Princess Leia. Forrest Gump. Indiana Jones. Marty McFly. Hedwig (Harry Potter’s snowy owl).
In honor of yesterday being the first National Film Score Day, I have a pop quiz for you: What do all of these well-known characters have in common? Yes, they all appeared in popular movies, but what else? That’s right, music fans, they all have instantly recognizable musical themes associated with them, thanks to the amazing talents of two of my favorite film score composers: Alan Silvesetri (Marty and Forrest) and John Williams (Leia, Indy, and Hedwig). Who are you favorite movie composers?
The examples above refer to characters, but what about scenes? I have only two words for you: Jaws and Psycho. If you don’t immediately hear the appropriate music in your head, look them up on YouTube. During the day. With all the lights on. They don’t play well with the other kids.
What’s the Score?
What do movie scores do? If I were to dive into detail, the answer could be the subject of a completely independent post, which I may tackle later. For now, I’ll just say that film scores enhance the emotion of specific scenes and introduce you to specific characters. They tickle your funny bone, yank your chain, and pluck your nerves, all to help you immerse yourself in the plot and enjoy the film that much more.
Scores are different than soundtracks, which contain popular/mainstream songs heard during the movie. Pop songs are fine if that’s what you’re into, but this post focuses on filmdom’s instrumental themes and background music.
Massive Appeal
Since I usually surround myself with fellow musicians or other intelligent people, I rarely come across folks who don’t believe in the importance of music. Now and then, though, it does happen, and one of my first questions to them is “Do you think you’d enjoy a movie without the music?” I imagine it would be like watching a strange sort of documentary – you’d get the plot and hear the action, but it wouldn’t be as scary, funny, romantic, intense, or whatever the producer/director was trying to make you feel at that point in the story.
Additionally, you may be wondering what movie music has to do with community musicians. Everything, my friend. Most people enjoy a great movie theme, whether you’re playing it or listening to it. Professional and amateur musicians alike not only get the thrill of playing some of their favorite themes from the big screen, but they also have a responsibility to perform well, so their listeners can also enjoy those same feelings of excitement, horror, love, happiness, and anything else they felt when watching the movie. Star Wars fans, can you relate?
During my research for the most popular movie themes, I came across a few that made it into many online lists, each with various criteria and parameters. These include The Lord of the Rings trilogy (Howard Shore) and The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (Ennio Morricone). Apparently, I have a couple more items to add to my Netflix queue.
Many Talents
Lastly—being the cinephile that I am—I have a few of my own film score recommendations, listed by composer:
Danny Elfman – I’m very happy this one-time front man from the rock group Oingo Boingo has been able to stretch his compositional muscles. His music is often attached to a Tim Burton project. He has composed for Beetlejuice, Scrooged, Batman, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Big Fish, and the Men In Black series, among others.
Randy Newman – While most may be familiar with his pop songs, I’m more of a fan of his jaunty, uplifting film themes. He’s composed for Maverick, James and the Giant Peach, A Bug’s Life, and the Toy Story series, among others.
Hans Zimmer – I’ve seen this man’s name on too many movies scores and soundtracks, and I find myself unable to ignore his work. His list includes Twister, Thelma & Louise, Regarding Henry, The Lion King, The Rock, The Dark Knight, and the Madagascar series, among others.
Any others you can add to the list? Leave a comment!