2/8/19 â 2/15/19
All work is due by midnight on 2/15
This week we will dig into audio storytelling. That goes beyond the words and tone of voice to include sound effects, background noise and music. We will be asking you to consider how these subliminal elements impact the story. We are also introducing ds106 radio (an open, Web-based, community radio station) this week, where we will be broadcasting stories Monday â Thursday, 8:30-9:30 PM. We will also begin experimenting with audio production. We strongly recommend Audacity, a free and open source audio-editing program, further details below. If you have access to and experience with a different audio editing system, you are free to use it instead. Along with Audacity, you will need to download and install the LAME mp3 Encoder in order to save audio as .mp3 files.
NOTE:There is an Audio Resources page which includes lots of information and resources to help you complete the weekâs assignments. We strongly recommend you read it and refer to it during the week.
Download and Experiment with Audacity:Unless you have a lot of previous experience with audio editing, you should plan on spending some time this week getting comfortable with Audacity. It is recommended that you do this right away, because you will find that audio editing can be quite time-consuming. If you have another audio editing platform that youâre familiar with, you can skip this step. But everyone needs to get their hands dirty with audio editing. If youâre overwhelmed by Audacity, make an appointment with at the Digital Knowledge Center for help: http://dkc.umw.edu.
Think about Audio Storytelling:
Watch: These two short videos from RadioLabâs Jad Abumrad. He speaks of radio as a way of making meaning and connection, and as a modern incarnation of an ancient art.
Radiolabâs Jad Abumrad: How Radio Creates Empathy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSJ4Rd-V-K4
Radiolabâs Jad Abumrad: Digital Shamanism and Old-Fashioned, Newfangled Storytelling Magic https://youtu.be/Gq7HFn58VdQ
Listen: to âMoon Graffitiâ This is an excellent example of audio storytelling. Think about how the sounds, both the sound effects and the changes in sound, tell you what is going on, how they create a sense of place, a sense of space and a sense of atmosphere. We hear these same techniques used in film and video, where they are vitally important but often unnoticed. Consider what we watched, read and listened to this week and in the previous weeks. How does sound drive stories? How does it impact mood and create atmosphere? How do the ideas in Abumradâs videos relate here? Write a blog post on your thoughts on audio storytelling. Use specific examples and embed them in your post. Tag the post audioreflection.
Create a Radio Bumper: Once youâve familiarized yourself with ds106 radio, try your hand at making your first radio âbumperâ â a 10-30 second short audio that announces the radio station that is played between songs to remind listeners what they are tuned in to. This should be saved as an MP3 file, and then upload it to SoundCloud. Make sure in Soundcloud that you enable to option to allow downloads (so we can add it to ds106 radio!) Your audio must be embedded in your blog post summary of this assignment. You can embed Soundcloud audio just like you have done for YouTube and flickr, put the plain text URL on its own line, and when you publish, WordPress will create a player to allow visitors to listen. The radio bumper is an assignment in the Assignment Bank (so you should tag your blog post correctly when youâre done), but it wonât count to your star total this week. Sorry! Tag: radiobumper
Listen: Participate in a live âtweet-alongâ with ds106 radio this week: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, 8:30-9:30 PM. We will be listening to audio drama and tweeting our thoughts on what we hear. You might even hear your bumpers. Use #ds106 hashtag in your tweet responses in order to get credit. Blog about the experience and tag it ds106radio.
Complete 12 Stars of Audio Assignments:This week you must complete at least 12 stars of assignments from the Audio category in the Assignment Bank.â¨â¨
Also, involve the character you created in at least one of the assignments in some way. One assignment everyone must do is the sound effects story (3 ½ stars): This is a challenge to tell a short story (no longer than 90 seconds) using nothing but sound effects! And make it something more interesting than waking up, taking a shower and eating breakfast. We highly recommend using http://freesound.org to find free sound effects for this project. The BBC Sound Effects archive is another good source.
Make sure all your completed assignments are uploaded to SoundCloud, and write up a post for each assignment in which you embed that audio from SoundCloud. Note: If you use copyrighted music in your audio projects, the SoundCloud content police may block them. You can use CC Search to find music that you can safely use.
Complete 3 Daily Creates: You must complete at least three daily creates this week. Make sure you also blog your TDCs.
Brainstorm Radio Show Ideas:In a couple of weeks, you will be forming groups and creating a radio show as pre-recorded audio. In preparation, each of you needs to brainstorm ideas for a 20-30 minute radio showâsomehow related to or inspired by the theme of the course âon your blog. This post can just be some random ideas, thoughts, and/or a rough sketch. We want this to be a space where you share your ideas and people start to congeal around a few so we can be prepared to form groups soon! This post should be tagged radioshowideas.
Questions of the week: How do sounds tell a story? How do they convey a sense of time and place? A sense of action? Respond to these in you weekly summary.
Commenting: Comment, comment, and comment some more. Commenting creates community.
Posts of the Week: What is the Best of ds106 this week? Pick your top three posts and enter them in this form.
Weekly Summary:You all know what this is.