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The Janus project
Cristobal Tapia de Veer's utopia, anempathetic empathy and the Radicalization of convention
pp. 305-319
Abstract
Davison and Reyland's chapter offers a critical analysis of Cristobal Tapia de Veer's music for the Channel 4 serial Utopia, written and directed by Marc Munden. Utopia explores the frightening problem of our planet's overpopulation. Rather than encouraging straightforward identification and empathy with the unlikely group of heroes seeking to uncover the conspiracy at the show's heart—plans to sterilize most of the human race—Utopia's music and narrative entwine unconventionally. Groovy rhythms and unique timbres draw attention to themselves, cues encourage empathy and anempathy by turns, and audio-viewer assumptions about right and wrong, hero and villain, are manipulated, challenged and inverted. Davison and Reyland theorize the term anempathetic empathy to encapsulate the unique qualities of this important example of recent, high-end TV scoring.
Publication details
Published in:
Greene Liz, Kulezic-Wilson Danijela (2016) The Palgrave handbook of sound design and music in screen media: integrated soundtracks. Dordrecht, Springer.
Pages: 305-319
DOI: 10.1057/978-1-137-51680-0_21
Full citation:
Davison Annette, Reyland Nicholas (2016) „The Janus project: Cristobal Tapia de Veer's utopia, anempathetic empathy and the Radicalization of convention“, In: L. Greene & D. Kulezic-Wilson (eds.), The Palgrave handbook of sound design and music in screen media, Dordrecht, Springer, 305–319.