What is typical of a music video?
Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics for example stage performances in a rock video or a storyline for a ballad.
There is a relationship between music and visuals and lyrics and visuals.
There will be close ups of the artist as that is what they are basically trying to sell, and artists may develop motifs throughout their videos for example Lady Gaga who wears similar outfits and props in her video.
There is a voyeuristic treatment of the female body and references to the notion of looking for example screens with screens.
Very frequently there is intertextual references to films, tv programmes and other music videos. Examples of this are Madonna's 'Material Girl' directed by Mary Lambert (1985) which draws on 'Diamonds are Girls Best Friend' sang by Marilyn Monroe and 2 Pac and Dr Dre's 'California Love' directed by Hype Williams (1996) which draws on 'Mad Max' these both have cinematic references.
Techniques used:
Camerawork: How the camera is used and how images are sequenced will have a significant impact upon meaning. It may accompany movement of performers but also create a more dynamic feel for example circling the band as they perform on stage. Close ups of the artist or band create a sense of intimacy for the viewer and emphasises what is on the sale, the song the voice and the artist.
Editing: The most common form of editing is fastcut montage, making many of the images impossible to grasp on first viewing which will ensure multiple viewing. Other videos use slow pace and gentler transitions to establish mood. The latter is apparent for female solo artists such as Dido and Adele with broad audience appeal. Some original images are enhanced to offer different kinds of pleasure for the audience, for example split screens, colourisation and blockbuster film style CGI.
Showing posts with label Research. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Research. Show all posts
Friday, 18 February 2011
Wednesday, 16 February 2011
Groundbreaking music video?
Bohemian Rhapsody – ‘the first music video?’
The video opens with a shot of the four band members in near darkness as they sing the acappella part of the song. The lights fade up, and the shots cross-fade into close-ups of Freddie Mercury (lead singer). The video then fades into them playing their instruments. In the opera section of the video, the scene goes back to the "Queen II" standing positions, and they then perform once again on stage during the hard rock section of the song. In the closing seconds of the video Roger Taylor is appeared to be stripped to the waist. All of the special effects were achieved during the recording, rather than editing, with the honeycomb illusion being created by using a shaped lens.
The video is credited with being the ‘first genuine promotional video’ (http://www.queenonline.com/history/) and the video that began the MTV age as it was entirely shot and edited on videotape. "Bohemian Rhapsody" was the first to be available to any TV station willing to play it, for promotional purposes. The video was originally produced so that the band did not have to mime to such a complex song on Top Of the Pops. After its success music videos for singles became regularly used by artists and record companies. The video was recorded in just 4 hours and the cost came to £4,500. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bohemian_rapsody#Promotional_video)
It has created a legacy and is accepted as the first music video. It contrasts very much to music videos today as its simplicities are so different to all the special effects, costumes and synthetics etc that are used today.
Air date: November 1975
Credits:
Director: Bruce Gowers
Cameraman: Barry Dodd
Tuesday, 15 February 2011
Audience Questionnaires
This survey was to see what aspects of music videos teenagers prefer and also generally what music interests them. The teenagers asked were all between the ages of 16 and 19.
This graph was about what music channel is their favourite and it is clear that there was mixed results which is what was expected as teenagers like all different genres of music and there are many available. The two most popular are 4Muisc which covers all genres of music and does not just play music videos but also shows etc. and the second most popular was Kerrang which plays mostly rock and metal based music.
The seconds question was what genre of music is their favourite and again there was a mix of results which was expected however the most popular genres are rock and pop as they have to most variety and a widespread of sub genres that need to be taken into account.
The third question was specifically about teenagers favourite arists and we could not include every single one as it would be far to long, the results again show how many like specific bands such as Paramore or artists such as Lady Gaga but generally people like all different types of music as the most popular result was 'many of the above and more'.
Most asked said that they liked both narrative and performance based music videos saying that it mostly depended on the song or artist as some videos suit having a storyline and characters where as others such as rock songs or anthems are better when they are performanced based.
What is typical of a soft rock, love song video?
The reply was that it was a mix between narrative and performance based for example 'The Only Exception' by Paramore has a storyline of a couple but also shots of the band performing the song.
The videos tend be dark, perhaps based in the woods or other dark, distant and isolated areas. They usually focus on relationships such as a partner or family member or friend.
Most of the videos usually contain the bands or artists instruments so display that they can actually play the instruments to show they are a 'true artist'
Sometimes they tend to be in black and white for example 'Miss You' by Blink 182 is not completely black and white but the whole video has deep blue colours. However many older videos tend to be in black and white which would give it an emotional feeling that matches the song - for example 'Broken Hearted Girl' by Beyonce a pop love song is black and white when she is lonely but then switches to bright colours when she is in love.
This questionnaire helps as we know about target audiences and what is expected of a soft rock music video. This means we are able to either stay with the expectations or do something completely different.
This graph was about what music channel is their favourite and it is clear that there was mixed results which is what was expected as teenagers like all different genres of music and there are many available. The two most popular are 4Muisc which covers all genres of music and does not just play music videos but also shows etc. and the second most popular was Kerrang which plays mostly rock and metal based music.
The seconds question was what genre of music is their favourite and again there was a mix of results which was expected however the most popular genres are rock and pop as they have to most variety and a widespread of sub genres that need to be taken into account.
The third question was specifically about teenagers favourite arists and we could not include every single one as it would be far to long, the results again show how many like specific bands such as Paramore or artists such as Lady Gaga but generally people like all different types of music as the most popular result was 'many of the above and more'.
Most asked said that they liked both narrative and performance based music videos saying that it mostly depended on the song or artist as some videos suit having a storyline and characters where as others such as rock songs or anthems are better when they are performanced based.
What is typical of a soft rock, love song video?
The reply was that it was a mix between narrative and performance based for example 'The Only Exception' by Paramore has a storyline of a couple but also shots of the band performing the song.
The videos tend be dark, perhaps based in the woods or other dark, distant and isolated areas. They usually focus on relationships such as a partner or family member or friend.
Most of the videos usually contain the bands or artists instruments so display that they can actually play the instruments to show they are a 'true artist'
Sometimes they tend to be in black and white for example 'Miss You' by Blink 182 is not completely black and white but the whole video has deep blue colours. However many older videos tend to be in black and white which would give it an emotional feeling that matches the song - for example 'Broken Hearted Girl' by Beyonce a pop love song is black and white when she is lonely but then switches to bright colours when she is in love.
This questionnaire helps as we know about target audiences and what is expected of a soft rock music video. This means we are able to either stay with the expectations or do something completely different.
Tuesday, 8 February 2011
Intertextuality, an analysis of 'Bad Romance'
Pop music is derived from the term ‘popular music’. It is commercially played and listened to by many and dominates radio and music channels however it is unclear what ‘pop music’ can be defined by as there are many sub genres that use influences from other music such as rock and dance.
There is:
· An emphasis on recording, production, and technology, over live performance
· A tendency to reflect existing trends rather than progressive developments
The main story takes place in a fluorescent white bathhouse with Lady Gaga being kidnapped by a group of supermodels who drug her, and then sell her off to the Russian Mafia for 1 000 000 Russian rubles but then she gets her revenge by killing the man she is sold to. This storyline is clear in my screen shots. You can see the many different product placements of things such as ‘Heartbeat’ headphones and laptops, ‘Carrera’ sunglasses and bottles of vodka advertised, there is also subtle placements of fashion designers clothes for example Alexander McQueen’s distinct glitter green outfit and large hoof like shoes.
The video contains some intertextual references, for example, in screen shot two the white latex outfits are a direct reference to the characters Max’s outfit in the film ‘Where the Wild Things Are’. The dancing has also drawn similarities to Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ and it is clear that she is influenced by both him and Madonna. In a review the Wall Street Journal noted Gaga as ‘one of the few pop stars of present time, who really understood spectacle, fashion, shock, choreography—all the things Madonna and Michael Jackson were masters of in the 1980s.’
It has been suggested by many that she has really brought back the music video and made other artists consider them more seriously particularly in the mainstream, as they are important in selling music.
The video received ten nominations at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards in the categories of Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Art Direction, Best Special Effects, Best Choreography, Best Direction, Best Dance Video, Best Pop Video, Best Female Video, and Video of the Year. It won seven of the categories.
The video has also been viewed over 300,000,000 times on YouTube becoming the most viewed video of all time.
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