Interesting Audio Piece:

NPR: Training for War
Link: http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=125351537&m=125379995

This piece works, in my mind, for two reasons: its content and its delivery. The story focuses on the U.S. Army training in a fake Afghan town constructed in Louisiana. The Afghan war is perpetually in the media, and this detailed look into the preparation soldiers undertake is not the usual angle. While the piece is heavily interview-based, the reporter does an excellent job of using sound to really make the audio more memorable than a printed feature story would be. In identifying two ways to tell that the fake Afghan town is indeed fake, for example, the reporter describes two differences in sound, not appearance. He first notes that what appear to be concrete walls are actually styrofoam, something that becomes clear if you run your finger along it and hear it squeak. He then points out that the Afghan guard, upon closer inspection, doesn't SOUND Afghan. I found that in efficiently employing these simple bits of audio, the reporter really showed you the difference without requiring you to see it.

Favorite Audio Piece

This piece is pretty long, and although I didn't listen to all of it, I listened to about half of it and really liked it. The topic is pretty serious and formal, but the interviews sound very conversational, which makes it fun/ interesting for the average person to listen to. It's pretty typical for This American Life, which is one of my favorite programs.

Ethan Rosenberg- Interesting Audio Piece

http://www.npr.org/2011/02/22/133964706/the-90s-are-back-or-whatever
First and foremost, this piece is long. It is actually really long. It clocks in at nearly 100 minutes, but for 100 minutes, you get to hear a group of people discuss their favorite music of the 90's. Three things to know about me in context of this piece: music has been a passion of mine for the longest time, music journalism is my dream career, and there is no conversation i love more than the timeless "favorite music of all time" conversation, and that is what this is, entirely. I was also born at the start of the 90's and I know all of this music. I even remember hearing some of these songs during the decade. For example, my favorite band of all time is Radiohead, but I did not discover this band until around 2002; however, I remember hearing and knowing who Lauryn Hill was in 1999 when I was in third grade. I was aware that Nirvana was a huge deal and that Kurt Cobain had tragically killed himself early on in my childhood. It is an interesting take on the subject of 90's music when you hear it from the people who were old enough to digest this music. The highlight of this piece, in my opinion, comes at around the 30 minute where Bob Boilen is discussing how his faith in rock music was shot by the time the 90's rolled around, but, to his surprise, "rock kept going." They then play the song "Black Hole Sun," by Soundgarden, a song and a band I have never been a huge fan of, without introduction, and when it starts playing, it sounds so raw and powerful and you can really see what Boilen means by "rock kept going."

Darlene Reyes- Interesting Audio Piece

Audio: Fiction Podcast: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie reads Jamaica Kincaid: newyorker.com

This is an audio piece from the New Yorker Fiction podcast. The series allows an author to read a story/piece from the New Yorker's archives and they analyze it. The series is basically a hit or miss because you have to like how the author reads the story and you kind of have to be interested in their analysis. In this piece, you hear Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie reading Jamaica Kincaid's "Figures in the Distance."I really like the interaction between her and the interviewer and how she personalizes her choice. She talks about how she's came to know about Kincaid's work and how she connected to it. I also liked her analysis of the story. When I had first read the story I kind of took it at face value as just an interesting story. Adichie, however, explores the themes of death and adolescence which helped me learn something about the Kincaid and this story. It was informative, thought-provoking, and Adichie didn't read it in a monotone voice which actually made it a delight to listen out loud.

Josh Vitale: Favorite Audio Piece

This is one of my favorite audio slideshow pieces simply because it shows so much raw emotion coming from a united fan base. I have been a lifelong Yankees fan, and these pictures and sounds are from their 2009 World Series victory parade in New York City. There are no voice overs in the piece, rather just the sounds of the crowd and MOS interviews about people's feelings during the celebration. I like the piece because it really shows how much love and excitement there was from the Yankee fan base following the Yankees' 27th World Series Championship.

Favorite Audio Story-Branden Roth

I really like this audio piece. I am a huge Orioles fan and this piece gives you the feel of being at the ballpark.The sound bytes are a perfect fit for the story; the crowd noise; to the sizzling hot dogs the piece really portrays a trip to Camden Yards. I went to Opening Day this year so this struck a chord with me and brought back good memories. The quality of the audio is very good. I especially like the music that proceeds the "CHARGE" chant. I think this piece gives a good feel of opening day and the new sights and sounds it brings.

Louie Dane Assignment #4: Interesting Audio Piece

I love this piece because of it's ability to capture the essence of the subject. In this case, the subject is not a single person, but a soccer position. It makes me feel like I'm standing in goal, lonely and determined. It reminds me of when I played catcher on my baseball team in High School. The positions are not quite the same, but similar memories resurfaced when I heard descriptions of watching balls fly past the keeper into the back of the net. When I would allow a ball to get by me with runner on base, that same feeling of disappointment would crop up. B-roll audio and ambient noises strengthen this piece so much, and it serves as yet an another example of why I love sports features.