Example Blogs
Week 3

1) Even though we learned the basics of Sound Studio last week, I felt like I learned a lot more just by playing around this week and looking through my student manual. I foud that there is a way to reduce wind or other noise through filters. My skiing sound clip had some wind noise that I was able to reduce a little. I also learned that I might need to find better ways to record sounds such as skis on snow, perhaps by having someone ski by as I record instead of recording myself as I ski.

2) This week I learned more about sound structures. Although the reading last week was partly about sequential and simultanious sound structures, by acting it out in class I understood it more. I already had the idea that sequential sound was sounds that do not overlap and occur one after the other, and that simultanious sound happens at the same time. But by using "instruments" to act out these structures it made it easier for me to understand how these will affect my pieces.

3) I also learned the difference between rhythm and pitch/tone/timber. Rhythm has more of a pattern, while pitch/tone/timber have more to do with the quality of the sounds being produced. Although rhythm and pitch/tone/timber are hard to seperate completely, I could see from the examples that one side of the spectrum can be favored much more than the other.

A blog of excitement and connection to a research project:

Alright, now things are moving faster than I'd ever have hoped.. I'm actually excited about what I'm to embark on these next few weeks. The concept has changed drastically.. I'm to use a flashlight.

Alright well I went to the bookstore and bought a comprehensive guide on final cut pro 5. I'm sure it'll come in handy for other future projects. While I was browsing the software on the upper level, i stumbled upon a program called motion 2. Apparently, it deals with animation and motion graphics and contains hundreds of motion filters.. this might be what I am looking for but I'm really not sure. I'm still going to ask around. I don't exactly have a flashlight on hand so I might have to shoot the footage during the break. If I follow my formula, the shooting of the actual film should be the easiest part.

I think it's a good sign that my pulse is rising and I have this big lump of uncertainty and excitement in my chest.. probably because I'm going to be learning so many new things in the next very few weeks and because I'm embarking on a, what is to me, huge project. I feel as though this might be the big hurdle I've been searching for. The one that seperates all of my worries and uncertainties I've been having as a freshman in art school. I fell as though this is giving to me a new level of maturity I've been wanting for a long time.

I just hope I can keep it together.

Week 2


Today we discussed sound vocabulary to get a better grasp on what sound is. We learned about how sound worked, in terms of foreground, middle ground and background noise. We also went over the first project that we will be working on, which we will create using an MDR. We broke off into groups to get comfortable using the device and to try and recreate specific sounds using everyday objects and gadgets. Anne showed us how to use Sound Studio to create sound clips with mixing and layering smaller clips together. She also gave us a demo on file sharing and burning our projects onto CDs for backup, etc.It was a bit overwhelming overall, becasue it was a lot of new information all at once. However i think i shouldnt have a problem getting it done. Im excited to experiment some more with sound and create come creative pieces. Im a little weary about using the technology on my own. I feel like a lot could go wrong in the small windowof time i have signed up to use it. However, i have my handbook and neighbors on my hall from my class, so i should survive.

Week 2 (a second example)
During today's class we discussed an overview of sound basics. Things like how sound is created by vibrations, and is reflected off surfaces. Sound space is often viewed through a sound pyramid. Clear sound being at the top, less clear sound creating a middle ground and the ambient sounds (background sounds and noises) creates the base of the pyramid.
File sharing is something Anne taught us; being able to access files from other computers in the room. That should come in very handy once I play around and can figure it out. Also she demonstrated how easy it is to burn a disk and that only a CD-RW can be rewriten on/over and a regular CD-R is a one time deal