Chapter 19 – Film Music
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The rise of the symphonic film
score began in what decade?
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1930s
Most film music was written first
by European composers writing in
the European-symphonic tradition.
A Realistic Film of the American
West
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An early example of an American
composer writing for film can be found in
The Plow That Broke the Plains (1936).
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a documentary film on drought-stricken farm
families and the aid of the federal government
filmmaker: Pare Lorentz
composer: Virgil Thomson (1896-1989)
musical Americanisms:
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a Calvinist psalm tune
cowboy songs
African American blues
World War I songs
Two films about small town and big city
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Aaron Copland’s music for Our Town
Leonard Bernstein’s music for On
the Waterfront
Three Career Film Composers
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Max Steiner (1888-1971)
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European
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America (New York)
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born in Vienna, Austria
worked in musical theater (frequently in Paris and London)
on and off Broadway
1924: worked on George Gershwin’s Lady Be Good! And
Jerome Kern’s Sitting Pretty
Hollywood
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1929-1936: composed music for more than 130 films at RKO
Radio Pictures
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King Kong (1933)
 his first celebrated full-length film score
1936-1950s: worked mostly for Warner Brothers
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Gone With the Wind (1939)
 one of his most memorable film scores
Steiner’s musical style
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- “romantic,” broad, sweeping melodies
- rooted firmly in classical principles
- largely derived from nineteenthcentury, central European models
- Richard Wagner-influenced style of
music’s dramatic functions
- use of melodies that are tied to
specific characters and themes
Bernard Hermann (1911-1975)
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born in New York
studied at New York University and the Juilliard School
1934-1940: arranger and composer for CBS Radio
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1941: music for Wells’ Citizen Kane
c.1955-c.1964: collaborated with Alfred Hitchcock (18991980)
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music for radio dramas
collaborated with Orson Wells (1915-1985) on War of the
Worlds (1938)
The Trouble with Harry (1955)
Marnie (1964)
Psycho (1960)
many others
“The Murder” Psycho score
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use of glissando in the “screaming strings”
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short, repeated melodic fragments
Hermann’s musical style
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“modernist”
frequent use of short melodic
fragments
What is a “cue”?
a passage of music that is written
for a specific moment in a film
Example: “The Murder” music in
Psycho
John Williams (b. 1932)
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born in New York; soon moved to Los Angeles
Education
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1951-1954: conducted and wrote music for the Air Force
Band
1950s: composed music for television
1960s: music for comedy films
1970s: began long musical collaboration with Steven
Spielberg
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classical and jazz lessons
Juilliard School
UCLA
Jaws
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
Schindler’s List (1993)
1977: first of the Star Wars movies (George Lucas)
Williams’ musical style
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more in the style of Steiner than
Hermann
broad, lush, nineteenth-century
approach
Wagner-like musical motives
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melodies reflect characters
melodies can also change in order to
reflect character development
The Imperial March (Darth Vader’s Theme)
Star Wars: Episode V—The Empire Strikes Back
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an example of how music can
project a character.
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Listen for
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march style
dark musical key (minor)
blaring brass instruments over
“shuddering” strings