Music signature tune = SIG TUNE - 10 secs. top & bottom of episode
Your listeners will recognise it. It signals that serial they'll come to love!
SIG 'INTRO' - 'SIG OUTRO'
| This requires careful selection. You have to plan from the beginning. |
| ONE OF THE FIRST TASKS IN PRE-PRODUCTION / PRODUCTION. |
| Your listeners will form an emotional relationship with the 'sig'. You will get very used to hearing it, in POSTPRODUCTION. |
| The sig tune (about 10 seconds) has to be FADED IN and FADED OUT. This is at precisely at the same edit points for each episode. Otherwise, the episodes will sound sloppy. |
| SIG 'INTRO' - 'SIG OUTRO': These are the top (beginning) and bottom (ending) of each EPISODE. You will probably have the same music - exactly - for the SIG 'INTRO' and the SIG 'OUTRO'. |
| The SIG is your front-of-shop. It's the first the listeners hear of your product. |
| The SIG will suit your GENRE and STYLE and ENTERTAINMENT VALUES. |
SELECT THE 10 SECONDS APPROX. THEME + COPYRIGHT + ANNOUNCEMENT
| WHAT TO DO: Choose 10 seconds music. (Music only - no sung words (lyrics) to be included.) |
| Copyright permission needed to use this music excerpt. The radio station, or internet broadcast has to pay. |
| See Copyright - PERFORMING RIGHTS PAYMENTS - YOU HAVE TO 'LOG' ALL COPYRIGHT MATERIAL, AND ESPECIALLY MUSIC - 'needle time' |
| WHERE TO FIND THE 10 SECONDS 'SIG' : Intro music for a song, music break in the middle of a song, instrumental music, music styles such as drum and bass. |
| The theme (music break) of a well-known song might suit? |
| Something tuneful and distinctive. It will be come to be recognised by your listeners. Here is another 'fix' of that radio serial they like! |
EDITING - PUTTING THE SIG TO WORK
Scene boundaries - 'hard' into / 'soft' into - silence - music bridge
Scene boundaries - CHART FOR CHOICES
PROBLEM: MUSIC VERSUS MUSIC
| The SIG is the transition from the previous programme, in the flow of broadcasting. The radio presenter will read the script you provide. And then CUE IN the SIG 'INTRO'. |
| Crossfade the SIG under the radio presenter's announcement. |
| The SIG crossfades into the first scene. AVOID MUSIC-TO-MUSIC CROSSFADE. It rarely works. |
| Final scene of the episode which crossfades into the 'outro SIG' - the same rule applies (mostly).AVOID MUSIC-TO-MUSIC CROSSFADE. |
Going out in the last scene of the episode on music which then has to crossfade with the signature tune.
This must be carefully handled and is best avoided.
You will meet this problem if you have underscoring music in this scene.
Best fade the underscoring music out and leave some significant phrase to end the scene. And fade the signature tune in under this last spoken phrase.
The same problem occurs if your first scene begins with music, but this is more easily handled.
As we always use a 'soap radio station' in the plot, the pop standards played on the station or a music ident frequently start the first scene of an episode.
Listen to other soaps and radio plays for guidance.
MUSIC SIG OR NON-MUSIC SIG?
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