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2017: General Discussion

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bluesonichd said:
while I'm happy there is more new music about, part of me thinks, oh no , not another IMAScore track.
they just seem to be everywhere at the minute, cant get away from them, and while every track they produce is different theres no doubting its an IMAScore track.
bored, need to hear something different now
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This is exactly what I feel about IMAScore now, Yes they created Spinball Whizzer's and Galactica's music but alot of there shorter soundtracks like the monorail and the new heritage soundtrack do sound the same. Yes IMAScore soundtrack's sound great but I like variation for example a newer piece of music is Mutiny Bay's Soundtrack which I love after hearing it in Mutiny Bay. Get an artist persific like what Merlin did with the Gruffalo and The Swarm. And I know it's the park soundtrack but ITHOMK can get annoying listening it every two mintutes.

Danny said:
Not too difficult.
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Even Better. This Link
 
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AstroDan said:
People on here moaning about the new heritage track IMAScore music?

Really????

Get a grip. It's a 6:00 loop at the moment, around 1/3 of it is ITHOTMK, the other bits are delightful and there's another 24:00 to come.

This track plays next to some historic gardens and a stately home. Not next to a ride.
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I do have "a grip" on themed music and I know a lot of effort may have gone into such things. As I said, I've not heard it in person, so am keeping a completely open mind for when I do. But from an entirely neutral perspective I was slightly bemused by the use of the track.

"Delightful" it may be, I think it's very nice composition too as I said, but how far are we going to go with IMAscore background music everywhere in parks? I will personally miss the natural, quiet & real heritage atmosphere around the historic Towers area if it gets over-egged by music in every corner.

I've often witnessed in theme park managements people being very over eager with putting new music everywhere, not realising the park needs a dynamic of quiet and active areas, literally with a goal to have "no pathway without themed music". It's a very naive way to create a theme park. I trust Alton Towers aren't doing that extreme but can you see why I raised it?

It als seems generic and quite overbearing music for the Towers area - from the small snippet I heard. That's just my honest first impression. :)
 
No one wants to hear that something's not as fabulous as they think it is, when they believe they're doing something great for the park and with enthusiasm. I don't want to be 'that' downer person - but I'm not going to pretend I've not seen this kind of thing over and over with background music and the like, until the whole park is a bit full of ersatz atmosphere.

You wouldnt have romantic, glossy production orchestral music, no matter how lovely, added to every single scene in a film would you? Because then the active scenes that really are boosted by music would have much less effect, right?

I'm thinking hypothetically s'pose because I'm not there hearing it as a guest so cant feel the real effect. But got to admit, judging by so many similar experiences of parks proudly adding music like this over the years... It can easily get so weary on guests if background music is used in the wrong place.

I might I disagree with your opinion, but I'm not going to tell you to get a grip ;)

Mind you it's nowhere near as bad as Thorpe Park's new 'Summer Action Movie Trailer' music recently added to their 'Temporary Fencing & Tarmac' themed entrance. But there we go!
 
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bluesonichd said:
while I'm happy there is more new music about, part of me thinks, oh no , not another IMAScore track.
they just seem to be everywhere at the minute, cant get away from them, and while every track they produce is different theres no doubting its an IMAScore track.
bored, need to hear something different now
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One alternative is the new soundtrack in Mutiny Bay. It's not a patch on what it replaced.

People seem to dislike IMAscore because it looks like every theme park is using them. It can be compared to B&M - people don't get so excited for a new B&M now as they're often all quite similar and formularic. But at the end of the day every B&M is a high quality product that is great for the park that it's in. IMAscore make, in my opinion, high quality and fun theme park music. Sure others can probably do better but for what Towers need IMAscore do the job perfectly. And hopefully we might see a CD sometime in the future with various tracks featuring.

electricBill said:
"Delightful" it may be, I think it's very nice composition too as I said, but how far are we going to go with IMAscore background music everywhere in parks? I will personally miss the natural, quiet & real heritage atmosphere around the historic Towers area if it gets over-egged by music in every corner.

I've often witnessed in theme park managements people being very over eager with putting new music everywhere, not realising the park needs a dynamic of quiet and active areas, literally with a goal to have "no pathway without themed music". It's a very naive way to create a theme park. I trust Alton Towers aren't doing that extreme but can you see why I raised it?
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I completely disagree with you here, I think audio/music is a key element of the theme park experience. It helps create an atmosphere, I find it puts people in better spirits and it creates a sense of identity and theme. I would not want them to put a load of speakers deep in the gardens or on the roof of the Towers however I love the idea that the majority of main public pathways in the park will have audio to accompany them. Of course not everyone is going to like that but I think it has a much more postive impact on guests than either a neutral or negative impact.

spinba11 said:
If anyone is at the park, do you know what uniform the smiler staff are in?
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I think The Smiler is expected to re-open today, but don't quote me on that!

:)
 
I heard that too, if the staff are in the red uniform there is no chance of it opening, if they are in the smiler uniform there is a chance it could open.
 
Rob said:
I completely disagree with you here, I think audio/music is a key element of the theme park experience. It helps create an atmosphere, I find it puts people in better spirits and it creates a sense of identity and theme ... however I love the idea that the majority of main public pathways in the park will have audio to accompany them.
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It certainly is, its probably a bigger part of the experience than any guest realises because a lot of what it does is subconscious. I love themed music/sound design and what you can do with it, but it needs to work from a design point of view. Not a view to 'immerse guests' everywhere by putting twinkly music on a loop on every transitional pathway

You wouldn't set out to design a park with music absolutely everywhere, like even on the transitional paths. You'd want to create pockets of energy and atmosphere, with rest areas in between and natural ambience. Or at least far more subtle than what I've heard of the heritage track currently.

A guest doesn't walk through each area getting 'themed at', they will be talking and inhabiting each space, having a good time. Alton Towers has the benefit of being so large that audio bleed is less likely to matter between areas, but in most parks that overdo background music it creates a horrible noisy inescapable atmosphere of audio playback. Unless it's subtle and more soundscape than music, I think enthusiasts often have a slightly distorted view of how to use background audio.

___

For example, the Smiler music in the queueline - brilliant I think, it is by far the least subtle music on park, constant beat and addictive deranged sound - but that suits the ride. It builds the energy as the coaster dives above your head. Every guest feels that and its great (ok the 'ha ha ha' parts are annoying but...), then as you go inside it becomes quieter & more ominous; by the time youre out the other end, the same theme is warped and distorted just as your head is spinning from the ride, it's witty and a cool touch too. That's how you use music actively. Without any audio changes there, it would just feel dead.

Whereas you would not put music around Oblivion's drop, where the screams, suspense and natural sound of the ride banging into the tunnel is more powerful than any music on a loop . In Oblivion's queue there is not a constant theme tune or IMAscore-style track to force the theme on you. Instead, it builds up great tension with an industrial soundscape and the constant views to the drop you're heading for. Then, inside each building, it creates audio highlights with the music and SFX of the video. It's an audio dynamic and it works by design, it's great.
__

I do care greatly about audio and its uses, because of how brilliant it can be when done well. But if done from the point of "we must have music everywhere to keep guests immersed", I think that's badly informed approach to designing a theme park, even if it's done with positive intention. :) Especially if its really on-the-nose like the heritage track sounds currently.
 
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The IMA Score thing on here seems to be a case of the old Build up your support for a company, as soon as they get popular throw them back to the ground.
I've not heard a lot of their work but the stuff I have I do like.
I agree with Electricbill about the park having to be careful when using sound. It should be used sparingly but effectively.
 
Well, I think that could be a careless idea if they're going ahead with that. Audio was very carefully thought out in those days as part of the design of an attraction and an area. You'd be lucky to get good design like that now.

Though the general area did intend to have more audio in it originally, as you walked through the Rehydrator to the drop zone, so Im sure some added sound would add some needed energy. But, with the Smiler's music bleeding in nearby, I think it'd be a risk and would definitely need trialling to see if it works or not.

Background music is a big part of what Ents do and I know they can often feel like theyre doing something great that they have control over and is noticed by everyone, by putting more and more music everywhere, but if its not done from a design point of view then it'll be overblown. I'll keep an open mind but I've seen this kind of thing happen so much before in other parks.

Here's an idea, a tripped audio sequence as the car approaches the edge and drops. Not more music on a loop for the sake of it, but an actual piece of audio design to give Oblivion's drop more theatre? (the original "Don't Look Down" vocal was intended to do this as well)
 
They already have, audio was added around the drop last season! As far as I am aware it consists of the old area annoucements that were played during Oblivion's construction, some old Black Hole music and the current queue/station music.

:)
 
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