the most influential layer

Posted on October 27, 2009 by proctor

soundtrack.jpg

no matter what media i have in my playlist… no matter what software & technique i’m using… no matter what the message is…

…the most influential layer in VJ-ing is the music. It’s the one element that completely dictates the emotion of the moment.

i’ve curated and sequenced an iMix via iTunes…a playlist of music that inspires me way beyond the melodies of today’s worship songs. i hear these songs, and my mind explodes with imagery.

worshipVJ iMix.jpg

the worshipVJ iMix

it’s just a fact… sometimes i hear the music of a church, band or artist, and i simply struggle with what i would VJ for them. a friend pointed out to me the other day that i’m not very analytical in my VJ-ing b/c i mostly “feel” the music as i VJ. it’s very true. if i can’t “feel” the music, it’s very hard to VJ. (that doesn’t mean i have to necessarily ENJOY the music…. “feeling” and enjoyment are different.)

i might hear a popular song like “How Great Is Our God” led differently depending on the band’s style, and so i would VJ that song completely different for each band. VJ-ing is not just reflecting the content of the song but the musical context in which it’s carried.

This is why i always teach people to treat your software & media like a musical instrument instead of a “tech tool”. Let the movement of the visuals groove with the beat of the music, and when the bass & drums drop out, let the visuals back off (slow down, go to black, etc).

When i’m editing a video, the first thing i start with is picking the music… once i find a soundtrack for my vision, i let it orchestrate the entire video. here is an example of a video i created for Beth Moore a few weeks ago. (turn up your speakers or put on some headphones)

Does this make any sense? Let me know. And if you struggle with “feeling the music”, just go watch “Mr. Holland’s Opus.”

6 people have shared their voice

  1. Yes! I totally agree with you. It’s in the basic rights of composition. Picture cannot cover the main stream of emotions which is music in this case. This is the reason why I don’t use every background I have during worship/concert. Event I have few of these I rather use a couple of it to don’t cover the point.

    Mat on October 27, 2009

  2. I like the video example. Seems like a lot of footage from the BBC's Planet Earth series. I've made a video from the same thing, but don't use any more because I feared copyright infringement. Is it okay to use that type of stuff, or do you get permission?

    And, yes, to stay on topic;) A big part of any part of art is feeling. It's something that can't be explained. I can totally relate.

    Chris on October 27, 2009

  3. I totally agree!
    Music can set my bones shaking or my eyes welling!

    I wish I could look at your iMix, but alas, iTunes discriminates against us Canadians!

    Your video for Beth Moore is awesome!! I’ve recently made a few videos for our church that I’ll link to on my twitter account…

    Thanks for the chatter and inspiration to create!

    Kirsten on October 28, 2009

  4. Couldn't agree more…. wrong music couldn't be more disastrous. I have also seen a great video destroyed by horrendous musical choices.

    Thanks for the imix – downloaded most of the songs and found some new inspiration.

    Patrick on October 31, 2009

  5. Mat- you are right on man. Just b/c we have all the motion backgrounds doesn’t mean we have to play them.

    Chris – yes, there are a few clips from Planet Earth. Here’s the deal… i have found it very hard to find where and what the copyright law is on VJ-ing clips like this. i’ve been around this for years and i’ve never heard anything other than “don’t sell it, post it for download, etc” and i have read that using clips in a non-profit and/or educational way is OK. So it’s a very gray area. I’ve been asking around …esp friends involved in the film industry, and they are very fuzzy on this area too.
    So…here’s to the pursuit of find out! i hope i can make my way to a conversation with some of these people who have produced such amazing footage and to see what they think. Would be cool for them to repackage and repurpose their content for use in the non-profit sector (church).

    Kirsten-
    i am so sorry. if i had Steve Job’s personal email, i would give it to you. is there NO iTunes store in Canada???

    Patrick-
    Enjoy! if you create any videos inspired from or using the music, i’d love to see it!

    proctor on November 3, 2009

  6. So, I missed this the first time around, but that's the great thing about the new site design – rediscovering old posts!

    I agree that the feeling of the music is a huge piece of it. I think sometimes, however, that I'm afraid to go so far in that direction and lose the content that I focus more on the content. For me it also depends on the song, I just did a video this week for "Welcome to Our World." The lyrics in that song are what strike me. It is content rich and tells the STORY in a beautiful way In that case I think the visuals enhance the telling of the story because they connect to the content more so than the emotion. Or maybe it's the visuals with the strong content ignite emotion.

    As for the copyright issue, any further info on that? Church Copyright Solutions might be able to provide some direction.

    Katie on December 7, 2009