The opening theme song for any podcast must be able to instantly grab the audience and without a single word being said and allow them to understand the tone and feel of the upcoming show. After researching the shows We Talk Games & Radiolab (Examples of both can be heard at the bottom of the page) I identified that both shows were able to instantly able to establish a world in which the listener would inhabit with them feeling like they are apart of the show/community. This was achieved through immersive soundscapes with audio being able to be heard all over the virtual space and language that gave the impression that the audience was being privy to a area in they are walking into. When creating my piece for the opening theme song I was keen to utilise these elements in mine.
When I created my open theme I enlisted the help of a fellow audio production student, Josh Sherlock, this is because he has greater musical skills than I and we have proved to have being able to work well together in the past.
Bearing in mind my target audience for the show we created a piece that wasn’t too ‘modern’ sounding (I.E. heavy synths, techo elements strong distorted guitars) instead focusing on classical elements of strings, piano and bells. This we believed gave a strong impression that the show is more culturally minded. We did include a hint of synth by the conclusion of the piece to suggest that the audience is listening to these stories in a new innovative way. I also included several outtakes rehearsals from Dave’s recordings quietly inserted into the intro, this I believe humanised the track in addition to creating the feel that something important is about to begin.
Another key feature we wanted to highlight was that of the auditory space in which the listener inhabits. We achieved this by having lots of different sounding synths and sounds that took up the whole of the soundspace, which would be especially effective to those who are listening on headphones. The piece also builds gradually to a conclusion, with the early motifs being improved by the instruments and textures this I felt was indicative of the shows formula of starting with little but gradually you build knowledge and it snowballs until you are at the point where you are today.
Overall I am very happy with the sound of of the opening theme song and think it perfectly captures the tone of the Lessons Behind The Lectures and allows the audience to instantly connect with it.
Main Theme