Whilst looking for some inspiration in finding a different way to tell patient stories, I recently discovered this beautiful musical portfolio from composer and songwriter, Alan Menken. It’s particularly lovely in the way it mixes the different medium of music, video and digital design to champion each portfolio item.
Key Visuals.
What better visual cue for this being a musical portfolio, other than using piano keys for each piece of Alan’s work. This minimal, yet impactful design choice fits perfectly for the composer’s work.
To support the user experience, a short video clip plays of each animation, just in case you couldn’t immediately identify them (i.e. you’re not of this Earth).
Diving Into The Content.
It’s safe to say that this is one of my favourite transitions at the moment. The user is given the feeling that they’re diving deeper into the website’s content and gives a seamless blend between one page and the next.
Behind The Scenes.
After diving into the content on the previous screen, we’re met with some impactful full-screen video to hook the viewer in. Overlaying the content is a selection of supporting materials which feel like they’re giving you a behind the scenes peek at Alan’s work. This UX design is a brilliant way of enticing users to increase the amount of time on your site, thus telling search engines that you have content worth reading.
Back To Basics.
When you drill down further into the core information regarding each portfolio piece, the designers plumped for a clean and minimal layout. It’s a great juxtaposition from the highly interactive screens we’ve previously seen.
These screens almost feel like they’re written on paper or musical scores, yet again reinforcing the feeling of creativity.
Giving Some Context.
When you’ve got a lot of visual content on your site, coming up with a clear and concise menu is always a headache. However, it’s plain to see that the designers of Alan Menken’s site have nailed it.
As big-screen video is a crucial component of the overall design, they’ve incorporated it beautifully into a contextual menu that feels intuitive and clean.
Summary.
When you mix fantastic interaction design with some of the best known Disney films around, what is there not to like?! Every page feels effortless to navigate, with clear visual cues, simple elegant timelines and beautiful hand-drawn illustrations.
If you feel like getting lost down a musical rabbit hole, take a look at Alan Menken’s full musical portfolio site and all it’s interactions here.
