This is a sweet, informative, sometimes stressful piece about pregnancy and labor. Sarah has a great voice, good pace and earnest, true narration. And it was interesting to hear the trials and tribulations of having a baby, beyond the pain and the goopy birth-stuff. However, it didn't strike me as much more than "cute". Which isn't a bad thing, but I was hoping for more. There were some distracting sound moments, too: the baby's heartbeat early on and Sarah's incredibly heavy breathing towards the end. The former is jarring because I didn't know what it was for some time. The latter was off-putting because she was breathing as if she'd just gone through hours of labor. Then we learn she'd had to have an emergency C-section. A sweet piece, though, with great baby noise at the end.
Sarah Baughn lies in bed, telling us her feelings in regard to her upcoming birthing. She has some difficulty due to gestational diabetes, and she worries about the challenges ahead. We accompany her as she and her husband Eric go to the doctor for an antipartum audiogram to listen to the baby's heartbeat.
She considers inducement of labor. The technical, logistical, and emotional ride she's on is evident with every word. This is first-person essay in action, in process, and very intimate. "That's when I knew I was going to have a pretty unusual birth." she says at one point, and she takes us with her through the doors of the hospital natal unit.
She gives birth to Max, a healthy baby boy, after a hairy event following a petosin injection to induce labor. His gaffs and gurgles are the sound of triumph for the piece, and for Sarah.
It's a short, richly recorded, piece that takes the unusual direction of putting the microphone in the hand of the guest, who is also the producer. Nicely done. A unique voice easily finding home in any news broadcast or narrative programming.
This is a classic diary piece, dealing with subject matter that seems perfect for such treatment. The piece starts a few weeks before the due date, so there is no sense of what the first 2 trimesters held for the soon to be parents, nor any feel for the mounting tension and excitement that you might expect if the diary covered the whole pregnancy. The piece is short, perhaps too short, I would have liked to hear how 5 weeks bed rest due to gestational diabetes affects mom for instance; We get to hear from baby Max via fetal monitor before his birth and he gets to have the last words, or gurgles too. All round a satisfying listening experience.
I really like "before and after" pieces, where you hear from someone before an experience, and then find out what actually happens. Not much reflecting back after the fact. You get the real thing: waiting for labor, anxiety, etc. This piece is a pretty straight-forward documentation of the build-up to and the birth of a baby by emergency c-section, from mom's point of view. It's a diary format, with sounds from the hospital. For those of us who have never given birth or been present at a birth, it's a really interesting portrait of the process. And 'wacky mom' at the end, coming out of the c-section is just priceless. This piece could be dropped into a magazine type show, as a slice of life, anytime.
Comments for Welcome Baby Max
Produced by Sarah Baughn
Other pieces by B-Side Radio
Rating Summary
4 comments
Lee Fuoco
Posted on December 28, 2004 at 11:01 AM | Permalink
Review of Welcome Baby Max
This is a sweet, informative, sometimes stressful piece about pregnancy and labor. Sarah has a great voice, good pace and earnest, true narration. And it was interesting to hear the trials and tribulations of having a baby, beyond the pain and the goopy birth-stuff. However, it didn't strike me as much more than "cute". Which isn't a bad thing, but I was hoping for more. There were some distracting sound moments, too: the baby's heartbeat early on and Sarah's incredibly heavy breathing towards the end. The former is jarring because I didn't know what it was for some time. The latter was off-putting because she was breathing as if she'd just gone through hours of labor. Then we learn she'd had to have an emergency C-section. A sweet piece, though, with great baby noise at the end.
Bill Palladino
Posted on December 28, 2004 at 08:15 AM | Permalink
Review of Welcome Baby Max
Sarah Baughn lies in bed, telling us her feelings in regard to her upcoming birthing. She has some difficulty due to gestational diabetes, and she worries about the challenges ahead. We accompany her as she and her husband Eric go to the doctor for an antipartum audiogram to listen to the baby's heartbeat.
She considers inducement of labor. The technical, logistical, and emotional ride she's on is evident with every word. This is first-person essay in action, in process, and very intimate. "That's when I knew I was going to have a pretty unusual birth." she says at one point, and she takes us with her through the doors of the hospital natal unit.
She gives birth to Max, a healthy baby boy, after a hairy event following a petosin injection to induce labor. His gaffs and gurgles are the sound of triumph for the piece, and for Sarah.
It's a short, richly recorded, piece that takes the unusual direction of putting the microphone in the hand of the guest, who is also the producer. Nicely done. A unique voice easily finding home in any news broadcast or narrative programming.
Helen Woodward
Posted on December 08, 2004 at 07:49 AM | Permalink
Review of Welcome Baby Max
This is a classic diary piece, dealing with subject matter that seems perfect for such treatment. The piece starts a few weeks before the due date, so there is no sense of what the first 2 trimesters held for the soon to be parents, nor any feel for the mounting tension and excitement that you might expect if the diary covered the whole pregnancy. The piece is short, perhaps too short, I would have liked to hear how 5 weeks bed rest due to gestational diabetes affects mom for instance; We get to hear from baby Max via fetal monitor before his birth and he gets to have the last words, or gurgles too. All round a satisfying listening experience.
Sarah Elzas
Posted on November 30, 2004 at 08:05 AM | Permalink
Review of Welcome Baby Max
I really like "before and after" pieces, where you hear from someone before an experience, and then find out what actually happens. Not much reflecting back after the fact. You get the real thing: waiting for labor, anxiety, etc. This piece is a pretty straight-forward documentation of the build-up to and the birth of a baby by emergency c-section, from mom's point of view. It's a diary format, with sounds from the hospital. For those of us who have never given birth or been present at a birth, it's a really interesting portrait of the process. And 'wacky mom' at the end, coming out of the c-section is just priceless. This piece could be dropped into a magazine type show, as a slice of life, anytime.