Why would breaking down sound help?

When you break down sound into it's basic layers, giving each of those elements a shape or form on different layers would portray sound better through visuals.

Sound as we know is 3D. It travels in a spherical way in all directions from its point of origin. If visuals were to describe sound, the best possible way would be to break sound into parts that can be defined using rules and guides. Then to show them on different layers.

Multi - layering of Sound

We now know that sound has many parts that make it sound. Any change in one of these elements drastically changes the sound itself.

So, sound basically is multi-layered. If paper were to show the dynamics of sound, it would be better to show it on different layers rather than on one. Also, using different shapes and colours for each of the parts would make them easier to read.

So, even if only one part of sound is changed, we can easily replace the layer of that element with the other's.

Why is colour tricky?

Colour symbolises and emotes. So, even though it is a very universally accepted theory, it is still very personal.

To show sound through colour alone and to expect each person in the audience to understand the sound exactly as the other would be impossible.

Colour has to be paired with a method of usage, otherwise it would be too big a field to enter.

Why is colour important?

Colour is one of the most important factors when trying to create visual sound. All the three said methods have one thing in common - the use of colour to the artist's advantage to portray emotion or content can be seen in all three methods.

Research

Visuals can produce sound in 3 ways.

a) Emotional and meaningful content. Here the visuals try to explain the content of the song. This can be done step by step or by looking at the entire song at as a whole. (This would be referred as Method 1 on this blog.)

b) Kinetic visualisation. Here, you concentrate more on the dynamism of graphics and a supporting sound. The sound doesn't necessarily have to be in sync with the music. (Method 2)

c) Coding and mapping. Here you map the sound by breaking it into parts to identify exactly what it sounds like. The notes of a songs are the closest example of how sound can be visualised. It would follow a set of fixed rules and guides. (Method 3)