Customer Reviews

Sound Design: The Expressive Power of Music, Voice and Sound Effects in Cinema

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Pro Sound Magazine Review
by Steve Harvey

Sound Design: The Expressive Power of Music, Voice and Sound Effects in Cinema by David Sonnenschein (Michael Wiese Productions; www.mwp.com) is a fascinating read for anybody who has even a passing interest in the subject. Whether you are considering a career in sound design or film, are already involved and want to improve your skills, or want to learn more about how sound propels a film's narrative, this book is a must-read.

The author, a musician, writer and director who lectures and consults in sound design for TV and film, and who is involved in interactive media sonification through Sonic Strategies, a company he co-founded, goes way beyond the nuts and bolts of sound design to also explore the perceptual and physiological effects of sound. Stemming from Sonnenschein's neurobiology undergraduate work at UC San Diego, the research informs his own unique approach to sound design and has also led him to an interest in the creation of therapeutic sound.

A constant thread throughout Sonnenschein's thesis is his plea that sound designer's be invited into the inner circle with the director, sound editor and music composer as early as possible in a project's life, preferably from the very start, the better to reinforce the story. A film can only be enhanced by the application at the project's inception of even just a few of the ideas presented in this book.

Exploring the emotional and physical perception of music, voice and sound, the author offers listening techniques and exercises to stimulate the imagination and for the creation of a sound design that takes the explicit and implicit sound cues of a script and strengthens its emotional impact. From the initial `realtime' reading of the written words through the drafting of a sound map to the final mix and print mastering, Sonnenschein offers a thorough exploration of every aspect of the process, with the help of real world commentary from sound designers such as Dane Davis (The Matrix), Gary Rydstrom (Artificial Intelligence and George Watters II (Pearl Harbor).

Sound is a frequently misunderstood aspect of film production. As any sound designer knows, budget, scheduling and political considerations can often mean that he or she is not called in until after the picture is edited. But the next time you watch a particularly dramatic scene, turn the sound off. Energy, tension and emotion all evaporate. As Sonnenschein points out, that's the power of sound.

This is one of the most eye (I mean EAR) opening and fascinating books I have looked at for a long time. I am an animation producer, and admittedly have always taken a hit-and-miss, often formulaic approach to sound as something secondary in importance to the visuals. This book changed my thinking. It provides a clear foundation in the narrative power of sound and music, is written with great insight and passion, and includes thought-provoking and playful exercises that you can't resist trying!

If you can only afford to purchase one book on Sound Design, This is the ONE.

The author's writing style is easy to read and flows well. You may only get stumped on concept from time to time.

Sonnenschein not only shows the creative side but also the business side in presenting yourself to the director and/or producer.

Some of things that he explains involve how contrast works, changing frequency (EQ'ing) to enhance moods, mapping out the script, searching for the writer's sound clues, consistency, and building your sound library.

The book won't teach you how to mix or what specific software tools to use but it will encourage you to expand your creative side with the tools you do have.

This book is recommended for those who have a background, or some experience, with sound and audio editing who want to move into the realm of sound design.

Length:: 3:42 Mins

Author and sound designer David Sonnenschein gives some examples of how sound design enhances the movie-going experience.

This is a fantastic book. David Sonnenschein is an oracle of sound. I really like the way that he covers both the commercial applications of designing sound and music for Film & Media and also the creative and even spiritual dimensions of working with sound & music. Speaking as someone who works within this sector, if one day I have anything like the understanding of sound, that Sonnenschein has, I will be a happy man !

From the effects of mantras, ragas and the subconscious chantings of the american indians to voice overs, step by step guides on building sound designs, advice on how to conference with directors, the film industry and a whole range of practical and technical applications within the field - this is a truly comprehensive book. Written by a man with an obvious glut of knowledge and experience right accross the board.

If you are new to sound design get this book - it is easy to read, accessible and extremely informative. If, on the other hand, you are an experienced musician or sound designer get this book - you will learn things that you may not have even considered before and find the inspiration to try new things.

If you work or are interested in working in this field - I cant recomend it enough. Carry it with you on the train, have it handy in the studio, go to bed with it under your pillow !

Just get it.

With my attempt at becoming a Sound Designer I've found that there are not many books that pin-point all the aspects as this one does. Mr. Sonnenschein has written my Bible! Beginning to end this book is packed with specific examples from many different types of film and comments from the top people in the bussiness. It also gives you projects that can be done on your own. It covers everything that can be heard on a soundtrack. An absolute MUST for anyone interested in sound design and should be required reading for anyone involved in film.

This book is an amazing and complete guide on how to (step by step) and why two create a sound design for a film. Full with practical tips and examples, it should be incorporated in the pensum of every Film school. I personaly used the book and it's description of the different steps in how to approach the creation of a sound design for my clases in Sound for Film. The concept of "storyboarding" for sound is not easily found in many schools.

One of the least understood fields of expertise in either low-budget or big-budget filmmaking is the area of sound design. Because it is equally overlooked on both the high end and the low end, we on the ultra low end can gain the most benefit and even make our production quality superior to that of current Hollywood by mastering it.

What is sound design, you may ask? Sound design, to put it in a nutshell, is orchestrating all the sound elements that are not dialogue in your film. Often this doesn't even include music, but focuses, rather, on sound effects, ambience, and other forms of sound texture. Because audio quality has been so limited for so long in theaters, many producers simply wouldn't budget much money for the art of sound design, figuring that it had to overlap with the dialogue recorder or score composers roles. THX and Dolby 7.1 and other high end sound options are now available, but most films never come close to taking advantage of their abilities because of how under-utilized sound design is.

Mr. Sonnenschein points out that if sound design were given the same time as designing the lighting and cinematographical look, huge amounts of money would be saved in the making of films and the films themselves would be much more psychological. As I read that, I thought of two excellent examples of that: the gunshot in American Beauty and the rape sequence in A Time to Kill. Both sequences would have been costly to shoot and would have lost much of their psychological impact if they had been shown rather than heard!

Comprehension
Sound Design is foremost written to people who are looking to get into it as a career or are the types of directors that want to be responsible for all of the signature essences of their film (known as 'auteurs'). Because it's designed for audio people, I wanted to review this book and see how it relates to a director, especially a low-budget director that needs to be aware of all of these sorts of things because you're probably not going to be able to afford a sound designer who can do all these things at the type of budget most of us have to work at.

Mr. Sonnenschein has worked all over the world honing his craft of audio comprehension and design and, as such, he starts a little out there for a lot of us. However, once you get past the rather esoteric beginning, you'll find the rest of the book is actually pretty easy to understand. This does not mean that you'll be able to half-read this and get most of the content. No, you will need to focus on it. Even if you're an audio person by trade, Mr. Sonnenschein's writing style is not the type that you will just absorb like water, rather it is something you'll absorb slowly, as you allow it to soak in.

The tests and trials included in this book also do a nice job to help you comprehend the ideas and see how astute you are at paying attention to the sound canvas in your own world.

Depth of Information
There's a lot of information to be had, so long as you realize what the information is about. This is not a book to pick up if you want to know what level to record your dialogue with or how far back the shotgun mic should be placed. And while it does dovetail into music and sound score as point and counter point to the sound design, this is not its primary source of information. Where the depth comes in is in understanding how sound tapestry can truly change and add depth to your movie. How can an inverted sound effect give you a better audience response than an actual sound effect? How can a completely different sound effect work as a brilliant transition? (Just think of the scene in Fight Club where the Narrator's boss tosses a file folder in front of the Narrator, only to hear the sound of a water drop in a bathtub rather than the slap of paper on oak!)

Once you understand the work that's being delved into, you will find a lot of dense information and helpful ways of looking at the world of audio. As a director, I really found that this book made me think of my upcoming films in different ways-ways that specifically looked to capitalize on sound! After all, creative use of sound can really transform your film and it's a whole lot cheaper than $300,000 worth of pyrotechnics or $3 million dollars worth of futuristic special effects!

Interest Level
Once you get past the rather slow beginning, Sound Design does a pretty good job of keeping your interest level up for the most part. It uses inserts from sound designers from the Raiders of the Lost Ark to Terminator 2 to give real-world examples of where each of the topics in the book come into play. It also uses experiments that test your hearing and creativity to keep up the interest.

Reusability
This is definitely a necessary book for any sound designer and/or director to have on his or her bookshelf, as the depth of information is excellent but a bit overwhelming for perfect retention. As such, you'll find yourself going back to the book again and again to refresh your memory or to explain what you're looking for to an assistant or (in the case of directors) to your sound designer.

Value vs. Cost
For just a under $20, Sound Design is an excellent investment. It's got enough information in to easily justify the cost at any level. If you're going into the world of audio and sound design, you should pick this up immediately. If you're a director, this would be a good investment because it'll get you thinking of both visual AND audio impact in the pre-production of your film, which will save you time and money.

Overall Comment
This is a quite a good book that focuses on the intricacies of sound design and inspires creativity and exploration. While it has a few areas that get a little scattered and a few slow parts, it stays consistently interesting and relevant enough to keep you through to the end...and has enough left in reserve to keep you coming back.

Understandability - 8
Depth of Information - 8
Interest Level - 7.5
Reusability - 9.0
Value vs. Cost - 9.0
Total Score - 8.3

Reviewed by Jeremy Hanke
Microfilmmaker.com

I really enjoyed this book and have enthusiastically recommended it to our composers and sound designers. I consider it the closest thing to a "bible" for our work as it knits together the artistic and technical roles of music and sound in storytelling on the screen.

I have been surrounded by and involved with sound production in many different forms since I was a kid, and as relatively easy as it is to get solid technical information on sound, the art of sound, particularly as it relates to visual productions, can be a little harder to come by. Most of the attempts (that I have come in contact with) have been too esoteric or vague to be of much practical value. In depth, intelligent, but accessible, David Sonnenschein's "Sound Design" is a real "ear-opening". Whether you are a sound designer, musician, film or video maker, or enthusiast, this book is highly recommended.