Complete Guide to Film Scoring The Art and Business of Writing Music for Movies and TY Richard Davis‘complete Guide to Fm Scoring by Richard Das ate by Jonathan Feist ‘BERKLEE PRESS Dave Kusoks Director ‘Debbie Cavan Managing Ete (fa Frank, Marketing Manager Jonathan Fest, Senor Wnte/Estor ‘ows Fran, Conbuting Etor Cover Design: Moore Moscontz ‘Book Design: Dancing lane! Mectorks™ '56N 063400636-3 Pa Praise for Richord Dovis's Complete Guide to Film Scoring From his technical dacssions to hit fcinting interviews, Richard's book i one ofthe best resources on filmtleiion scoring | ave ever tea. I wish Td ead it twenty years ago It Should be mandatory reading for everyone inthe bsiness—new comers, veterans, students and movie bulls” “Mark Sno; Cano fr the X- Fes aud Mile Richard Davis book, Complete Guide wo Film Scoring, is very concise and thorough, I is exelent both as movie's introduction tothe subject anda reference for professionals" “Mark sham, Acar Award nominated fl compose? ‘and Grammy winning recoding art Mor A River Runs Through It “This book ges right down to busines. Clea, concise, compre hensive, and up-to-date this the ost wel writen bok onthe subject of fil scoring | highly recommend it to music tants, lovers off, or anyone who has an interest in im scoring” “Richard ton, Emmy winning Musical Director of Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain- TABLE OF CONTENTS Ponty: Interviews ts fcknowledgemente * Kner Bemstein 86 Invoducton 0 | Terence Blnehord a0 Pert 1: The Wistory of Fim Music 43 Ai deuser 28 (Chapter fly Fins and Misi Gif tdelnen ms The lent Movies as " ze (hpter 2 The Fst Teles . us The Beginning of synched He 8S an at haper he Stade sytem and Meche carte onc "7 The stuio Misi eportment a rk sho 2 hpter 4 Niel Stye-1998 to 1930 oe The olen ge of olvoos a” ! 38 ‘pte sel Ses 1988 t0 17 o Seid enon si Chapter 61975 te Teday 7 Der an a Part 11: Production, a Willem tos 32 (hpter7 The Filn-RatingProcese * Flan sivert 4 ‘Chapter # the Composer's Time Frome st | Mark Snow ue hpter 9 spotong a | chor Stone : Gopter 0 The Mas ator 8 sie water 80 hopes The Hose Team Archestrtors and Music Preporotion 111 fied Motes tk ‘oper 12 The Recording erin ond Mi a2 i Resources 35 Pe 1 The Mae — i binter opter 15 Ceating the Hane a Se Gorter a fecha Requrencns the Swe Mt W About the Author 378 hopter 15 Syncing the Musi to Pletare 185 Copter 6 Telensan us | Ghepteri7 ethnic on Pred woe a | chapter te animation 9 Chapter 19 Sons, Soundtrack, and Source Msi 189 1M Port 1¥: The Business of Fim Scoring 203 hopter 20 Woking the De | Agents, Rttomeys, on Contracts | Chopter 21 Publishing ond copyghts | epter 2 Rests, er Shw Me the one ‘hepter 25 Out inthe Res! Worle 2«ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Nigteakisls fon antter an ben many when invmabl help to me on this roc, This book woud not be he sme without the parcpstion of the om poser music editors and agents who gladly offered thr ime, And 1 ‘an thank Nan Kren of ASCAP and Doreen Ringer Ros of BMI enough for the hp they gave rein eting up many ofthe interviews In transcribing and preparing ovr 200 pages of interview transcripts, had the very enthusiastic and gracious help of my stant eve Haddon 5. Kime, Michael Wasserman, Joseph Pondaco, Erica Wes, ‘Matt Koskenmali, Sha-Ron Kushner, Daniel Davis, Marie Van Nickerk, Alvin Abuelou, Thanh Tran, Nina Edelman, Susan Lim, Jason Get and Michael Albers. Their fort ad feedback was won erful In Los Angeles, my former stadent, Alfonso Chavee was a great help in facilitating incerviews, giving superior computertechnial advice and feedback on the manuscript. David Fran2 was the g0-t0 ‘etal efekenty helping wth many diferent ares of production ‘The Film Scoring Department at Behl College of Music gave impor- tantfeedback and guldance ri Reason Jack Freeman, Doa Wilkins, Michael Rendish, and fon Ken. Also Richard Grant, creator of the [Arilesoftwar helped tec me inthe ight ection on several ists. In securing clearance to ue copyrighted materials and photos I had the hep of Jonathan Watkins of Fox Muse Publishing, Carl Farhat ‘of Fox TV Music, Antonia Coffman of The Sinprons, Stacey Robinson 1 Twentieth Century Fox Productions, and Richard assaian of Todd: AO Studio. Finally 1 ike o thank the staf at Berke Press. Senior Weite/Etor Jonathan Feist devoted countless hours to meticulously editing and assembling this manuscript. Jonathan, Managing Editor Debbie (Cavalier, and Dizector Dave Kus ll fciitated geting huge project thuough the pipeline in avery short amount of time (oe to mention tile encouragement when [felt Pd never make). An for aditonal apn profing the eamacrp, the eal-yed ear Larry Devi Richard Davis«_______INTRODUCTION this hook fo anyone intrested in writing musi for movies or television. I takes the reader step-by-step through the at of fm scoring from the history ofthe fl, through the proces of ring the Score, and finally to an explanation ofthe muse busi ‘es 35 it pertains to film and television composers. As composer ‘mys have worked with ome ofthe top people inthe business In preparing this book, 1 interviewed over 20 of my colleagues — ‘composers, music editors, music supervisors, and agents--and included ther obserations and anecdotes. Succ flm scoring not a mate of just wtng good music; it is writing good mave that supports a dramatic station, Aer teaching fil scoring for several years atthe Berklee College of Musi, have realized thatthe most important thing for the begin hing compose to learn is how to approach writing this kind of ‘music. Thi means ining the hear ofthe ln, the sol ofthe fm, tnd expresing that in musi. No one can get inside a composers head and tell them which notes to write, Every musician brings his ‘own personal experience and muscl point of view to a compos tion. Bat they can be guided and pointed ina ceain direction, citer bya teacher a diteto, or simply a gut reaction to 3 patcu Tar scene. have ound tha he hest creative guidance can gives to help someone find that hese ofthe pctre in order to knot what they want to express about it Tht expression can then combine ‘with other skils-compostonal, technical, ceative, business, and ‘communication skillet make a succesful ln sone and ¢ su ‘esl composer, ‘This is our approach in the Film Scoring Program st Bethe and there are several dimensions to or program that ae refed inthe structure of this book Firs iis invaluable to have an appreciation ‘fhe masters lm coring, past and present. The chapters on the history ofthe field give an overview, and hopeful will ingpte the stadent of lm muse wo farther sty. Second very composer hoping to wok in film scoring must kno the proces of fm making and the evolution of «film cove. The chapters on topics sich a poting, syncing, ad msc iting will give the reader an understanding ofthis proces that many estab Tshed composers had to lara onthe job, ‘hind, and the mos dificult to impart in a Book, are the chapters ‘on creating the score With the help of my composer clleygues, 1 fect on the important concepts in writings film score. Again my sm sto point the reader in the right dzetion, and hopeflly the lneresedstadent of fm scoring wil take the advice of several of ‘the composers ia this book, and sty, ty sty. ‘The final chapters discussan ise ha is necessary othe livelihood of every profesional musician: the music business Royalties, agents attorneys, copyrights, and other topics ofthe fll muse bosines are addressed at length. This provides abasic understand Ing for anyone entering the fel The book concludes with interviews with some ofthe top com poses and agents in Hollywood. These interviews provide an Aluminating glimpse int the careers af those who ae sccesfl in this fd. Ther relationships with drcto, stores of how the carers gute ps and downs along the wy. anceotes about how specie senes were writen and many other seceded. How does ths music end up onthe iver sereen? What dest take to beable to compose Who chooses the composer! Who chooses what the music should sound ike? Have lng does it tke? How do the finances work? This book answers these questions and many others about the at and busines of film scoring. RD, Boson, May 199The History of Film MusicCHap Eorly Films and Music: The Silent Movies Masini vial nce ring fore normed Hermie sic and drama, Drama and. music, Either way, these to, [branches ofthe performing ats have been linked together for thousands of yeu in many cultures around the wold. There i Japanese Kibuki Indian Bharatnatyam, and the Balinese Monkey Dance The ealy Greeks and Romans used chorses and orchestras 0 accompany thelr dramatic plas. In Europe, daring medical times there were pagan festivals chat used must t accompany stories of gods and heroes aswel a liturgical dramas that portrayed various Iiblal stories through singing and. dramatic ation. During the Renaissance, musie was used in various scenes in the plas of Shakespeare and ater. In the Baroque period of asia musi we find early opera and bal, forms of musical drama that continae today. And finally, inthis century we have the huge popularity of Broadway plays and im musi Inallthese examples the music and drama canbe separated int inde pendent ents, but thee combination as a wholes greater than the sum oftheir individual pars. Overtures and arias fom Mozart’ oF Vera’ operas are often performed independently and are musically satisfying. Some of thee Same operas exist spay or books. But heat the aria as part ofthe staged opera and the effect profound in away ‘that the ply or music by fuelf cannot approach, Masicfor mi si ae Certainly 2 fm composer can write good music that stands upon is own without the fl. John Willams Suit rom ET, The Extra‘Terria fcquenty performed in concerto great acl. Bat when herd in conjunction withthe visual ofthe film eis awesome andthe whe aks onanathr dimension. Ie nofen dificult forthe modern 190s anience to appreciate the experience ofthe lm audience of eve the 140s oF 9308 much less the ance ofthe ten ofthe 20 century, when the technology of ‘moving pictures was new. But fora moment 1 put yours n the Shors of the flmgocr in 1895. The commen forms of long-distance Communication sere leters and the telegraph The cating edge of Commutation technology wa the telephone, and onl 2 tiny pe entage of ty dels had one in thes homes or had ever wed one. Horses and tains wee al the primary modes of travel atomobiles were about a common as telephones, and the Fight of the st air ple wae stil 0 years ny. Electric ight were only 5 years old and fa lamps were sl the prevailing method of artificial ight Einstein Fad yet to propose his Theory af General Relativity Savinsky was nly yeu ld and Schoenberg weve systems of music was mote than two decades inthe fate musi lover were most fanart ‘with rahmr, Wegnes Mozart, Ver Beethoven, and other 1 and. to century composers Imagine now that you enter smal theater or een café with curtains ‘owed against the ight. Avery noisy machine in the mile of the fom starts up and aros a sceen in the Fon! you see the images of| people animals. and buildings To you, the almost turn-o-the-century Fimgoc hisses miracle And yt at the sme time the images scr disembodied, for there is no accompanying sound The mouths might ‘move the hose might gallop the x spews its fares, but here are no ‘rons there no cippity lp, and there sno chugging and banging (ofthe engine. Als eto your imagination, forthe ony sounds you pear are the loud and noisy rotations ofthe projector's motor However imagine you are in the same room and there ia pianist or ‘small group of musicians paying wile the picture moves on the ‘Screen This adds another dimension to your experience, ad even if ‘he music i just background manic wih no dramatic importance, Your previous impression of empey, disembodied images trans formed into a more complete experience. Tere ae still no words m0 hooves no automobile engine noises. But the addition of music some how makes the images on the screen more complete and les ke ‘o-dimensonal shadows. From the very beginning there were probably musical accompani- rents to film though the rst documented incidents were in 1895 hu 896 when the amie fay screamed some ofits aly sin Paris and London with msical accompaniment. These were a great ces and soon orchestras were accompanying sin the heaters Atfitstthe music that went wih these lms was taken fom anywhere: ‘asc favorites, popula song. folk songs 0 lie or no attempt to give the musica drama thereto enliven the sudienc' experience. [As the fl industry grew and became more sophisticated, musi in the theater grew aswell Depending om the sie and location ofthe tester, thete could be anywhere from one plano or organ oa small, torchestea The player or music decor would choose various pecs fom the eteady enti erstre and prepare thes for performances. In sagan in France, Camille Saint-Saens was commissioned to write wat is Beleved to be the st fm score tare fora specific film, Lasasnat dir Duc de Guise. This score was succes, but cause ofthe added expense of commissioning a composer, repr ing the musi, and hiring the ensemble, the concep of scores specially composed fra film didnot ake hold. However many people inthe industry wer becoming aware tht there ‘wae nec for standardizing music or films if not specifically com: posing for ther, Music was not yet an integral par ofthe drama on the sees f wae stil simply am adjunct with litle or no dramatic significance, And because ofthe ltl problem of composing fr tS many diferent Kinds of ensembles as there were theaters, sores ‘rere only aly composed for specie ns ”6 Music Fake Books ‘Wha id take hol however, was amethod of standardizing the mus cal experiene of the audience, and a way of codifing what the ‘musicians played. This happened wit the publation of eral books that provided many ferent pieces of music with diferent moods that ould cover almost any dramatic situation Thee books, of which the most well-known are the Kinabblthek (or Kite) by Guiseppe Becce The Sam Fox Moving Picture Music Volumes by LS. Zam, and Motion Picture Moods by Erno Rape organied the musical ele tion to be played by dramatic category. The musi director could simply determine the mood or general feng of particular sene, Took up that idea the Book, and choose one of several posses I for example, he needed msi fora very dramatic scene stn an ei ht have sen thee intings andr "dramatic expression Night sinister mood [Night threatening mood Magic: pparton Innpending doom Pare ight Heroic combst Distarbed nature: fre storm In addition, there were many other moods and alo other main cit sie: Love, Lyrical Expesion, Natur, Nation & Sacey and Church Be State. (See Fs 13,12,13) “The use ofthese books coud bes cumbersome proces, expel i there was more than one muskian plying The music director in each theater would view the fm several times with «stopwatch an time tach scene He then would choose the individual pices to be played, owing bow many seconde cach piece should ron. Much was dependent on the ability of the conductor or player to anticipate 3 scene change and tobe abe to exten or compress pce, One ofthe ‘ost problematic areas became the transtons between scenes that had erent pecs of musi. A change in key enter, tempo instr [potteonrenttestreomesniey e e e e § e . 6G. SCHIRMER, ING., NEW YORK Roneonsoneonsanea: MOTION PicTURE Moops For Pianists and Organists 1A Ravid Reference Collection of Selected Piecet Aneel ERNO RAPEE Adageat w rity-Tw0 Metas snd Sisto $ Ronasneeneensnneaneaneanee eit by Beaton af Skeor rae Hoe 2 Pe Gyo Se) vad Gi O86 Heong’. %5" ‘aon 4 ESAS Se a Fig. Rae, Aint by Poon Shes Fe Rae erin ean 9. Shire‘mentation, or overall ood could be very awkward without writen ‘out tansion. Therefore, many musical directors crested sich teanition themselves, “The fake books were sucesfl since they created et musical serpt that any musician could follow. However, thei dramatic effectiveness ‘was ited by the ability ofeach theaters mia director. concurrent system whose inception actualy predates the we of ake books was developed by Max Winkler, a cet a Cal Fischer Music Store and Publishing Company in New York, Winkler relized that | hh could se the fis before they were released, he could then make ‘up what he called “cue sheets for cach film (similar to modern-day ‘esheets o timing notes, but not fo be confused with them). These ue sheets woulda ot the choice of misc and give timings fr how Tong o play’ each pieces well as present guideline fo imterpreation, Jn order to say synchronized, The publisher would preview the fim, sreateacue sheet, then organize and sella book for each film that was provided to the musial director of a thenter. This benefited the fm ‘maker, fort provided ast musical script with rough timings. Ie alo benefited the publishers ofthe music fo they could make prof sl ingor renting the musi itself tothe teats Heri the cue sheet for an imaginary lr that Winkler dew up the night he go the ideas Mosic Ce Sheet or ‘The Magic Valley Selected and amped by Me Winkler ‘Cue 1. Opening —play Minuet No. in Gby Beethoven for ney seconds uni ile o screen “Follow me deat” 2. Play "Dramatic Andante" by Vly fortwo mints and fen seconde, Note play soft daring scene where moth tet lay Cue No.2 unt scene"her levi room: 23. Play "Love Theme" by Lorenze for one minute and ‘twenty seconds, Note: Play soft and slow during conver ‘Stion nt leon screen There they go" 4. Play "Stampede" by Simon fr Sy-fve seconds Noe: Ply fas and decree or increase speed of allop in sccodance with ation om the seen “This iscearly impreis, withthe effectiveness ofthe mood andthe accuracy ofthe timings dependent onthe pianist or conductor's bi ity wo lterpret these instructions. However, the response fom producers and from musicians was overwemingly postive. It ave them a masial scrip to follow that ostensibly followed the wishes of the lm makers. tn actus, both the Kinothek and Max Winker methods were des tind for shor lives. Wile sytem debuted in 912 and the Kinathek ‘was published in. By the ate 1208 the revolution of "talkies the Fist moves with hie charactrs actully speaking in synchronized sound, were being distributed. It was this technological advancement that began the modern use of musi in movies. BCHAPTER 2 The First Talkie: The Beginning of Synchronized Music ‘There ws mein hisses when hey ha thee of the whole wide nord But tha wa good enough forthe, ‘hs hey a ave he are of he worl to Shey ‘pend heirbig mouths ane out coe ta. Talk Tal Norma Demond in Sunset Boulevard he use of sound in fms revolutionized the way moves were de Not only was there an amasing new dimension tothe aul- oc’ experience, but the way a sory was communicated had to be ‘ompletey rethought Previously when th actors were silent the ln ‘maker often had o conveyor amplify an emotion, or make a certain Point by us of lighting or camera anges Because the actors were now Taking onscreen, dietors ft that they ad to highligh them with lear bright ight In addition, the camera angles stayed more static in fonder to focus onthe speakers and the reactions of those listening. (Actually thi wae also a ecological quirement becase the er ‘ras were il ery noisy and had tobe enlosed in bulky, soundpreot bile that were cumbersome to move around the set) The fect of lof this was that he dalogue became the focal point ofthe fm. The imagination of the audience was curtailed atthe actors explained ‘vcrything happening “This meaat several things for the musicians. First a composer could provide necdd insight into the emotional and prchological drama through the music Second, he could compose 2 piece of musi hat ‘wold accompany the film wherever it was shown. Thizd, the shit ‘Owards sound pictures meant that thousands of theater musicians would be put out of work 8ra ‘One of the interesting side-stores to the development of the film industry is that inthe lat 920s here were quite afew stuo owners ‘who tired thatthe takes were a pasing fad However there Were ‘others who saw the commercial postin of movies with synchro nized dialogue. During the mid-agaos several diferent technologies ower being experimented with o synchronize picture and dalguc. In toss and ign severl shorts were sereened tothe public by the Warner Bros. Studio to gauge the audience reaction, These were nt dramatic fms: they simply showed opera singers, tains, or other mundane ‘vents that nckded synchronized sound, tn 927, nervous Warner Bros executives premieved The Jaze Singer in ‘New York Starring vaudeville singer Al flson, this flim had several rusia numbers featuring sychronized sound. With seventy years of| hindsight sts xy for us to tink" What was the big deal? OF course ‘ereryone would love this new technology” But the ely of thetime i ‘that no one knew how audiences would reat afte thirty years of set Pictures Although mach of the spoken dialogue wasstil silent andthe ‘sory told by narration eds” when Jolson sng"Blue Sis" andy “Mammy and the sound appeared to come fom his mouth the aud cence was thre. The Jaz Singer dd terrific box-office business and became the film that showed the industry the wayto go. I opened op whole new ea or several reasons, both commercial and tehaical, may ofthe fst access talkies were to be musicals For about three years, enti shout 13 astendy team of muscals was produced. This was probs by beease ofthe entertainment vale of musical; aot only id the actors speak, they also sang and danced. In addition, there was the logistical advantage of having the musicians on these and ofen 02 camera. However, as with any fad afer several yar ofa steady dit of rmusial, the publics interest in them soon waned When this hap- pened many studio executives thought there was no longer a ned for Imusicians, and many ofthe studio orchestras wer laid of A yearlong period of adjustment ened unl the same exzcuties found out how "uch they realy id need the msc. [Adding music to films at this time was an expensive, cumbersome, prolate proces. Inthe very esl days of tales there was Do way {orecord the moi separately rom te rest ofthe production. Al he Imusicins had tobe present onthe set, postioned in sucha vay sto [Beheard but nt cover up the actor line. Tey ould not make a mis take est a whole ake be ruined Tis wae nightmae forall involved: musicians actors, decor and youndmen. Sometimes a short song ‘ould take two o thre days to record. In ation, there could be 90 ‘lis afterward or the music would be ruined the soundtrack would have jumps and lips, “The technology that wa to fe the music fom the confines ofthe hooting st ws the ability to Tecord the muse ata separate te, oF e-rcond” a i was known then. Devped about 393, this allowed the mic tobe ecorded on town scoring stage «oad to distin= tush the musi recording building from the soundstage orm set building allowed the film maker tobe able to put the music ay ete he wanted inthe im, and it eeated the proces we now cll “aubbing” when the musi, dialogue and sound efects are mixed togethers Dubbing wis yet another major technological advance, at ‘gn the distr or producer contrl not only over where the music fd sound eects would go, but aso over how lo they would be in elation tothe dialogue This new technology made the proces of inclding mucin ms ‘much more lebe and les expensive, and by the early 19305, de: tore and producers began to accept that the fis underscore was a stitial component However,many sil believed thatthe soure ofthe music needed to be accounted for visually. Max Steines, one ofthe {ints ofthe estly dys of coring described the sitaation: hu they fil as necessary 0 explain the music pica. For example, if they wanted use for sect ee, Og ner as shoe I sas ows music ma nihtelah bal ‘oom other sens as thre he ocr payed a necessary arin the picture ury Many range devices were ated to introduc the music. For Instance love cee might take place in he woods a order tm justify the music hough nesesary to company i wan ering valine woul be Brough tn for no reason at all Or, gia shepherd would Be sen herding his sbep an playing his fl, che accompaniment ofa ify ce orhesra Such examples show the muveté of many fm makers at that time ‘Audiences had been accepting music with no need for 3 vis justification from the beginning of films. However, it was a period wen the industry was Binding is way and discovering what worked and what didnot workin these new sound movies To address the perceived necessity that all music be justified visually to dntint and diametrically opposed solutions of music use cue Into vogue-One was the use of constant music score that stated at the opening credits and dd not stop unt the picture ended. The other was no musica al Neither ofthese solutions was ideal andi tok some teal and errr on the part of flm makes to find one that ‘worked. Ukimately a system of bringing the music in and out of he Pctureas the deama required became the standard practice and sti ‘cere to today Itis intresting to not that between thee ely days of talkie and the contemporary fils of today thre have been ‘ery few succesful ‘movies that had absolutly no mos. revealing anecdote i that of “The Lot Wekend, 945 in starring Ray Milan, Thi intense lm about an aloholc on weekend bender was originally released with fut any musi at all When fist shown in the theaters, a the most Aramaic sens of Milan’ descent into an alcool blu, the aud ence sickered and gggled—exactly the opposite ofthe flim maker's Intent It as quik pulled fom drelatin, and almost permanentiy shelved. However composer Miklos Rosa was brought in to do a Scoreand the move was re-released to great acclaim. It went on to win best actor, best picture, and best decor, but the score was not acknowledged eventhough lt was th oly thing added to the origina, failed version, Daring the period of fim music's infancy between 127 and 934 4 ‘lear progression can be een. At ist, the most common and obvious tse of music im the eis way as part of muscal with song and dance numbers, Upon the arrival of re-recording, producers weat to the extremes and thought they didnt ned music at all or had to hase itall the time Experiments were made wih various Kinds of source ‘mac musi that comes from a"souce” on-screen) asin the Marlene Dictech film The Blue Angel. Theme songs were sed just they are tod, inorder to promte the fm and sel records and set music “An finaly, directors began to play with the ide that music could ‘ome in and out ofthe soundtack to suppor various types of scenes. ‘Watehing olds, you wll notice thatthe concept of constant msi ‘was slow to di and was usd in many Fins. However, the nation that ‘music was a necessary art of fm tok hold and the underscore a we Jeno it today began to take shapeCHAPTER 5 The Studio System and The Studio Music Department Music on of ou rete rt forms mat be subj the neds of pcre ‘That he nature of movie alg Sine Lumet! uc hasbeen writen about the Hollywood "std syte” ia ect fom the silent fm era until the 39608. Although we are primarily concerned with how this worked in relstion to composes Sind misclans in general tis worthwhile to briefly describe he over Mlstadi system? In the carly days of Hollywo there were several large movie studios that produced the majority of ns. These studios grew up during the {ays of the lent Sls, ad the stem af production they established then ‘arid over to the talkies Warner Bros. Stadio, Met Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Universal Studios, Paramount Studios, RKO, Twentieth Century-Fox, and United Arts were dhe most pro ductive and longest lasting. As sill happens today, many of thse tents were constanly shifting in ownership and had varying degrees ‘of prfablty. They were also each known for having certain kinds of films. For example, Warner Bros. was known for swashbuckling venture stories, Univeral for steady production of “B" horror and ‘comedy movies, and MGM for grand demas. “This was the most productive time inthe history of the fm business in terms ofthe sheer number offs produced. It hasbeen sid tht in contemporary Hines Americans go to a movie, in the 19308 Americans went tothe movies. Back then, people would fequenty spend the afternoon seeing double featur, whereas today going 10 »2 ‘the movies san vcasionl evening out In the 9305 approximately 30 milion Americans (65% of the population) went to the movies once w ‘rok Today, a mich smaller percentage (under 10%) ofthe popula tion goes to theaters egy” In the summer of 1998 more people bought more tickets to movies (Gar milion) than ay summer i history, However, since the pop lation af the US. has grown so substantially since the 1940s, these statistics better reflect the moviegoing public when expressed in terms of proportions othe general population? Because ofthe volume of films needed to satisy the appetite ofthe ‘movie going public, the studios developed a sjtem that was like an ‘sscmbly ine. It was ficient, streamlined, and somevhat insulated {rom the possibilty ofthe lemperamental manipulations of one ee alive individual, In other words, st was dificult for ome person involved withthe prodacion, whether screenwriter, dtecor, com poser, editor or others, wo der holdup, or change the thrust ofa production if they disagreed with the others Anew person would Simply be brought in from the ranks ofthe sudo staf, and work {would continue. The ony person with somewhat absolute power Was the prcation executive, compared to whom even the stars had only limited power If partelaly temperamental actor attempted to sab ‘tae a production the producer could cone him by threstening ot to ge hm any furter projects forthe rmaner of his coneact. ach studio was a completely selfcontained film-making factory where every aspect of the proces wat owned and controled by the individual tudo, The stadio employed fll-time contracted sas of| screenwriters, directors, producers ators extras, costume designers hairdressers, carpenter electricians, musicians, publicity agents and others spanning very posible job necessary to the making of 3 They had thee wn abe to develop the lm and had complete post production fclties for editing. and dubbing. In addition, the Individual studios also owned chains of theaters that showed only thei fms The sudo controled not only the making of the Bi ‘every aspect, ut also where, when and fr how long it would be Shoven (This ownership ofthe testers was demed ileal in 1949 and the studi were forced 10 sell off thee theaters. was only recently that Sony and others have found a way to wn chains of movie the ters without violating US. antivust laws) ‘When a fl started its joarny through this studio assembly tn, he producer pulled the strings and guided the process as it went through the diferent departments, Fst a guoup of writers would be “signed to create, complete, and polish the script. Note the operative trond here rou” Bren though one writer would get sree credit, Sen it was a group effort, One person would write certain somes, Imaybe love scenes Another might weit action scenes and yet another polish up the dilogue, There might also be a team of dietors, ach “ecting various senes or different part ofthe, Various fl edi= tors would work on the projet ae would teams of employees rom the Imusic sound fle and costime department All ofthese workers tree on staff a the stad. They could not work for any other suo, od they were obligated to follow the directions ofthe executives and ‘supervisors oftheir departments. “The actors were also under conttat othe sto, and especialy tthe beginning oftheir careers, had to do what they were tld, May 35 ‘mere roomed by thestudosatayoungage they were“dscovered” and thestuo would plan thei carers and eresteoles specially or them, “The producer and ther studio excetives were often involved in the “reatve proces in a hands-on way. They would make creative dei Sons that might be in acond with the desire af the directors). o they might beat odds. The producer decision was the inal word Te ro ‘doer wielded mach more power over creative decisions in those days ofthe studio system than they do today. In comtemporary times, he ‘iecors responsible for delivering ail version ofthe fl that is “pproved bythe producers andor studio. During the making ofthe fim, the modern ditstor har much more conto over eentive dc sions than the director ofthe 930s and os did although his ial ext ‘ofthe im il sje to approval Eventhough it scems impersonal many great lms were made by this process under the stud sytem, There were diferent tyes to adhere 8Pa romances, melodramas epic adventures, and the iferent creative people earned adapt oa certain syle in oder to maintain continuity thoughout the Br. The mic, a well, was produced onan asemblyline basis and many composer and rch. trators had to lean to adap othe desired spe, This is one of the resins tat so many clichés sprong up inthe Holywood fe aad ius ofthe iyo the diferent departments had oe them t0 stay within the houndaies of the required styl, For example, they pro to ho mayor may not hve the ability to coramanieate musical Eric Rewone: Changes cour atthe rsdn session), and theyre subiet co tase of producers or diector whoever there runing the show [ea be lip people and haa fastatng forthe composer and any of us that are working make i right ‘Basal, you're thee 0 help problems If our in the Both ‘andthe composer ot onthe sage, ot of mes you hear ‘hg sid that would never Be ad if the compse asin the room and that’s a kindof a nervetaking experience. So is bal igure ou if thee ae probes and igure out what the problems ref they're pl fe, Uke subtracting element of ‘he masio~something thatthe dior das lie, you have 10 [nud out what they do ie ft. sound acolo, oa particu er insrment ou ca ju gid it fits the whole eu, oF how it stractured then youre realy in trouble, The camposer wll make the masieal changes for the orchestra from the ium. But moving bars, and caging the form of he pace ‘res problems forthe synchronization, whi i he music er department So Jou asst the composer by restructaring Uahether nthe computer progran or whatever ou used 9 lineup the streamer or ick, Dubbing (Once the misc is recorded iti ned to whatever format the fm equies~ateren tre suround sound, digital et The musiceitor ‘hen prepares the cues forthe final age, the ding, Dubbing 105106 ‘when the musi dialogue and sound effects re mixed together forthe Final version ofthe Fim, a proces tht for an average lm aes two 10 four weeks the dubbing studio, or dubbing sae Until recent the mesic editor would prepare reels of mag film with the inal musi cues that cortesponded to reels of picture Every cue ‘would be plaedin oder, and if there were afew seconds oF minutes of Picture in between music cues, the music editor woul inset blank Film oil the gap. The msg film would then run simultaneously with the picture, ound effets, and dialogue atthe dubbing stage Today most dubbing i done digitally. The musi editor comes othe dhbbing tage with 3 digital ile ofall he cues, and rans these digital le locked wo pcre sound ef and logue vis SMPTE ine code, Dubbing happens in two stages The fis is called predubbing. At about the sme time that the musi is being recorded and mised he flalogue engineers clean up the dialogue racks and ge them to sound "sfong and lear independent ofthe sound effects and music (Each twice and each component of aSound eect hats own separate audio “track that can be controlled independently. Music usualy ha two to sight tracks depending on the format.) Concurrent the sound ‘flcs people ae doing the same thingin their wn studio. One of the ‘easonspre-dubbing iso important fe because ofthe complexity of Some of the tacks sound effets alone can have ove one hundzed Separate tacks! ‘When the sound effets, dialogue, and music areal ready (independ entof each other), then itis time for the final dubbing sessions when they are all pu together. The music editor attends these sessions and ass the dabing engincersin placing the musi a the prope pos. He lio has inp onthe levels and eq af the mesic ‘Also present at the dubbing are the director and sometimes the lm ‘editor This isa rial proces becaose the precise levels of msi dia logue, and sound effects must be found. Hone sto loud or sf it can be distracting or enitating, Ako, depending on the format— Sere, stereo surround digital ee—the mx more or ss complex “Thedlrector has the inal sy doring this roses nis tthe dubbing session where a compose’ musics most likey to be moved around. A ditetor might not realy ke the cue the way i wees designed, and wil ty 2 diferent cue in place ofthe original, Again, this his prerogative and itis one that many directors tiie. ‘Many cue from the best composers ave been moved around om the solve these problems COnchestratrs themes can be fom any background in muse tassel, azz op, county—but they must have tudid composition tnd orchestration in depth inorder to be able to eceute what i "eguired of them ina fim score Obvious fal koowledge af many intruments required: ther high and low ranges, whete they sound steong and whete they sound weak which thythms sound natural and ‘whi ones ound awkvard, whether there are any robesome notes land how they balance, overpower, or blend with her nstruments A thorough knowledge of composition is equted since an orchestrator ‘might be required to write countering fl in «harmony, oF oie lead sere of chords. ‘Whe the sec is ead, the composer usualy mets withthe orches- tear and discusses the cues. Depending on how complet the sketch ‘the composer wil give instructions as to who wil ply certain part of how loud or dissonant a specie meacite might get The ‘orchestrator then goes heme and begins working on the fall Score Many orchetators keto havea video ofthe cue witha window barn (see chapter 15) a6 walla the timing nots so that they can know cally what is happening in the scene and how the music fis ‘Oentmes, the compar and orchestrator have an ongoing elation” ships fing shethes to each other and discusing cues over the phone “This saves a great del of time so the orchestrator docs not have og ‘ack and forth othe eompose’shome or tudo. Once the ull cores complete, the orchestrator delivers it to the compose o be proofed, tnd either « messenger brings ito the copyist or the orchestrator Send an electron le othe copyist. usne How much the orchestrator has to ada change, or rewrite depends on ‘the composer and the individual project. Often i Is amater ofthe forchestators ability to detemie whether the passage in guston ‘Should remain as itisonthe sketch or wheter should be change, Willie Ross has orchesuated for over 10 films, andi lo «com ose in his on right. He explain the orchestrator’ role My job as an orchestrator ist ant the compote in geting the job done Because of today’s post production schedules very {ial or anyone to compre and orchestae ther own muse COrchestrators work as independent contractors; they are baicly fieelance and go wherever thei eves are needed The pay sale for an orchestrator is determined by the musicians union (the American Federations of Musicians or AFM) andiscalclated by the numberof ages sored (four measures per page) andthe numberof sive on the page. Depending on the txtre and compleity of the ce, this ‘oul fake a few hours or an entire day. The difeult cues and the «easier ones end to balance eachother ou inthe lng run, (One final thought on orchestrator. I is sometimes sid tht an orchestrator or team of orchestrator has saved «composer. At ines this an be tre, But the bottom ine is thatthe compoerhasa vision ofthe finished music and even fhe sketches nly the bare minim, hes the driving force behind a score. Composers count on the orches trator’ abity to make the manic sound good. So ifthe composers musical concept ise sound oe fo the projec, then the orchestrator i reall jst amplifing ths concept Ifthe concept is poor then 20 mount of help bythe orchestrator can make it suteed. Music Preparation: Copyists ‘Once the orchestrator completes the fll score i ges to msc ‘reparation ofc In the ol dye of Holywood, eer sto had is ‘ben musi preparation ofc In tlt mr ope wee under Catrac ad hey worked ol fr tht stl So, he sc won go ‘down an in-house semble, from compost to wuchetatorfo sie preparation to orchestra, and never leave the studio Tt ‘Nowadays, everything contacted cut to individual o smal com: nis that have office in various lations. ‘When an orchestrated cue ative atthe music preparation office iti heck off ona maser chart. There can be a many as forty or ity inva cus fra singe film s0 there salt to track. The head of this olfcessigne one or more copyists to work on each cue. The tapyist isthe person who makes te parts up forthe individ instru ‘ments the past two yeas (997 t0 938), mos ofthe copying work has converted from being handwritten to computer sftware-gener ted usualy either Finale or Erata An orchestrator can turn in eter ‘Thandwrtten score, or score done in one ofthese programs and the opis can prepare and extract the pars forthe orchesta (Once the copys fishes apart fr a ce, say the vol part he then fist toa prooeadr. The profeader checks the newly copied viola port against the master score for ers. Tiss to ensure that thee {Eros te not discovered om the coring tage where they woul tke outyminates ox (ime ona scoring stage can cost several hundred tors per minete- Once the proofeader completes part orastack fof parts he gies them to the supervisor of the must preparation ‘fee mho then goes tothe maser chart and checks off those puts that bre compete “he next person in nthe mas Hirai. This crucial jo. The nu iain es that everyman inthe cesta as the {roe muon hs mascots atthe sof he sesion. Tere ca SOS a ro iy us ig er eo fw ah ‘Thecompse sin commotion wit thems preprationofce {oop wh ces be mt fo eord on which day ad find out Sch cusaeactunyreny The msc arin consis th maser “to male saree dese eae competed takes th set thescorng tga places the mas on he stands ofthe musics By this point inthe production process, them soften behind sched ‘land all thee muse people can be working under enormous tne pressure It is common fr the msc preparation office to be in all a7ne sssing fom op 22m. until afer midnight o even all night. ll of| ‘hese peopl are also musicians and many ofthe copys, proolend- fs, ahd music Mbrarans work their way t0 orchestrating. and composing, These areal union jobs, jobs where the salary is dictated bythe American Federation of Musicians, which lo covers ochestra- tors an vecoedng musicians. (lteretngly enough, composers do not have oblong) Because the union has esalished yoo "wal" orate, these msc preparation joscan be fnancl evading Because ofthe shortened schedules in modern post-production, the composer mus rely om is team o get he scare ftom conception tothe bigsereen This means having rable peopl to ait with the myriad detail of sequencing orchestrating, copying, booking miscans, and So forth. Th goals to rete a space where the composer can foes On| ‘composing, abd everyone ele does his part to accomplish thatCHAPTER 1.2 The Recording Session and Mix You forget ar sometines you hve to pinch ors and ei, “Oh ry good, hs is armacing” These ave he es Paes dil the Tes oihereadrsin th word Alltel tebe igh ender And, ‘he miter quotient theres bar ever mista, inal the time has arrive when al the hours of work and preps ion become » physical ey. Thee is nothing ike walking onto the scoring stage and seing doves of musicians gathered there 10 play your musi tis the moment every composer waits for. Present at the ression ae the composer, conduct (i'd composer not conducting), decor, produce, music editor, musicians, record ing engincers, and all kinds of asitnts and onlookers. The orchestrator ate not reired tobe ther, bit often stopbyt sce how things are gong. However ually an orchestrator, of someone ese with core reading alte site in the contol room with the record ing engineer and follows the score to check for errors thatthe conductor might not heat. This person aso assist the engineerin ‘determining which nsrement ae plying when (especialy help f ‘heres ol of ome kind). The music editor usualy sis behind the ‘conductor orn the conto oom a table srned with ll the ing ots a copy ofthe core, and his compute) This alo an exiting and sometimes anit: rdden moment forthe fm makers. They have put months or years of work into producing the li; all the writing shooting and editing are complete and the rmusiis the final element tobe added Stephen Spicer has said that 2 is "dey and ile” without musi and many agree with him. ‘ven though the dsetor and producer may have sen sequenced sockeup ofthe cues, thesis nothing ike the real thingand here ia2 sie of anticipation, even apprehension, asthe session Begins. The real- ity is that when a director hands over the fim toa composer he as jut lost control of the fm forthe ist time, What the composer fzcdes to do withthe music an literally make or break the fi. SO the moment of truh the irs ay of recording In the days or wecks before the sessions begin, the composer and isi contractor discuss personnel reirements The mute onic for, or simply the contactor, books the studio, hires the musicians, takes cae ofall the union paperwork andthe payroll forthe must cians and oversee the sexsions to make sure everythings on time and happening according v union rules. tn thei inital conversations, he composer and contactor dicuss the numbers of players and the Ieakdowa of the orchesra—how many strings, woodwinds, brass, sythm section players, ec are needed. They also discus any speci musicians the composer requests, and alterates. Some chairs have very specific requirements. For example, a woodwind chai might new someone who ean play Mut, soprano sak, reorde, and oboe It {cup to the contactor to find the appropriate payers ‘The music doesnot have to be recorded inthe order it appears in the Sim, the composer deidesin advance which cus willbe recorded in ‘what order andthe musi preparation oi, x wells the msc editor, teinformed. Tete are diferent methods of binning session. Some lie wo start with something easy 1 warm up the orchesta some ike to begin with something fay challenging. Most composes agree that if ‘here is earring thematic mater ts good forthe orchestra art witha ee where that materi fly complete—usually the fist or ‘cond cue ha the musicians an ear it and recognize any vara tions or permutations down the line Often, this isthe mainte ev, ‘tit ou alo come from another place the movie Sometimes finn requires the ene orchestra to play on every cu However many times thee are smaller roups tht play various ccs throughout the fm, such as strings ony or 2 smal group of strings, fut and oboe that ae featured in several cues In thiscase the com poser records al the cues for the lager group atone time, ad then lets most of the players leave while the smaller group records This tient and costefletv. The ager group known asthe" orches {ra the smaller combination the” orchestra, the" orchestra ee Because ofan agement withthe musicians un, there are certain ‘ales governing the recording sesion. Fr feature ilms,a maximum of hine minster of musi per Unee-hour session may be recorded, {Sessions ae usually booked in thre hour blocs) For episodic tee vision (eres) and TV movies, maximum of fifteen minutes per thvee-hour block is allowed. This Isso the producers cannot take advantage ofthe ighteading abilities of the musicians and record a huge amount of musi ina short amount of ine. Ifthe session goes fo avertme then these formulas ae prorated In aditon there are ‘the regulations, ie taking a ten-minute break every how meal break after «certain amount of hours recording te The contactor, ‘ho isthe lion tothe union attends the session and assis the com poser in kaeping tack ofthese rules. ‘Once the cue is recorded tothe composers stisictin, he goes into the control room to join the director and producer, and watcha ply tack ofthe scene with the musi synced 0 the li. At his point, the Aiector ether signoff onthe ee or asks for changes Minor changes ‘a be made right onthe pot Ifa major rewrites required, the com- pose puts that cutaway ta be fixed before the nea session, and he Proceso another ce. very once in awhile a composer's score is disk by the directo, the povdcer, othe stulio executives Ths can create a stuation where {he sore thrown out and another compose is brought into redo it Thiss embarrassing forthe orginal composer and frustrating, as he tna pent several very intense weeks ois ie onthe project. Iti slo comtly forthe production tea they must st pay the fist com pose his fal fs, they have paid the rusicians and the recording io for thee time, and they must then must hie a second composer tn pay the musi production ows all over again is uncomfortable forall volved, yeti has happened to almost every major feature lm ‘omporer in Hllpwood us4 ‘One very important thing to keep in mind i that ast esause # sone is thrown oat doesnot mean that the music i bad, or even nappro Prite fr tha fil All means is that someone with enough power Alike it eis emiely posible tha this person (dretr, producer, studio exe) had his own musical concept and could not make the Shift 10 the composers diferent, yet dramatically effective, ies. ‘Whenever ascores thrown out it causes composers to wonde if they are really good enough, oF what they did eong. It + possble, of Course, thatthe sore was not what the production team wanted ta the composer made a bigerorin concept even though the music was Sound, But its alo posse thatthe score was thrown ot for an tional reason that has nothing todo withthe quality ofthe mos Most ofthe ime, the recording session is an excing and rewarding ‘moment fo the composer Musi epreseningwesks of work filly head and its efetveness evaluated. Fle i hey attribute 10 Inve atthe session, for changes are often requested. Sometimes the lvctor wantsa litle more dissonance lets musical activity in ce. Sometimes a cve needs to be lengthened or shortened. Sometimes ‘everyone, inluding the compose, sin agreement about a certain change, and sometimes the composer disagrees. The bottom line is {thatthe composer needs to beable to make changes guickly without being over atached to what was already writen. Making movies ea Overlaps and Segues ‘There are some instances when a compote wants to scorea scene and rather than doing the music in oe piece, he reords two separate cues and ets them together to create one longer, seamless cue. This Ealed an overap of sp. A composer might do thi i the cee is ‘verylong,if there isa significant mood o tempo change or if there are ‘to completly dierent groups of instrament involves in each ce, ‘Most composts like ro keep each ue under thee to four mits ‘This largely duc to the recording proces. Although the professional ‘musicians that play the top film score and television shows are incredible sight readers, they do occasionally make ites It is ery time consuming to stop the orchestra, go back tothe stat of the cus, recetthe projection equipment if there are punches andsresmery 0 foranother take In adition, at most sesons there snot ue sp {ation ofthe diferent players or sections ofthe orchestra in terms of ‘ulitrack cording Although every section gets hs awn track, nd Soloists aso get assigned a tack, in the studio itself there is ten bleed -hrough. Soa composer or producer ms be very carefl about acepting a take ad tying wi inthe mi” Fo this reason ii Common practice tor o get the Best recording ofthe entire orcs traat once (With digital eitng itis now easier to eit diferent takes together bat ther i ot aeays time for hi) Soi ce becomes to lang, then many composers wil ind spot to break it up into two or more cus thi ae recorded separately and lite tgeter. This can be done scales by matching harmonies, Finding common tones fom one cue to another, o matching insu ‘mentation. The musiceitor reassemble the pars into oe lnge ise Such segues ae planned when the composer writes the sore The composer constrcts a segue fom one cue 10 another so thatthe Sonortes match or dont match, as necessary. Mixing and Dubbing For sms festrf the rca ecorded in 2 tach ob track alg format or one of the any dig! mlirack format ‘hiss the miadown engine great lesb in the fia mi This is nseary because there might actly Reet Be more than one tis of teri one or eurround-ound digi theta playback One for stereo that playback, nd ane for the soundace CD. Depending schedule eomposr nota a te mings Sion oltenevingit to red soe ‘Because ofthe ight post production schedule, the many minutes of underscore must be med qucy. Inthe modern age of automated ‘mins where the mixing boards are “rma” and remember fader levels settings and outboard routings), the engineer actully mies uring the recording season tl, Thats to say he sets level adjust 13126 sy and gets 4 rough version of the mix, so that when the musi Sally mine for eal he has ahead star A good fi score engineer «an mie five to fen minutes pe dy. This is foram orchestra that can Jnie a many ato to 100 players! Compare that tothe pop-msc record mi, which is going very quickly fone oF two fourminute tongs per day are completed. Wealythe same person who engines the sonding session should do the mis, This petwon ithe most familiar wi the cues and thus can tnove fst. However, sometimes the isnot possible. Oftentimes, the Schedule is so right thatthe music mast be miaed a soon a ti feconded, This mesos that the mixing can ovelp the recording. A recording session might bei on Tuesday on Wednesday, the ering Session continues we Tuesday's tracks re mized ata second studio, [After the music mised 10 the proper format it goes tothe dubbing Stage. Thi is where the masc, sound efits, and dlalogue get mie together forthe final soundtrack (se chapter 0). Reel by ree, scene by scene, ine by ln, and vometimes crash by cash, the dubbing tun mines, filters ey, pans, and generally tweaks the Imusic sound effects, and dislogue to lend together. O course, the tialoge i the paramount force ert aways must be head, Bu the Imusic and sound effects have important goes aswel. The toughest thing is when two sounds happen in the same frequency range For "ezampl, very high, stained note inthe vain could be cancelled ‘ut by the whine of et engine. Ora male actors tender but somewhat throaty declaration of love could be challenged by ayia cll ine It isthe ob of those onthe dubbing stage to make al ofthese things ‘oun like one cotinaous whole. sound palte tha sounds natal and ets each voice or sound speak where nessa ithe ultimate goa ‘Dubbing isthe next las stage inthe entire flim-making proces and iti actualy the final stage of the creative process Nothing can be ‘hanged or altered afer the dubbing, forthe only stage ef afer this color correction’—vwhen the flm i processed and the director approve is colors and tins. ln aay ways dubbing the point of return for the dreio, for atthe various stages of production and post-production, changes can and wil be made equeny- During the Imaking ofthe film the director makes many dcistons and commits to many paths of action but the decisions made a the dubbing stage sre the inal conneitent. For this eon, tia detailed, painstaking Process and the feng of completion is profound fal. 2The MusicCHaPTeR1 3 Creating the Music Ws tke sno elf the plumber doe sake the wrench ut of heb, eer sing gt tat pipe of gh? Wf you dont dv an ply samen or rite “methine never gong oe fied. "Mark sham here are imes when the mos intimidating experience a composer ‘can ave i looking a blank sheet of pape or computer screen ‘And there are other times when that sme blank paper canbe some- thing he looks forward to ling dh wonderful, excting ideas. Thisis the ely ofthe creative process theve ae ups and downs, there are times when the eas jst keep coming, and times when the steam Sone dry. Fora composer working in fm, thee usually no luxury ‘of waiting unt the ies tart Mowing, Often he mst finda way 10 tur onthe facet hime ‘Three Comerstones of Composition “There are several importan, ye simple coacepts tat can help in act ally controling. and sometimes even jump-sarting the creative proces: it having a foundation of craft and knowledge of music Second, knowing what yu want to say dramatialy emotional, and pryhologialiy and, third knowing your own stengths, weaknesses, nd capacity to produce the fm-scoring busines, these ae all ‘xtemely important As we have seen in othe chapters because the “compose comes inate end ofthe film-making process the pressure to price ina timely manner ion enormous Soa compost relies fom ie cathe intent of what he want to sy, and knowiedge of his ‘wn capacities to deliver the Score on time13 cooft nis important to have developed your caso you have as much ech nique 2 posible IF you write reat comantic melodies, bt that all you do wel then obviously you are rather limited If you ae great a {ction/advetut fms, what will you do ifthe projet you aceped requires some scenes inthe syle of To Kill A Mockingbird? Wil you Find someone to ghowt it The more you know about musi, and the more diferent Kinds of| ‘icyou have analyzed extensively, the more tools you havea your ispost Your mascal vocabulary becomes larger and yu can speak jin many musical languages. raion orchestral tna, jaze or feted, or pop-musc derived soundtracks will ot intimidate you | yous thoroughly familia with how thee stles work, For many, tis san ongoing life-long process that begins ey or ‘every compose there are variations onthe theme of sia ening And development When you bein projets you can dss upon many diferent kinds of musical expesions, you are mach beter of You will know the kinds of harmonies, thythns, and melodies to ‘write As you watcha scene or when you si down to write, you fil iaity with asthe may stat wo suggest posites, Or if you ae stuck, your knowledge of what it should sound like can bail you out. For example if you know the drecior wants particular sene to be Ihre, there are certain shythmic and melodie devices that you can draw from to eeate something of your own. On the other hand yourbackground is natrow,and you ae aked to write something out Side of what you know, it canbe dif and time-consuming, not ‘at-outimposble to create something appropriate Study requires dicpline and curiosity: Ifyou ate nt intersted in particulars ft doesn't make you st up and take notice, curl your ‘8 or give you goose-bumps, then study that style a8 an academic erste Tis ean bea necessary academic exercise for the pring film composer AF Clausen, Emmy-wining composer for The Simpsons strongly tative inthe need for musical curiosity and study. He speaks about ‘his se ln reltonship to writing songs in diferent sles: Isindent’) question are always very pointed about "How do yd this how do you do that, how do you write these yes, (My response if as, Have ou disc the popula songs fal he ro find ut what make them work Have ou an Ij them 0 find ot wha the hard progressions ar, what the rood trick are, what chord tons on what chords rated Certain sound ina certain eva And can yousit dwn and wrtea ‘ong in that ye bese you have spent hundras of hours dis Seti thse song? And they zy, °Nor ye.” Wel have. Ihave Spent thousands of hours dieting and playing thos songs Is ‘mater of era Psa mate of st Intent and Concept ‘Tre intent of your music or kaowing what you want says crucial “There sucha large range of emotion and Feng that can be xprested by music that often taker lt of thought contemplation, fn sometimes even prayer to figure out what to do with apartculat fim or scene But to start writing without knowing what you want to Sayslite trying sim without knowing the toes when ou gen the water, you would just ilaround and desperately ey olay aoa, is important to take in a whole lt of information: the ow of the Arama, the look of the fl, and probably most important forthe ‘omporer, the tempo ofthe scene. Every film and every seme has is ‘wn musical impliations, andthe composer must know what film ‘or scne means before hegnning to writ Elmer Beenstsin has composed the scores to over 200 films and is ite familia with thi procs: ‘The ia hing 1 do st spend weok jst ooking a ho film swith prjuice Wher Tay without predic, 13 10 mse Tn mot even going to yt hin must during eis week. ust ‘wnt lok tthe fib nel he lm also me andthe fl 13514 ‘ele hing. What want the fi tell me is what it about land thas nov aays on the surface What the fm about What isthe fron of musi gong to Be nti fn? Why are we having msi tis fl, wha’ ging od So Fst with thos kinds of hough a ind of tla proces rather ‘has acomnporing pros [Now I hada big probleme with hatin To Killa Mocking because fou ok atthe fe without esc, al yore looking at sa film with oof kids in Bu youre ai eng of ‘ult proems-—problems of racism problems of insti, ‘ath and ilo, ile orden Stok me the longest time fd where the msc was going to gm how i ws gong {0 and wha its spec use woul be inthe fl I determined Ser ang imei ook mes weks—tha he fm abot ‘he ada ord sen rough the ps of children, Al these probe lems, what we cll dal problems are sen atthe children see them. Which ed me to hie ings. Frans, paying the ano one note ata tne, music ae sounds, bap, el hing of ‘har so So wha realy got mit he ln was he elation — a eas, my realization wr fbn about adul hings een trough the ye of children. Taking six weeks asin To Kill a Mocking, t0 think about the approach to afm i hairy most film composers don't have today But they usually can ake afew days or perhaps a week, to come up with iss. Once the concept becomes les, deat wil fen sat 10 flow because the composer has firm sense of ection. Knowing Yourself Dick Grove, well-known music educator Los Angeles, used tos, "We all think we'e writing music to make money, orto move people. But what wee realy doing i we ut take Took finding ot about jurselves" When we it down to writ msi many things about ‘elves come int pla: How disciplined an? How much do rst my teasing and bilty? How much do lev ia myself? Asn Uactally esoying writing musi, and having fan? Or iit chore? Am flow ing the instructions of the len, oF is my eg too big 0 fisen to tnyone other than my own inble creative voce? On the ater and aon foo concerned with what people wil hink of me 1 stand ‘pf ay opinions, especialy i somedne aks for something know i musically a bad idea? “These questions, and ther, can come ito play everytime a com poser accepts agi At sone eel in every writer onaciousnes there San expresion of one or more ofthese questions, whether they have ‘cknowledged io not. For example, are yu the type tht procasi ‘ats unt th last mina Iso, get handle omit fora lm with 60 minutes of music wot get writen the night before, Do you havea problem aking direction andor feedback? Lose Because a s000 ou sgn the contrat, you are somebody’s employe. Do you know ‘you can write quickly and appropriately? Nurture that and lize it fre you very organized and stuctured? Stay organized, but doa forget to stay ebl. hin a compose sits don and tarts to write, seni hat he be brutally honest sbout these questions He must know how many ‘minutes «day he can produce, how many days there ae before the ‘Reording session, which cer eem to be suggesting musical ideas and which ces ae tougher There very tle time for second-guessing tnd extensive rewriting of any one cue, 50 confidence in ones teh nique is erucal: eing clear in ones communication with the decor tna willingness to translate the directors requests into musi are fundamental to this process, Developing the Concept for the Score ln speaking with composers the one thing that comes through gain and agains thatthe most secesful scores havea concept that drives the muri, Then, one the concept forthe whole sores set each id ‘vidual cue presente a particular problem to be solved. For example, Just because the main concept for + Alm is big, orchestral and Romantic doesnt mean that there cansot be a piano slo ifthe drama cals for it But that pao soo must til feel ike part ofthe rest ofthe 18136 score. I today’s word, almost any musical language is pst ofthe ‘composers plete, so the choices abound. But keeping tothe overall concept kepathe sound focused, lot Goldenthal is an acomplished composer of fi sores balls, theatre and concert works. Hehas ound away of approaching score that products a unique sound foreach of his poets ‘Before approach anything havea very strong concept of what 1 oat 10 pall off whether works out or not. That might Ine iting the choice of pitches or w ery cer hue of cheatin. SI don oi someting and just stare impo ising find has if ha, jus srt of ate my ine ay ‘ay from he pio, any rom the computer, any fom he Donel tik about he cee and I ay, How can acer he dramatic eft that is necessary forthe scene and have ill ‘ound fred? How can 1 mate 1 sound ike you have’ heard that before, you haven lived thar before Sometime the anover ain be surprisingly imple In Aliens for example sed ole Pan o underline the scene with he lg couse I thought ‘ha having a piano way ou in space wold remind you of the ‘mos domestic ofall instraments~it would remind you of he. ist hing ita. That conc Sometimes a composer's concep fora film an be generate from 3 feeling or an idea that, sel isnot mac. Many composers ae very artistic inthe way they lok at the word hati os they 2 the world in terms of emotional responses that eventually get tran lated into musi Cea this sa very valuable way to ee things rom the standpoint of writing msc fr the visual medium of fla. CME delman discusses his conception of the score to One True Thing 1 ha his iden of tne changing the changing of seasons, The Jeng of wind psig shrough tres and then leaves lowing off Inanothe dition. This wasn msi yet it was ut fling stated ad 1 se inividual instrament par fom th rcs, separated Into thee own elton Bosh. ke dre cls in ove rom. oF The vila with tro wohwinds in another They were of thew oom od the ore ws i Be center NOW ‘oncepr as hat he pao shoul Be the main idea accompa tid by a smal orchestra so tha i fo ntmate aad neve 00 large An intovered mood 1 ao wanted it 1 fl ike wind ws carrying the mas his way and that ay, resting diferent perspectives. The music Shun’ ast coming frome the comer ofthe room It was coming [rom over here and sifted over ther, and hen would come Ick oer hee early on, thi conceptual approach merged withthe themes Wien I started producing musa ideas, my concepts worked thei yi or me, the main ding i aways the spine of he tory. So the {fis thing 1 doi lok for that emotional core—that emoionl Spine ofthe soy—withn the soul ofthe marc ell In Forrest Gump, Alan Sveti had to come up with an opening msc ‘he that would embody the whole film. Heist discussed the opening Shot, ofthe feather lating doe fom the sky and almost landing on Forrest, with directo Robert Zemeckis: emesis i'l go nt a whole la of deta bur the gis of what we did ak abot was simehow, “This isthe arto the avi, This i heart ofthis whole incredible oasey ere tout fo goon” My tate on wae. Pe got couple of things to del with now One i've gor psa things ode with Te got some event he othr float fromthe lu ky, makes ‘anentrance nt this tne Iovnds up alot landing om some Tdys shoulder then atthe at momen i blow of 15 very ‘mb, you knows sf youre Tooking at this as something Akscending upon someone's fe hat gs 0 chon right ow “Then evenly he ater lands Fred he's the chase one 1as ‘Sonow we've got some physical hing terms of he image, and vee also gor some eens that ee epi ina sense. Coming {from nowhere be ont ths ton, hat does it mean? Ie ‘insta feather, the it alos lad om soma Bows of Now ‘here some kind of rama cntexe ‘Somow what do you d? The vise apt of his i tha some how whatever you do aho ha 0 exetalize and embody this tie fm. Right now. This cannot be ether musi.” This anna be “falling down musi” This camot be “mised oppor tunity music” This muse somehow ha to take eveything, sentiment wise, ha his fins about, and somohow esentice ‘tan present it thinking a his poin, can find tha, ve 30 the key thi fm, This theme wll allover the movi a ‘here wl bea tremendous sense of eahesiveness for the overall tone ofthis film ‘Now of course aloft is going on under the surface couse 1m now Siig there making lisa treatises on it 1 Kw yegottado something hee So itdown atthe pant dm thinking "This music has to deal with Forest aa I tart dv ling atthe pavo Literally a0 minted! Is chi, and simple ad eit ot bby ie soc I what Tm elng fom Forest. ook this moment where the feather ‘moves aay fom this other uy. make hey chenge thera mediate unprepared hey change there, We already planed ‘tha were going bring the orchestra im, with more sense of scope at this pot That was the soni Forze. It had abe an hone attempt, Musial as an aco, sa writer, or cinematographer, dont {se cate with his movie or you ik te ship Tis anecdote embodies many of the principles outlined above with Sivestris own personality and musial sensibility binging it to is ‘late destination, He hada clear idea of what he needed odo nd ‘whatnot to do dramatically And having this understanding, he was ableto sit down and create the there that was ust ight fr this lm. Gronically, this theme was evenualy used i only one other spot in the fim: the ending where me see the Father again, Everytime he tried to ost eewhereyt just didnt work) (One ofthe joys af lm composing this proces of discovering acon- ‘pt Unlike writing concert works or pop songs the fi composer i rerponing tothe visual images andthe story onthe screen. These images and story lines sugest musia ideas and provide framework within which the music can ft. Many composers have sald that once they find the intl concept, thers ofthe Score writes tslfThe il tnd error, the thought and contemplation often result inthe stil tion. of the composts imagination. Then he experiences the ‘atsfction of completing the director’ vison ofthe fm in the lan sage of music. weCHapter 14. Technical Requirements of the Score Nobody goto he vi tse the sore ‘hescreissimply assisting them in watching the fim ‘Michael Karson cea composer aries ata concept forthe sore, hes ready to gin writing individual eves However there are many things consider foreach eves placement inthe il, what kindof scene i {whether or not tere i datogue, and how much of the story the ‘sic should expres. Tete are st eome ofthe many important con: siderations insteuctaring the score of a movie. Perhaps the mos important factor here shat film can be anywhere froma shorteubject just ew minutes toaful-length ature of vet two hours. Either way. asthe tory unfolds n sren, the musi mus continually develop 50 that it stays interesting. Themes develop ist tenttion develop, and the overall emotional het of the music has ‘march that matches the ach of the fil In addition, the music can ‘Mfc the way the fl has ben pu together: it can smooth out cus, teanstions or dss. I can also help the audience understand shifts Snloeaton in time or place. Every te hak a impact thatthe compet and rector ae considering when placing inthe movi. "The fst question that faces the composer is “What i this cues de rae function" For the purposes of this discussion, 1 divide the ‘arious futons of Sm mst into these broad cates: physical Functions, prychological functions and technical fonction. AS the interviews atthe ent ofthis book irate, very composer has 9 erent working procedure. They each approach the tsk of writing 3 ‘core and coming up with suitable material fom a diferent angle uta Sometimes they intlectualy analyze arene and determine its musi "equirements; sometimes they write fon instint Frequent some of the functions ofthe music overap or are vague, Because every sit tions dierent and can have mote than one dramatic implication. Physical Functions Musi frequently functions in a way that impacts the physic action ‘or location af the scene. This includes Setting the lotion of the li. Ia movie akes place in an exotic loca tion ofen this settings reflected in the music For example, a movie ‘tha takes place in eld could use Uilkan pipes and » penny [Armovie that st inthe Appalachian Mountains ofthe United States righ eal for banjos and fides. How mach this “ethnic” muse is incorporated into the score will bea decision made by the composer ind the director. They could decide o have the score sound authentic to the locaton, or simply incorporate one or two elements of the ethnic music into an orchestral sor. (See chapter fr more on this) Sting he ie pri. fa movie aks plc in another historical ea, Sometimes musi of that ime wl bused. Fr example, i lm is set ini century Europe, a harpsichord can be used to give the audience an immediate association wih that ime, For movies set in medieval times, thee ar various ancient instruments ike shawn, scKbut pralter tht canbe used. Again ain sting the lotion the composer may use lot ofthese sound, o ju a hit. Mickey: mousing. When the music mimiss every itl action on ren, itis called mickey mousing. There i a eiference, however between michey-mousing and simply iting various sync points, Micky ‘mousing isa term ered for hitting aot ofthe ation, nts one oF two moments Its often, though not exclusively used as comic evi Intensfing the ation, This musical teenie i commonly sed ia {ion zn, Chase ene ets nese guts beeen char ters and suspensefal moments are all heightened with approprite ‘musi T intense drama, composers ight write music tht closely {allows eatin onscreen a often has many sy points nthi wy, musi partrs with the drama very closely and secenusts what Seen as opposed to bringing a diferent motional dement othe scene Psychological Functions Music an ass the pychologis and emotional impact ofthe fi in ‘many ways Sometimes ican be parallel othe drama and say basically the some things whats viewed on-screen. At ther times, the music an ad ner dimension, thought oda tat snot expresed by dis Toque oration. Some ofthe psychological functions of Elm musk are Creating the prychologia mood. ery lm sore must havea "sound” to be succesful Ifthe movie sane that has psyehologia impli tions, then the overll mood of the score or any individual scene ‘becomes very important. For example, in Wat Dreams May Came, 2 Fm that Jal with death nd he afer a core was originally com owed that was dark and somewhat serous. The production team ‘decided that this approach dd ot work it was too drkand neded to belightened up, So they brought in Michal Kamen to redo the sere thre weeks before dhe release ofthe fl. Micha! Kamen: ‘The orginal core wast serous. This s about death and dying ad sta ery serous lm Iwas asked 40 theater way whi fel very coe tothe abject mater, as had a rel fe Caprice at that ie my wf ad just overcome a mata i= tes Sows ale to respon 10 the le wath oy and some sense of magic. There ae countless examples of a change inthe music aering the inmpuct ofa scene or an entire movie. The composer must continually teamare ofthe result of any musial moods, or even individ eloies or harmonies. Revealing the unspoken thoughts and felng of characte. Often, 2 tlnetor wants he audience fo understand something about the char us