Visual Music

ヴィジュアル・ミュージック / 1920s– / Style / Experimental Film

Film art that translates musical structure into abstract shape, color and motion. From the color organ through abstract animation to today's audiovisual work, it forms a lineage of listening with the eyes.

Visual Music — Richard Monkhouse, Image from the EMS Spectre video synthesiser 1977 — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 3.0 · © Richardmonkhouse at English Wikipedia — Richard Monkhouse, Image from the EMS Spectre video synthesiser 1977 — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 3.0 · CC BY 3.0 · © Richardmonkhouse at English Wikipedia

Visual Music — Photo by Daniel Spils, Video synthesiser output, PNW SynthFest 2013 — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0 — Photo by Daniel Spils, Video synthesiser output, PNW SynthFest 2013 — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0 · CC BY-SA 2.0

Visual Music — ジョシュア・バンクス・メイルマン《Montreal Comprovisation No.1 より2コマ》2012年 — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0 · © Joshua Banks Mailman — ジョシュア・バンクス・メイルマン《Montreal Comprovisation No.1 より2コマ》2012年 — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · © Joshua Banks Mailman

At a glance

Visual cues

Abstract forms in motion
Chords of color
Counterpoint of sound and shape
No narrative

Best used for

Live performance and installation where the image must lock to the playing
Films that carry a piece of music through to the end without lyrics or story

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Dictionary entry

Type: Use no lettering, or treat any lettering as one more figure
Composition: Hold the center and build chords from the count and spacing of forms
Material: Map hue to pitch and brightness to dynamics when choosing color
Caution: Wiring shape size straight to volume, which hits the beat and never shows the structure of the piece.
Further study: Oskar Fischinger / Mary Ellen Bute / Thomas Wilfred's lumia

Related entries

Direct Animation (ダイレクト・アニメーション)Same Experimental Film lineage.Compare Visual Music and Direct Animation
Saul Bass Title Design (ソール・バスのタイトルデザイン)Shared effects: Exhilaration.Compare Visual Music and Saul Bass Title Design

Cite this entry

The dictionary is meant to be linked to. Take whichever form fits where you are writing.

Link: https://indexstyle.org/styles/visual-music
Markdown: [Visual Music — IndexStyle](https://indexstyle.org/styles/visual-music)
HTML: <a href="https://indexstyle.org/styles/visual-music">Visual Music — IndexStyle</a>

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