Sound Art Project

 For this assignment, we were tasked to choose a prompt from four options. We chose "Cafe in the Morning." We then had to create at least four of the sounds that may be found in this scene, while the rest could be sourced from online copyright-free websites. No video was allowed to tie this scene together, so we had to create the atmosphere using only sound. This scene had to be 45-60 seconds long. 

We decided we wanted the scene to follow someone as they walk into the cafe, order a cup of coffee, and wait as it gets prepared. We wanted to hear all the sounds that may be found in a cafe, and decided to create most by ourselves. 

Scene: Cafe in the Morning

1. Bell rings as door opens (online)- Bell ring - Pixabay

2. Background chatter (Created) 

3. Background music (online)-  Background music - Soundcloud 

4. Receipt printing (online)- Receipt printing - YouTube 

5. Coins in tip jar  (Created)

6. Ice and water (Created)

7. coffee machine (Created)

8. Mixing (Created)

9. Flipping pages (Created)

10. Writing (Created)

11.  Order for ____ (Created)

We created 7 Foley sounds, which include: background chatter, coins in a tip jar, ice and water swirling, a coffee machine, mixing, flipping pages, writing, and dialogue. 

For background chatter, my friend held his phone in the air during class while we were working in groups to discuss this project. 

To mimic coins being added to a tip jar, we record coins being dropped into a glass dish. 

We put ice into a glass, then filled it with water, swirling it around to create the sound of a cold drink being shaken. 

To get the sound of a coffee machine, we recorded the sound of my friend's coffee machine brewing coffee. 

To get a mixing sound, we filled a glass with sugar and coffee, using a metal spoon to stir it all together. 

We picked up papers and wrote on them to create the flipping through pages and writing sounds. This was to mimic someone doing work in the cafe. 

And finally, the dialogue was to get the barista to announce that the order was done. This was done by having one of our members announce, "Order for Aiko," into the microphone of the phone. 

For the creation of the video, we followed our planning exactly. Layering everything together in chronological order of what it would take someone to order, pay for, make, and finish a drink. We knew we wanted the background noise to be playing the entire time. We also knew we wanted certain sounds to be quieter than others to mimic the realism of waiting in a cafe, such as making the chatter louder than the music and the papers flipping and the bell quieter than announcing the order.