Category Archives: Soundtopia
Soundtopia
Graduation MIx
May 29, 2013, by AH
In the last unit of Soundtopia, we had to create a mix of music for graduation and to choose 4 songs and vote to see which two songs would be in the mix.
Here is My Artist Statement:
I’m Alive
Michael Franti
Length 3:37
I chose this song because it has great chimes and rhythm and it put me in a happy mood. The beat of the song is slow in beginning and becomes faster. When Michael Franti sings, his voice is very mellow and upbeat. The drums and guitar has a medium volume and medium pitch. The song keep a constant beat when the song keeps playing.
September
Earth, Wind, and Fire
Length 3:53
I chose this song because it has great rhythm and beat to the song. The timbre of the song is very upbeat and mellow. The beat of the song is very fast pace and has a good guitar rhythm.
A Mixtape to Walk to by HM
May 29, 2013, by HM
For our fourth and final Project as Action in Soundtopia, we all collaborated to create a mixtape for the graduation ceremony that will be happening in just a week. The process of this project was that each person chose four songs they thought would be good for the occasion and presented each song to the class, which they voted on. Whichever songs got the most votes were chosen to be added to the CD! Once we had the two songs that would be a part of the mixtape, we wrote short artist statements about why we chose them and how either their beat, pitch, or timbre sets the mood for graduation. This was a fun project to do because it was simple and we also get to see how people respond at the ceremony! Check out my artist statements and songs below!
Float On
Modest Mouse
188 seconds
I feel that this song sets a calm, comfortable feeling of peace. The beat is simple, fun, and relaxed but makes you really want to move it. Not only does the beat play a large factor in the mood of the song but the words of it inspire and hit on an universal truth: “we’ll all be OK.” Overall, it’s one of the greatest pick-me-up songs of all time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTAud5O7Qqk
The General
Dispatch
245 seconds
I have always loved this song because I feel it has such a unique sound and quality to it that I’ve never heard before with the crazy yet consistent beat and unique pitch and quality to his voice. If you really listen to the lyrics, it’s an inspiring strong that inspires strength and morality in the toughest of times and when making a hard decision is sometimes the best one. The beat to this song once again just makes you want to move and the timbre of his voice is so comforting and steady you can’t help but fall in love with his words.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhWwmRGiV4o
Mashing Up by HM
May 20, 2013, by HM
The most recent Project as Action in my Soundtopia class was to create a mashup, which is a song that is comprised of at least 2 songs that can be combined together in some way to make them sound like one cohesive piece. The unit we have been studying is beat so creating a mashup went hand in hand with this project in that we had to find two beats that could match each other so the song was able to flow instead of be choppy and awkward. For me, this project was incredibly challenging and involved an enormous amount of trial and error. It took me so long to find two songs that I could put together and do my best to make sound like a good, flowing song. Even though it was a stressful process for me, I’m proud of my final product and hope you agree it flows as much as I do! Check it out below!
HM
JUICE
May 2013
133 seconds
The purpose of this project was to create a song that incorporated at least two different songs that were able to flow together and make the final product of a mashup. In order to achieve this purpose, I had to learn a great deal about beat and how two beats can be combined to make one smooth, cohesive song. We were also fortunate to meet with a DJ named Carlos who was able to create a live mashup and teach us about matching up the sound waves and speeding up and slowing down the tempo to better match up songs if they don’t quite go together as is.
The two songs I chose are Ghostwriter by RJD2 and Juice by Chance The Rapper. The vocals of this mashup are from Juice and I only chose the key parts of the song so that it was more recognizable to people who would be listening. Although I didn’t use the entire track of Ghostwriter I use it for the beat completely untouched and the entire way through until about two minutes in. It’s hard for me to decide whether the final product is utopic or dystopic because I love the two songs separately but the process of mashing them up together was stressful and it still feels like they could flow just a little bit better, however I still do like it. The beat is so fun and just easy to move to which for me makes it much more dystopic.
I created this mashup by beat matching and using Audacity, a file editing software. I began choosing one song that I found to be either utopic or dystopic, which I chose to do utopic and from there tried to find a song that would be able to flow with it. This process took me an incredibly long time and I had to start over and choose a new pair of songs that I could hopefully make work together. Finally, I found the two that are in this one, Juice and Ghostwriter and I’m happy with my final product!
Mac and Em Mash-Up
May 20, 2013, by AH
In the third unit of our Soundtopia course we had to investigate the different feelings you assoiciate with the different tempos. Examine the impact of beats and sample 2 songs that have a synchronize tempos. I learned how to pick 2 to 3 songs to make a mash-up sound either utopic or Dystopic. I am proud of learning how to make a Mash-Up and to see how it would turn out to be.
Here is my Artist Statement:
AH
5/2013
Rap Mash-Up
The purpose of this project was to Mash-Up 2 songs from either Garage band or Audacity to make the changes to see how both songs would turn out to be. We had to learn about the difference between Public Domain and Private Corporation and we had to watch a movie and to see if it is illegal to copy music or not. We had to listen to sample song, describe the beat of the song and whether either song sounds or feel utopic or dystopic. The things we learned from DJ-Carlos was that when you have one song on the top and cut out other parts of the other song and put them together to see how they sound as a final Mash-Up. The songs that I chose to make my Mash- Up were I Need a Doctor Remix song Eminem (ft: Skylar Gray and Dr. Dre and Macklemore and Ray Lewis Can’t Hold Us party song. The final product of my Mash-Up is utopic because I used 2 very different songs and to see how they would work with each other or not. The beats of the Mash-Up are utopic because the remix is a base and the rap song is a mix.
Soundtopia Mashup
May 20, 2013, by sm
For my Art class, (Soundtopia) we were asked to create a mashup song. A mashup is a mix of two or more songs, making them sound like one. We were visited by professional DJ Carlos Torres. When with Carlos we learned the meaning and how to beat match. After the visit, we had decided on the songs and beats of our own mashup. I learned a lot from the experience. Mostly on what it means to make music, and how to beat match. Below is my artist statement and mashup, check it out!
The purpose of this project was to use two songs, utopic and dystopic, and mash them to create songs that speak to your character. I learned a lot in order to be able to make this mashup, but most importantly, beat matching. Beat matching is the art of matching two beats down to a science. We were visited by Carlos Torres, a professional DJ. While visiting, CT made a mashup with us and showed us how to beat match. This song helped me grasp how to understand how music is made, and how to make music. I picked the songs Problems and Change is Gonna Come. I chose these songs because I wanted to pick a pop related song, and a classic song. Problems is by ASAP Rocky and was only released last year. I feel the contrast in music styles is what makes mashups so great. Essentially, it has never been heard before. The contrast between two clashing styles, when pulled off, can sound like one song.
In my opinion, my final product is utopic. I am a fan of hip hop, and I believe my mashup reflects that. I enjoy beats and mixes that are relaxed and make you dance a little. I feel I did a good job of completing this personal goal. The beat has everything to do with it’s utopic feel. The beat is the floor to every song. In my song, I feel that all of the samples follow the lead of the beat. The beat is very high pitched and moves at average pace, making it sound utopic. I enjoy the process of making a mashup, although it may be difficult. It begins with finding the songs, which for me was relatively easy. I am a fan of both ASAP Rocky and Sam Cooke, and I found they mash up quite well. The next part, and mostly the final part, is cutting and clipping songs to make them sound as if they are one song. This was the longest and hardest part of the project. After you’re finished with these two steps, your mashup is complete.
Pitch Remix by HM
May 6, 2013, by HM
For our second Project as Action in Soundtopia, we created a soundscape that depicts the pitch of one of our favorite songs. The song I chose to do was Angel by Jack Johnson because it has always been a really utopic song for me and manages to relax me and give me a carefree feeling. This was a really challenging project in that identifying the pitch was something I had never done before and proved to not be very good at and creating our instruments to remake our song was no easy feat. However, although my version sounds nothing like the original, I’m proud of it and think it sounds pretty cool! You can listen to it below.
Artist Statement:
HM
Soothe My Soul
May 2013
120 seconds
The purpose of this project was to create a soundscape that was based off listening to the pitch of another song. We were given the choice of choosing either a utopic or dystopic song and I chose one of my favorite songs of all time, Angel by Jack Johnson. This project was a really long process and there was so much I had to learn. I first had to take a lot of time understanding pitch and how to recreate it with different instruments and sounds. We also had the really cool opportunity of learning how to and making our own instruments, a diddleybow and.
There is not one specific memory that I associate with Angel by Jack Johnson but instead just several memories of times it has helped me feel incredibly peaceful and at ease. When I think of this song, I often think of warm weather, relaxing, and feeling incredibly carefree no matter what exactly I’m doing. I chose to title my “remix” of this song “Soothe My Soul” because that is exactly what the original song does for me, no matter the circumstance. Pitch plays a large role in this because I think although it’s relatively low it offers a really calming vibe and therefore making me feel all the things I do when I listen to it.
Finally, to create this project we had to first identify the pitch of the song we wanted to choose and then go back in and identify the pitch of each element of the song, instruments and voice. Then, we created our instruments and used them to play the pitches we had already identified. I recorded all my sounds on my phone then downloaded them to GarageBand where I organized them so that they would sound as close to the pitch of the song I’m so familiar with.
Song Mimic By AH
May 1, 2013, by AH
In the second unit of Soundtopia, was that we had to recreate a song through pitch. I chose a utopic song and connected it to a memory. We also had to built instruments and those instruments were diddley-bow and kalimba.diddley-bow is a homemade guitar with one string. A Kalimba is a round instrument that has picks, pins, and a base that you can pluck. The process to completing this project was to draw the different pitches to the song, and to learn different adjectives that describe pitch. I learned how to build a Kalimba and a Diddly-bow and how I had to use both instruments to mimic the song and to see how it would turn out to be. I am proud of learning how to build a Kalimba and Diddy-bow and to see how they work into making my mimicked song.
Here is my Artist Statement:
Soundtrack by AH
April 17, 2013, by AH
In the first unit of Soundtopia, we investigated the feelings you associate with different timbres, examine how voices change the ambiance of a space, and use the sounds of your voice to evoke a moment. The purpose of this project was to learn about the different timbres and to see how they would sound and effect us. I am proud of putting the different noises into the memory and to see how the soundtrack memory would turn out to be and sound either utopic or dystopic.
Here is my Soundtrack. Hope You Enjoy it!
Here is my Artist Statement
Ari
4/2013
Japanese story
1 min 22 sec
In the project we had to write 2 positive and 2 negative moments that we remember. We then had to write 4 sound tweets and choose which one would fit the soundtrack and sound good. In the process of creating the soundtrack, we had to collect different sounds that would connect our story to the soundtrack. For this first Action Project, we choose a favorite moment, incorporated sounds that we remember and to then use the different sounds to recreate a soundtrack. I learned through this project that by collecting different sounds, they can be directly connected to a story in my memory.
Here are the different sounds that were in my soundtrack:
1. Airplane Sounds (BKJ and SM)
2. Car horns (Noise)
3. Loud Cheering & Screaming (BKJ and SM)
4. Bodies hitting the floor (BKJ hitting the computer kart)
5. Wrestlers Grunting (BKJ noise)
6. Wooosh (BKJ mouth movement)
7. People talking (SM and BKJ)
8. train doors opening or closing (BKJ)
9. People & kids speaking in Japanese (BKJ and AH)
10. Sushi chef speaking Japanese (AH speaking Japanese)
11. Knife cutting/ chopping (BKJ using to hit hand straight down)
12. Yumm (AH speaking)
13. People talking softly about art (SM and BKJ)
and
14. footsteps (BKJ and SM)
Listening to A Memory by HM
April 15, 2013, by HM
For my first project in my elective, Soundtopia, which explores sound and all it’s different components, we created a soundscape that told the story of a utopic (positive) or dystopic (negative) memory that we have. The memory I chose was a dystopic one and the story of tearing my ACL. This project was particularly challenging because we had to create all the sounds on our own, either with voice or some type of prop, which meant we had to get pretty creative. I’m proud of this project because it was such a step out of my comfort zone– technology is not my forte and I sometimes really struggle with thinking out of the box, both of which this project made me face head on and conquer. I’m so happy with my final track and think it definitely tells the story of my bone-chilling memory. You can listen to it below.
HM
January 7, 2010
April 2013
93 seconds
The purpose of this project is to create an original track that represents and explains a utopic or dystopic memory through the timbre of notable sounds. To complete this project, there was so much that I learned. I first of all had to learn what timbre was and how different sounds can have different timbres and therefore evoke different emotions. For this project, I focused on one of the most dystopic events I have ever lived through– tearing my ACL. I was in my freshman year of high school and was at gymnastics practice. I had just gotten a new trick I’d been wanting all season, a front flip. As my feet ran heavy on the mat, I jumped up and landed again with my knees hyperextended and locked. The snap in my knee echoed throughout the gym and I knew right away, it couldn’t be good.
The soundtrack I created is created to set the scene for the moments before, during, and after I fell and hurt myself. It begins with the yelling and cheering on of my teammates, a common sound heard in the gym during practice in an attempt to root our peers on when trying new and often terrifying tricks. As the cheering and clapping of my teammates fade out, it focuses on the sound of my feet running on the mat and finally the sound of my jump and knee snapping. I fall to the ground and the soundscape finishes with my heavy breathing and crying– just as it all happened in real life.
Creating this soundscape was definitely a difficult process for me because I am not one who is good with technology. All of the sounds in this piece are created with either my own voice or one of my peers or a prop, which could be anything from breaking a pencil in half or hitting the top of a garbage can. The editing tool I used to create the track is GarageBand, I recorded all the sounds I wanted and edited them and put them in the right order to try and convey the story I was trying to tell, which I hope you find relatively easy to follow!