Discussion Leader:
https://archive.org/stream/OTR_Sherlock_Holmes_smurfmeat
{Sherlock Holmes– 1939 to 1947}
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOGXSFK3Xsw - Sherlock {BBC Entertainment}-2010 – 2014 3 seasons – 4th in production
Since we were supposed to pick up something from the golden age of radio, the 20’s to 40’s –I decided to listen to something that I am at home with – Mysteries. Now even the people who are not murder mystery fans out here, I am sure they have heard of the greatest detective of all times – Sherlock Holmes. For the exceptionals, who really have not heard of him – He was a character sketched by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle back in 1887. The most celebrated detective whose deduction abilities were beyond fantastic ,who is famous for his astute logical reasoning – his knack of disguising himself and his practice of applying forensic science in solving difficult cases.
It was an unusual experience to “listen” to a case rather than to read or watch it.
The first thing that I was literally clouted on the head, by and I am surprised that I was so surprised – were the adverts! I mean, why I thought that there would be no adverts on the radio! Of course, we still have them! However, the fact that the show began and ended with an advert was quite amusing. – They wanted me to buy Kreml hair products!
Apart from the advertisements, what struck me was that when introduced, the actors – they did not say – voice overs for “Sherlock and Watson”. They said Sherlock is “played” by Basil Rathbone. In addition, they were really acting as if someone was watching them play-act. Of course it becomes even more important for people to “act” impressively as their voice has to do the work for all the other aspects of making an inviting and interesting show.
More than the images what I found missing from the show itself was the background score. There was no background music to give me a hint of what was to come or how the audience is supposed to react unlike in our television shows where the background music is what helps the audience decide whether they are watching a serious drama or a comedy or a horror show. Even though, without the background score as well one could “see” that Dr. Watson was projected as a blubbering character whereas Holmes is an analytical no-nonsense chap with a razor sharp mind. However, it becomes a little tedious to follow the conversation with nothing but words to concentrate on. In addition, of course that would be a lot of concentration - especially in a murder mystery – where you cannot afford to miss a single “and” or a single “or” to be able to follow the story.
If you were to watch the series Sherlock, aired on BBC – you would see that the images play an extremely important role along with the background score – one of the best features of this series is its editing and how the frame shifts from another. The music helps you get a grip on the mood of the show. As much as I thought that listening to Sherlock Holmes on the radio was quite unusual and I cannot deny that mentally creating a scene was interesting but my imagination is not as good as some visualizations created and aired on screen. My imagination of the radio program was dull and colorless. I imagined Sherlock in an uptight suit sitting uncomfortably in a chair sipping tea with John Watson and the client huddled around him on a couch and a chair - Everything was dark and I could barely see anything in my head – I forgot to put a light in the room in my imagination! To that affect, it seemed to me that I would enjoy watching the show rather than listening to it. {To the audience: Did that happen to you? While listening to the radio? }
Questions to the Audience:
What kind of shows would you prefer to listen to on the radio?
What do you enjoy more radio or television?
Why would you prefer radio over television or vice versa?
Bibliography
Arbitron . (2013). Radio Today 2013. New York: Arbitron Inc.
Gitlin, T. (2009). Media Unlimited. New York: McGraw Hill.
Green, A. (August 2011). Understanding Radio Audiences. United Kingdom : Warc.
Mytton, G. (1993). Handbook on Radio & Television Audience Research. Paris: UNICEF& UNESCO.
Werbach, K. (1999). Radio Revolution . Washington DC: New America Foundation.
