Music Makes Sense midterm

Hi, my name is Brittany Hand and I have to first say that I LOVE music, and I know that had to have loved music before I was even born. I can’t remember a time in my life where music wasn’t a part of it. I grew up on listening to the greatest guitar players of all time, thanks to my dad, who has been the biggest influence on me when it comes to good music.

So I am calling my degree project, “Music Makes Sense,” and I have been asking people to describe to me what they think their music or music that they like would taste like if it had a taste, what it smells like, and how it feels, and based off of those answers...

I am making a series of posters, along with a short documentary to show what that music might look like. So you have all 5 senses, with sound obviously being the most important one, because that’s what music is all about. But my goal is to make people get an even greater experience out of listening to music.

So “Music Makes Sense” is about getting people to expand their minds, use all of their senses, and enjoy music in every way that they possibly can.

BLUEBERRIES ARE A SUPERFOOD, GOOD FOR YOUR MIND, BODY, AND SOUL.

I’D LIKE TO THINK MY MUSIC TASTES LIKE EATING A HEALTHY

SUPERFOOD.

SHY BOYS SMELLS LIKE A COMBINATION OF

SEAWEED, INCENSE, AND CIGARETTES.

NEIL YOUNG’S MUSIC WOULD TASTE LIKE PECAN PIE

WITH A LITTLE VANILLA ICE CREAM

ON TOP.

HOW CAN I USE DESIGN TO

SHOW WHAT MUSIC LOOKS LIKE?

REFINED QUESTION:

So I have refined my question to: “How can I use design to show what music looks like?”

What can I do to get people to think about music in ways that they might not usually think? Everyone listens to music in different and unique ways.

A big part of my research for this project has been synesthesia, which stems from the words together and sensation. It’s a neurological phenomenon in which stimulation of one sensory leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory.

There are two overall forms of synesthesia, one being projecting and the other associative. People who project will see actual colors and forms when stimulated, while associators will feel a very strong and involuntary connection between the stimulus and the sense that it triggers.

For example, in the common form chromesthesia (which is sound to color) a projector may hear a trumpet and see an orange triangle, while an associator might hear a trumpet and think very strongly that it sounds "orange".

So I am asking people what they think certain music tastes, smells, and feels like because I believe there’s a little synesthesia in all of us. I know that probably sounds a little bit silly, but there are SO many things that we connect to music. Even Kelly pictures the color orange when she listens to...

The New Basement Tapes

And Morgan sees the color coral when she hears this song by Lost Prophets...

It’s that color you see when you have your eyes closed with your head tilted up towards the sun, and there are no other songs that produce that color that color for her, in her mind.

She thinks that song might smell like salt water and bonfires. It would feel like sitting next to your best friend with your head on their shoulder and their head on yours, with a warm, sunshiney breeze on your face. And it would taste like fizzy soda and something sweet that you really crave but can never decide on because nothing lives up to what you really want.

BLUEBERRIES ARE A SUPERFOOD, GOOD FOR YOUR MIND, BODY, AND SOUL.

I’D LIKE TO THINK MY MUSIC TASTES LIKE EATING A HEALTHY

SUPERFOOD.

This guy, Sam, believes that his music tastes like blueberries because they’re good for your mind, body, and soul. It smells the way it smells after a spring rain, and feels like a religious experience. Everyone has different reasons behind what they picture music to be like.

NEIL YOUNG’S MUSIC WOULD

TASTE LIKE PECAN PIE

WITH A LITTLE VANILLA ICE

CREAM ON TOP.

This guy, Stuart, thinks that Neil Young’s music tastes like pecan pie with a little vanilla ice cream on top...

and there’s no particular reason why he thinks this, he just simply does.

But Stuart doesn’t think that Neil Young’s music smells like pecan pie. He thinks it smells like lavender and feels like something that would warm you up in the winter and make you feel good in the summer.

Collin Rausch believes that his band, “Shy Boys” smells like a combination of seaweed, incense, and cigarettes. And that they taste like tea and morning mouth, and feel like sitting in the seat of a car that's been split, with the stuffing showing and the vinyl all cracked and scratchy, but it’s somehow still comfortable. My friend John agrees with Collin in all of those feelings, and added that there would probably be a mystery flavored sucker stuck somewhere within the area of that seat.

And John thinks that his band’s music would taste, smell, and feel like a strawberry banana smoothie.

OBJECTIVES:

TO ASSIST PEOPLE IN EXPERIENCING ALL

FIVE SENSES WHEN LISTENING TO MUSIC

So what are my objectives? There is so much memory that comes with hearing particular songs, the way that smells and tastes do, and I want to help people experience allllll of their senses when listening to music.

PROPOSED SOLUTION:

AN INTERACTIVE MUSIC EXPERIENCE

So as part of my proposed solution in getting people to enjoy music in every way that they possibly can, along with my posters and documentary, I want to create an interactive music experience at our senior show, where people can put on headphones and listen to a certain piece of music and then describe how it made them feel. This way I can continue getting some awesome answers, and make sure that people who like my project know that they can be involved, too.

MUSIC MAKES SENSE

About PlaylistContact Documentary Poster ShopRadio Show

| About |

And once I feel like I have a good number of answers and ways to show what all of this music looks like for people, I would like to make a website containing all of my artifacts.

There would be a place to watch the documentary...

About PlaylistContact Documentary Poster ShopRadio Show

| POSTER SHOP |

BLUEBERRIES ARE A SUPERFOOD, GOOD FOR YOUR MIND, BODY, AND SOUL.

NEIL YOUNG’S MUSIC WOULD

TASTE LIKE PECAN PIE SHY BOYS

SMELLS LIKE A purchase any posters they might like, and more...

WHAT DOES YOUR FAVORITE MUSIC SMELL LIKE?

So, what does YOUR favorite music smell like?

THANKS

Thanks.