busier noises for example rush hour when there’s plenty traffic and pedestrians may be rushing around causing arguments. Within unwanted ambience wind noise when recording with a microphone (especially outdoors) could also disrupt your recordings therefore, the usage of a wind shield is compulsory so it doesn’t affect the dialogue and everything can be heard. Simulated acoustics are effects and computer generated sounds.

There are many purposes to which acoustics are used within the modern day. For example, within an interview the interviewer will need to make sure that whatever microphone they decide to use for the interview whether it’s a dynamic microphone or anything else the wavelength mustn't past the peak otherwise the recording may come out as muffled and sometimes too loud creating an irritating noise for your ears. They also need to be well-aware of their atmosphere as microphones are very sensitive to sound therefore it will be able to pick up any noise from the background whether it’s just someone typing or heels down the corridor. To avoid this they may use sound barriers where the interview takes place to avoid and ambient noises.