Sound Techniques

Dialogue – Involves more than one person talking within a scene

Diegetic sound – Any noise that is made in the scene such as a teacher talking, pupils typing, radio in the background. The characters might be able to hear it but that does not necessarily suggest that the actors themselves are able to hear it

Non-Diegetic sound - Sounds that the character can not hear for example sound tracks

or a narrator talking

Sound motif – A sound that becomes associated with a person, thing or programme, every time you hear it you think about that association

Synchronous Sound – The visuals seem to move at the same time as the sound, they match the actions taking place. This typically used in music videos and it is used to create impact

Contrapuntal Sound – Sound that does not match what you can see, it sounds inappropriate and does not fit the feel of the visual, it may change the feel for example pop music at a funeral would not seem to fit well together or a scary movie could have a nursery rhyme in the background which makes the scene creepier

Voice over – A narrator or character that talks over the scene, they are not necessarily seen but they are always heard

Soundtrack – Is music that plays over a scene, it is usually non-diegetic and it is not typically used in TV dramas and sitcoms

Ambient Sound – Everyday noises you hear in the background it is used to make the scene more realistic some editors would record natural background noise to add into the scene to make it more realistic for instance they might go outside to record the sound of birds, wind or if it is set in the class they would record the sound of people typing. Sometimes the sounds are exaggerated for effect

Sound Perspective – Refers to the apparent distance of sound, it involves the volume, frequency and echo, sometimes the positioning the of the mic is considered greatly to make it more realistic

Mode of address / Direct address – The narrator or character addresses the audience directly breaking the forth wall

Sound Bridge – Leads in or out of a scene, it starts at the beginning of one scene but the sound from the previous scene is still playing quite briefly or it could happen the other way round, it could play softly and it can continue in the next scene