Audio Production Analysis

1. Film Soundtrack Production Analysis
Harry Allinson

2. Soundtrack Planning Overview
• When planning to produce my soundtrack, my thoughts were to create a song that captured a sense of atmosphere and
unorthodoxy (within the melodies) to reflect the fantasy and time travel elements within my film because when working
with such a genre, it can be more fitting to be inclusive of a more alternative sound to synergies which the story and it’s
elements.
• Automation was something that would be critical for most soundtracks so I knew I would be working with it when fading
the volume of layers so that there would be progressive alterations of sound to give off the impression of what a story
would be, in the form of sound. Secondly, I had in mind the other tools that came with automation, such as reverb to
make tracks increasingly and/or decreasingly more spacey.
• Using the tools enabled the possibility to make built-in instruments and add sampled loops carry volume over their
played duration. I knew this would add to the intensity of the totality of the track because it enabled me to fluctuate and
manipulate each layers volume. Over lapping layers, and their volume’s open doors for me to be more chaotic and
transitional when producing music, which can be great when attempting to execute a specific sound because it sounds
less jumpy and more flowing between layers.
• I went into this production with the general thought of applying cinematic instruments and sounds such as a droning bass
and synthesizers to set the base for a soundtrack whist carrying those more alternative instrumentation with it to fit the
aesthetic of the story of my film.
• Considering what I have learnt in my experience, in my own abilities with the software GarageBand, I knew I wouldn’t feel
too restricted, skill-wise, to create the sound I would want to produce because this year especially, I have experimented
with the software and it has turned into a hobby of mine to formulate the songs with the tools available in the software.

3. Automation & Mixing
Automation was an important factor when working with sounds to create a coherent soundtrack because it enabled me to make transitions
and sound manipulations which mimics and manifests a journey-like effect within the songs production style. When creating automation
within GarageBand I would double click on the pop up bar to make a manipulation point which I can then move around on the layer by
holding down and dragging the dot to an area of sound that I wanted to place it on my track.
This tool allowed me to fade in and out using volume to cause sounds to exit or enter the song, reverb to variate the sense of space with
sounds and low/mid/high to alter the EQ over time to ramp up sounds within a track or to decrease whereby it made it would make blending
sounds more pleasant as not just the general volume would be used to transition but a segmentation of sound within a song would
disintegrate as another segment of a song would take its place, simultaneously until the blend would fade out, making for a more
synergistically intertwining transition.
Atmosphere was greatly enhanced when using volume and reverb in this way because it gave me the opportunity to progressively increase
the large-room feel whilst another track was playing by it’s side. This was a positive because prior I had tried to make the reverbed sounds
come in sharply and the effect sounds satisfactory in the context of a soundtrack compared to a ramp of sound and the manipulation of it.
A negative when working with the mixing process is that it can take a long of time which can create a sense of indecision as to where sounds
should and shouldn’t come in at, if at all. It can be a nitty gritty process, which for certain sounds, can be more delicate than others because
of there depth and noise value which can more comparative transitions harder to balance when there is differences in sound types when
trying to mix sounds together.
When sounds would overlap and or be layered, in a audibly pleasurable context, I would change the volume of track to
merge the volume for a smoother mix of sounds, which worked well in my soundtrack.

4. Instrumentation & Sound Production End Result
A large ray of instruments were used in the making of my soundtrack such as the synths; Retro Fuzz, Glass
Bells, Mellow chimes and Chords Aplenty, which helped carry the depth, atmosphere and melody of the
track. The glitter Nights Hi-Hat Topper and the Clock Sync Beat worked great at adding rhythm and an
uplifting beat progression to the atmosphere and synths which was a complimentary clash between the
instruments. The bass added noise and power to the track which boosted the intensity of the track. As well as
the secondary bass which was a half bass half synth which worked as a droning sound in places within the
track which felt like juxtaposed undertones for the melodies to play along with contrastingly.
The two beats together made for a danceable groove yet still kept a dramatic and hard-hitting sound when
played consecutively at different moments of the song. This sense of tonal flexibility was ideal for my sound
track hence it reflects my films themes of love, despair, peace and stress which my film is include of thus why
I'm happy with the outcome of the pairing of sounds. Also I can use these sounds in segments throughout my
film because then I can portray and elevate the mood of a scene through my sound production. This means
for scenes such as the time traveling and the entering of the future, I will be applying uplifting accepts of my
soundtrack and for the murderousness if my film I will include the sections of intensity from my track to
synergies with the criminality which work as audible structure for the different themes of emotion being
filmed.
Overall I would consider my audio production to be coherent because of the flow that I had created through
the drum rhythms and the enigmatic cross over with the synths; Retro Fuzz (Bass), Mellow Chimes and
Chords Aplenty Synth which made for a progressively alluring atmosphere that the beat played along
pleasantly.

5. Though I would consider my soundtrack a fitting and well-strung out layered piece of sound for my film, it isn’t without its flaws for adjust and
improvement because comparably, music producers for films, a great deal of time to develop over their work for months with specific sound
structures, and even relevant syncretistic in some cases to fit into timing, what is occurring within the film. This means that a great deal of
improvements, that could have been made to my production, if that be pitch, rhythm changing and sound manipulation would’ve been
improved if I spend more time on the track by solidifying the sound I was going for, unless I overly and/or wrongly produced something in the
longer duration of production, which can happen. However, usually if I had more time it would been more refined within the mixing of
sounds.
There were many improvements that could’ve been made to my soundtrack such as adding more diverse segments into the production to mix
up certain reptilians in the song that would sound better with an extra sound and mix than otherwise left alone because certain parts I could
have extended atmosphere like with the uplifting washing over synth and then added other overlaying sounds to bulk up the general
structure of the soundtrack into something that is longer, more diverse production-wise and progressive, which would have attuned to the
cinematic soundtrack genre more appealingly.
Elements of my track that I thought didn’t work within the track as a whole and in the context of a ‘soundtrack’ were when the core melody
didn’t change up much which, on the plus side, added to the unorthodoxy of it it however, I could’ve gone further with that style to project
the melody into a wider realm of different tones, rhythms and electronically produced moods which would’ve been better because
objectively it would emphasis the off kilt vibe even more, thus rooting the direction of that sound and contextually whereby it will link further
to the mystical and oddness of my films themes and general aesthetic. The background of my track is well mixed but comparably the
foreground sounds are still listenable but they could've used with some minor touch ups in the melody and synths to be a more balanced
standing stone for the more quitter layers within my soundtrack.
In conclusion, my soundtrack is progressive mystical piece of cinematic sounds, clashing both the dark and uplifting sounds of fantasy music to
create a relevant tonal mirroring to the story within my film trailer.
Instrumentation & Sound Production End Result