A COLLABORATIVE POST
WRITTEN BY BOOM BOX POST
One of our most popular blog posts is Glossary of Sound Effects. In that post, we outlined a number of keywords that can be used when searching for a specific sound effect. At Boom Box Post, since we focus in sound for animation, I thought it would be helpful to create a list of classic toon sound effects and the emotion typically associated with them. Hopefully in doing so, this list will provide some direction for anyone stuck in deciding what toony effect to use! In this post, we will be focusing on the following: happiness, anger, sadness, and humor.
Toon sound effects have been provoking emotion for decades. The majority of these sounds and their emotional meaning have been ingrained in us since childhood. We all remember Sunday mornings watching Coyote attempt to drop an anvil on Road Runner, or Jerry bonking Tom over the head with a mallet resulting in a halo of swirling stars and birds. The sound choices made during that era of animation set a baseline for the sounds we associate with different emotions today.
In the blog A Crash Course In Toon Sound Design, our Supervising Sound Editor Brad Meyer defines these sounds as classic toon: “A good amount of shows have an old-school sensibility to them, and harken back to the golden age of animation. Especially with the rising popularity of series revivals and remakes of shows people my age grew up watching, there is a strong demand for a classic approach to toon these days. Most of the sound effects from the early days of animation like Hanna Barbara and Warner Bros. are currently available to the public, and can be freely used in most media projects. It is quite common that I get asked to use sounds like Fred Flintstone tiptoeing or the spaceship from The Jetsons. From boings and whistles, to zips and twangs, the types of old-fashioned sounds available run the gamut. Sometimes a moment just calls for a familiar sound from the good old days, and I don’t think audiences are going to get sick of the classics any time soon.”
With so many classic toon sounds to choose from, how does one know which to use? As Brad points out, “It's important to note that context REALLY matters. There is no go-to sound for any of these, especially if animation doesn't support the sound you're going for. The best sounds you can pick are ones that compliment the animation and work with the scene.”
However, if you’re looking to convey a specific emotion, here are some keywords to get you on track:
Happy
Bell Tree
Bell Ding
Chimes
Harp Gliss
“Anything bright and chime-y usually works for conveying happiness.” - Brad
“[Harp glisses] always sound happy! These are great for when a character is in love, sees something they like, smiles really big, or many other scenarios. They're very versatile and you can always find one that conveys the right emotion.” -Katie
Anger
Ascending Tea Kettle Whistle
Factory Whistle
Alarm Bells
“When I need a character to sound like they're about to boil over (hah), I love using a rising teapot whistle! I think it conveys rising tension really well, and has become a symbol of anger. It works really well paired with a maraca shaking if the character is visually moving, and always works well with a train whistle toot at the end when the character erupts.” - Katie
Sad
Bork
Descending Slide Whistle
Flutter Whistle
Fiddle/Violin Scale Down
“A classic fiddle or violin down is so great at conveying sadness. The downward pitch works especially well if the character visually slumps over or sinks down in a moment of sadness. Even if just their eyes drop down, this helps to really accentuate how sad a character looks.” - Katie
Humor
Boings
Zips
Farts
Cowbells
Jingle Bells
“I love to use cowbells, jingle bells, and rattles on characters who are acting silly. Cowbells are my favorite - they make visually goofy characters sound as funny as they look.” - Katie
If you enjoyed this blog, check out these:
BOOM BOX'S FAVORITE CARTOON SOUND EFFECTS
A CRASH COURSE IN TOON SOUND DESIGN