Sweetening
Encyclopedia
In sound design
sweetening ("to sweeten") refers to "juicing up" the video portion of a film, play, computer game software or any other multimedia project. Its origin may have been old-time radio
, which produced visual detail with sound effects such as people walking, horses galloping, doors opening and closing, gun shots, "body slams," etc.
In the case of a music performance or recording, sweetening may refer to the addition of additional instruments such as that found on The Sounds of Silence by folk troubadours Simon and Garfunkel
. The original acoustic version of the song features just the two of them and one guitar. Producers at Columbia Records
, however, felt that it needed a little spicing up to be a commercial hit, and so without the consent of the artists, they added drums, electric bass and electric guitar.
In television
sweetening refers to the use of a laugh track
in addition to a live studio audience. The laugh track is used to "enhance" the laughter for television audiences, sometimes in cases where a joke or scene intended to be funny does not draw the expected response, and sometimes to avoid awkward sound edits when a scene is shortened or more than one take is used in editing. Sweetening has been used in a number of television series, even ones that have been successful popularly or with critics: Happy Days
, Taxi
, The Mary Tyler Moore Show
, etc. The act of sweetening is demonstrated in the Woody Allen film Annie Hall
when Alvy Singer visits his friend Rob, played by Tony Roberts
, in Los Angeles. At one point, Rob has the engineer add laughter to cover voiced disapproval from the audience. Some shows used the canned laughter technique very obviously rather than the "in-between" technique (a recording from an external audience, but genuine laughter) described as a laugh track. An obvious sign of this is that the laughter is more or less identical in volume or magnitude, regardless of how extreme the joke is.
Sound design
Sound design is the process of specifying, acquiring, manipulating or generating audio elements. It is employed in a variety of disciplines including filmmaking, television production, theatre, sound recording and reproduction, live performance, sound art, post-production and video game software...
sweetening ("to sweeten") refers to "juicing up" the video portion of a film, play, computer game software or any other multimedia project. Its origin may have been old-time radio
Old-time radio
Old-Time Radio and the Golden Age of Radio refer to a period of radio programming in the United States lasting from the proliferation of radio broadcasting in the early 1920s until television's replacement of radio as the primary home entertainment medium in the 1950s...
, which produced visual detail with sound effects such as people walking, horses galloping, doors opening and closing, gun shots, "body slams," etc.
In the case of a music performance or recording, sweetening may refer to the addition of additional instruments such as that found on The Sounds of Silence by folk troubadours Simon and Garfunkel
Simon and Garfunkel
Simon & Garfunkel are an American duo consisting of singer-songwriter Paul Simon and singer Art Garfunkel. They formed the group Tom & Jerry in 1957 and had their first success with the minor hit "Hey, Schoolgirl". As Simon & Garfunkel, the duo rose to fame in 1965, largely on the strength of the...
. The original acoustic version of the song features just the two of them and one guitar. Producers at Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
, however, felt that it needed a little spicing up to be a commercial hit, and so without the consent of the artists, they added drums, electric bass and electric guitar.
In television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
sweetening refers to the use of a laugh track
Laugh track
A laugh track is a separate soundtrack invented by Charles "Charley" Douglass, with the artificial sound of audience laughter, made to be inserted into television programming of comedy shows and sitcoms.The term "laugh track" does not apply to the genuine audience laughter on shows that shoot in...
in addition to a live studio audience. The laugh track is used to "enhance" the laughter for television audiences, sometimes in cases where a joke or scene intended to be funny does not draw the expected response, and sometimes to avoid awkward sound edits when a scene is shortened or more than one take is used in editing. Sweetening has been used in a number of television series, even ones that have been successful popularly or with critics: Happy Days
Happy Days
Happy Days is an American television sitcom that originally aired from January 15, 1974, to September 24, 1984, on ABC. Created by Garry Marshall, the series presents an idealized vision of life in mid-1950s to mid-1960s America....
, Taxi
Taxi (TV series)
Taxi was an American sitcom that originally aired from 1978 to 1982 on ABC and from 1982 to 1983 on NBC. The series, which won 18 Emmy Awards, including three for "Outstanding Comedy Series", focuses on the everyday lives of a handful of New York City taxi drivers and their abusive dispatcher...
, The Mary Tyler Moore Show
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
The Mary Tyler Moore Show is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns that aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977...
, etc. The act of sweetening is demonstrated in the Woody Allen film Annie Hall
Annie Hall
Annie Hall is a 1977 American romantic comedy directed by Woody Allen from a screenplay co-written with Marshall Brickman and co-starring Diane Keaton. One of Allen's most popular and most honored films, it won four Academy Awards including Best Picture...
when Alvy Singer visits his friend Rob, played by Tony Roberts
Tony Roberts (actor)
David Anthony "Tony" Roberts is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in several Woody Allen movies, usually cast as Allen's best friend.-Early life:...
, in Los Angeles. At one point, Rob has the engineer add laughter to cover voiced disapproval from the audience. Some shows used the canned laughter technique very obviously rather than the "in-between" technique (a recording from an external audience, but genuine laughter) described as a laugh track. An obvious sign of this is that the laughter is more or less identical in volume or magnitude, regardless of how extreme the joke is.
See also
- Canned heat
- Laugh trackLaugh trackA laugh track is a separate soundtrack invented by Charles "Charley" Douglass, with the artificial sound of audience laughter, made to be inserted into television programming of comedy shows and sitcoms.The term "laugh track" does not apply to the genuine audience laughter on shows that shoot in...
- Charles DouglassCharles DouglassCharles "Charley" Douglass , born Charles Rolland Douglass, was an American sound engineer, credited as the inventor of the laugh track.-Early years:...