Radio Listen Tweet Alongs Week of March 8th. 
Noir106 student group collaboration radio shows premiered on ds106 radio at 9pmEST M-Th this week and will continue the week of March 16. Live tweet alongs were part of the airing of the shows.
I had listened to several of the shows on Soundcloud the previous week, but the act of listening with others really makes a difference. It brought visions of old photos and documentaries about radio programs and families sitting around the radio together to listen. I even had a Walton’s flash back to seeing John Boy and all the family in the living room listening to the radio!
Back to points – it was a roller coaster of stories, genres, strategies and approaches with each show. None were the same. Tweets came in from collaborators that they had anxious moments as their show was next and they didn’t think it could hold up to the one they were listening too. A sure sign that there was respect and admiration for the work being listened too. But each was so unique they stood on their own.
I failed to keep track of which group and time, and won’t be able to comment about each and everyone. And I do not have a requirement to do a specific review – which also allows me to just enjoy each one for what it is. I looked forward to the time each night.
Groups all had a struggle point – why wouldn’t they? This is a group collaboration of individuals who have not worked together and have about 8-12 days to come together and get something produced in media that is likely new to them. The plus was even if a group had a struggle point – i.e. difficulty in normalizing audio, or a story line that didn’t quite develop as fully as intended – another area would shine so brightly that the struggle point was not as clear. Every team seemed to bring the their best to the group and it showed.
A few groups came pretty damn close to nailing it all and were outstanding. This activity was a learning experience – so there is no ranking or contests in my mind. It is finding the shining moments and seeing that the struggles were acknowledged by the participants as what to do better next time. Pure gold to hear and read. Everyone moves forward.
I enjoyed each show and found moments of sheer genius in each and inspiration – but also those moments when – “oops – that is something to remember when putting something like this together”. Outstanding bumpers, commercials, sound effects, scripts. With audio weeks this great – video is going to blow the roof!
Great work UMW Noir106. Looking forward to next week.
This is a current Kohler commercial that reminds me of the show “Noir Not the Father”. #bthrmquickie
