Sound Research WIKINDX
Sound Research WIKINDX |
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Curtis, S. (1992). The sound of the early Warner Bros. cartoons. In R. Altman (Ed), Sound Theory Sound Practice (pp. 191–203). New York: Routledge. Added by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard (1/30/06, 7:02 AM) Last edited by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard (2/13/20, 1:23 PM) |
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| Resource type: Book Chapter BibTeX citation key: Curtis1992 Email resource to friend View all bibliographic details  |
Categories: Film Music/Sound, History, Semiology Keywords: Cartoons, Diegetic/non-diegetic, Film sound, Iconography, Indexicality, Sound objects Creators: Altman, Curtis Publisher: Routledge (New York) Collection: Sound Theory Sound Practice Resources citing this (Bibliography: WIKINDX Master Bibliography) |
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Fascinating article that explores the economics, technology and art in early Warner Bros. cartoons. Issues of semiotics are dealt with - indexical and iconic sound.
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p.201
In terms of film [sound], Curtiss defines the term 'diegetic' as "that which is accessible to the characters of a film".
Added by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard
Keywords: Diegetic/non-diegetic |
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p.202
Rather than use diegetic/non-diegetic, Scott uses isomorphic and iconic for music/effects in cartoons -- the former particularly in cartoons which have been animated to a pre-determined musical beat (hence difficulties with former terminology). "If isomorphic relations refer to those governed by rhythm and movement, then iconic relations pertain to analogous relationships between visual events and the timbre, volume, pitch and tone of the accompanying sound." Here, 'isomorphism' means same-shape whereas 'iconic' is used in a semiotic sense (C.S. Peirce) -- as an anology between the sound and the object. Added by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard |
| p.202 Live-action films tend to use indexical sound where there is a direct, causal relationship between the sign and the signifier, the sound and the object. Cartoons only use iconic sound "... indexicality is impossible in a cartoon." Added by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard |
| Paraphrases |
| p.195 Talking of early Looney Tunes production technique: although much of the music was composed and dubbed on after the animation, a musical beat was usually decided upon before artwork began. A reversal of the usual (film production) sound/image hierarchy. Added by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard |
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pp.196–200
Although distinctions (certainly in practice) are clear between dialogue/music/effects in feature films, the distinction is less clear in animations (particularly early cartoons) and sometimes not there at all. This is particularly noticeable where the music is used for sound effects (he discusses this later as isomorphic and iconic sound) as played by the orchestra. Although owing a debt to the musical accompaniment of silent film, this was often a function of the difficulties in post-production mixing (loss of music quality) or of using a single microphone to record all sound simultaneously. By 1933, technological advances enabled dialogue and music (+ FX) to be recorded separately and mixed/dubbed later (hence cartoons of this period now have (clear) dialogue over the music. Added by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard |