The College of Saint Rose Communications Department


RADIO HOME PAGE	THE PRODUCER'S GOALS	WRITING FOR SOUND	INTERVIEW CONTENT POINTS
AUDIO MIXER OVERVIEW	TECHNICAL CONCEPTS IN SOUND	SET UP FOR RECORDING	RESEARCH/INTERVIEW PROGRAMS
SOUND EDITING CONCEPTS	SOUND PRODUCTION TUTORIAL	PROGRAM TECH CHECK LIST	PRODUCTION PROTOCOL

Radio Program Editing
OVERALL LEVELS Editing an interview program requires attention to several important details. At right is the display of two versions of the same radio interview running about 25 minutes. The upper version is the original unedited sound track, the lower is the finished product with music added at beginning and end. Note the differences: The upper track has levels that vary too much; high levels are very high at points, and the lows at points are too low. The edited version shows levels are adjusted to be more consistent. Also, this version shows about 39 edit points.
VARIATIONS IN LEVELS This is a sample of normal conversation. The loud parts might be someone laughing or just speaking loud. Here is an example of breath-fade. The speaker takes a breath and the resulting voice level is strong, but as breath runs out, the level fades out too. The lower levels (quiet voice) here is too low and should be increased so that it reaches at least the -12.0 levels on the scale. Here is an example of in interveiw with two talkers, each with a different mic level. It is important to maintain even levels during the original recording. Otherwise, it requires additional post-production time for evening out the levels.
IDEAL OVERALL LEVELS Normal conversation will yield varying voice levels. But overall, the ideal levels consistently have the louder portions of a conversation to about the -6 levels on the scale.
MUSIC LEVELS Music is added to the beginning and ends of shows. At right are examples of music tracks edited for that purpose.
The track on the right is edited (has its length and volume level adjusted) for use in the beginning of a program. The music comes in and swells to full volume for a few seconds, then fades down (to about 10% volume) so it can play under the voice while the first words are spoken. The voice would begin AFTER where the marker is. As the voices continue, the music fades out completely in about 10 seconds.
The lower example shows closing theme music creeping in but remaining low under the voice, and then swelling to full before fading out. The last words are spoken JUST PRIOR TO THE MARKER, then the music rises to full volume for a few seconds and then fades out.
MUSIC-VOICE MIXING A typical voice-music mix for the beginning of an interview program looks something like this. This is when the program begins with music and the the host voices the opeining (Welcome to the program... etc.).
MUSIC LEVELS at BEGINNING OF SHOW Setting the music levels correctly is important. At the very beginning of the sound file there is one full second of silence. Next, the music begins and goes to full Volume (100%, -6 on the editing scale), and stays at full for about 5 seconds or so. The music then quickly fades down to about 10%, to allow the voice to begin. Be careful, the voice should not begin until the music is faded. As the voice continues on with the rest of the program, the music fades away completely after about 10 seconds or so.
The closing of an interview program is similar, only with things reversed.
MUSIC LEVELS at CLOSE OF SHOW As the host voices the closing words, the music starts from silence (0%) and creeps in to a very low level (no more than about 8-10%) and stays at that level until the closing phrase. Be careful not to raise the music until the last word is spoken. Once the voice is done, the music then quickly rises to full volume (100%, -6 on the scale), stays at full volume for a few seconds, and then fades out to zero. Finally, there is one full second of silence before the absolute end of the file.