MAIN TASK

The genre of my magazine will be Swing/Jazz; the combination of the two will exaggerate the modern twist to what the magazine will become

• RESEARCH

1) Codes and Conventions of a Music Magazine Front Cover

• One worded title Title -It has its own unique font and is the biggest text on the page



• The title may fill the whole page width Positioning statement which is situated by the title ( above or below)



• Price of magazine Date of issue/ issue number
  


• * All of the above points are known as the “Masthead” Bar code ( on the front cover because adverts are usually on the back)



• Puff (e.g. free gifts)
  


• Lists Main image - This is anchored by the main cover-line





• The main cover-line is the largest text after the title and is up to two lines long




• Small pictures on the front show artists or bands
  
  


• Cover-lines are two/three lines long, it gives information about contents, it intrigues the audience and provokes interest with as few words as possible Bold colours.



• A consistent colour scheme is used




• The main image usually does not have the band/singer smiling which conveys attitude



• Directly addressed images are used (looking at the audience)



• Typography - This is the look of the letters (limited fonts are used)



• 2 types of typography: serif and sans serif



• Serif = French for ‘HOOK’ e.g. ‘Times New Roman’



• Sans serif = French for ‘WITHOUT HOOK’ e.g. ‘Ariel’



• The connotations of font reflect target audience and subject



• They frame an image – usually the left side



• There is usually a strip at bottom or top which has different artists on it therefore this improves the content of the magazine front cover



• It has a list of names/bands/topics Buzzwords are used e.g. EXCLUSIVE



• The small use of colour conveys a classy feel to the magazine and makes it easy to be identifiable compared to other music magazines



• The photography is very creative as it uses the light to contrast the images and the angles convey emotion within the images; especially the main image

2)Codes and Conventions of a Music Magazine Contents Page

• Columns are used - Maybe two or three Page numbers



• Picture and images with page numbers Images



• ‘In this’ section (editor letter) – editorial – there is a picture of the editor and their signature Date and issue at the top



• The title at the top of the page, sometimes top left = ‘Contents’


• Quotes


• Consistent colour schemed followed on from the front cover Categorise sections (headings


• One large images Smaller images which highlight the content of the magazine


• The actual arrangement: page numbers – then text


• One or two words as the main line


• They are bold and usually larger text


• Sub line text is smaller


• Regular content – this appears in every issue of the magazine. E.g. horoscopes


• Feature content – this is the term used for ‘one-off’ stories. E.g. Interview with band


• Bottom of the page consists of page numbers, title, issue data, website


• Contact details
  

3) Codes and Conventions of a music magazine, Double Page Spread

• There are usually 3 or 4 columns


• Creative use of photographs


• Quotes on pictures or maybe in between text separated by boxes, this invites the audience because it is highlighted with the use of panels and boxes


• 1/2 the article is an image, pictured often bleed across from one page to the other



• author of the article is stated (BYLINE is the name of journalist) This is positioned by the STAND FIRST


• Stand first works with the headline to inform the reader about the article, it has a larger font, it is the beginning paragraph where opinions are usually used as is an informal style; this explores the journalist's personality


• page numbers


• small images are used to break up text


• limited colours- colour scheme


• name of band or artist is bold and sometimes in a different colour to stand out


• further details


• photographer's name and/or details


• name of magazine and/or website


• Drop capital is used and indicates were to start reading; the 1st letter of the 1st word is large


• A strap line / border maybe used to bleed across the double paged spread or even used as a tab bar


• headlines are situated across two pages (its eye catching and creative)


• bold text in 1st introductory paragraph, and is again larger font

• Magazine Research

Q

Price: £3.90
Frequency of publication: Monthly
Issue Size (number of pages): 162

Regular content:
Soapbox
New to Q
Q hero
My record collection
Cash for Questions
A round with…
Q50 ( tines)
Q quiz
Last requests
Q review

Feature articles:
Interview with Sting
Interview with Green day
“Pop Babylon” (Whitney & Britney)



JAZZIZ



Price: $59.95 / £36.90 for subscription over year.
Import Price: Average/£9 per issue
Frequency of publication: Quarterly. (Every 3 months seasonal)
Issue size (number of pages): ?

Regular content:
Reissued Rankin
Free CD or DVD
Discover an artist
Quiz
Questions & Answers
Forums

Feature articles:
Paoli Mejia
Tom Beckham
Impressions by Peter
Jamie Cullum kicks


Questionnaire and Results

I have designed and created a questionnaire that will help me identify the key aspects of my music magazine. The following graphs represent the results from my questionniare, filled out by 20 people.