Here - Society for Music Analysis

Analysing Multimedia Dissonance in FilmDrawing on Sergei Eisenstein in his exploration of film as an ‘art’, David Bordwell describes the use ofmusic as ‘an expressive quality [unifying] both image and sound.’ This concept of expressiveunification has been shared and repeated by numerous theorists, from both musical and filmbackgrounds, but it is only recently that this idea has begun to be questioned. If music’s onlyfunction is to unify multimedia and express emotions to the audience, then how do we account forinstances where the soundtrack contradicts the visual signifiers? And how can we analyse them,given that the current analytical models look primarily for moments of consonance?This presentation will explore the formation of a new model, which synthesises the theories of JanLaRue, Philip Tagg, and Bordwell to create a coherent method of data extraction that prioritisesneither image nor music. Analysis of this data will draw from the theories of Nicholas Cook andMichel Chion, who have respectively discussed instances of multimedia dissonance for functional oremotional effect. This fusion of interdisciplinary analytical approaches should enable us todetermine the exact effect which dissonance between multimedia creates in film. The model willthen be used to examine a scene from La Cité des Enfants Perdus, to demonstrate how comparativeanalysis of visual and sonic data will enable us to comprehend, and generate new readings of, afilm’s content and meaning.Vivien Leanne SaundersLancaster Universityv.saunders@lancaster.ac.ukA/V Requirements: Microsoft Powerpoint on computer with USB port; Speakers (connected tocomputer)