Sound Design

Walter Murch, noted Sound Designer




Sound design is a technical/conceptually creative field. It covers all non-compositional elements of a film, a play, a music performance or recording, computer game software or any other multimedia project. A person who practices the art of sound design is known as a Sound Designer.

In film production, a Sound Designer is a member of a film crew responsible for some original aspect of the film's audio track.

Often forgotten and always over looked by the general public, the sound designer or 'sound guy' has the biggest responsibility in film making, second only to the director. In fact the sound designer is the only person other than the director who can yell "cut!" when they feel necessary, without being fired. The director looks first to the sound guy to nod and say "rolling" before any action begins. Without the sound being perfect there would be no filming. In fact, syncing sound with action later on in the studio is costly and usually almost impossible to get away with. So it is imperative to get it right during filming. Directors often use the same sound designer over and over again, they are so crucial to the film.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts a Science recognizes the finest or most aesthetic sound mixing or recording in film with the Academy Award for Best Sound, historically given to an English-language film. The new Tony Award for Best sound is to be awarded for the best sound design in American theatre.

Sound Design can also be defined as: "The manipulation of audio elements to achieve a desired effect."

The terms "Sound Design" and "Sound Designer" were already in use in theatre and were introduced to the film world when Francis Ford Coppolla directed (and his father, Carmine Coppolla arranged the music for) a live production of Noel Coward's Private Lives's at the American Conservatory Theatre (ACT) in San Fransisco where sound designer Charlie Richmond was resident, while the final cut of the The Godfather was being edited in 1972. In the original film world meaning of the title, as established in the 1970s by Coppola and Walter Murch, a sound designer is an individual ultimately responsible for all aspects of a film's audio track, from the dialogue and sound effects recording to the re-recording of the final track. The title was first granted by Coppola to Murch for his work on the film Apocalypse Now in recognition for his extraordinary contribution to that film.

Walter Murch

We have had the opportunity to design our own soundscapes this semester in Gill Sargent's class. While I was at first a little apprehensive at attempting to design sound. I really enjoyed the freedom it brings. Although I am not sure whether my piece would stand up to the brilliant Walter Murch or even the more surreal electronic art music of R. Murray Schaffer or the granular synthesis of Barry Truax or Luc Farrari (all founding members of the movement in the 1970's). I think that the simple mood and place I hoped to convey through the manipulation of the sounds I captured was ultimately realised.

I certainly have a renewed respect for the art of sound capture in all its forms, and through the experience gained from the several voxpops and interviews we have worked on over the last few months.