Introduction to Film Sound and Music ♫

Spring 2013 ! RTF 310 Syllabus - 1 -

♪ Introduction to Film Sound and Music ♫

Instructor: Colleen Montgomery Office: CMA 5.116 Office Hours: 10:00-12:00 Tuesdays/Thursdays or by appointment Email: [email protected] Course Meetings: Tuesday/Thursday, 2:00-3:30 Screenings: Monday, 5:00-7:30 Room: CMA 3.118 Course Description

From its inception in the late 1890s, film has been conceptualized as an audio-visual medium— from live musical accompaniment in the Nickelodeon era to synchronized sound from the late 1920s onward, to the advent six-track Dolby digital stereo in the 1990s. Film studies pedagogy, however, has often remained focused on the imagetrack and on cinema’s visual properties. This course, on the other hand, addresses cinema’s quintessentially audio-visual nature, focusing specifically on film sound and music. The objective of this course is to provide you with the theoretical methods and skill sets necessary for analyzing and understanding film sound and music within the historical, technological, economic and socio-cultural context of a film’s production, distribution and exhibition.

This course is both analytical and historical and is divided into three parts. The first part is designed to familiarize you with the terminology, theory and methods film scholars employ for analyzing and interpreting film soundtracks. We will look both at sound and music’s role in the soundtrack as well as the relationship between the soundtrack and the imagetrack. The second part of the course will explore how sound tracks are put together. You will learn to identify and analyze the three core components that make up a film soundtrack: dialogue, music, and sound. The third part of the course will focus the history film sound. We will explore three historical developments in depth: the introduction of sound, the introduction of stereo, and the introduction of digital sound, considering how each of these technological advances impacts the creation and reception of film sound.

A basic familiarity with music theory film history are helpful, but not a prerequisite for success in the course. This course has an intensive writing component.

Texts: James Buhler, David Neumeyer and Rob Deemer, Hearing the Movies: Music and Sound in Film History. Oxford University Press, 2010.

Additional readings in: RTF 310 Course Packet: available for purchase as Jenn’s Copies (2200 Guadalupe St.)

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Grading:

Screening Reports 10% Midterm Exam 20% Audiovisual Scene Analysis 30% Final Project 40%

*No late assignments will be accepted without proper medical documentation. All written assignments should be typed in 12-point font and double-spaced.*

Course Policies

The University of Texas Honor Code: The core values of The University of Texas at Austin are learning, discovery, freedom, leadership, individual opportunity, and responsibility. Each member of the University is expected to uphold these values through integrity, honesty, trust, fairness, and respect toward peers and community.

Scholastic Dishonesty: The University defines academic dishonesty as cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, falsifying academic records, and any act designed to avoid participating honestly in the learning process. Scholastic dishonesty also includes, but is not limited to, providing false or misleading information to receive a postponement or an extension on a test, quiz, or other assignment, and submission of essentially the same written assignment for two courses without the prior permission of the instructor. Students who violate University rules on academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties, including the possibility of failure in the course and/or dismissal from the University. Since such dishonesty harms the individual, all students, and the integrity of the University, policies on academic dishonesty will be strictly enforced. For further information please visit: http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/sjs.

Undergraduate Writing Center: The UWC offers individualized assistance to students who want to improve their writing skills. There is no charge, and students may come in on a drop-in or appointment basis. I highly recommend using the Writing Center’s excellent services to aid you in your paper writing. For more information visit: http://www.utexas.edu/cola/centers/uwc/.

Services for students with disabilities: The University of Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information visit: http://ddce.utexas.edu/disability/.

Mobile Devices/Laptop Policy: Mobile devices must be turned off when class begins. Laptops computers are not permitted in lecture or screening. Please speak to me if you require the use of a laptop or other electronic device in class.

Religious Holidays: Religious holy days sometimes conflict with class and examination schedules. If you miss a work assignment or other project due to the observance of a religious holy day you will be given an opportunity to complete the work missed within a reasonable time after the absence. UT policy requires that you notify your instructor at least fourteen days prior to the classes scheduled on dates you will be absent to observe a religious holy day. Spring 2013 ! RTF 310 Syllabus - 3 -

Course Schedule

UNIT 1:

Week 1: Course Overview and Objectives; Introduction to Soundtrack Components Readings: Hearing the Movies, Ch. 1; Packet Reading: Buhler, James and Neumeyer, David. “Analytical and Interpretive Approaches to Film Music (I): Analyzing the Music” in Film Music: Critical Approaches (2001).

No Screening

Week 2: Film Sound Terminology Part I: The Musicality of the Soundtrack Readings: Hearing the Movies, Ch. 2; Packet Reading: Marks, Martin “Music, Drama, Warner Brothers: The Cases of Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon) in Music and Cinema (2000).

Screening: Casablanca (Michael Curtiz, 1942)

Week 3: Film Sound Terminology Part II: Narrative Space and Sound/Image Relations. Readings: Hearing the Movies, Ch. 3; Packet Reading: Chion, Michel. “The Silences of Mabuse” in The Voice In Cinema (1999).

Screening: The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (Fritz Lang, 1933)

Week 4: Film Sound Editing: Music, Sound and Time Readings: Hearing the Movies, Ch. 4 & Interlude 1.

Screening: The Conversation (Francis Ford Coppola, 1974)

UNIT 2:

Week 5: Music, Film Form and Film Style Readings: Hearing the Movies Ch. 5 & 6

Screening: Meet Me In St. Louis (Vincente Minnelli, 1945)

Week 6: Music and Film Genre Part I: Performance and the Musical Montage Readings: Hearing the Movies Ch. 7; Packet Reading: Dyer, Richard “A Star is Born and the Construction of Authenticity” in Stardom: Industry of Desire (1991); Supplemental Reading: McLean, Adrienne “’It's Only That I Do What I Love and Love What I Do’: Film Noir and the Musical Woman” in Cinema Journal 33.1

Screening: A Star is Born (George Cukor, 1954) [clips from Gilda (Charles Vidor, 1946)]

Week 7: Music and Film Genre Part II: Character and Narrative Development Readings: Hearing the Movies Ch. 9; Packet Reading: Kalinak, Kathryn “Scoring the West in Stagecoach” in How the West Was Sung: Music in the Westerns of John Ford Spring 2013 ! RTF 310 Syllabus - 4 -

Screening: Stagecoach (John Ford, 1939)

Week 7: Style Topics Readings: Hearing the Movies Ch. 8; Packet Reading: Monelle, Raymond “The Search for Topics” in The Sense of Music: Semiotic Essays (2000)

Screening: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) Steven Spielberg

Week 8: Exam Review; Midterm Exam Readings: Review Hearing the Movies Glossary; Packet Reading: Bordwell, David “Functions of Film Sound: A Man Escaped” in Film Art: An Introduction (2009)

Screening: A Man Escaped (Robert Bresson, 1956)

Week 9: Writing About Film Music Readings: Hearing the Movies, Interlude 2: Writing About Film Music

Screening: Catch Me if You Can (Steven Spielberg, 2002)

SPRING BREAK

UNIT 3: A Technological History of the Soundtrack

Week 10: Silent Film Was Never Silent: Music and Sound in the Silent Era Readings: Hearing the Movies, Ch. 10; Packet Reading: Silent Era Film Music Anthologies, Altman, Rick “The History of Silent Film Sound” in Silent Film Sound (2004); Lastra, James “Everything But the Kitchen Sync: Sound Before the Talkies” in Sound Technology and the American Cinema (2000)

Screening: Lady Windermere’s Fan (Ernst Lubitsch, 1925)

Week 11: The Introduction of Sound Film Readings: Hearing the Movies, Ch. 11; Packet Reading: Gorbman, Claudia “Why Music? From Silents to Sound” in Unheard Melodies (1987)

Screening: Lonesome (Paul Fejos, 1928) **Audiovisual Scene Analysis Due**

Week 12: Music and the Soundtrack in the Classical Era Readings: Hearing the Movies, Ch. 12; Packet Reading: Gorbman, Claudia “Classical Hollywood Practice: The Model of Max Steiner” in Unheard Melodies (1987)

Screening: Mildred Pierce (Michael Curtiz, 1945)

Week 13: Music and the Stereo Soundtrack in the Post-Classical Era Spring 2013 ! RTF 310 Syllabus - 5 -

Readings: Hearing the Movies, Ch. 13; Packet Reading: Sergi, Gianluca “A Cry In the Dark: The Role of Post-Classical Film Sound” in Contemporary Hollywood Cinema (1998)

Screening: Batman Returns (Tim Burton, 1992)

Week 14: The Dolby Era: Sound Design (1997-2000) Readings: Hearing the Movies, Ch. 14; Packet Reading: Kerins, Mark “Cinema’s Hidden Multi- Channel History And the Origins of Digital Surround” in Beyond Dolby (Stereo): Cinema In the Digital Sound Age (2011)

Screening: Lost Highway (David Lynch, 1997) **Screening Reports Due**

Week 15: Music and Film Sound In the Contemporary Era Readings: Hearing the Movies, Ch. 15; Packet Reading: Smith, Jeff “Pretty Women and Dead Presidents: Theme Songs and Soundtrack Albums After 1975” in The Sounds of Commerce (1998)

Screening: There Will Be Blood (P.T. Anderson, 2007) **Final Paper Due in Two Weeks (end of the first week of exam period)**

ASSIGNMENTS:

1.) Screening Reports—10%: (Due Week 14) You will be required to submit screening reports for four films of your choice screened during the course of the semester. Each report should provide a 2-3 page (typed, double spaced) analysis of one or more component of the film’s music and sound design. Avoid plot description and focus instead on offering a critical analysis of the film’s use of sound and music.

2.) Audiovisual Scene Analysis—30%: (Due Week 10) For this assignment, select a 3-5 minute scene from one of the nine films we have screened in class thus far. Using the questions below as a suggested guide, write a 5 to 6 page paper analyzing both the form and function of all the sonic elements in the scene. The paper must identify and distinguish between the types of film sound and film music employed in the scene and determine the relationship between the audio and visual components in the scene.

1.) List and rank the main sound elements (dialogue, music, sound effects). Consider how they relate to one another and their overall function in the sound mix.

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2.) Using this list of sound elements, discuss each component’s function as an emotional cue (i.e. empathetic, neutral, and anempathetic).

3.) Consider each sonic elements in terms of its diegetic or nondiegetic status, remembering that the status could be ambiguous. What is the relationship between the diegetic and nondiegetic sounds of which the soundtrack is comprised? How do the diegetic and nondiegetic elements interact (or fail to interact) with both other sound elements and the accompanying images in the scene?

4.) How does the film sound/music create or contribute to a sense of continuity in this scene? Among things to consider: use of sound bridges, levels of sync points, overall shape, presence/absence of sound, transitions, pacing (tempo), texture, and melody. Consider each of these terms as they are defined in the glossary of the textbook.

5.) What is the overall structure of the soundtrack in this scene and how does it operate in relation to the image track? Which sonic elements are foregrounded and why? Thinking as a film designer, explain why you think the scene is scored, structured, and mixed in this way. If you were the sound supervisor for the film, would you change any elements of the sound design? Provide an explanation for each of your revisions.

No outside research is required for this paper, but you must incorporate and synthesize concepts from the texts into your analysis. Essays should be double spaced, and written in 12pt font with one-inch margins.

3.) Final Project—40% (Due Two Weeks From the Final Class)

Option 1: Soundtrack Practicum

You will build the music and sound effects components of a soundtrack for a short scene. A library of sound effects and music will be available for your use. You will also be required to write a 3-5 page paper (not including any musical score submitted) in conjunction with this Spring 2013 ! RTF 310 Syllabus - 7 - project outlining your sound design and explaining your selection of sound and music for the scene.

Option 2: Final Paper

If you would rather not select the practicum option, you will write a 10-12 page final paper for the course. This paper will require you to wield the analytical skills you have developed over the course of the term. If you would like to write about a film we did not view in class, please vet your decision with me first. This paper will be a formal essay and you will need to analyze a film’s soundtrack, formulate a thesis on the function of sound and music in the film, and defend that thesis with evidence from your readings, screenings, and outside research. More details on the final paper are forthcoming.