WEEK 1 : Anticipation & a Suggestion

After my first week in class, I find my self feeling refreshed. In contrast to what has become a very regular, uniform envelopment of detailed film protocol, this class embraces a much more liberal, free-spirited sense of exercise. We take time to pace our breathing and absorb our environment's natural ambient. We embrace the silence; we seek to grasp that that is not there. An object, a motive masked by silence that some can only see by noticing its nonexistence. Starting things off with some words by John Cage seemed appropriate, since so many theories like the aforementioned have been realized and proposed by him. He is the seminary figure of sound composition, and I've learned a lot by watching a handful of his brief videos. As we sit in silence with our eyes closed, it's nostalgic for me to look around the room and see the reflexive turning of heads, rolling of eyes, signs of the widespread skepticism around a room of young artists. As our activities are commenced by bells and urged forward by paper balls, the silent chuckles continue. I was them once, three or four short years ago. Young, undeveloped, and unable to grasp the substance of what I was doing. It was embarrassing, and uncool, and to submit completely to such an unorthodox strategy might take a toll on my reputation (or what little I had). But after I had been exposed to such a breed of teaching, after I had learned to embrace "the weird", I began to understand, or at least in my subconscious. A comfort and an appreciation replaced any feelings of mockery, and such things became a part of my routine. It wasn't until this past summer that I finally grasped the central motive of my department, and the purpose of my four years at Syracuse. Looking at these young faces, I'm excited for them to experience the same thing, at least not before too long.

As I stated earlier in class, I'm excited for this class because it takes things back to the basics, the foundations of my art form. At its simplest state, film is identical to any other art, composed of a subject, an action, and the talented craft of the artist. As a student of sound and image, having the opportunity to examine these often overlooked essential elements is an opportunity to understand and achieve even more. Jeff was just saying to me in class today how he hates Hollywood film, how he's more of an indy or documentary kind of guy. Like so many others in this country today, Jeff has a point and a very valid reason to feel this way. Today, in Hollywood, we are stuck, run aground by the rising influences of technology and its burdens. We as Americans have been free to swim the seas of success that has come from our talent in cinema. It it an art that we have always excelled in, one in which seminary American artists have paved their way through history. But the 80's and 90's are over, and with the new, burgeoning presence of the newest technology, and the pressure to use it to its utmost, we have lost sight of the actual purpose of cinema. People have overlooked its elements and created a muddled summary of a passable form of sappy spectacle, which we know today as the common blockbuster. Cinema is language, and as with any, it is a language which must constantly change, reshaping along with the growth of society. Americans have fallen behind as the language of cinema seeks only to do what it was meant to do: evolve. It's up to the minds of my generation to push us along, back to the filmic streets we once paved. We must shift the discourse of the story, change the way it is told, not add monotonous, cliched twists and arcs which even the simplest of viewers could predict and loathe. By studying the foundations of sound, image, and time, I am excited to grow as an artist and strengthen my knowledge as a professional.

I see now that an objective to achieve, perhaps even by the end of the next class, is to be able to understand the layers of sound, and ultimately the concept of the complete soundscape. I can remembered as a younger artist a lot of this going over my head. There were some things that I just couldn't pull off. Psychoanalyzing sound (if you will) was never a problem for me. I grew up with a strong choral background and can confidently say that I owe my musical experiences over the years everything, them being completely responsible for my passions and talents today. But I know how  listening and understanding music can be difficult for some, in particular identifying the layers of foreground, middle-ground, and ambient sound. I think there is any ideal exercise that could really help some. The music of the very famous Asian composer Joe Hisaishi is something that has captivated audiences for the last 25 years, but he became famous first and foremost for his layered compositions. In particular, his track called "Silent Love" was very successful, and is one of the most identifiable and moving "layer songs" I've heard. In significance to our course, the track slowly introduces layer after layer, each element beginning in the foreground and making the shift from middle to background elements of the song. It slowly builds to a climax before it reverts back to the beginning, where it starts back again. It's better heard than read, but I would like to hear any thoughts you have. Identifying the number of layers in the song, and then tracking one and seeing what happens to it is a simple exercise that has really helped me in the past. I'll post the song and Hisaishi's bio below.

JOE HISAISHI

Works: Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, Hana-bi, Sonatine, Welcome to Dongmakgol, When the Last Sword is Drawn, A Scene by the Sea, Dolls

Country of origin: Japan

Born: 6 December 1950

Occupation: Composer, musical director, arranger, conductor

Joe Hisaishi (or Mamoru Fujisawa) is one of the most established and respected score composers in the history of cinema. Over four decades, Hisaishi has composed scores for over 100 films. Most famously, Hisaishi has collaborated regularly with Hayao Miyazaki and Takeshi Kitano (until their falling out during the production of Dolls). Hisaishi's style and tone of music is absolutely singular, employing musical elements of minimalist, electronic, and Japanese culture throughout many of his works. He is often accredited to the immense successes of his employer's work. Many firmly state that films such as Hana-bi and Spirited Away are only as powerful as they are because of Hisaishi's score. Typically consisting of strings and a piano base, Hisaishi's music is a powerful force throughout each film in his extensive filmography.