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Sunday 20 April 2014

Individual exercises - Alejandro Ordóñez

It’s time to catch up. Now playing it safe. Plain and simple written-down analysis of all I haven’t done or done as if it had never been done, to all intents and purposes.

The feature:
I chose this feature on Barbra Streisand. Why? Because I love her so much and because a piece on musicals has to incorporate music, and that’s a technical aspect with interesting content to analyze for the exercise.

The program it’s called El Musical, in Radio 5, Saturdays at 17:35 and Sundays at 16:17, so I take it’s a very short program or a section inside another program.

They start with news on the European tour of Barbra, and then they move to her biography, focusing more on the past than in the piece of news. When and where she started her career, biggest hit, some details on her personal life...

The whole feature develops with her song ‘People’ in the background, which is played louder at the beginning and after recalling it as one of her most iconic tunes. Then the speaker presents/goodbyes himself and the song keeps playing for the rest of the program, approximately 45 seconds.

Overall, the informative component is very high, keeping it in an objectively descriptive style. There are no sound effects, the editing is very simple and lack of complications and the music used is 100% related to the topic since, as I’ve said before, the only song played is directly quoted. In fact, it feels like the purpose of this feature is to talk about the voice and style of Barbra, so choosing to balance the speaker’s text and the song itself would be a very effective election.



The commentary: 
My analysis is on an editorial by Carlos Herrera, broadcasted during his program “Herrera en la onda,” which airs daily from 6 A.M. to 12:30 P.M. in Onda Cero, one of the most important radio stations in Spain. The show itself focuses on discussing topics of general interest such as politics, economy, etc. News in the end.

Why did I pick this specific commentary? Because I found the structure and the boldness when it comes to giving an opinion (absolutely biased with not even a glimpse of trying to be impartial) particularly interesting.

The commentary revolves around the hot news of the day. It can be divided into four sections, each one focusing on one piece of news. The first one would be an antiterrorist operation, treated not in depth. The second one seems as the most important of the commentary since the taxation issue is the one the piece is named after. Herrera discusses the reform of the fiscal policies of the Government from a more informative perspective, explaining the main points of the actions taken.

Even though, as I’ve said, the part focused on taxes should be the longest inside the commentary, the third topic is the one that I found more analysis-worthy. Herrera looks driven by his face-forwarded opposition to the independent movement in Cataluña, so he dedicates more time on this subject, and less impartiality, for the record, talking about the independents as lunatics and other adjectives too pejorative for me to quote.

And to wrap with the commentary, there is a fourth issue that I find personally insulting. How can a prime-time program treat with equal (or even more) importance a soccer game that the aforementioned topics? The music goes louder, everything very passionate about an issue that’s not an issue at all compared to terrorism and the population being sucked the blood by the Government once again. But I guess that’s the perk of the commentary, that each speaker distributes the relevance of the things they talk about as they please, isn’t it?


To finish with, the point I wanted to make clear with this analysis is that the key is making the commentary personal and from the speaker’s perspective and opinion. And in this case, it totally serves the purpose.

Thursday 10 April 2014

Mini-Drama



SFX: Ambience sound of the inside of a house.

MR. BROWNLOW: Are you ready, honey? We’re leaving in five minutes.

MRS. BROWNLOW: Yesss, I’m just getting my coat.

MR. BROWNLOW: Please hurry up, I don't want to be late.

SFX: Woman steps going downstairs. Closing of a door.

SFX: Ambience of the street and sound of a multitude of people waiting to enter the opera house and people murmuring.

(Continue people murmuring in background)

MRS. BROWNLOW: What a beautiful ni... Oh no, look at your right!

MR. BROWNLOW: What's wrong?

MRS. BROWNLOW: (indignant) Can you believe it? These people are here today! Ugh, I don’t want share the same air with them, they are scum...

MR: BROWNLOW: Please darling, calm down. Ignore them, nothing bad is going to happen. Just relax and enjoy the play.

WOMAN: Your wife is right, sir. Last time this kind of people came here, horrible things happened! They just don’t belong here! Look at them, all in their shabby clothes...

MRS. BROWNLOW: That is... I don’t know why they keep selling those cheap tickets. At least they seat in a different area, not near us. Could you imagine that? I’m already scared that they will steal me the jewels or the purse when leaving, I wouldn’t stand sitting next to one of them for a whole opera!

WOMAN: Well, you have reasons to be scared, that happened once to a friend of mine! They took all that she got in her purse.

SFX: Ambience sound of people inside the theatre, sitting, etc.

(Continue sound in background)

HANNAH: (fascinated) Oh gosh, this is so beautiful! Look at the stage and the red curtain! I’m so excited we can be here tonight.

JERRY: Yeah, I hope it’s worth it. I’ve been working too hard to get these tickets.

SFX: People murmuring and then the curtain opens and there is people clapping, some of them shouting and someone shushes them. Silence. The music starts.

(Music continues in the background.)

MR. BROWNLOW: Darling, I’ll be right back.

SFX: Steps.

JERRY: Hannah, I have to leave just for a moment to get some air.

HANNAH: Oh, but you’ll miss the play!

JERRY: It won’t take me long, I promise.

HANNAH: Okay...

SFX: Steps.

(Music fades)

SFX: Opening of a door.

JERRY: Hi.

MR. BROWNLOW: Good ni... Wait, I know you... (angry) What are you doing here?! Scum like you shouldn’t enter the opera! You are disgusting, man. How dare you come to the same place as me?! (spits)

JERRY: But, sir... I don’t know you... I just came here with my girlfriend.

MR. BROWNLOW: Yes, you know me! Do you really think I would forget you? You tried to rob in my house! Luckily that old lady saw you and warned us! I bet you are here today to see if you can get a little fortune out of some poor old woman’s purse, eh?

JERRY: But that wasn’t me, sir, I swear! I don’t know what you are talking about! I’m a good person!

MR. BROWNLOW: Yeah, like I would believe any of you scum... You all deserve to die.

SFX: Gun shot.

SFX: Opening of a door.

MRS. BROWNLOW: (worried and whispering) Where have you been? Why do you look so upset and sweaty?

MR. BROWNLOW: (whispering) Nothing, nothing, just men stuff... Shhh, the play is on.

(The music continues for a moment and ends.)

SFX: Clapping.

SFX: Sound of people standing up and leaving the auditorium.

SFX: A woman screams. Silence and then people murmuring.

(Continue people murmuring in background).

MRS. BROWNLOW: What? What happened?

WOMAN: Apparently there has been a murder. There’s a dead guy in the floor and they say they have seen someone running away.

MRS. BROWNLOW: Oh, I told you! These people are barbarians!

WOMAN: This is the second time this happens... people responsible of the opera should not allow this!

MRS. BROWNLOW: They don’t even let us enjoy a beautiful night. Agh... Please, dear, let’s go.

SFX: People walking and murmuring (fade out).

SFX: Police siren getting closer.

END.

Monday 31 March 2014

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Thursday 27 March 2014

Editorial Commentary Analysis

Editorial Commentary Analysis
BBC Radio 4: A Point of View: “Twitter-Free”
Broadcast Sunday, 9 Feb 2014 at 8:48


The editorial commentary, “Twitter-Free,” is from the BBC Radio 4 series A Point of View and was last broadcasted on Sunday, 9 Feb 2014 at 8:48.

In this commentary, there is an introduction for Adam Gopnik and the commentary begins with his personal experience regarding the growing social media trend surrounding Twitter. He shares his lack of participation on Twitter, but yet analyzes its supposed purpose and what he sees on Twitter. From here, he goes into how social media and electronic devices have not only affected him, but society and the way we live our lives. Overall, he explains how he sees the exact opposite of what many may believe about the negative effects of new devices, the emotional affect and transitional affect.

Today, new devices are consistently involving; therefore, Adam Gopnik addresses the way in which these new devices have advanced his life within the first part of the commentary. He questions the past devices and thinks backs to the longer and tedious process of getting things done because of, what we see now as, the lack of technology. In addition, he uses a structure of examples of supposed real-life situations to argue that he is not any less or more productive than he was writing on a typewriter than on a laptop. However, work is quicker and easier on the new devices that present more efficient methods and evolved the writing process rather than hinder it.

He explains from his point-of-view that just like before we continue to have things that we feel we cannot live without, therefore, we are still in the same place we were before but just with new things. He creates an illustration of his views and ideas but developing examples from past and present. The listener then would question the role of social media and electronic devices in his or her life and continue to listen to what Adam Gopnik is saying. To enhance his views, he further develops the structure by bringing in the view of a letter he read that states the way in which advancements in technology have made life easier, quicker and more efficient than before. This allows him to have a second opinion on his view rather than just simply his thoughts and ideas.

To end his commentary, he shows how we constantly may laugh about the past generations and their way of lives and to think about those who will be laughing at us in the future; while also discussing those who refuse to evolve with the years because they feel they will betraying their own generation. However, he notes that “it is our desire to be in our time that moves us [...] and that all of us share.” He ends on his final point of how we cannot alienate ourselves from the present times and then he goes back into his discussion of Twitter as he mentioned in the beginning of the commentary by saying how he will go from “Twitter-Free” to posting his first Tweet.

Overall, this commentary displays a structure that includes Adam Gopnik’s own personal experience as one section and then another section of the way in which social media and new devices are taking part within other lives and society as a whole. He is able to present firm points and challenging questions that maintain the listener’s attention.  He introduces the topic, develops ideas and examples and then provides us with the overall resolution.  The commentary comes to end after he mentions what his first Tweet will be and stating his name.

Individual Feature Analysis

Feature Analysis
BBC Radio 3: "A Social History of the Piano" by Michael Goldfarb
Broadcast Sunday, 10 Nov 2013 at 18:15


"A Social History of the Piano" by Michael Goldfarb was part of the continuous Sunday Feature series for BBC Radio 3 and was last aired on 10 Nov 2013 at 18:15.

This particular feature is ideal for those who are interested in music and culture. In addition, it would have an influence or be of an interest to those who have a strong connection with the piano and other instruments. Michael Goldfarb explores the history of the piano and how it has involved into much more than just a simple instrument into the 21st century by taking us through its beginning origin of development into more modern environments while also including the influence of the piano on lifestyles, society, and the downfalls that have occurred against the value of the piano.

In "A Social History of the Piano," the presenter, Michael Goldfarb, takes us through various historical context of the piano and where this grand instrument stands today in the music world. The presenter’s words are subtle yet passionate while being enhanced with personal interviews and with the use of sound effects to create the emotion. The interviews allow us to get a personal view while also providing us with background or historical content. Each interview presents us with a different view from around the world with the variation in where the interviewees come from and their experiences.

The use of the clips of piano playing in the background brings us through different times of music and follows through with the context of the feature. We are able to feel as though we are present in the moment in each scene. From the beginning, we know that he is present in the street he is describing with the use of environmental/traffic sounds. We are also able to go back in time by creating a picture of black and white imagery in our heads with a piano player and old cafes. The use of this music and sound create this imagery throughout the feature and enhance the words being spoken by both Michael Goldfarb and the interviewees. By the end, the strong use of construction and demolition display the way in which modernization has changed the views and value of pianos.


Overall, the listeners are able to immerse themselves into what is being said and create an image in their heads rather than simply listening to words that may have little meaning without these details. We are able to understand how something simply know as an instrument containing just bits and pieces of material to many people in the modernized world was once and is still more than just a simple instrument.