Understanding music for film and tv

* Foley Sounds

 In every movie you hear recognizable sounds. For example, when it's snowing, you'll hear the snow crush underneath a pair of shoes or, on a beach, you can hear the waves crashing in. In real life you wouldn't necessarily hear it so obviously, but in a film, people need those sounds to make them aware of what is happening. The sounds are over-exaggerated to create drama, energy and creativity. Those sounds are recorded afterwards in a studio by Foley Artists. They do this by playing the movie in the studio while the Foley Artists use tools to create all the sounds sync to the movie. Foley art can be divided in different categories. One category is 'Feet', which includes all the footsteps that are taken in the film. The Foley Artists stamp their feet on a marble slab to create the sound. Another category is 'Cloth's'. Cloth's are all the sounds that fabrics make, for example a pair of jeans that gets ripped apart.

A video about Foley Sounds

*Temp Track
 A temp track is a track that is set together by the director of a movie. This track is used as a guideline for a composer, so that he/she knows what kind of mood or atmosphere the director wants for a particular scene. This can either be existing pieces or self composed. It is hard to describe a sound with words, so this makes it a lot easier for both the director and composer and it saves a lot of time.

Temp track for 'Family Guy' theme song

'Family Guy' theme song

* Wild Track
A wild track is all the sounds you can hear on the location where you are filming. If you are filming in a field, you can, for example, hear the wind blowing through the trees or birds singing. All those sounds are recorded separately with a microphone and form a wild track. A wild track sets an ambiance and an atmosphere for a piece of film.



*Composite Track (soundtrack)

Many people think that the composite track is just the theme song of a movie, but it is actually a final audio mix that contains all the components in a movie. Components are, for example, dialogues, music, foleys and effects. They are put together in a track and played sync to the movie. 

*Diegetic sound 

Diegetic sound includes all the sounds that you would be able to hear if you were one of the characters in a movie. For example, conversations between people, songs on the radio or traffic noises. Another word for dietetic sound is actual sound. 

*Non-Diegetic sound

Non-Diegetic sound is the opposite of diegetic sound, so all the sounds only the viewer can hear and the characters can not. For example: mood music or narrator's commentary. Another word for non-diegetic sound is commentary sound.

Example 1: Diegetic, Non-Diegetic and Exaggerated Sound

The video below is a fighting scene from the movie 'From Dusk Till Dawn'.

Diegetic Sounds: The rock music that the band is playing, the talking, screaming and yelling, the sound of the punching and biting and the sound of the chairs and tables moving around. These sounds are Diegetic because they are all coming from objects, people, and instruments that are situated in the film's world.
Non-Diegetic Sounds: The classical piece you can hear in the background. This is Non-Diegetic because it is not coming from the film's world, the characters would not be able to hear it. The music is very fast and very dynamic. You can hear loads of different instruments and pitches. The notes are staccato, which means short and swift. This all creates a edgy and dramatic feeling, which makes you want to hold your breath.
Exaggerated Sounds: The sound of the fighting. You can hear fists swinging, bones breaking and flesh ripping, which would not be so obvious in real life. Because of the exaggerated sounds, the audience is aware of what is happening. It creates a more dramatic effect. These sounds are recorded afterwards in a studio by Foley Artists (see 'Foley Sounds').

Example 2: Diegetic Sound

This video is a car scene from the series 'Supernatural'

All the sounds in this scene are Diegetic, the radio, the talking, the squeezing toy and the sound of the driving car, because it is coming from the film's world, the characters are able to hear everything.

Example 3: Diegetic and Non-Diegetic Sound
The next video is a scene from the movie 'Click'.
Diegetic Sound: The rain, voices, the footsteps and the machines in the hospital. These sounds are diegetic because it is, again, coming from the film's world, the characters are able to hear everything.
Non-Diegetic: The music. This is non-diegetic because the characters do not hear it, just the audience. The music is reflects the mood of this piece of film perfectly. using strings and minor chords gives it a very sad and dramatic feeling. The notes are minor and are played legato, which means very smoothly and connected. There are a lot of dynamics, for example, when the characters talks, the music becomes more quiet so that the voices come out better, and near the end there is a crescendo, which means that the music gets louder, again giving a dramatic feeling.

Example 4: Wild Track and Non-Diegetic Sound

This is a part from a documentary about lions.

Wild Track: The birds singing. This is a subtle sound, but it makes the documentary more realistic as it gives you the feeling that you are there. These sounds are recorded separately with a microphone on that location and are edited afterwards to create a good balance between all the sounds.

Non-Diegetic Sound: The voice. This is Non-Diegetic because it is a sound that only the audience can hear. It was not there while filming this documentary.