Sound in Thrillers

 

 

Sound in Thrillers.

 

 

• Synchronous sound is sound that goes with the action and events taking place in a scene
• Asynchronous sound goes against the action
• Diegetic sound is real sound that can be heard in the action
• Non-diegetic is sound that has been edited in during post-production

What sounds do you hear?
How does it make the audience feel?
Instruments used?

 

Soundtrack 1

• A chase sequence, victim being pursued by a threat.
• Orchestral
• Staccato
• High pitched and fast paced
• Threatening
• Nervous
• Violins

 

Soundtrack 2

• Piano
• Guitar
• Slow pace, gradually quickening
• Building up to something
• Crescendo - music gets louder
• Relevant to the plot
• Equilibrium amounts to the climax/disequilibrium
• Out of tuned instruments, especially pianos and violins, makes audience feel unnerved

 

Soundtrack 3

•  Whistling
• Contrasts - unnerving
• High pitched
• Asynchronous to synchronous
• Starts of calm then becomes distorted
• Diegetic sound
• Whimsical  

What makes a good thriller soundtrack?

 

Asynchronous and synchronous sounds can have a really good effect, depending on what you want to make the audience feel. Crescendo with the climax is also really effective. The music is always in a minor key and the strings are often high pitched. Percussive heart beat sound usually accompany the bass and exaggerate the feeling of the audience's heartbeat pounding really fast. Increasing the speed and volume of the music. Nursery rhyme themes work well for a creepy factor as they create a nostalgic feeling. It turns something innocent into something dark. Sometimes no lyrics is also really effective, it draws more attention to the sound effects but other times it can work really well. All of this creates a sense of enigma. It creates mystery and suspense.