Once upon a time Sound Effects did not exist

Sound effects & the advent of Multitrack

Once upon a time Sound Effects did not exist, as we know from your Grand Parents childhood. Films were silent and the only productions with sound effects was the theatre.
A horse trotting for example were two coconut shells being clapped together? (see:Monty Python "The Holy Grail". Thunder was very often a large sheet of thin steel suspended backst

age and struck with a felt wrapped mallet. To reproduce cannon fire or explosions a stage maroon (type of firework) was placed in a dustbin.

The biggest influence on the use of sound effects was in the 1920’s with the advent of radio. Radio often employed several people to add effects “live” during the performance, thus adding realism to the play or comedy sketch.
Later in the 1950's the Goon Show featured enormous amount of effects

It was not until the mid 1920’s that sound effects were first used in films. The technology to record sound electronically was just beginning and it was possible to record on film stock and 78 rpm discs. Probably the most notable films to first have sound were
Al Jolsen’s “The Jazz Singer” in 1927,

and Walt Disney’s “Steamboat Willie” 1928. Charlie Chaplin who was very popular in silent movies said At the time “This sound phenomenon is a passing fad”. How wrong he was.
The Jazz Singer being the first film on general release to have sound, it was a little cautious of the new era. The film has many parts without sound and it was probably a compromise to satisfy the silent movie lovers as well as the followers of the new technology.

Walt Disney experimented with live musicians and sound effects technicians on Steamboat Willie.They were encouraged to play along with the film. The results were so exciting it was decided that they must release the film with a soundtrack, the result is of course now a historical landmark.

The most dramatic advance in recording sound effects and music has to be Walt Disney’s “Fantasia” recorded in Fantasound a technique using multiple optical soundtracks to separate the orchestra.

Today we take multichannel sound for granted but in 1937 it was it was state of the art and Disney’s crew literally invented stereo sound.
Sound effects fall under the following catergories in adding effects;
Foley, Sound Design, Atmos and Hard Sounds.

Foley is where a sound operator watches a film sequence, for example a man walking down a street and reinacts the scene with indoor paving matching the scene. He may also add the sound of clothes being ruffled in a fight by manipulating similar material whilst viewing the clip.

Sound Design are usually sounds that do not occur in real life, normally futuristic or dreamlike sequences. Atmos or Atmosphere sounds are not necessarily in synch, but are there to set a scene, sounds of a woodland being a good example.

Atmos the ambient sound of the production distant traffic, Rain, low menacing underscore to portray danger. Patriot Games with Harrison Ford is a good example of how to create tension.

Hard Sounds are usually things like door slam, gunshot, car horn etc.

Sound effects are here to stay whether it’s a documentary, radio play or film production. However good the sound effects are it still needs creative input from the producer to make the best use of an effect. This may involve editing, pitch change or add surround to the mix. When working with film it is essential the effect fits the picture and is spot on when it comes to synchronisation. Sound effects with impact are hopeless if it is out of sync by as little as one frame.
To sum up sound effects on any production only win awards when the producer has spent time and research in not only finding an effect that works but that he is meticulous with how they are placed, control of levels, panning and equalisation.

Good luck with your production