Take 5: Komposition in Blau

I have looked at a lot of animations that deal with portraying sound, and the Komposition in Blau by Oskar Fischinger seems to be the one of the earliest animations that does so. Not only that but it deals with the subject really well and is beautifully composed.

http://www.peteava.ro/id-116351-036-komposition-in-blau-oskar-fischinger-1935

Video Link

The music starts off calm and Fischinger uses a blue background to accompany this, where red cubes move around the space to represent the sounds of the different instruments. As the video progresses, and the music becomes more upbeat, more shapes and colours are introduced to portray the different sounds and the lively nature of them. I think the colours he has chosen work really well, and he has used them in a way that doesn't make it seem "over-populated" with colour, but instead creates an accurate contrast between the different sounds and instruments. I especially like how the colours of the background and shapes quickly shift when the pitch changes.

Not only do I find the use of colour to be accurate, but the movement of the shapes has obviously been very carefully considered. The motions are in strict synchronization with the music so every movement considers the tempo, pitch and the general "direction" of the music. The shapes will gain altitude or move closer to the viewer as the pitch rises, and the speed at which they do so accurately portrays the tempo. I believe (3:10) to be an excellent example of this, and I particularly like how the colours are used in this part of the animation.

I think this is a great example of a short that animates sound as when I watch it, it actually seems as though the shapes are the cause of the music. This is something that I would love to be able to produce with my own animations, so I will be most definitely referring back to Komposition in Blau.