Final Project: “The Music From A Car”

INSPIRATION

   Initially I was lost and confused when I first started brainstorming, because too many different ideas and thoughts were coming out of my mind. Afterward I have figured out a structure of this project. I wanted to construct a multia media form of art that is connected to what I have learnt from the class throughout the semester. Once I have this idea in my mind, I started to explore more ideas for doing this project. All in a sudden, I have realized that I really like listening to music while I am driving, so why don’t I bring this idea into the project, and try to connect it with the structure that I have set. The basic fundamental idea of this project was starting to appear. I was using a car as a sort of musical instrument.

THE PROCESS

The process in building up this project was complicated, and it took much longer time then I have initially expected. Firstly,I would record the sound of different parts of the car, such as punching the bumper, rubbing the steering wheel, playing rhythms on the windows, and the horn. Afterward I would take the video of how I play with different parts of the car. Moreover, after all the sound tracks that I need is recorded, I will compose and construct the song using GarageBand, which was one of the most significant  application that I have learnt in the class. Furthermore, After the song is being composed, I would then combine the song with the videos that I have took. Indeed, this process took me a much longer time than what I have expected. Because in order to match the beat and rhyme of the song with the motion on the video, every 0.01 second is very important, and I had to edit the clip very carefully and precisely. After I have edited all the sound tracks as well as the video clips, it was time to upload it on Youtube. Since this course is about multi-media learning, that was why in my project I have utilized both GarageBand as well as iMovie, which were the most essential applications that the class have taught.

(The utilization of GarageBand to gather different sound tracks from the car and compose the song. As you can see there are many sound tracks in a single file, and the beat has to be placed precisely.)

(The different sound tracks are named base on where and how they are recorded.) 

(The utilization of iMovie to combine the song with the videos.) 

(As you can see the time of the video has to be edited very carefully and precisely  for in stance, in this part of the video, even this part of the clip is only 3.5s, there are more than 9 video clips, and each of them only lasts for 0.4-0.6 seconds. Therefore, the editting of this music video took me a lot of time doing it.)

(Last but not least, I uploaded the music video on Youtube, because I think it is important in the society today to not only use the technology tools alone, but also share it on different platforms.)

THE CHALLENGES

There were serval obstacles that I have encountered during the process of constructing the project. For instance, initially I was recording the sound of the car at an open area. However, when I checked afterward, I have found that I can barely to hear the sound tracks. Therefore, in order to record the sound track clearly, it was definitely important to record the sound in a silent area, so I ended up park the vehicle in a very silent parking lot, and I could finally record a clear version of the sound tracks. Furthermore, I faced challenges when editing the video clips in order to make it fit with the composed song. It took me much longer time than what I have expected initially. Because the beat of the song is fast, therefore, every video clip only last for 0.4-0.6 seconds. I ended up devoting few nights editing the video clips and combine it with the music.

 (Reminder: the video has been uploaded in 1080HD format, so it provides a better sound and visual quality if you click it.)

CLICK HERE FOR THE FINAL MIX OF THE MUSIC VIDEO!  

(In-case the link is not working, it is also attached onto the right side of the blog, which is under the categories of “Links” section.)

Thank you for reading!