Unit 44: Advertising for radio

Task One: Analysis Radio Advertisements

The Volkswagen Polo ad highlights the importance of voice-overs immensely, it helps connote that for every different voice over which can be utilised, it can also be matched up with a different target audience which will be suitable. As different products will be aimed at different audiences, it is important to first identify the audience concerned, it is then that you can research into the ideal voice-over for the advert. Voice-overs are much more than an advertising tool though, they can relate, assure and help inform any audience just from having an authoritative tone, a comforting voice or even a regional accent. The voices used throughout the ad highlight how different voice-overs imply different outlooks, for example the female voice is assuring yet friendly, making the product trustworthy which will appeal to women. Whilst the last voice-over has a deep tone which insists the product is powerful and also meaningful, power being something which men desire constantly.The style of the advert is both straightforward and humorous, straightforward in the sense that each voice over actor introduces them-self and then explain what purpose they serve whilst also advertising the product itself. The ad can also be found humorous as it's quite witty the way that each actor explains their purpose whilst acting out their professional voices to a highly convincing standard. It holds a persuasive purpose,'I'm here to smoothy assure you that this product, is the finest of its kind', in which each voice-over attempts to appeal to their specialist audiences.

Task 2: Create 2 adverts with different styles and purposes

Task 3: Analysing the structure of a radio station

Galaxy 105 has 3 major sales teams, each being divided into different sectors in aiding the business. The first team represents Galaxy to all the major advertising agencies within London and all the global brands, Coca-Cola being an example, this is due to the fact that most of these big agencies are based in London, therefore it makes sense to have a sales team in that region. The next operational sales team is based in Galaxy's Manchester offices, whom of which speak to the major advertising agencies inside Manchester, as national and international brands tend to have their agencies represented in Manchester. The final team is a local sales team who speak to all the potential advertisers within Yorkshire, the advertisers could range from public service messages to nightclubs. CPT (Cost Per Thousand) is the currency which Galaxy go by when negotiating with potential advertisers, they calculate how many listeners they will have throughout the week, it is from this that they can work out how many listeners the advert actually got through to, once this has been done a price can then be worked out as to how many times the advert will be used. Galaxy recommend that adverts should be played over a period of at least 3 months, as it helps build up a repetition which will stick to the audiences memory after a constant reiteration of the ad. Alternate methods of advertising which Galaxy offer are also through their website, which would reach out to the online listeners, there is also the Galaxy newsletter which goes out to members as well as the Galaxy Life Magazine, so there are many ways in which advertisers can appeal to their potential customers.

Task Four: Structures

When creating an advert, you want a voice-over which is both appealing and appropriate to its target audience, in this case a new beer aimed at working class men. If the area I was advertising within was local, Yorkshire for example, a broad Yorkshire accent would serve the voice-over purpose well, as it is stereotypical fact that working men broaden their accent in a conversational context, it's all to do with their clichéd 'grafting' way of life as well as their love for beer, girls and football. With this in mind Paul Loughran seemed an ideal candidate as he came back with a 100% positive correlation with what I was looking for when I searched for a cheerful, Yorkshire accent voice-over. I chose the style of a cheerful voice-over as at the end of a long days graft for our working men audience, there would be a feeling of relief and joy at being able to pop down to the local for a well deserved pint with the rest of the lads. And as for the Yorkshire accent, the fact that the advertisement is being broadcasted across that particular region, it could create a bond with the audience as it's always comforting to hear a voice which is close to home. Another great attribute about Paul Loughran is how he has an 'excellent ability for specific characterisations and accents', what's more is that he actually lives in Yorkshire, therefore he'll already have a strong grasp on the Yorkshire accent and the way of life within the region.

Task Four Cont: Structures

The Volkswagen Polo ad highlights the importance of voice-overs immensely, it helps connote that for every different voice over which can be utilised, it can also be matched up with a different target audience which will be suitable. As different products will be aimed at different audiences, it is important to first identify the audience concerned, it is then that you can research into the ideal voice-over for the advert. Voice-overs are much more than an advertising tool though, they can relate, assure and help inform any audience just from having an authoritative tone, a comforting voice or even a regional accent. The voices used throughout the ad highlight how different voice-overs imply different outlooks, for example the female voice is assuring yet friendly, making the product trustworthy which will appeal to women. Whilst the last voice-over has a deep tone which insists the product is powerful and also meaningful, power being something which men desire constantly.

Task 5: MCPS and PRS

PRS for Music (previously the Performing Rights Society) which was rebranded in 2009, is a non-profit-making company, the establishment ensures that songwriters and publishers a like earn money when their material is being used, for example it could be that a song is used on a radio station, a television programme or even an advert. Yet these songwriters, composers and publishers all have to become members of the organisation first. PRS for Music customers are able to buy a license which allows them to play or use members music. The usage of material used is then calculated to work out how much money should go to each writer. Over 350,000 businesses within the UK have paid for a license already, yet some establishments don't require one, for example hospitals and residential homes. MCPS (Mechanical Copyright Protection Society) on the other hand is a similar company. They pay the due royalties to music publishers, songwriters and composers when their music is sold, this starts with the obvious being CDs and downloads yet it also stretches to films and computer games if their music is used as a soundtrack. These two companies struck into an operational agreement in 1997, duly named MCPS-PRS Alliance, yet the company was rebranded in 2009 to PRS for Music. Most companies nowadays have a contract with the concerning companies, with the larger ones paying considerably more due to the higher percentage of music they are likely to consume, whereas a much smaller or in this case, a trial company like PGFM, are to pay a much smaller fee as it's only for a 2 week duration.

Task Six: Identifying a Client (P1, M1, D1)

My client for this project will be Verity's Hair Salon, of Town Street, Farsley. They are a local hairdressers, established in 2003 by Verity Proctor. The business started with just herself, though as the business has grown she has taken on Lauren Hemsley and Coral Jade. She hopes that the radio advert will continue to aid in her business' expansion, with plans to diverge into a second salon in the next two years.

The advantages of the radio advertisement are varied; hopefully a much wider target market can be catered for, as the majority of the salon's popularity comes from word of mouth. This works perfectly well for a market based within Farsley, but in order to achieve the finance needed to open a second store, the customer base needs to be expanded. As well as drawing in prospective new customers, the radio advert could bring back old customers who've been elsewhere in recent times.

Task Seven: Client Brief (P1, M1, D1)

Task Eight: Proposal Scripts (P1, M1, D1)

Proposal Script One:

MALE: Looking to treat yourself for that big night out?

FEMALE: Or maybe just a quick trim?

MALE: Either way, Verity's Hair Salon, of Town Street, Farsley, is the place to be; with stylists of all ages, they can sort you out with whichever style you'd require.

FEMALE: Known for it's family friendly environment, Verity's caters to all ages with it's local team of professional trained stylists.

MALE: Worried about being out of pocket? Don't be! With children's cuts from £3.50, and the new Student Loyalty Card, there's a great 10% discount available on every visit.

FEMALE: With it's award winning window display, Verity's is a well respected local business, which this celebrates it's tenth year of hairdressing excellence. Now taking bookings for the prom season, just give Verity and the girls a call on 01132551991, or pop instore.

MALE: That's 01132551991. Verity's Hair Salon - why be a sparrow when you can be a bird of paradise?

Proposal Script Two:

FEMALE: I can't wait for the prom!

FEMALE 2: Me either! But I really want a new look to impress everyone.

FEMALE: You should try Verity's down Town Street in Farsley! My cousin went there for her prom and she looked amazing! Everyone said she looked drop dead gorgeous!

MALE: Wanting to spruce yourself up for that special occasion? Maybe just a quick cut? Whichever way, Verity and her team are ready to offer you the slickest styles, and ten years experience of excellence in hairdressing.

FEMALE 2: Wow, that sounds great! Have you got their number?

FEMALE: Yeah, it's 01132551991!

FEMALE 2: Hang on, I'll just pen it down - so that's 01132551991 right?

FEMALE: Sure is!

FEMALE 2: Great, I'll give them a call now!

MALE: Verity's Hair Salon - why be a sparrow when you can be a bird of paradise?

Task Ten: Final Drafts (P1, M1, D1)

I chose Proposal Number One as my final draft, as per the feedback from Verity, who preferred this one. I then requested the use of two of my classmates in order to complete the recording process. Below is my first draft production.

Task Eleven: Production (P1, M1, D1)

My finished radio advertisement is below. The feedback from my client was exceedingly positive.

Task Twelve: Evaluation (P1, M1, D1)

My original purpose was to create a successful promotional advert for a local business; the one I chose was hair salon, Verity's. I feel that I achieved my intention, and the advert was generally a success. The music I used, an adapted version of the Sex and the City theme tune, fit the genre perfectly, and adhered to one of the specific requests made in the client brief. I feel that the majority of these requests were fulfilled to a good quality. The recorder I used was an Edirol r-90, a highly advanced MP3 recorder, and thus most of the recording used in my piece sound quite professional. However, if I was to re-create my piece, I would use the most advanced recording software in the radio studio, in order to guarantee crystal sound.

I played my advertisement to several of my classmates in order to gather some potential audience feedback; it was generally positive, though some male members of the group commented that they felt it did not apply to their particular tastes. Though Verity's is unisex, the main target audience are women, so this was somewhat expected. However, if I were to re-record, I would perhaps give more consideration to any potential male customers. I feel that all my audience took my preferred reading, and all were impressed with both the quality of the advert, as well as the product I was promoting.

I feel that the message I gave out in my product was mostly positive; there were no derogatory comments aimed at any oppositional parties; the majority of the advertisement was simply promotion of the product. My clip contained two female voices, with one male providing the over-arching information; a narrator of sorts. This could relate to why several male consumers felt disillusioned from the product, due to it being mainly female dominated. The music track I used was, as previously mentioned, an adapted version of HBO's exceedingly popular Sex and the City franchise. This has extreme connotations of the feminine, which will greatly appeal to my target market. I felt that the language use was completely appropriate; the discussions about Prom linked with good deals, would appeal to both young girls who are GOING to the Prom; and the mothers who PAY for it.

I felt that the levels were fairly stabilised across my piece; my use of the Edirol recording technology ensured the best quality in sound, so things were fairly equalised already. The difficulty arose when I had to alter the levels to accord to certain sections of the music bed, as well as lowering the music so my actors could speak. Although there was some slight overlap in the levels of song and voice, I feel that overall, my levels were fairly high standard. There was a slight cut in sound during part of Howard's lines; a slight vocal mistake on his part. I decided to attempt to edit it using Garageband software, and although the cut is barely noticeable, in future I would probably just choose to re-record.

The typical conventions of this genre of advertisement tend to be very feminine-orientated content and language; advertising is essentially a stereotyped business; the only way it can be. Although there are numerous women who do not find this kind of thing appealing, advertisers have to appeal to the highest common denominator. Traditionally, a good narrative structure has a beginning, middle and end, as per the structures of the English Language (unless of course, a remix of this order is used to make a stylistic keynote) as well as adhering to Todorov's theories of Equilibrium (balance), Disruption (an event, usually bad) and Resolution (the ending) - again, these things can be changed around in order to make creative points. Additionally, Prop also theorizes that all stories have heroes, villains, damsels-in-distress etc.

If I were to recreate my product, I would ensure the voice clips I used were completely correct. Additionally, the tone of some of my actors was not completely happy; a bored voice does not sell products as effectively as a completely engaged one. I would also consider a different song choice, as due to the contemporary popularity of Sex and the City, it may shift the focus away from the product and more towards the song.

Unit 41: Radio drama

Unit 41 - Radio Drama

Task 1: Choose 3 radio dramas of different genres and write an analysis of each. (P1, M1, D1)

Analysing Radio Drama - The Archers

The Archers is the longest running radio drama show in the world and is produced by the BBC, the first broadcast o

f the programme was back in 1951 on New Year’s Day, the initial targeted primary audience was farmers. To the present day the show can be streamed over the BBC website to listeners all over the world and can also proudly acclaim itself to be one of Britain’s broadcasting enduring institutions.

The Voice. The pitch is generally quite normal with it never really being too high nor too low as the voices are just part of normal conversation, the same applies to the volume as the need to adjust it is unlikely.

Cultural Codes. The accent helps decipher a lot within the story line, as for one, it helps connote the setting, which is in a farming town, as a typical rural accent is spoken. This is also crafted through the dialect as the stereotypical rural accent is used for a farmers voice, which helps inform the audience of the characters background. Considering the language register, The Archers programme is most likely to be aimed at 30+ years old and those of which with an upper class background.

Task 2: Produce 3 x 20 second clips, each clip should emulate the codes and conventions of a specific genre. (P1, M1, D1)

Task 3: Produce a mind-map of your ideas for each text. Use the language that you have become familiar with from the first two tasks and create the min-map in the software of your choice. Use the example below to help you structure your diagram. (P2, M2, D2)

Task 4: Write 2 proposals for each drama (4) briefly stating the different possible ways in which you could produce your dramas. (P2, M2, D2)

Proposal 1 -

'Viva la Brasília' is a sports drama about a young English semi-professional footballer, Steven Loft, trying to make the big time, in an attempt to achieve his dream he travels to Brazil in aid of some football inspiration. The setting is Rio De Janeiro, where our main character enrolls into the local Copacabana beach football side only to be scouted by a Flamengo coach, Thiago De Suazo, after a string of impressive performances. After signing a 6-month contract and embracing the Brazilian culture, Steven must decide wether to return to local club Weymouth and all his family or extend his stay in Rio with newly found father figure Thiago and continue to live up to his local hero status as the only successful Englishman ever to ply their trade in Brazil. The target audience of the sports drama will ideally be teenage boys from 16 to 22 year as it is a football based story so it is more likely to appeal to the male audiences. I doubt the drama would appeal to an older audience as due to its footballing aspect, they could lose interest quickly as sports tend to be favoured amongst the younger generations. There will not be a narrator within the production as I believe all the speech should come from the characters as it enables the audience to grasp a better understanding of the cast and possibly build relationships as they begin to relate to them.

Proposal 2 -

'Jimbo & Juliet' is a modern adaptation of the classic romance 'Romeo & Juliet'. The genre of the production is a drama/rom-com. Jimbo lives on the local council estate with his happy go lucky family whose ideal Friday night is getting leathered down the local pub. Juliet on the other hand is bliss defined, and her wealthy family pride themselves on their sterling reputation. But when the two lay eyes on eachother and strike up and extremely unlikely romance, both families start to get bitter of the prospect of togetherness. The target audience could vary anywhere between 16 to 35+ year olds, as despite it being a classic originally written by William Shakespeare which would appeal to the older audiences, this drama production is a modern adaption and with references to stereotypical tag-lines like 'chavs' and 'snobs' it would appeal to the younger audiences all the same. The radio drama would include a narrator as the story needs a narration to carry it along at times, it also helps keep the audience informed throughout.

Task 5: Write a treatment for each drama (P2, M2, M3)

Treatment 1

Jimbo & Juliet is a spin off drama/comedy based on the classic tragic love story of ‘Romeo & Juliet’. The target audience would most likely be 18 year olds to early thirties in a mixed gender category. The story more or less follows the one of ‘Romeo & Juliet’ yet it contains a slight twist, Jimbo is your typical ‘Jack the lad’ kind of guy who goes to his local every Friday night with the boys, he is also your stereotypical chav. Juliet is an angel sent from above, beautiful, polite and caring. Her father owns a very successful steel works company and the highly credited ‘Brandling Golf Club’ therefore making him one of the wealthiest men in the town. One Friday night at the ‘Pink Pig’ pub, Jimbo meets Juliet and they consequently fall in love with each other after a few drinks and a deeply enthralling conversation. But there is also so much more to the story than that, with it being a tale of friends being there for you, achieving your goals and also proving that social backgrounds aren't everything. I think any audience would be interested in this storyline as it is a modern day spin off to the classic, people would therefore like to see the difference in the changing times.

The locations consist of the ‘Pink Pig’ pub, Juliet’s fathers golf club, Jimbo’s council estate of Manford where he lives and of course Juliet’s upper class residential estate of Brandling, both towns being based in Yorkshire. With the social hierarchy issues, people can build personal relationships with the two main characters, Jimbo & Juliet, as both are at opposite ends of the rankings, this could also comfort the audience as it can tell the story of how equality can exist in the social hierarchy no matter what class your in.

The manner's of speech will also oppose eachother, with Jack's side of characters using an informal/common approach due to their chav-like background and Juliet's obviously being more formal due to her upper class personality. This can relate to the audience and draw in more listeners as it portrays opposing social backgrounds and how they can mix regardless of this. A regional dialect will also be used by the characters and with the drama being based in the county of Yorkshire, it will attract more listeners as PGFM is a Yorkshire based radio station.

This radio programme would most likely be a serial drama, with a cliffhanger ending for every episode to keep the listeners hooked to the story line and want to return for the next part. The first episode would basically be introducing all the characters and connoting the parts they will be playing throughout the drama.

In the needs of recruiting a cast, auditions will be organised to find the appropriate voices to suit the corresponding characters personas by inviting several possible candidates. I will bring along a colleague who also has a vast understanding of what is required for a radio drama piece and also having another opinion helps to assist in the search for a cast. Both young and old actors will be needed, as well as male and female, which overall relieves any representation issues.

Unit 39: Speech package production

39.1: Identifying opportunities for producing speech based packages for radio

Task 1

The first speech package out of three could reach to an international audience as it concerns the Olympic games in Beijing, therefore the genre of the program would be sports as it involves the Olympics’.

The second package revolves around business based news, it could be a regional audience reach as it explains how certain employees have been laid off from their jobs, yet on the other hand it could also be international, as the mention of the company Dell includes customers from around the world.

Finally the last speech package is purely sport related, as it goes on to inform listeners of the latest scores from the weekend and interviews with team managers, therefore it would reach out to a national audience as there are teams based all over the country.

Task 2

1) The Olympics- 2012;

International audience as it concerns countries from all over the world who participate in the competition, sport genre.

2) Alcohol Price Rise - Risen for safety;

National audience as the price rise would only apply to our country, as the government would have enforced it, consumer genre.

3)Asda - Where do they stand in the supermarket league tables?;

National audience as Asda is a national supermarket spanning across the whole nation, therefore it appeals to all that live in the country, especially those who are customers of Asda.

4) West Leeds Council owned gyms - Comparisons to national gym chains;

Local audience as it only concerns residents in Leeds, as it is these people who will be attending the gyms, lifestyle genre.

5) Smoking Ban - Have the pubs and clubs suffered? What else has the ban affected?;

National audience as the ban has affected pubs and clubs across the country, the genre’s could be lifestyle as the ban could have lessened the risk of cancer, it could also be consumer as the prices of cigarettes may have risen from the resulting ban and finally it could even be business as the profits of pubs and clubs may have dropped.

6)Leeds UTD - History, administration, what's been happening lately;

This could be seen as Local, National and International.

Local because of the fact that it concerns the people of Leeds as it could greatly effect the mood of the city. National as Leeds United is an English club whom of which plies its trade in the Coca Cola League 1 division, this could effect their rivals in the league as well. Finally International, as there are many Leeds United fans around the world, therefore they would be interested in the latest news about their beloved club.

Task 3

The topic for my speech package will be about the indie music culture. The genre will be national as it will only include the British indie culture as it is where the genre started off. The target audience will be music lovers of all ages, especially those which enjoy the indie genre. The speech package will include

interviews and personal opinions from the public, it will also feature facts and figures to prove points. The music used will obviously be indie based as it will then correspond with the speech package topic as well as engage with the audience.

Task 4

The voice chosen for the speech package is specifically utilised in an attempt to engage with the audience, with this in mind it would help prompt questions and opinions from the listeners which is what the productions aim is. The speakers tone is greatly balanced, with the tone being raised up and down to either emphasise on a point or to even prompt opinions from the listeners, which they can put forward via e-mail, text or phone, which will then be discussed in the next show. The rhythm of the speech package is consistent, with the presenters speech being clear and smoothly distributed. It is more than likely that the piece has been professionally recorded as the sound quality is to a high standard. The presenter uses standard English as there needs to be a theme of professionalism about the production as it is to a large audience, also it suggests that the presenter is extremely knowledgeable within his field, which assures the audience that all the information which is being distributed and argued is accurate.

Task 6

In my speech package I will interview the general public to get an unbiased view towards the indie culture, as well as this figureheads within the music/indie industry will be involved too. Vox pops will be heavily included to give snap shot opinions from questions which I will propose beforehand.

For my voice over I will record in the studio to get the best quality of sound possible, any one on one interviews I will produce will also be recorded in the studio as good quality of sound will be required, I deem the studio as a reliable recording source as it is also used for broadcasting PGFM live therefore it has to be have an excellent capability. However for my vox pops, they can be recorded on location as it will only be a quick snapshot of sound. My recordings won’t be as-live as I will have a structure to my speech package, clearly stating which topic or part of the package I am going into. I may include a telephone interview with a character from the music industry to add some professionalism to my speech package, if I don’t do it through the form of telephone, it will be a basic one on one interview. Finally, the music which will be played throughout my speech package will be typical of the genre as it will obviously be indie music, this will also get listeners in the mood as if they enjoy the indie genre, they will enjoy the speech package on a whole that way.

Task 7

Radio 1 is a national radio station which broadcasts nationally. Despite it being the prime radio station of all of the BBC’s many channels, the target audience could be considered from between 16 and 30+, which could be seen as surprising as you would think it would be attractable to all audiences. The types of music Radio 1 distribute are a selection of different genres, yet the most likely are indie, rock, pop and R’n’B, yet this could depend on the type of show as Zane Lowe usually tends to play rock/indie music.

Speech packages play a large part in the radio stations content, with many events like the famous ‘Live lounge’ and the ‘Zane Lowe Takeover’ going on in the studio, preparation for vox pops and interviews are vital. As well as this, there are the obvious news updates which Radio 1 specialise in, so all in all, speech packages are extremely important to the setup.

With Radio 1 being a BBC channel, which is available on analogue, podcasts are at the availability of all listeners so they can replay their favourite shows through the internet via download.

Task 8

My Speech Package Treatment: Indie Music Culture

Genre: Informative

Date: Friday 6th March

Duration:

Voice(s): Male, female, adults, students, vox pops, presenter, studio and on location. The volume and pitch of the voices is at a set level more or less, as all voices were recorded via the same microphone within the same studio. The rhythm is steady yet each voice follows on from the next as they do in my personal opinion part, but also the music bed in a way takes over the rhythm.

Actuality/Ambience: The ambience in my speech package is fairly neutral as the majority of it was recorded within a studio or an enclosed environment so I could get a better quality of sound.

Music: Indie music, as it is what the speech package is about, therefore everything will gel together that way, it will also be used as a music bed throughout the package above all.

Sound FX: There is no use of sound effects within my speech package as it is an informative piece and I believe that sound effects are for a more entertaining purpose.

Silence: There are no moments of silence as I have applied a music bed throughout my speech package, even when a song switches I’ve made the transition instant so there is no silence.

My speech package is mostly informational and it’s targeted audience is for music lovers of any age, especially those of the indie genre. With self image, the listener should not be offended considering the musical stereotypes, e.g. emo, goth, punk, indie cindy, as they are commonly known as the ‘official’ music stereotypes of today.

Considering gender, being male or female may mean you are attracted to a particular genre of speech packages, for example a male may prefer the sport genre, whereas a female may like a fashion genre more. It is with that point made that it can be proven that some people are drawn to texts that they feel they gender should be, like men with sport stations for example again. Yet it is the sexes themselves that decide who should be attracted to which texts as it helps them affirm to their gender specific needs.

I would think that both genders could be attracted to my indie speech package as both can be fans of the indie music genre itself. Yet with most indie bands been male dominated it would seem as if it would be more of a male appeal, but despite this there are popular fan bases for female led groups inside the indie industry, for example Ladyhawke, Les Corps Mince De Francoise and Little Boots. Some media producers may aim a specific text at a specific gender as it will help them grasp an audience easier, for example a fashion text would attract the female gender more than the male sex as it isn’t exactly the most manly of interests.

Age makes a difference when creating texts in radio as you can vary your target audience greatly, yet with the indie genre it is hard to decipher a specific age as it could appeal to all ages. A family audience would be considered as ‘acceptable for all ages’, with the appealing texts being friendly, comical and even educational in places.

Class may sometimes play a part in a persons choice of radio station, for example someone from the middle/educated classes may listen to Radio 4 as it is more the thinking persons station and entails information of a more professional standard, whereas a working class citizen may listen to Galaxy 105 as the chatter and music is based purely on entertainment and music. However I don’t believe the upper middle class would be a fan of indie music, I think from skilled working to middle class would be a more reliable target audience, especially how the indie lad persona was previously a working class dominated fan base. Despite this, indie music can be a clash of the classes at times, with the fan base having a wider range than usual.

Task 9 Researching, selecting & evaluating appropriate factual content

Primary Research: Check calls, contact book, first-hand accounts (eye witness,

survivor, expert testimony, emergency services, vox pops), interviews,

atmosphere and actuality.

Secondary Research: Internet, teletext, television, press releases, other radio stations, books, newspapers, magazines and archives.

Primary Research

For my research I have interviewed four people varying from different backgrounds and different genders:

Robert Dent, Male, Year 11.

Amy Penistone, Female, Lower Sixth.

Andrew Pierce, Male, Media Department.

Ella Park, Female, Year 10.

Question.1.

Are you a fan of indie music?

Yes - 2

No - 2

Question.2.

Do you prefer an informal or formal style of speech package?

Formal - 1

Informal - 3

Question.3.

Would you prefer to hear songs of an indie genre within the speech package, or just music extracted from garageband?

Indie Music - 4

Garageband - 0

Question.4.

If you were to be interviewed for use as a vox pop, would you rather be recorded on location or in a professional studio?

On Location - 3

Pro Studio - 1

Task 10

Time - From 6 seconds to 14.

The indie music industry is booming, and more and more bands are entering the mainstream, some, reluctantly.

So what’s the harm in this? After all, the bands will still make the great music they always did. But what fans might fear in this day and age is the personality change, they might get carried away with all their new found glory.

Time - From 19 seconds to 23

I’ll be taking a look into the evolving indie culture and finding out what the general public and the big players in the music industry think of the genre on a whole.

Time - 28 seconds to 44

So what is indie seen as today?

As with the term ‘indie’ being known best known as an abbreviation for the word independent, this used to help differentiate bands that were on a major record label and those which weren’t.

Yet in recent years the term ‘indie’ has been applied to bands with a more alternative rock sound but who are also on a major record label too. Consequently, bands like The Killers, Razorlight and Coldplay aren’t seen as true indie because of this.

I interviewed well known music producer, Howard Bradley, to get a clearer picture.

Time - 28 seconds to 44

Time - 75 seconds to 100

So with Howard's comments in mind, it seems indie just isn't what it used to be, for better or for worse. Yet there's still hope for the genuine indie faction, magazines like the NME are very much anti-mainstream and run a yearly competition 'NME Breakthrough' giving little known local bands the chance to win a supporting slot for a well known headlining band, so let's hold on to those local heroes of music that we all have.

END.

Task 11

Purpose

My original aim in compiling this speech package was to inform or even debate the goings on of the indie music genre today, as with more and more bands entering the mainstream, it is bound to effect the originality of the genre, so it is within that fact that it is a debatable speech package which entails many opinions to support this. I believed I achieved my purpose as I included many opinions from the general public to give a half balanced overview on the indie culture, as well as this I managed to include a more professional outlook on the genre by including an interview with a figure within the music industry.

Representation Issues

I gave an equal response towards the indie culture, including opinions even if they weren’t fully positive towards the genre as after all, one of my speech package aims was to debate the music genre. On the gender side, my opinions were compiled from both males and females, as I believe the indie culture is very much appealing to both genders considering the fan bases. yet on the other hand, the music side of indie is heavily male involved as some of the most well known bands are male dominated, for example the Arctic Monkeys, Kings Of Leon and Radiohead. My music choices helped add to the mood of the piece as it was all indie based music, which obviously matches the idea of the speech package, as it’s all about indie. I’d like to think my speech package was realistic compared to a professional speech package as it contained all the right features, public opinions, vox pops, interview with an important figurehead and of course a suitable music bed.

Technical Issues

There was a lack of technical issues during my production, which made for an overall quality product, there was a loss of data at times, but back-up recordings were always on hand to save the cause. The only major problem that I had was concerning the recording tool I used, an Edirol recorder which didn't pick up the best sound quality I was after, so I substituted it for the radio studio microphones as they are specifically designed to pick up the best voice recordings. Upon this swap, I noticed a greater quality of sound which helped enhance my recordings greatly.