Assignment 3

This project will utilize grids and typography to explore the narrative potential of typography related to music. This project will be three weeks so you will need to show work as required and concentrate on creating your solution by the due date (see timeline).

You will be provided with a number of mp3 tracks. Choose one track that you would like to work with. The tracks are all of a similar nature, and most contain little to no lyrics. After you select the track that you would like to work with you will need to listen carefully to the track making notes of emotional reactions which you gather from the music, points in the composition where the intensity of sound varies, introduction of instruments, etc. Create a visual timeline of the music or a representation of what you hear.

Using the provided grid as a starting point, begin building a visual interpretation of the track using typography. Since lyrics are limited you are going to need to choose how to incorporate words or letters. Again, think about the emotional content of what you are hearing, what does it remind you of and how would you show it?

Typeface selections for this project are the same as the last project. I would advise you to work with one typeface in the beginning. If you feel that at some point in your composition that your type should change then this is an option, but I challenge you to work with one. Think about how you can use the variations of the typeface… are there parts of the song that are bolder, or where italic would be appropriate? Can you convey the entire meaning of the music using only kerning or scale to illustrate the sound? Also consider how you can show the movement of the track on a static sheet of paper.

The overall objective of this project is to convey your song to a viewer
in a visual solution. The viewer should gather an interpretation of the song without ever hearing a note.

Timeline 03.28.07: Preliminary sketches/crit. | 04.04.07: Refined sketches/individual meetings. | 04.11.07: Project complete/final crit.

Grid Info
If you are using InDesign CS or did not receive a copy of the grid file in class the measurements are as follows: document size, 10"w x 5"h, margins: top, inside, outside are .25 in, bottom is .325 in. 10 columns with a gutter of .075 in. Vertical guides are placed at 1-1/8", 2", 2-7/8", and 3-5/8".

Track Info
number/title/artist

1
Best Ballroom/Spearmint

2
Alone in Kyoto/Air

3
Amphibian/Björk

4
Aux Cyclades Electronique/Bertrand Burgalat

5
Bathroom Girl/Air

6
Candlelight/The Urchin

7
Charly/The Prodigy

8
Cosmic Interlude/LTJ Bukem

9
Dreamin'/Wax Poetic

10
Eple/Röyskopp

11
The Future Sound of Acid Jazz/Nightmares on Wax

12
Give it Away/Zero 7

13
The Glass Bead Game/Thievery Corporation

14
Hazy/Kate

15
Leave No Trace/Witchman

16
Les Nuits (Fila Brazilia Mix)/Nightmares on Wax

17
Meera//Tek 9//Four Hero Remix/DJ Cam

18
Mind Eye/Nightmares on Wax

19
My Love (Steve Angello & Sebastian Ingrosso Remix)/Justin Timberlake

20
Nights Interlude/Nightmares on Wax

21
Problem Child/Squarepusher

22
Samba Tranquille/Thievery Corporation

23
Sure Thing/St Germain

24
Sweat/Shizuo

25
Traktor/Matthew Herbert

26
Triumph of the Heart (Soft Pink Truth Remix)/Björk

27
Ultrasonic Sound/Hive

Here is an ai template that you can use for your cd slipcover. If the file changes names just make sure the ending is .ai so it will place in InDesign.

[ cd slipcover die-cut ]