G C S E
A Q A
M U S I C
S U B - S T R A N D
7
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C A M E R A ,
S T U D Y
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A C T I O N !
LIGHTS, CAMERA,
ACTION!
STARTER ACTIVITY – A FILM OPENING FANFARE!
Listen to the “20th Century Fox” fanfare, used at the
opening of many different films. As you listen, think
about how this fanfare gets the attention of the audience
and “sets the mood” for the forthcoming film. Try to refer
to some of the ELEMENTS OF MUSIC and think about
what types of INSTRUMENTS are used. Note down
your ideas in the “ideas box” below.
IDEAS BOX
Learning Objectives
 Learn why music is considered necessary in films
 Learn about the features in the dramatic music of earlier periods which informed the use of
music in the cinema (AoS 2, 3 & 4)
 Learn about some musical features used by film composers such as the leitmotif and
sequencing (AoS 2, 3 & 4)
WHAT IS FILM
MUSIC FOR?
“music attempts to establish a layer of human mediation
between the reeled-off photographs and the spectators […] [Film
music] seeks, after the fact, to breathe into pictures some of the
life that photography has taken away from them”
(Adorno and Eisler, 1948, p.50)
1. Why is the term “silent” cinema misleading?
2. What were the earliest types of film music designed to “cover up”?
3. Look at the quote above, given by the Marxist critic Theodor Adorno (1903-69). Do you
agree or disagree with his reasoning that film music also has a psychological impact?
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G C S E
A Q A
M U S I C
S U B - S T R A N D
7
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S T R A N D
F I L M
M U S I C
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S T U D Y
M U S I C
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L I G H T S ,
&
2 1
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C A M E R A ,
S T U D Y
G U I D E
A C T I O N !
VIDEO MOODS
Watch Video 1, showing a short film clip of a man walking, accompanied by 3
different soundtracks. As you watch and listen to each, think about what mood
does each soundtrack create? How does the music affect your response to the
scene?
TAKE 1
TAKE 2
TAKE 3
THE GHOUL!!
The job of early MUSICAL DIRECTORS in silent films was to
compose and combine music which would be used in “live” film
presentations and they often chose from pre-existing music from
other composers.
Watch Video 2 WITHOUT SOUND, showing three different scenes
from a 1933 silent film “The Ghoul”. Then listen to three different
audio extracts (all from the music-dramas of the composer Richard
Wagner) which the musical director could use to accompany each
scene and select the most appropriate one. Finally, watch Video 2
again WITH SOUND to see how the original soundtracks compare
with your choices.
To accompany film sequence 1, I would use musical extract
To accompany film sequence 2, I would use musical extract
To accompany film sequence 3, I would use musical extract
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G C S E
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M U S I C
S U B - S T R A N D
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M U S I C
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2 0
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L I G H T S ,
&
2 1
S T
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C A M E R A ,
S T U D Y
G U I D E
A C T I O N !
THE
LEITMOTIF
A LEITMOTIF is a short melodic or harmonic idea which is associated with characters, events,
concepts, objects or situations. These ideas can undergo considerable thematic and harmonic
transformation.
Listen to two famous LEITMOTIFS used by film composers in the soundtracks to the “Jaws” and
“James Bond” films. The leitmotifs associated with each character (or animal!) are shown in the
boxes below. Answer the questions relating to each of the different leitmotifs.
LEITMOTIF 1 – “JAWS”
1. How many notes make up this Leitmotif?
2. How would you describe the PITCH they
are played at?
3. How does this affect the MOOD of this
Leitmotif?
4. What INSTRUMENTS were playing this
Leitmotif?
5. How were DYNAMICS used in the
performance of this Leitmotif?
LEITMOTIF 2 – “JAMES BOND”
1. This Leitmotif is made up of 4 chords,
two notes stay the same in all of the
chords. Describe how the highest-pitch
note MOVES in this Leitmotif?
2. This Leitmotif is repeated over and over
with the addition of themes or counter
melodies over the top. What effect on
the MOOD does this REPETITION
create?
3. What MUSICAL FEATURES do both
these Leitmotifs have in common?
SEQUENCING – where a melodic idea is repeated,
growing louder and louder and consistently rising either
a tone or a semitone higher.
Listen to two extracts featuring SEQUENCING, the first from
Verdi’s opera Rigoletto where the hunchback jester (shown left)
realises his daughter has been kidnapped and the second from
James Bernard’s score for the Hammer film Taste the blood of
Dracula (shown right).
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G C S E
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M U S I C
S U B - S T R A N D
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M U S I C
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M U S I C
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2 0
T H
L I G H T S ,
&
2 1
S T
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C A M E R A ,
S T U D Y
G U I D E
A C T I O N !
PLENARY – WHAT’S THE FILM?
Listen to ten different excerpts of music from films or soundtracks. For each of the ten excerpts,
decide what type of film you think the music comes from and a brief MUSICAL reason why.
Choose from the following film genres:
Extract
Number
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Film Genre
Reason for your choice
See if you can name/identify/remember as many of the different MUSICAL DEVICES used by film
composers and in film music during this study session:
PLENARY – SELF ASSESSMENT
KEY WORDS – Chromaticism, Crescendo, Diminuendo, Dynamics, Instrumentation,
Leitmotif, Motif, Pitch, Pitch range, Repetition, Sequencing, Tempo
I can describe some devices used by film composers and in film music which create
different moods and effects
I can describe and Identify how the elements of music and features such as
instrumentation, tempo, dynamics, pitch, repetition, motifs and crescendos and
diminuendos have been used by film composers and in film music to create different
moods and effects
I understand that a leitmotif is a short melodic or harmonic idea, which is associated
with characters, events, concepts, objects or situations and describe how a leitmotif is
used in film music.
I can describe how film music originated and developed using pre-written pieces as
soundtracks to accompany the first films
I understand how chromaticism and sequencing are used by film composers and in film
music to create a particular effect.
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