Alien Soundscapes: Extraterrestial Phonospheres in Sci- ence-Fiction Films Cover Image

Obce fonosfery. Dźwiękowe krajobrazy pozaziemskich planet w kinie science fiction
Alien Soundscapes: Extraterrestial Phonospheres in Sci- ence-Fiction Films

Author(s): Jan Topolski
Subject(s): Music, Film / Cinema / Cinematography, History of Art
Published by: Instytut Sztuki Polskiej Akademii Nauk
Keywords: soundscape; keynote; film music; electronic music; rendering;

Summary/Abstract: In cinema, the landscape is reflected not only in the im- age, but in the sound as well. The article discusses the cre- ation of the latter based on ten science-fiction films, dating from a period of nearly 70 years, that show extraterrestrial planets. Their soundscapes are described in terms of R. Murray Schafer’s theory and Michel Chion’s audio-visual analysis. In pioneering titles from the late 1950s and ear- ly 1960s, the use of experimental electro-acoustic effects blurs the distinction between sound and music, creating an impression of the uncanny. In the middle part of the ar- ticle, adaptations of two canonical texts of the genre are compared – Stanisław Lem’s Solaris and Frank Herbert’s Dune – which introduce contrasting planets. Thanks to the juxtaposition, it turns out how their elements translate into sounds and what function these sounds can take. The last section describes two series that are the latest spin-offs of the fantastic sagas: Star Trek and Star Wars. In the first, the motif of a living planet returns, and in the second, the material-based keynote sound.

  • Issue Year: 2023
  • Issue No: 122
  • Page Range: 58-84
  • Page Count: 27
  • Language: Polish