Pre-Launch BBC News: Studio B Refit

[AaronLancs]

The titles have overstayed their welcome, and let's not forget the music too. It's been in general use since 1999, it's had its time, time to retire it and move onto something new, even doing variations for the One/Six/Ten would be good, rather than a general remix of the same music and beeps people have heard for years. Want someone to turn their head and watch the show? Do something different, not the same.

As I keep on saying, the music of David Lowe doesn't need to go anywhere. This argument against the music - that has had variations on a theme since 1999 - is tiring, ridiculous and has been in my viewpoint the most overplayed broken record on this place and in the blue place previously when arguments are made.

As I say in all posts that attack the music. Lowe's themes have become an Awakening of sorts for BBC News. ITN and the modern ITV News have had the same theme - and variations thereof - since the sixties. The original theme, The Awakening was composed by Johnny Pearson and the modern themes have been done by Dave Hewson - who did coincidentally the 2008 BBC Arabic relaunch package - and Bill Baylis.

So when people make basic arguments for the Beeb to turf out Lowe because the music is 'tired' and 'has outlived its welcome'. One could easily make the argument for ITV News to get rid of Hewson & Baylis because those bongs have outlived their usefulness too. Each service needs a distinct set the themes to distinguish it from the rivals and in the twenty three years since Lowe has took on the mantle, my view would be the following:

That there needs to be more orchestral elements brought in and the synths and drums being used as audio "seasoning" of sorts, there to punctuate, not to dominate. The pips are to be kept, they are iconic and say in a musical sense 'This is the BBC', heck other broadcasters around the world have imitated them in various forms in their themes.

I hope this is enough to put any future argument to rest. 'Nuff said.