Warner Brothers. "The Exorcist: The Sound of Silence." 1973, 2000. 10 May 2008 <http://theexorcist.warnerbros.com/cmp/silencebottom.html>.

This webpage offers the perspectives of many contributors to the soundtrack of The Exorcist.  There are several instances of the unique mechanisms used to convey the unusual sound effects.

For example, Friedkin stresses the use of sonic contrast throughout the film.  He wanted to use sound to match the extreme visual shifts onscreen, such as that between light versus dark.  This creates a “startle effect”, where sound functions as a weapon that penetrates the audience with sudden assaultive effects, unpredictably followed by a surrounding quiet.  Perfectly capturing this is the scene where the traumatizing noises of the x-ray machine suddenly disappear into thin air.  The screen blacks out, making the moment much more intense.   

In addition, many examples of diegetic sound exist throughout the film.  In the opening scene, which displays countless workers digging in the rubble of the Iraqi desert, the sound of the axes hitting the rocks simultaneously occurs with the echoing sound that is produced.  Apparently, Friedkin checked this scene over one hundred times in order to ensure its accuracy, in hopes of creating the most realistic soundspace possible.

Friedkin also perfected the voice of the demon.  Initially, he tinkered with the combination of Blair’s voice and that of a male.  However, the synthesized result sounded too fake.  He resorted to calling an old friend—Mercedes McCambridge—in order to create a more convincing demonic tone.  She went to great lengths to try and produce the most horrific noises; she chain smoked, swallowed raw eggs, and even tied herself to a chair, among other things.  Eventually, her painful sounds were combined with frequencies of angry bees and slaughtered pigs to produce the relentless devil within Regan.          

Overall, Buzz Knudson was responsible for bringing together all of these sounds and inserting them into a continuous flow.  Hundreds of different sound experts were called in to contribute to even the smallest auditory effects.  Artists would experiment with atonal beats using materials like crystal stemware, old leather wallets, and pencils.  The track took over fifteen weeks to make, though most movies took around six weeks.  Indeed, the film had brilliant sound engineering.

Part of the success of The Exorcist must be credited to the work of the sound production team.  Sound functions as a storytelling element, becoming just as important as the visuals when it comes to horror filmmaking.  Buzz Knudson pioneered the use of new ideas and technologies; he was able to blend in music with the background—never dominating a scene—yet subtly building up its intensity.  His immense efforts were crucial in portraying the evil nature of the devil, certainly shocking audiences across the nation.

Blyn, Robin. "Imitating the Siren: West’s The Day of the Locust and the Subject of Sound." Literature/Film Quarterly (Salisbury State Univ., Salisbury, MD). Vol. 47, No. 4 (2004), pp.51-59. Literature Online – Criticism and Reference. 9 Apr. 2008. .

This article discusses the ways in which Nathaniel West’s The Day of the Locust is indebted to the history of cinema, and even partially to the Hollywood Cinema that it critiques, for the success of the novel. Blyn continually returns to the theme of the sound of the siren at the end of the film as an allusion to the siren song of mythology. She contextualizes the use of sound in cinema and how in times of technological change, such as following the rise of sync-sound in films, an upheaval occurs in which manifestations of the earlier cinema of attractions arise. She goes on to differentiate between the techniques of cinema of attractions (most notably the “teaser” technique) and how these very techniques are used to disrupt the continuity of reality in the book. The duplicity of the laugh, first exhibited by Harry before his death and most dramatically utilized by Homer after he loses control, as well as disjointed sound serve as methods to disrupt the sense of realism by inhibiting character identification and narrative absorption. As realistic immersion is a staple of Hollywood cinema, it appears that the methods with which West critiques Hollywood are separate from the institution itself.

This article is interesting as it examines the paradox of the novel’s apparent dependence upon that which it critiques. However, following the adaptation of the novel to film, this paradox becomes even more difficult. While the novel may or may not depend on certain narrative techniques and conventions shared with Hollywood, the film most assuredly depends on Hollywood institution as it was produced by a major studio. Whereas the novel remains separate and independently produced, the film assuredly requires involvement in the system and elements of artifice which it critiques. Various Academy awards had already been won by those involved (Conrad Hall, John Schlesinger). Ultimately, the article does not explain the use of a Hollywood film to critique Hollywood culture, but it sheds light on the matter as it confronts the similar paradox of the dependence of a novel to the subject it critiques in terms of technique and convention.

Blyn, Robin. "Imitating the Siren: West’s The Day of the Locust and the Subject of Sound." Literature/Film Quarterly (Salisbury State Univ., Salisbury, MD). Vol. 47, No. 4 (2004), pp.51-59. Literature Online – Criticism and Reference. 9 Apr. 2008. .

This article discusses the ways in which Nathaniel West’s The Day of the Locust is indebted to the history of cinema, and even partially to the Hollywood Cinema that it critiques, for the success of the novel. Blyn continually returns to the theme of the sound of the siren at the end of the film as an allusion to the siren song of mythology. She contextualizes the use of sound in cinema and how in times of technological change, such as following the rise of sync-sound in films, an upheaval occurs in which manifestations of the earlier cinema of attractions arise. She goes on to differentiate between the techniques of cinema of attractions (most notably the “teaser” technique) and how these very techniques are used to disrupt the continuity of reality in the book. The duplicity of the laugh, first exhibited by Harry before his death and most dramatically utilized by Homer after he loses control, as well as disjointed sound serve as methods to disrupt the sense of realism by inhibiting character identification and narrative absorption. As realistic immersion is a staple of Hollywood cinema, it appears that the methods with which West critiques Hollywood are separate from the institution itself.

This article is interesting as it examines the paradox of the novel’s apparent dependence upon that which it critiques. However, following the adaptation of the novel to film, this paradox becomes even more difficult. While the novel may or may not depend on certain narrative techniques and conventions shared with Hollywood, the film most assuredly depends on Hollywood institution as it was produced by a major studio. Whereas the novel remains separate and independently produced, the film assuredly requires involvement in the system and elements of artifice which it critiques. Various Academy awards had already been won by those involved (Conrad Hall, John Schlesinger). Ultimately, the article does not explain the use of a Hollywood film to critique Hollywood culture, but it sheds light on the matter as it confronts the similar paradox of the dependence of a novel to the subject it critiques in terms of technique and convention.

Beck, Jay. “Citing the Sound.” Journal of Popular Film and Television Winter 2002.
    http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0412/is_4_29/ai_82779441/pg_4

The sound in The Conversation was nominated for Best Sound at the 1975 Academy Awards. While most of the sound production in the 1960s was remnant of the studio systems original sound technology, this film pushed sound production into a new era by exploring new ways to integrate sound into film. Since the central character’s job is to manipulate film, sound plays an important role. The soundtrack is a driving factor of the plot in its case, and it required the viewers to integrate their viewing experience with their listening experience. Films in the 1970s embraced “anti-realistic” tactics such as grainy film stock and lens flares, and this trend continued into sound in Coppola’s film. He used the sound to drive the narrative, which was a relatively new concept, only preceded by Antonioni’s film Blow Up. Influential sound producers defied the typical Hollywood hierarchy by running the production team democratically and allowing free experimentation in sound techniques. The problem with the technique of driving the movie with sound was that audiences were not used to integrating sound into a visual field. Harry not only provides a narrative for his films through the recorded conversation, he basically mixes the soundtrack throughout the film, acting as a sound mixer. A powerful aspect of the sound production is the “audio-zoom”, where the sound increases as the camera zooms into a crowd. The sound echoes what an eavesdropper would hear, it picks up on important conversations throughout the crowd. The sound relays Harry’s mental state to the viewer, and is heard from his perspective. The sound is not a redundancy of the actions on the screen; it is a complement to the action. The deconstruction of sound production in the 1970s was a result of the rebellion of directors to the studio system, but soon Dolby would standardize sound and mixing techniques and end the period of experimentation. 

Dolby is the sound technology responsible for enhancing the audio portion of movies.  Star Wars is the film with which we associate Dolby's first major sound breakthrough.  This innovative technology created the sound of the Millenium Falcon "whooshing" over the heads of the audience (in Star Wars Episode IV).  Dolby has heightened the quality of what we hear in movies since the pivotal 1997 Star Wars film.  This article demonstrates that the enjoyment of the visual as well as the audio aspect of film has been revolutionized by the introduction of Dolby sound. 

Bill Jasper, chief executive of Dolby laboratories, has set out to expand Dolby's markets and solve the financial problems the company has been experiencing in the past several years.  When Dolby gave its input to the original Star Wars movie, the sound quality changed the industry and wowed audiences.  However, today, it takes a lot more to impress a jaded consumer.  Advanced technology permeates our everyday lives and it is a constant struggle to stay ahead.  With the current push for digital cinema, it would appear to present an opportunity for Dolby to command the market.  However, the industry will not accept "a Dolby proprietary system."  The industry demands an "open" system.  Dolby's solution is to work on better compression.  That is something the company could sell.  Dolby has done a significant amount of work to showcase technological innovations for Disney in the new film Chicken Little.  However, installation of new technology is not the mark for which Dolby wants to be known.  Instead, CEO Bill Jasper wants to sell "mastering technology and theater hardware."  Dolby currently has stiff competition from several other companies, but was faced with a similar scenario when digital audio was introduced.  Today, Dolby has eighty percent of that market. 

Dolby is a company whose success and profitability is dependent on innovation.  Star Wars Episode IV-A New Hope was a revolutionary film partly due to Dolby's audio contributions.  Dolby is looking to the future, hoping to realize similar success in the visual market.