Film Music

GCSE

History of Film Music• Early 1900’s silent movies - silent movies soon become very

boring and people started adding their own music to them usually on a piano or organ.

• Performing live along with movies became the start of film music

Growth of an Industry

•1927 – first recorded sound track heard was from the movie The Jazz Singer featuring Al Jolson – this included songs and some fragments of speech.

A Growing Industry

• By the early 1930’s music for film was beginning to change dramatically

• Developments in recording techniques allowed music to be added to film with greater ease

• Opening titles become like musical overtures to a film – introducing us to main elements or themes of music.

• Similarly with closing titles – reinforcing the mood of the end film and reminding us of main themes

Classical Music in the World of Film

•During the 1930’s film makers began to borrow music from various famous composers. Such as Tchaikovsky and Strauss.

• A later and very famous example of this would be the open sequence from 2001: A Space Odyssey – music originally composed by Richard Strauss.

Patriotic Films• 1940’s dramatic increase in film

production • Many produced to increase spirit of

nations at war • Music for films becomes very

dramatic and patriotic.• Music from the film 633 Squadron by Ron

Goodwin become very famous

The Musical• Musicals were also

growing in popularity at this time (40’s and 50’s)

• Film versions of musicals were becoming big business

• Walt Disney cartoons started to be made in feature length

• Note also films where the music come first and pictures later – the most famous being Disney’s Fantasia

• Famous musical that have been turned into films include : West Side Story (Bernstein), Oliver (Bart), Little Shop of Horrors (Menken) and Evita (Andrew Llyod Webber)

Modern Film Music

• Film and film music come in many different styles (developed from 60’s) – each style has its own unique features

• Styles include –

• Horror • Thriller/Action• Science fiction• Fantasy • Famous composers

of film music today include John Williams, James Horner and Danny Elfman