Towards a poetics of audio features; the principles of construction, function and effect in directing and composing radio documentaries.
A Master of Arts by project
The audio documentary is often referred to as 'speech' or 'talk' radio and is generally discussed and understood as a word-based form. While language is a key component of the genre, research and analysis tends to either overlook or struggle to explain the importance of sound in shaping and conveying meaning. The research project addresses this imbalance by developing a poetics of radio documentary that draws on music theory and discourse to explore and explain the construction, function and effect of non-verbal cues in audio features. The aim of the project is to build on existing word-based analytical approaches to develop a richer, more musical understanding of the audio documentary and its creative possibilities.