"NOISES OFF"

Radio Record, 29 July 1938, Page 58

"NOISES OFF"

SOUND EFFECT MEN NEED FIVE HANDS THIS glimpse behind the scenes of the German. shortwave station will give you a slight idea of the preparatory work that must be done lhefore the announcer at the micronhone’= can say, "You will now hear... ." This is the picture of a typical moment in the life of the sound effects producers: " .. . where is Herr Meyer? ... hallo, sound effects producer, ... Where are you? ... Meyer is in the technical department to get noise effects records, ... no, Meyer has left already, he’s gone to the supply room to get a chest with chains, a boat siren, a whistle, two wooden beams, a barre! of water, he. Finally, he comes-dragging in his utensils. We haye the honour to present to you Herr Meyer, sound effects producer of the German shortwave station. He is responsible for all sound effects, for the correct blending of the noise records; in short, for the smooth running of the broadcast. His script books are filled with numerous sigus that no one else wunder-stands-symbols for the various effects that he has to produce. Next to the table where the sound effect records are played, lies an orderly pile of reeords. In the fraction of a second he must find the right one that has to he played at a certain moment and blended in with the rest of the text. And so he arranges all of his effects once again, rechecks the proper order for the various records. He is at high-tension-in three minutes the broadcast, "Sailor, Ahoy," is to begin. "Red light-quiet!’-the broadcast has started. The first song has died away-‘"har-bour noises" are called for in the manuscript. Herr Meyer puts on the record -a new signal from the director: wind machine! With the left hand the sound effect producer manages the wind machine, and with the right hand he guides the record ... another signal: rattling of chains, honkings, sirens, whistles, telegraphic machines, ship clocks. While the actor stands quietly at the microphone, Meyer runs here and there in the big, hot room, two sirens under his arms, the blatant whistle in the left corner of his mouth, and a pencil in the right-hard corner: in his left hand a chain, in his right hand a clock pendulum for the ship’s time-piece ... and now another new record must be started... . Perspiration drips in streams from the poor sound effectproducer after the first five minutes. And when he totters out of the send-irg-room after the performance, the director says to him: "Yes, my dear Herr Meyer, as long as you haven’t got five hands, what can you expect!"