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Victoria Petron
Dr. Cummings
ENG 314 Journal 8
Journal 8: Making Meaning with Sound and Bellamy Mansion Sound Clips
The Bellamy Mansion audio tours utilize both a smooth, clear female narrators voice as
well as some subtle sound effects and voice actors in some sections. These particular audio tours
are meant to be supplemental to the experience of walking through and touring the Bellamy
Mansion and slave quarters on the property. How the audio clips of narration, voice actors, and
interactivity of the audio and visual aesthetic of the museum work together is referred to as
synaesthesia (McKee 337). The audio serves to inform listeners of the associated history of the
Bellamy Mansion as well as represent the experiences of the Bellamys and slaves who once lived
there.
The combined experience of both seeing the mansion in person and hearing the audio
tours helps communicate meaning and invoke feelings for the viewer/listener. The audio tours
that combine both narration and sound effects in relation to the visual aesthetic of the mansion
are composed of several separate elements, digital and physical, so the elements can be both
individually as well as a whole production (McKee 328-9). Furthermore, when analyzing the
elements that make up an aural composition, nonverbal aspects of verbal delivery can be
examined (340) and the purpose and effectiveness of sound effects can be identified (346).
Following the study of the various elements of sound in a composition, the aural composition
should be considered in relation to the context. For this classs applied learning project, we can
consider how to make use of the different sound elements to help communicate and emphasize
certain rhetoric in a promotional video. As we compose and design our projects, we should think

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about sound as an equal part of the final product, remembering that the sound envelope will
affect how the overall multimodal text is perceived by viewers (352).
Some aural clips of the audio tours include narration only, while nearly half of them
utilize voice narration, additional voice actors reading diary entries and memoirs of prior
Bellamy Mansion inhabitants, and subtle sound effects. For each clip that uses more than one
element, the experience of being in the corresponding room is enhanced. Furthermore, the audio
and visual tour as one combined experience is also enhanced. While looking at clips individually,
I found that comprehending and listening to the narration was easier when the sound effects
related to the subject being discussed.
In the second audio clip for example, an actress spoke as Ellen Bellamy. As she speaks
about the carriage house, a horse neighs in the background, clueing into the reader that she will
next speak about the stable and stalls that were filled with their horses. As she says, In olden
days, a cow moos and she continues, we kept a cow too. The listener is able to visualize what
the scene looked like in her time, picturing the various animals associated with the sound effect.
We might also picture Ellen herself in the stable, especially when she uses words such as, over
here. The original narrator speaks again about the second story, continuing to detail the history
of the particular scene where Ellens voice stops. The animal sound effects and two pieces of
narration make the entire scene cohesive. If the audio clip was only narration without sound
effects or the voice of Ellen, we may not have been able to picture the animals in the stable or
Ellen herself as a part of the scene.
The nonverbal aspects of delivery are apparent in all of the audio tour sound clips, but are
especially obvious in the clips that combine multiple elements. The audio clip with the narrator,
Ellens voice, and the animal sound effects discussed above can be analyzed in terms of the

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tension, roughness, breathiness, loudness, pitch and vibrato (McKee 340). Both of the narrators
have more breathiness as female voices typically are more intimate sounding. This helps
viewers/listeners to establish a connection with the clips featuring Ellen as a sense of nostalgia
and fondness is communicated. When pathos is communicated in connection to the narrator
and/or the voice of Ellen, the sound is heling the audience associate feelings with the Bellamy
Mansion. The female narration is also soft in nature, especially in comparison to clips that
feature a male voice. For instance, in the sixth audio tour clip, a male voice acts as John D.
Bellamy speaking about the architect, James Post. His voice is louder and rougher and helps to
communicate authority which is appropriate when envisioning the owner of the mansion.
After listening to the audio tour clips and reading the McKee article, I think that for our
applied learning project, the element of sound should be incorporated sooner rather than later.
While I think we should use sound effects, text, and footage of the house in conjunction with one
another, we should make sure all of the parts work together and relate and are not disrupting and
distracting from communicating what we decide we want to emphasize. Using voices that are
softer will assist in creating feelings and connections for audience members, and sound effects
that connect with the footage may also help if we compose our own narration with footage.
Additionally, we should revisit the ways that sounds affect us as outlined by Julian
Treasure in his Ted Talk. Both McKee and Treasure discuss the power of music. Music may help
audience members associate narration better with the footage, and if we choose to use music for
our project, we should test the music in class to make sure it is reassuring and creates the right
psychological response. For example, should we choose to use footage of the gardens at the
Bellamy, we can somehow capture bird sounds which will create a calming effect and make the
scene appear even more beautiful and peaceful. The sounds should be congruent throughout the

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video and appropriate so if we use music to create a calming effect in one area, we may want to
use sound effects instead of music when filming another scene. For example, bird sounds would
not be appropriate for footage of the slaves quarters, so sound effects may be better.

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Works Cited
AuthorLastName, FirstName. Title of the Book Being Referenced. City Name: Name of
Publisher, Year. Type of Medium (e.g. Print).
LastName, First, Middle. "Article Title." Journal Title (Year): Pages From - To. Print.