Forms and Conventions of a Music Video

Forms and Conventions of a Music Video

There are a number of key features of a music video which distinguish a videos form. These features are highlighted in Andrew Goodwin's book The Rise of MTV (1992) :

-There is a relationship between the lyrics and the visuals (with visuals either illustrating, amplifying or contradicting the lyrics).



-There is a relationship between the music and the visuals (again with visuals either illustrating amplifying or contradicting the lyrics).



-Particular music genres may have their own music video style and iconography (such as live stage performance for Heavy Rock music).



-There is a demand on the part of the record company for lots of close up shots of the main artist/vocalist.



-The artist may develop there own star iconography, in and out of their videos, which, over time, become part of their star image.



-There is likely to be voyeurism, particularly in the treatment of women, but also in terms of systems of looking (screen within screens, binoculars, cameras  etc)



-There are likely to be intertextual references, either to other music videos or to films and TV

However there is a close relationship between narrative and performance in music videos which Steve Archer has been drawing attention to in Media Magazine. he says that when analysing a music video you need to consider the following:

Lyrics

Lyrics tend to help to establish a general feeling, or mood, or sense of subject matter rather than offering a coherent meaning. Key lines may play a part in the visuals associated with the song, but very rarely will a music video simply replicate the lyrics wholesale.

Music

A music video tends to make the use of the tempo of the track to the drive of the editing and may emphasise particular sounds from the track by foregrounding instruments such as guitar, keyboard or drum solo.

Genre

While some music videos transcend genres, others can be more easily categorised. Some, but not all, music channels concentrate on particular music genres. If you watch these channels then over a period of time, you will be able to identify a range of distinct features which characterise the videos of different genres. These features might be reflected in types of mise en scene, themes (see post students did for summer), performance, camera and editing styles.