Music in advertising and films
LIVE MUSIC 4. MUSIC IN FILMS AND ADVERTISING
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| Perlinator. Mary Pickford. Pixabay (Pixabay Licence) |
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| If you want to check how much a film changes with different music, click on the film image and watch the video. Here there is another example. |
MUSIC IN FILMS
From mid-1890s to late 1920s, films had no synchronized sound and they were only live accompanied by a pianist or a small orchestra. The first film with synchronised sound was released in 1927 and since then, voice and the soundtrack have been an important part of films.
Music in films have different purposes and here you have some of them:
a) It helps create movement: the beat, the melody, the lyrics should match the action. If the scene has a lot of movement, the music usually goes fast and the other way round. However, the opposite may happen, a fast melody may be used for a quiet scene to create a sense of chaos.
b) It is used to depict emotions or an atmosphere. Sadness is conveyed by means of lower pitches, slow tempo, dull and dark timbres, an execution which is not too energetic, etc. Happiness is expressed by major notes and tempo is similar to giggling or laughing. In horror films, composers use organs, strings, alternate major and minor chords and delays and reverb are used, as well as creepy sounds. To show intrigue creators use crescendos and increase intensity till a climax is reached. Even this raising intensity may finish in a silence (called a false crescendo). Dissonance may also be used, either by dissonant chords or by taking the main melody and adding dissonant notes.
c) Sometimes music is used to fill the void in dialogues or between actions. This is called incidental music.
d) It may be used to show geographical reference. Using folk Galician music in a scene would mean that the scene is set in Galicia or that a Galician character is on the scene.
MUSIC IN ADVERTISEMENTS
Good advertisements should be persuasive, targeted to a particular audience, original and creative, and to be creative they need to tell appealing stories, use shocking images, unforgettable mottos and catchy jingles or music. Consequently, music should be chosen taking into account the audience: young, middle-aged or old people. The type of chosen music is also important Some companies hire well-known melodies and even prefer the performers to appear in the advertisement to add popularity to the brand. In some other cases, famous soundtracks are used and the third option is to create a jingle (a short tune that usually includes a slogan) for the occasion. This jingle could also be part of a previous song. What is clear is that everything in an advertisement, including music, tries to attract the customers' attention and their interest to get the advertised product.
Mary Pickford was a famous Canadian-American actress during the silent film era. She was also co-founder of the United Artists film studio and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science.
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