Listening to the Future: Museum Podcast Research
description
Transcript of Listening to the Future: Museum Podcast Research
Listening to the Future:Museum Podcast
Research
Glenda SimsBlanton Museum of Art
University of Texas at Austin
Audio Assets at the Blanton
• AudioTour - Uncommon Commentary– Acoustiguide– ExSite Wand
• Music for the Blanton – Live– Composed by Donald Grantham– Inspired by specific works of art
• Student Podcasts – Rachel Varon’s Thesis:
Podcasting in the Museum: Giving Emerging Adults a Voice
Uncommon CommentaryAudioguide
Music For the Blanton
Prelude
Beckoning Music
Joaquín Torres García Constructif en
rouge et ocre
Student Podcasts
Claude Vignon, David With the Head of Goliath
To Podcast or Not to Podcast?
20%
47%
0%5%
10%15%20%25%30%35%40%45%50%
US Adults UT
Blanton iTourPDA Research
Experience
UT MP3 Player Penetration
Blanton Mission & Brand
Extraordinary Experiences
Connecting visitors with art and ideas
Art IdeasExperiences
Podcast Research Focus
• Will visitors successfully use audio on their own MP3 players?
• Advantages/disadvantages of MP3 players & wands
• Will free podcasts marginalize museum audio players?
• Museum’s best interest to podcast audioguide content?
Podcast & Audio Research
• Test subjects: – Museum visitors– Original Target:
• Own mp3 players• Download prior to arriving at museum
• Device Comparison– Each test subject experiences both devices– MP3 Player & Acoustiguide ExSite Wand– 2 Blanton iPods (backup)
• Audio Content– Uncommon Commentary (31 episodes/stops)– Music for the Blanton (18 episodes/stops)– Student Podcasts (2 episodes/stops)
Podcast Download Barrier
Requires visitor pre-planning
Find and successfully download podcasts to MP3 player
Format IssuesM4A Enhanced
(-) iPod only
(-) 31 stops = 31 chapters LARGE download
(-) No ability to customize
all or none
(-) No easy random access
(+) Easy to download
MP3(+) Device agnostic
(+) 31 stops = 31 episodes small downloads
(+) customize, pick stops you want
(+) easier random access
(-) Default download behavior 1st episode only
(-) Download not intuitive
Device Comparison
WandAdvantages• Intuitive, easy to use,
user friendly, simple• Familiar known interface,
like a TV remoteDisadvantages• Bigger *• No headphones *• Can’t fast forward *• No image *
* Based on Blanton’s audio player selection. Other Acoustiguide devices offer these options.
MP3 PlayerAdvantages• Multimedia/image• Smaller• Personal• Fast forwardDisadvantages• Attempted download but
incomplete (failure)• Didn’t download prior to
visit• Complex confusing
compared to wand• Headphones/isolation• Menu – too many choices• Fragile
Device PreferenceNow that you have experienced the Blanton’s
audio content on both the ExSite wand and an MP3 Player, which would you choose to
use next time?
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
mp3
wand
no pref
Podcast Advantages
• Visitor Involvement (download)
• Customizable & Personal• Preview/Review content• Provides more choice• Inspiration to visit
Implications & Recommendations
• Uncommon Commentary Audio Tour– Personal: Offer Visitor Choices
• download podcast to personal mp3 player• use free audioguide in gallery
– Device: Keep It Simple• Museum provides free random access audio wand
– intuitive, simple– no headphones (?)
– Podcast: Just Do It!• Museum multi-purposes quality audio content
– already in mp3 format– transcripts provided by Acoustiguide
Implications & Recommendations
• Music for the Blanton– Offer as an album, not a podcast– Add an audio introduction– Add a map
Podcast Research Summary
• Personal MP3 players successful? YES & NO– 61% preferred them – download barriers – need on demand access
• Free podcasts marginalize audio tour? NO– Not today. Devices continue to evolve. Visitors
continue to want quality content.
• Provide audioguide as podcast? YES– For the Blanton? Absolutely! – Broader reach, more choices, personal, allows for
planning, preview and review.
Student Podcast ProjectRachel Varon’s Thesis: Podcasting in the Museum: Giving Emerging Adults a
Voice
1) Select a work of art2) Brainstorm ideas3) Audience – UT Students4) Justify your claims5) 1 - 4 minutes6) Research recommended7) Podcast review parties
8 podcasts created. Only 2 3 published on official Blanton Web Site.
X
Student Podcasts: The Challenge
• Discerning: Formalize a Review Process – Constructive comments – Diverse opinions– Critical Thinking– Evaluation with evidence
• Quality: Set expectations for official publishing
• Free Thinking: Outlet for Unedited Podcasts– subversive/dissenting– need an outlet for the renegade– student blogs
Student Podcast Researchselected excerpts
Podcasting in the Museum: Giving Emerging Adults a Voice
- Rachel Varon
Benefits of Student Produced Podcasts
• Connect with art in a format that is familiar to them– digital technology
• Actively engage in a discussion about a work of art– not just a consumer
• Become a guide or authority on a work of art – via podcasting
• Understand that there is more than one viewpoint– listen to peers’ opinions about a work of art
• Question and engage more deeply with sources– Variety of voices and sources of information
Multisensory
Personal
Podcasting in the Museum: Giving Emerging Adults a Voice - Rachel
Varon
Producing Podcasts = Constructivist Teaching
Conversational
Imaginative
Experiential
Podcasting
Art, Ideas & PeopleA Meaningful Dialogue
Are You Listening?