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xephinatheeleven · 7 years ago

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Can we all just stop scrolling for a moment to think about how underappreciated film score composers are! Without the music that they compose/write, movies would not have the impact they have on our hearts!

Lets analyze this shall we? Let’s start with ones everyone knows, and get more obscure as we go!

-Star Wars IV: The Hologram/Binary Sunset (John Williams) - This piece of music is heard when Luke Skywalker looks up at the setting twin suns of Tatooine. Can you imagine Luke just standing there without any music; it wouldn’t be impactful with the feeling of loss of him being an orphaned child living with his aunt and uncle, all the while he wants to go and be his own person but he is stuck on this desert planet. The harsh strings really prove to you that Luke Skywalker is growing up and becoming his own person, followed by the mellow flutes that allow you to understand that he is still a kid as well. Without the music none of these feelings would have been conveyed!

-Titanic: Hymn to the Sea/My Heart Will Go On (James Horner) – Before I start on this, no Celine Dion did NOT write My Heart Will Go On, James Horner did. Anyway back to the point. This movie is one of romance and tragedy, almost none of which would be conveyed without the ominous and melodious soundtrack. The dark feeling that comes with the vocals and bagpipes in Hymn to the Sea help you to feel and envision just how much pain Rose is going through at the loss of her newfound lover and her future as she has to go back to her fiancé. Not to mention the much more cheerful strings and vocals that help you to see just how proud everyone was of the ‘unsinkable’ ship. Much like with Star Wars, without the music you wouldn’t be able to feel as emotionally connected to the characters without the score.

-Star Trek 2009: Enterprising Young Men (Michael Giacchino) – Another one of my personal favorites, this particular piece isn’t as slow, mellow and melodic as the other scores I have referenced, this one is much more upbeat and full of action, contrasting even to some of the pieces in the same movie in a beautiful way. As the stings in the beginning rise, there is a feeling that something big is coming and it is going to affect the U.S.S. Enterprise and her crew. Quickly the track leads into its crescendo with the bass drums and horns giving you a sense of satisfaction as they manage to beat the situation that has threatened them through so much of the movie. The scene where the Enterprise comes in and fires on Nero’s ship to save Spock would be nowhere near as climactic if the music weren’t there to accompany the strong feelings of the film. (I didn’t even mention the soft and depressing track during the destruction of the U.S.S. Kelvin)

-The Hunger Games: The Train/Rue’s Farewell (James Newton Howard) – The strings with a dark undertone of drums and bass in the piece The Train, allow for the feeling of despair and loss when Katniss and Peeta leave District 12, most likely forever. The brokenness they both feel as they come to realize they will probably never see their loved ones again, and for Peeta the thought of killing the girl he has always loved. In some ways this differs from the piece Rue’s Farwell, but in some ways they are very similar. Rue’s Farewell starts very mellow as if Katniss is in shock, unwilling to believe that the little girl who reminded her so much of Prim is dead/dying. As the guitar comes in, you know Katniss is beginning to accept the death of her friend and gathers flowers. As the crescendo builds, with the bass becoming deeper, the strings/orchestral track becoming more layered and emotion filled, Katniss stands and uses the three-fingers salute in defiance of the Capitol, causing an uprising in District 11 with the spark of hope she provides. This is one of my favorite pieces of film score with the emotion it holds. Now imagine Rue’s death without the music to accompany it, you wouldn’t feel as much of a sense of loss for the young girl. You wouldn’t be able to understand the pain that is being brought upon Katniss by the Capitol, it just wouldn’t be the same scene without the music.

-Mulan: Short Hair/Mulan’s Decision (Jerry Goldsmith) – You wouldn’t expect a Disney movie about a 16 year-old Chinese girl who pretends to be a man to save her elderly father from having to go to war against the Huns would have the same composer as the original Star Trek. That is the beauty of film score composers; they can make music to fit almost any genre of movies!

When Mulan goes into the room where her father keeps all of his gear for war the strings are mellow with some classic Chinese instruments, allowing you to feel the how Mulan thinks this is the only way she can really serve her family after she has practically destroyed their honor. Then as the electronic synthesizers kick in, you begin to understand the determination the girl feels for her family and country as she cuts away her hair and becomes someone new. The horns that come in later in the song add another layer of feeling to the music as she leaves the note for her father, making it final that she is going to leave to save his life and the lives of the Chinese people from the Huns.

-The Little Mermaid: Main Title/Happy Ending (Alan Menken) – I cannot thank the film score community without mentioning the ever phenomenal Alan Menken. (I have been blessed to be able to see this man perform live.) He has written the soundtracks of our childhood as he has written the music for Hercules, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Tangled, and of course The Little Mermaid.

The piece starts off with chimes and flutes, allotting for the feeling of just how young Ariel is. The whimsical feel becomes even more intense as the vocals come in, showing you just how much of an imagination the girl has as she dreams of joining humans on the surface, with all of their strange inventions. As the piece arrives at the crescendo, cymbals create the feeling of pure joy as Ariel marries the prince but as it slowly goes back into the strings and chimes from the beginning, there is a layer of sorrow as she leaves her father and her family behind to become fully human. Without the music the final scene would be no more than a simple wedding with little feeling other than that of a newly married couple.

-The Polar Express: Main Title (Alan Silvestri) – This Christmas film based off the children’s book has both an up lifting and ominous score. The soft vocals, strings, and piano in the beginning offer a feeling of uncertainty as a young boy tries to justify the existence of Santa Clause, despite there being no proof that he is real. As the bells and strings pick up you can understand the feeling of joy as he sees the train that is The Polar Express, the final evidence he needs to prove to himself that Santa isn’t just some made up children’s story. The music manages to capture the fanciful feeling of a child while still maintaining the composure of a well respected Christmas film.

-Interstellar: Quantifiable Connection (Hans Zimmer) – No composer differs more from the famous John Williams than Hans Zimmer. The fast paced piano and strings make you understand just how fleeting time can be to someone else even when it feels as if it is creeping by for you. The rising tones help you to understand just how much the love that Cooper has for his daughter Murph manages to keep them connected, even when Coop is stuck inside a singularity. He manages to find a way to contact his daughter and save the humans still living on Earth, and the tones in this particularly upbeat part of the soundtrack allow you to feel more than just a father’s pain from being separated from his children, but the joy he feels in knowing that he is able to save their lives and the lives of his race who would die otherwise.

-Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire: Hogwart’s Hymn (Patrick Doyle) – Not only do the horns and strings give a sense of nostalgia to any true Harry Potter fan, but they manage to make the school itself feel like a living, breathing being. (Some might even argue that it is…Room of Requirement) This piece helps you to understand how Harry and his friends feel in the winter, leading up to the Yule Ball, not only trying to keep up with their studies but trying to partake in the festivities of the Triwizard Tournament, all the while the threat of Lord Voldemort hangs over their heads. Still this piece manages to bring all of those emotions to light while still adding a prideful sense of serenity to the school.

-Jurassic Park: Main Theme (John Williams) – The piano at the beginning of this piece helps you to understand the beauty and magnificence that the park is trying to create and show to the world. As the strings come in to match the piano a magical feel is added to the movie as dinosaurs and humans walk the planet together for the first time. At the crescendo when the bells and horns are added into the breathtaking composition you understand not only how amazing these creatures are but just how little control humans have over them, and the immense power they possess. Next time you watch Jurassic Park imagine the scene where Alan Grant sees the dinosaurs for the first time without the music, I can guarantee you will want to go back and watch it again with the music, because it isn’t the same without it.

-Jurassic World: As The Jurassic World Turns (Michael Giacchino) – The horns in the beginning offer an ominous feel to the movie as you know something will inevitably go wrong with the park. Still the piece picks up using cymbals and trumpets to signify the vastness and magnificence of the park that has finally been opened to the public. The stings that come in as the track progresses gives you a feeling of insignificance in comparison to the science used to bring the majestic animals back to life.

-The Rocketeer: Main Title (James Horner) – This is probably the least known movie on my list, but it holds the top spot in my heart. The piano in the beginning is just astounding, and as it leads into the strings that follow, you almost feel as if you are flying through the air. The drops of bass horns allow for the feeling of darkness that you would definitely have if you were being chased by the Nazis because you had a jetpack that they were developing. Still the light strings manage to give you a sense of suspense that is only intensified by the drums and horns that come in towards the middle of the piece. As the track reaches its crescendo and goes back to the same rift of strings and chimes from the beginning, you have a wonderful sense of relief of escaping with your life.

So my whole point of this post is to make sure that film score composers get the credit they deserve. They make all these astonishing compositions that can make you cry one moment and laugh the next and yet they almost never get recognized for their superb works! So next time you watch a movie whether you’ve seen it before or not, I encourage you to listen to the music as well as the dialogue and find out who wrote it. You never know, you might find that you like symphonic music more than you ever expected you would.

With that I say THANK YOU to John Williams, James Horner, Hans Zimmer, Michael Giacchino, Patrick Doyle, Alan Silvestri, Jerry Goldsmith, Murry Gold, Alan Menken, Steve Jablonsky, David Arnold, Michael Price, Thomas Newman, James Newton Howard, Howard Shore, and every other movie composer out there! Movies wouldn’t be the same without you, and for that I thank you!

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