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Hans Zimmer Appreciation Thread


Koray Savas

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  • 3 months later...
Guess who that brown haired synth player on the right is ;)

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:blink:

If I have nightmares tonight, Koray... :angry:

Incidentally, that video is a prime example of why I don't care for Blade Runner.

80s cyberpunk = :o

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Not a good way to win over the Anti-Zimmerites, Koray.

The issue of Hans Zimmer on this board is like capital punishment or abortion. Whoever has their mind made up is not gonna be convinced otherwise. I just posted this because I thought it was hilarious. Shows Zimmer's roots in music :lol:

All agreed to change the subject to The Thin Red Line then?

:)

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I just got Thelma and Louise the complete score and this reminded me of a time when I LIKED Zimmer. It was a good score and I enjoy the synth cross with the blue grass element. Sort of a serious Midnight Run.

I personally think Zimmer is just not a good orchestral composer. He's fine at electronics but his orchestral scores sound sloppy and amateurish. Even with all the orchestrators assisting him....

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I personally think Zimmer is just not a good orchestral composer. He's fine at electronics but his orchestral scores sound sloppy and amateurish.

I definitely don't think he's capable of writing in the sort of idiom that Williams does, or any number of other Neo-romantic orchestral composers, for that matter. It's just a question of whether or not you can stomach his particular take on how orchestras and synths "should" work together. (And for me, the answer to that question is a very hearty "SOMETIMES!")

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Herrmann, Goldsmith and Jarre all did. Hell, Williams does it from time to time.

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If someone wants to mix synth with orchestra let them. The stuffy traditionalists can sod off and moan elsewhere.

I don't mind the mixing of the two if it's done well. Goldenthal is amazing at mixing them. Golden Gate is fantastic as is Alien3.

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I'm fine with mixing the two if they're appropriate for the film and it's not obvious where the orchestra ends and the synth begins. Silvestri's main titles for the second Tomb Raider score are an example of this. It's painfully obvious to me that everything except the strings is synth, and to me at least, it just sounds like the strings were recorded separately and chucked into the mix.

Then you go to my favourite Powell score, Hancock and I have no idea what's real.

As much as I love the score to Gladiator, that's one score that shouldn't have had synths anywhere near it. Just like Shore used a specific musical palette for LotR, Zimmer should have shown more restraint.

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If someone wants to mix synth with orchestra let them. The stuffy traditionalists can sod off and moan elsewhere.

I don't mind the mixing of the two if it's done well. Goldenthal is amazing at mixing them. Golden Gate is fantastic as is Alien3.

Add Basil Poledouris and Jerry Goldsmith to the list as well.

I think Goldsmith was the best at mixing them.

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Notice that in those cases, the synthesiser is most often employed to create specific sounds, rather than merely padding the orchestra and playing along with it to make the music sound "biggger."

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His style doesn't mesh that well with the violin solo IMO, and those strings still sound unbelivably synthy.

I prefer it to the actual Chevaliers... track though, and the movie looks kinda cool from that 'trailer'.

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I guess Star Wars is a rehash as well. Ever hear of a main theme for a franchise? What is wrong with you people, you are hearing 2 minutes of score from a 2 hour+ film.

If you mean rehash of Clash of Lightsabres from ESB in RotS, then yes - it's exactly the same kind of rehashing of old material from the same franchise, which makes little sense story-wise.

Since when has the epilogue cue from DVC been a main theme for the franchise? I guess since Hans and Ron decided to use it again, instead of making effort of coming up with something new for this new movie ("people liked it so we just use it again, but this time more than once."). Chevaliers of Sangreal didn't refer to Robert Langdon, but to the story of discovering the Grail and, eventually, was a great emotional conclusion to the whole movie. Using it as a main theme for a completely new story is plain wrong, as far as I am concerned. I have seen some clips from the movie and I thought they had temp tracks - the only music I heard was from DVC (it wasn't just Chevaliers track).

What I find amusing is that Zimmer says in the interview that he wanted to create an unique sound for the movie. :P Rrright...

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I'll say again, you're hearing 2 minutes of music from a full-length feature. Save your judgement for when the score is actually released.

I am not judging the complete score, but I am severely disappointed with 100% of the material I have already heard. Moreover, based on my experience with The Dark Knight, I lowered my expectations considerably.

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Fellas, I found what could be a far better orchestral recording than the City of Prague Orchestra. Check this out:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/recsradio/radio/B...agSuffix=dp_img

Click on the second music sample :| It sounds really similar to the album version, but with some minor differences. What do you think? It's totally real or not? If it is, I'm impressed.

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Not bad, but it's hard to tell. I still maintain that until someone goes about properly orchestrating any POTC suite/cues for a real orchestral setting, then no matter how great the players, it's gonna sound junky.

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I'm a little confused by your comment, Koray - this recording is not Prague. So either you were saying that this, as a non-Prague recording, shows how much more potential these pieces have, or you were mistakenly saying that it's another poor Prague recording. I just can't figure out which. =P

In any case, I think this sounds infinitely better than anything Prague has done, at least that I've heard, but the Pirates performance isn't impressing me. I still prefer the synth-heavy original. (Although it's worth mentioning that "The Medallion Calls" isn't all that synth-heavy. Percussion, some very low bass, and perhaps a little strengthening of the string section, but that's about it. Far from the "worst" offender in that score.)

EDIT: Agreed 100%, Delorean90. I've yet to hear a pure orchestral arrangement of Pirates that works as well as the oft-maligned original recordings, but I'm convinced it's possible.

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The first thing you said. This piece shows how bad of a job Prague did in the past.

No matter how well someone tries to do it though, it'll never be as good as the original. Zimmer's scores aren't supposed to work on a purely orchestral level. They lose impact and sound weak.

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If you just do a literal transcription, sure. But in the hands of a really great arranger, I'm convinced the result could be very impressive - albeit in a different way.

I agree. I imagine one could compare that to sprinkling just the right amount of spices and ketchup on one of those bright pink Wendy's burgers.

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EDIT: Agreed 100%, Delorean90. I've yet to hear a pure orchestral arrangement of Pirates that works as well as the oft-maligned original recordings, but I'm convinced it's possible.

The Houston Symphony managed to bring some small dignity to the music.

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I love the expression of Mickey Mouse on the CD cover! :rolleyes: pretty evil!

Well The Erich Kunzel recording of "Captain Jack Sparrow" from DMC, starts actually way better than the original. The Cello really capures the performance of Johnny Depp very well. with the glissandi/slides lool.

But then, without synths it gets rather weak.

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