Projects
The hallmark of JMP’s work is its distinctive use of sound. We use natural sound the way that National Geographic uses photographs. Our programming, often imitated, has pioneered the use of on-location sound to enhance content. Rather than being just “talking heads,” JMP audio takes you there, conveying emotional and visceral messages that blend with words to provide an experience that touches the mind and heart.
Announcing the American Soundscapes Project, where you can hear the work of some of the best sound recordists in the world and contribute sounds that are significant to you.
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From Morocco, Cuba and around the world, JMP created a suite of multi-media features for National Geographic Online. It was a great partnership, with NGO adding their signature maps and a perfect context for our material. They very kindly have allowed us to include a number of these evergreen stories on pulseplanet.com. Check out the Pulse of the Planet’s Pulse Picks...
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There’s a lot more to NASA than space launches! They commissioned JMP to produce Pulse of the Planet stories on aerospace, featuring NASA engineers and aerospace...
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According to a survey conducted by the Rand Corporation, most kids would rather take out the garbage than engage in science activities. There’s a shortage of qualified candidates for engineering schools, and the US ranks low in science test scores for elementary and middle school students. How to reach kids with a message that science and engineering are important, compelling and even fun? To address this need, JMP created the Kids’ Science Challenge, a free nationwide competition for...
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Thirteen – WNET New York commissioned JMP to create a series of Pulse of the Planet radio programs based on content from The Music Instinct television special, which aired on PBS nationwide in 2009. The Music Instinct explored the relationship between science and music, and featured singer Bobby McFerrin, neuroscientist Daniel Levitin and others. The challenge was to use audio recorded expressly for a television program and make it work for the medium of radio, encapsulating themes...
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We were hired by the National Federation of Jewish Culture (NFJC) to produce a radio program that would celebrate 300 years of Jewish American culture. The challenge was to weave historical fact with a story line that captured listeners’ imaginations, while being faithful to the essence of the tradition of Passover. So Passover Dreams, an hour long special, was developed. It featured some fabulous music from Sweet Honey in the Rock, Natalie Merchant and many others, along with a full cast...
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Currently aired on 250+ public and commercial broadcast outlets worldwide, Pulse of the Planet is heard by 200,000 listeners daily on radio and as a popular podcast. It’s one of the longest-running short format science programs on radio, and recently celebrated its 7000th broadcast. Over the years, the series has been funded by the National Science Foundation, NASA, the American Museum of Natural History, Virginia Tech and the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies. Pulse’s original...
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The American Association of Engineering Societies (AAES) presented us with the challenge of explaining to the general public what engineers do. There is a nation-wide shortage of graduates heading for engineering schools – particularly in minority groups. JMP produced the Voices of Innovation series, which ran for two years on over 100 public and commercial stations, bringing stories about engineers and engineering in a language everyone could understand. The series was distribute by Murray...
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Tales of Two Cities: The Newburgh Beacon Cell Phone Tour was developed as a cultural tourism project, funded by the New York Council for the Humanities, to encourage people visiting the Hudson River waterfront to venture into the heart of these two cities. Fifteen signs take visitors through an entertaining look at the cities’ lesser known historic sites, as told by the voices of the people who live there. A sign in a city park asks “What could you have seen from this very spot in...
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“Pulse of the Planet — Extraordinary Sounds From the Natural World” was a CD/book hybrid published in 1994 by the Nature Company and offered exclusively in their stores and catalog, “Extraordinary Sounds” sold out its print run of 15,000 copies. The recording features over thirty sounds from our planet and beyond! This was a pioneering multi-media project; the CD was mounted on the front cover, underneath the dust jacket.
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The DuPont Company had one of the most creative and socially responsive External Relations Departments of any Fortune 500 Company, spearheaded by PR visionary Dick Woodward. Woodward hired JMP to produce the science version of “You’re Hearing America” (see Maxell Project.) The series was called the Sounds of Science, which later morphed into Pulse of the Planet.
Both series have won numerous broadcasting awards, and been featured on the CBS Evening News, the Wall Street...
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The natural history of the Hudson river comes alive through stories. River Voices, funded by the Department of Environmental Conservation, consists of 12 signs located in waterfront parks along the Hudson. “What Hudson River native has red tipped fingers?” “What Hudson River dwellers have been mistaken for river monsters?” – just a few of the questions that spark visitors curiosity and have them pulling out their cell phones to find out the...
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In 2006, Jim Metzner and Eileen McAdam co-founded the World Sound Foundation, a non-profit organization whose mission is to use the power of sound to help convey important stories and themes to the general public. The Sound and Story Project of the Hudson Valley, the WSF’s first endeavor, explores the Hudson region through cell phone tours, radio programs, podcasts and web audio, creating a series of aural portraits which connect people to each other and to the place where they...
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The American Museum of Natural History co-funded Pulse of the Planet (with the NSF) in 2005. The museum’s education department was expanding its role and wanted the opportunity to showcase some of the museum’s extraordinary roster of scientists. Previously, in 1989, JMP had been hired by Natural History Magazine to produce a radio series entitled “The Sounds of Natural...
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Maxell Tape was looking for a new way to tell the world about the audio quality of its products. They hired JMP to produce a series of sound-rich short-format radio programs which featured the closing credit, “You’re Hearing America is recorded on Maxell Tape; Maxell – it’s worth it.”
You’re Hearing America won several broadcasting awards, and was one of the first radio programs to be nationally distributed to both public and commercial stations. The...
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Holt, Rinehart & Winston commissioned Jim Metzner Productions to create a series of text features portraying the science fields of physics and chemistry in action for Holt’s high school science text books.
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When Pfizer launched a new line of veterinary drugs, they decided to install an interactive exhibit on the windows of the main office in New York City, turning them into giant, interactive screens. JMP was hired, through the firm of Puches Design and writer Alan Hall (formerly of Scientific American) to create the sounds, content and narrative for the installation’s audio.
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Jim has produced features for many National Public Radio, American Public Radio and Public Radio International programs, including All Things Considered, Market Place, The Savvy Traveler, The World, Morning Edition and Weekend Edition. For many years, he was a featured commentator on Weekend Edition Saturday.
Listen to audio from Public Radio projects.
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Nautilus, the world’s first CD-ROM magazine, hired JM Productions to produce feature content for them. In the hey-day of CD-ROM, Jim Metzner reviewed the field for Wired Magazine.
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