film music test 2

John Williams

! Studied at Juilliard, then moved to the West Coast ! Originally worked as a pianist for film and television studios ! Became a specialist on "disaster films" ! The Poseidon Adventure, The Towering Inferno, Jaws ! Received nearly 40 Academy Award nominations and won 5 Oscar.Went to UCLA • Drafted into Air Force. Conducted and arranged music for band. • Attended the Juilliard School • Jazz pianist in NY - played in Henry Mancini's group. • Known as "Little Johnny Love" John Williams, Cont. • Star Wars IV, A New Hope was selected by AFI as the greatest American movie score of all time. • Jaws #6, E.T. #14 John Williams, Awards • 5 Academy Awards (47 nominations) • 4 Golden Globes (22 nominations) • 21 Grammys (59 nominations)

Das Neue Kino

"The New Cinema" ! Filmmaking was dormant since 1932 ! Important directors: ! Werner Herzog ! Rainer Werner Fassbinder ! Wim Wenders ! Follow American trends

Dimitri Tiomkin

(1894-1979) • Oscar for Best Music • Oscar for Best Original Song (Ballad of High Noon). includes country and western song in high noon score, the ballad released before the film and created anticipation. theme songs became a rage. the ballad is "do not forsake me" - tiompkin performed in a vaudeville circuit at one point

Elmer Bernstein

1 Academy Award, 2 Golden Globes, 1 Emmy • Nearly 100 film scores from 1952-2002 Elmer Bernstein, Cont. • Of his scores, To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) was his personal favorite. - the man with the golden arm- jazz music, 10 commandments

lawrence of arabia

7 Academy Awards • David Lean, director • Maurice Jarre, music. epic film. scene on camels of him seeing other men and celebrating

a streetcar named desire

A Streetcar Named Desire • Adapted from a play by Tennessee Williams • Elia Kazan, director • Alex North, music. Set in New Orleans (birthplace of jazz) • In this setting, jazz naturally emanates from bars, clubs, restaurants, the street, and radio • It is also fitting music for a tale of lust and passion. Streetcar named Desire Clip, What to Listen For: • Sparse instrumentation/small ensemble • "Sensual" use of the saxophone • Jazz as a method of conveying sexuality

Henri Mancini

American • Attended Juilliard • Played piano in Glen Miller's band • Four Oscars: Breakfast at Tiffany's (2), Days of Wine and Roses, Victor/Victoria. • Eighteen total nomination

Alex North

American-born. Son of Russian parents. studied with aaron copland • 15 Oscar Nominations • Lifetime Achievement Award, 1986. a street car named desire. popular music underscores in this film, a lot of jazz. made music for a space odyssey but it was discarded and adapted music was used instead

Bernard Hermann

Bernard Herrmann (1911-1975) • We already mentioned him: • Citizen Kane • The Day the Earth Stood Still Psycho Score • String-only - becomes the new standard for horror films, rather than full orchestral scores • Hard accents, pizzicato • Strings rarely play melodically • Leitmotifs throughout

bill conti

Bill Conti (b. 1943) ! Trained at Juilliard, bandleader by age 15 ! Jazz and classical influences.! Rocky:-Symphonic score by Bill Conti with rock influences ! Music elicits strong, emotional reactions

Max Steiner

CASABLANCA. Nationalistic melodies (especially French and German) • The most famous song in the movie, As Time Goes By, is not by Steiner, but Herman Hupfeld. Rick's American Cafe • 30 minute scene in the cafe - entirely diegetic music. There is NO non-diegetic music in the cafe scene. • Use of popular songs during the cafe scene.

cassablanca

Casablanca Overview • Takes place in a 48 hour period in December, 1941. • Casablanca is a city in Morocco (North Africa) • AFI rates it as the 2nd greatest film, next to Citizen Kane. Popular Music Appearing in Casablanca • It Had to be You • Shine • Knock on Wood • The Very Thought of You • Baby Face • Love for Sale • Tango delle Rose • Avalon • Can't Help Loving that Man • Perfidia • You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby

laura

David Raksin - original score • Laura (main character) is a modern, sophisticated woman (new at the time) • Lots of popular music • Directed by Otto Preminger - scene where man falls in love with a dead woman Laura Clip What to Listen For: • Low instruments (bass clarinet and bassoon) • Laura main theme on piano • Piano recording manipulated so it sounds unstable/shaky

high noon

Dimitri Tiomkin, original score. • Original song (known as the ballad from High Noon) was the first single released from a movie. Made #1 on Billboard charts -key points: ticking motive creates tension during montage, silence suggesting wills isolation, leitmotifs drawn from the theme song, colorful orchestration

Avant-garde

Electronic music/instruments • Extensive use of the theramin

forbidden planet

Forbidden Planet • Score by (husband and wife team) Bebe and Louis Barron • Electronic music pioneers • Established one of the first electro-acoustic music studios

Maurice Jarre

French composer • 3 Academy Awards for Best Score, 8 Nominations • Lawrence of Arabiarated #3 on AFI's Greatest Film Scores (able to project the growing intensity of the heat in lawrence of arabia)

american nationalism

Hugo Friedhofer - The Best Years of Our Lives • Oscar - Best Scoring of a Dramatic Picture The Best Years Cont. • Tells the story of three WWII veterans. • They come from different backgrounds, are in different stages of relationships with women, different financial situations. Homer Parrish - played by Harold Russell • Double amputee from WWII • Only person to win two Oscars for the same role

Pas de deux

In ballet, a pas de deux [pɑ d(ə) dø] (French, literally "step of two") is a dance duet in which two dancers, typically a male and a female, perform ballet steps togethe

Use of jazz, rock, popular music, and country

Increased role of popular music in film • Popular music ensembles were less expensive than a full orchestra (jazz big band has about 20 members vs. 80) • Newer styles of jazz: bebop, hardbop are more edgy and worked well in film. 1950's Film Music, Cont. • Country in westerns • Rock and roll in teen/coming of age movies. The Blackboard Jungle included "Rock Around the Rock" - song #1 on Billboard for eight weeks. • The Girl Can't Help It - "Rock Around the Rock Pile" • Love Me Tender (1956), Jailhouse Rock (1957) - Elvis Presley

exotic films (foreign)

International Films (1950's) • France again a leader in non-US films • Japan quickly rises to prominence • Seven Samurai - very popular, influential • Score by Fumio Hayasaka • Western instruments + Japanese traditional instruments and music

on the waterfront

On the Waterfront. leonard bernstein. • Starring Marlon Brando • Written by Elia Kazan, inspired by a Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper series, "Crime on the Waterfront." Things to Listen for: • Jazz influences • Copland influence (American Nationalism) • Dissonant/clashing harmonies • Syncopated rhythms • Leitmotifs • Divergent (many different) styles

Leonard Bernstein

Pianist • Composer • Conductor (New York Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic) Bernstein and Film • West Side Story (not technically an "original score" as it was for a musical first and adapted for film) • On the Waterfront • The Lark, Trouble in Tahiti (made for TV movies)

jaws

Revival of the classical film score and return of the blockbuster film ! Most celebrated score prior to Star Wars ! Well known 2-note leitmotif for the shark ! Scored in the low register--> signifies danger and the sharkʼs home in the depths of the ocean ! Subjective point of view (sharkʼs perspective

the day the earth stood still

The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) • Score by Bernard Hermann • Listen for: • Theramin • Electronic piano • electric violin • traditional orchestral instrumen

the graduate

The Graduate (1967) The Graduate • Simon and Garfunkel duo wrote the music • Aids in telling the story of the "aimless, disillusioned" youth of the 1960's. • This clip uses "Mrs. Robinson" three times - for travel montages. • The music winds down when the car runs out of gas.

electro-acoustic

The name 'Electroacoustic' is descriptive of the music and its technology. Electro- = refers to the use of electronic tools to work with and transform sounds. -acoustic = refers to sound itself, and the fact that this music is often made out of recorded sounds.

Film noir

The term designates both the film genre and a style of filmmaking. Film Noir Style • Dark and pessimistic - Images are black and white with strong contrasts of light and dark, creating deep shadows. • Citizen Kane was the inspiration for many. • Others: Spellbound, Mildred Pierce, The Lost Weekend. Film Noir, Cont. • The term is also attached to a sub-category of the detective/crime genre. • The Maltese Falcon,Double Indemnity, Murder, My Sweet, Laura. -Happy endings, guy gets the girl = no more. • Tragic or ambiguous conclusions, disturbing musical sounds (usually reserved for horror films). Film Noir Music Characteristics (pg. 183) • one prevailing mood, generally dark and pessimistic • minimal musical cues • orchestration for small ensembles • prominent low-pitched instruments • emphasis on the lower registers of the strings Film Noir Music, Cont. • Use of non-traditional orchestral sound, often wavering pitch. • angular, disjunct melodies • harsh, dissonant harmonies • the use of jazz (music of the city at night)

theremin

The theremin was used in movie soundtracks such as Miklós Rózsa's Spellbound, The Lost Weekend, and Bernard Herrmann's The Day the Earth Stood Still. The theremin (/ˈθɛrəmɪn/;[1] originally known as the ætherphone/etherphone, thereminophone[2] or termenvox/thereminvox) is an early electronic musical instrument controlled without physical contact by the thereminist (performer

Rocky

Won "Best Picture" ! Starring a young Sylvester Stallone ! New genre of "sports film" ! Symphonic score by Bill Conti with rock influences ! Music elicits strong, emotional reactions

random

World War II • European film efforts - used to assist the war/government. • US - focusing on lightening the mood of the war for the people back home. • FDR made a conscious decision to leave the film industry independent.

a clockwork orange

adpated score that runs counter to the mood on screen. "singing in the rain during rape scene" same director as a space odyssey- stanley kubrick. original music created with a synthesizer is used

psycho

alfred hitchcock produced, hermann music • Conscious choice to shoot in black and white: • To highlight the starkness of the story • To lower production costs • Black and white films continued for many of the top films in the late 50's/ early 60's. • The Academy Awards had a "Black and White Cinematography" category until 1967. • "Stands as a classic model of the exploitation of sex and violence." - Hickman, 262. • Unmarried couple in a hotel together. • First ever on film - backside of a bra • Moral ambiguity throughout • This film redefined horror films -shower montage cutting technique

singing in the rain

best musical of the decade. adolph green and betty combined used tunes from ten or twenty years ago - the result is a humorous tale of hollywood during the transition from silent to sound era. specific silent film scenes are mimicked . nacho herb composed most of the music

2001: ASpace Odyssey

borrowed music!

walter/wendy carlos

clockwork orange - moog synthesizer

Dissonance

dark, clashing, loud

film noir

dissonance and colorful orchestration

Bebe and Louis Barron

forbidden planet score. pioneers in electronic music, established one of the first electro acoustic music studios

Bollywood

indian hollywood

bollywood

indian hollywood. bombay, indian films are formulaic

The Godfather

italian folk melodies. hospital scene showed in class, lots of tension in the music as his father is left unattended as he recovers from gunshot wounds, harmonies dissonant to reflect seriousness. killing is a business, not personal, and it is a family buisness,

seven samurai

japanses series of films. clip used traditional japanese music in entire film it combines with western european orchestral style. akira kurosawa.

planet of the apes

jerry goldsmith - avant garde style - underlying symbolism in the plot, in which white human is trapped in a world dominated by black apes

touch of evil

last great film noir, all types of borrowed music is played throughout the movie. Touch of Evil: What to Listen For • Big band • Latin music • American rock music • Live bar music • Car radio. - Music by Henri Mancini • Welles left the project at the last minute. Editors did not follow his wishes. • 1998 - a "definitive" Welles version was released= two version

David Raskin

laura

Consonance

more pleasant sounding smoother, opposite of clashing dissonance

American Nationalism

most closely associated with the concert music and film scores of aaron copland and with hugo friedhofers masterful score to the best years of our lives. in the 195os is primarily associated with american stories, such as those set in small towns or in the old west

Jerry Goldsmith

music for planet of the apes, avant grade style, one of most modernistic scores, included tuned aluminum mixing bowls a rams form and brass instruments with inverted mouth pieces, creates a distorted mood with these

to kill a mockingbird

one of hollywoods finest adaptations of a novel. elmer bernstein. key points- general modern style, a small group of instruments, a mood of gentle innocence

Pizzicato

plucking the strings of an instrument with your fingers

the best years of our lives

score by hugo friedhofer. american nationalism.

religious epic films

sub genre within epic films. epic films shot on location with large casts, 10 commandments one of largest. Ben-Hur Chapter 19 Ben-Hur, The "Best" of the Religious Epic Films. rosza- score. number 3 is important in the leitmotif- the trinity • 11 Academy Awards (tops previous best of 10 by Gone With the Wind) • Based on an 1880 novel • Versions existed for stage • 1925 silent film

Nino Rota

the godfather. italian composer. rota composed score for first godfather, rota and coppola both for second, coppola for third

Simon and Garfunkel

the graduate music, folk rock duo, their song captures the aimless dillousioned youth of the 60's and is essential to the film

Leitmotif

theme associated with a character or mood

leitmotif

theme for character

Hollywood vs. TV Studios in the 1950's

tv introduced and financial problems for hollywood and its after ww2 so people want to stay home. hollywood sold some places had to compensate. hollywood blacklists actors who went to tv- they would not be allowed to act in films. hollyoowd does drive in theaters, surround sound, wide screen to bring in people. • Hollywood tried to fight the tv industry: • No movies to be shown on tv • No film stars to be on tv shows (this still exists, to some extent) Film vs. TV, cont. • Tried to lure customers with innovation: • 3D movies (sound familiar?) • Color film (tv black and white still) • Wide-screen cinematography (tv 4:3) • Stereo sound. the blockbuster was created to lure people to the theatre

some like it hot

• AFI's #1 Comedy of all time. • Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon dress as women and join an all-female jazz big band. • Marilyn Monroe is the soloist in the band, • Some Like it Hot - Adolph Deutsch

Aaron Copland

• American Nationalism • His last two film scores were in 1949: The Red Pony, and The Heiress

musicals

• An American in Paris (1951) • Singin' In the Rain (1952) • Gigi (1958)

Hugo Friedhofer

• German parents, but he was American • Worked under Erich Korngold (Robin Hood score), Alfred Newman, and Max Steiner. Best Years Score • Style heavily borrowed from Aaron Copland • Thee main characters each have a theme/leitmotif • Friedhofer manipulates these leitmotifs by having them played in film as source music, rearranged as a march, played on individual instruments, and full orchestra

Adolph Deutsch

• Some Like it Hot - Adolph Deutsch • London-born • Conducted orchestras on Broadway • Worked at Warner Brothers and MGM • 3 Oscars: Annie Get Your Gun, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Oklahoma