Dark and Sound

Throughout Netflix's TV drama, Dark, the creators intentionally utilized sounds and music to convey emotion and foreboding events.  There are several examples where the music indicated that events were connected in one way or another or that the on-screen shot contained something important for the plot or for the viewer.  Dark makes extensive use of sliding orchestral and string music to indicate different aspects of the show or of a particular shot.  In some shots, the music was used to introduce a new unknown character, which increased tension.  When new details were uncovered or something was revealed to a main character, the music used was also indicative of that moment.   Lastly, it should be noted that the absence of music and the use of ambient noises were also used during specific moments in the first episode.  What can be heard by the viewers allows the show to experience more than just the visual aspect of media.

Looking at Movies thoroughly describes sound and how it is used in film. First, sound is described in three different qualities, those being pitch, quality, and loudness.  The texts describes pitch in that it “...can be high (like the screech of tires on pavement), low (like the rumble of a boulder barreling downhill), or somewhere between these extremes” (Barsam 394).  In Dark, high pitch sounds during eerie moments are common, as well as low bass indicating an ominous presence.  As for loudness the text continues with “...filmmakers sometimes use the extreme (near silence or shocking loudness) to signal something important or to complement the overall mood and tone of a scene” (394).  Apart from music, Dark uses the loudness of certain sounds to indicate an unknown force that has yet to be discovered.  In one particular shot, the opening to a cave in the forest is shown and for a quick moment, an extremely loud sound is heard, as if it came from an unknown creature inside the cave.  Both pitch and quality are used in Dark during specific moments in the show.

Regarding several moments when music is used to convey information, Dark extensively uses it to convey that ominous forces are at work and to build tension.  Early in the first episode, when the main character arrived at school, he was seen receiving stares from his peers.  As this happened, the music that was played conveyed that the main character’s past is known to others and that they do not think the best of him.  Later, while explaining the disappearance of another character in the show, sliding music begins to play.  The sliding string orchestra could indicate that something terrible happened to the missing character.  Continuing, there are two separate shots that present the same unknown character, an older man repeating, “It’s going to happen again”.  Clearly, this person knows of some horrible event in the past and that it will probably occur again.  In addition, this foreboding event most likely has something to do with the disappearance of one of the characters. During this point in the show, the same sliding string music plays, further consolidating the feeling that something awful is going to happen.  Although some music repeats, it allows for the viewer to continue to associate separate shots with one another, connecting them.  

Barsam, Richard and Dave Monahan. Looking at Movies. 4th ed. W.W. Norton & Company. 2012.