Questionnaire

Questionnaire

For this questionnaire we asked a group of people from ages 12 - 86 what they thought of the song 'Home' by Gabrielle Aplin, which is the song that Yasmin and I chose to be the score for our music video.
The participants of this questionnaire will not be anonymous, as it is specific, public research.

Here are the questions and different responses: -

Before listening to the song 'Home', knowing it's title and that it is by Gabrielle Aplin, what were your immediate thoughts of how the song might sound? 

• Finlay Stone aged 12 - Long, sad, and light-sounding.
• Alfie Stone aged 15 - Warm and fuzzy.
• Danielle Le Roux aged 18 - Slow, moving - will encourage thought.
• Jenny Thompson aged 25 - Slow, gentle and emotional.
• Emma Stone aged 46 - Happy, quite slow and warm.
• Tudor Stone aged 46 - Quite happy - it might give a sense of reflection, or family bonds.
• Kate Mills aged 80 - Slow, haunting and melodic.
• Brian Mills aged 86 - Pleasant and warm.

What instruments do you think will be used? Why?

• Finlay Stone aged 12 - The piano, the guitar, the drums and the banjo.
• Alfie Stone aged 15 - Piano and violin because the piano is a common instrument in songs and the violin because it is cold-sounding but nice.
• Danielle Le Roux aged 18 - Piano, pan flute, and maybe violin because they are generally used to create a peaceful, emotional environment. For instance, the piano has been used to evoke certain emotions and particularly good for sad/romantic feelings. 
• Jenny Thompson aged 25 - Piano and violin to create the emotional - gentle instruments.
• Emma Stone aged 46 - Piano, guitar and vocals because I am imagining a gentle tune with a lyrical story.
• Tudor Stone aged 46 - Piano and a guitar - simple background music that is acoustic rather than something heavy like rock.
• Kate Mills aged 80 - Piano and violin because they are both able to express a gentle, melodic sound well.
• Brian Mills aged 86 - Guitar, because it's the most popular instrument for 'pop' songs.

What do you think the song will be about? Why?

• Finlay Stone aged 12 - I think it will be about someone going home because it is called 'Home'.
• Alfie Stone aged 15 - I reckon it will be about someone going home or realising where their home is.
• Danielle Le Roux aged 18 - About her feeling at home, being comfortable in her surroundings - no matter where she is she always knows where home will be. Other songs that talk/sing about home supports this - concern that people have, a search for home.
• Jenny Thompson aged 25 - Somebody finding their way back to where they came from or felt at home.
• Emma Stone aged 46 - Someone going home because that is what it is called.
• Tudor Stone aged 46 - Either a sad or happy memory about someone going home.
• Kate Mills aged 80 - Someone living a long way from home, who is missing their home and family & friends, and feeling sad, because that's the story that came to mind by the word Home.
• Brian Mills aged 86 - About childhood and youth, because it's called home.

When listening to the song what images/scenes could you imagine being put into a music video? 

• Finlay Stone aged 12 - A dog is chained to pole, it is raining, then a guy comes along and cuts the dog free and takes it home. 
• Alfie Stone aged 15 - I picture someone who has been gone for a while coming home to their family.
• Danielle Le Roux aged 18 - A variety of people/family/travellers - story timeline of where they have been and are going, collage of pictures taken of their life and where they think/view home as.
• Jenny Thompson aged 25 - Someone who is unhappy or lost looking to find comfort and feel part of something again.
• Emma Stone aged 46 - It becomes clear that it is a person not a place that is 'home', that makes something 'home' so I think a music video would reflect that.
• Tudor Stone aged 46 - Memories of someone who you knew quite intimately.
• Kate Mills aged 80 - Pictures that show someone becoming happy when they are back with their special friends and family.
• Brian Mills aged 86 - Pictures related to a young person leaving home i.e. walking up a hill through a cornfield with a village in the distant background.

How did the song make you feel? 

• Finlay Stone aged 12 - It made me feel sad, active, and happy at times.
• Alfie Stone aged 15 - I dunno, it makes me miss home.
• Danielle Le Roux aged 18 - Emotional, nostalgic, and sad.
• Jenny Thompson aged 25 - Emotionally invested in the person it's about.
• Emma Stone aged 46 - Emotional and heart-warmed.
• Tudor Stone aged 46 - The melody made me feel quite sad.
• Kate Mills aged 80 - Sad, but feeling happier at the end.
• Brian Mills aged 86 - Melancholy.

Do you think the song tells a story? If so, what story?

• Finlay Stone aged 12 - Yes, someone who was homeless and wants to go home.
• Alfie Stone aged 15 - Yes, I think it tells a story of someone who has been away for a long time and is coming home to their family.
• Danielle Le Roux aged 18 - Yes, talks about her spreading her wings - leaving the nest - also about her encountering various pains and hurts she was sheltered from at home, even though she is away from home it is always there if she needs to back to it. Not necessarily where she grew-up but where she feels safe and comfortable.
• Jenny Thompson aged 25 - Jenny Thompson aged 25 - I think it's about someone who is lost/missing home/feeling out of place who returns home to feel comfort and content.
• Emma Stone aged 46 - Yes, I think the songs story is about the security and love of someone who has always been there for you.
• Tudor Stone aged 46 - Yes, about someone the singer/female-character used to know.
• Kate Mills aged 80 - Yes - a story of a young girl growing up and leaving home, and missing the love and support of family & close friends when life gets tough.
• Brian Mills aged 86 - Yes , a story of  a young person leaving the security of home.

Do you think a cyclical music video about friendship, growing-up, love and fate would suit this song? If so, why?

• Finlay Stone aged 12 - Yes because it would be like my dog story except with humans.
• Alfie Stone aged 15 - Yes because sometimes home isn't a place it's a person.
• Danielle Le Roux aged 18 - Yes, the song is about overcoming challenging and going back to what you know or going back to what you have grown up knowing; parent relationship, siblings, friendship. You can pick things up where you left of - there is always someone there for you no matter where you are in the world. 
• Jenny Thompson aged 25 - Jenny Thompson aged 25 - Yes because home doesn't haven't to be a building it can be place/person or anywhere which makes a person feel secure as if they were home.
• Emma Stone aged 46 - Yes because it fits with the theme of the songs.
• Tudor Stone aged 46 - Yes, because the song seems to be about couple memories that are both sad and happy.
• Kate Mills aged 80 - Yes because it would illustrate the story of the of the song.
• Brian Mills aged 86 - Yes, because it's about the cycle of life.

I have found that, on the whole, people seem to have predicted the acoustic nature of the song, and think that a narrative music video presenting a story about someone or a group of people returning home, or a person or a couple finding an emotional home in someone else be it a familial bond, or a first love, would be ideal, peaceful and inspiring. I like the idea of creating a cyclical video that shows a couple playing together as children, followed by some shots that indicate their separation over time, and then some shots of the couple reuniting - which links to the lyrics 'home is where your heart is set in stone, it's where you go when you're alone, it's where you go to rest your bones'. I want the video to be 'warm', 'emotional', 'nostalgic', and heart-warming.