David Coscina

Your opinion only. I don't think it's fair to compare 60 second snippets to a score you have not only heard in its entirety but in context. Don't you think you're jumping the gun a wee bit? And I was referring to Star Trek and MI3, both which had some of the most generic filler I have heard in recent years. But then again, 90% of film scores suck these days to me so take my ill informed opinion with a grain of salt. I mean, I don't know as much about music as you do... EDIT- from what I have heard of Super8, I 'm actually considering not buying the album but will have to wait for iTunes to listen to examples to get a better idea if I want to part with my $9.99

Yes, right. That's the same doodoo all over again; can't judge from samples, it's only a preview, and maybe there is that super awesome music in the film that didn't make in onto album ... And in the end, those previews, being after all 60 seconds in length, always give a very accurate picture of what to expect. And I'd say that 2/3 of this looks to be unremarkable, and 1/3 has the potential to be more than just underscore. When I listen to "Showdown" and "Voldemort' End", it's completely and utterly forgettable. However, when i can't get A Window To The Past in "The Ressurection Stone", then the cue Desplat seems to have written comes pretty close to what I'd like there. Well then you can be happy about saving that $10 or so for a more worthy score. I dunno, have you checked out Giacchino's JJ Abrams work lately?

I think you're confusing this with Chamber of Secrets. I like Desplat and unlike other composers, he does seem to push himself in different directions, but not all the time. If he keeps on scoring 11 films a year, he'll burn out.

Clean the wax out of your ears, there's a whole lot more to enjoy. ... I just don't get the animosity for Desplat's Part 1 score here. Okay, some motifs are underdeveloped but where's the love for the action music? I thought you guys loved the action music. Everyone has their own tastes. some love the Super 8 clips while I find what I have heard cloying and too much like Giacchino's other Abrams' work, right down to the simple chord progressions (frankly I'm getting sick of hearing such simplistic stuff pass as main theme material). I'm with you Matt on this one. I finally had a chance to see the film and thought the music was one of the high points to an otherwise muddled, slightly boring viewing experience. That can be applied to like 90% of what is out there now, not just Desplat. Just think what Williams would have done with Super 8....(sorry to pick on Mike G.)

I've been listening a lot to Desplat's HP 7.1 after taking some time away from it. You know what? It is even better than I remember. There's a thread on FSM where some of us break down the score a bit more. Check it out if interested. I wasn't wowed by Tree of Life so I'm hoping Desplat poured all of his energies into HP 7.2. Really excited about this score. And of course Williams' Tintin and War Horse (although not at all interested in either movie funny enough).

Those gaps are more endemic to the writing, not the arranging. His ideas are shorter than say Williams or Horner but from what I've heard from Super 8, it looks like he may have found a happy medium between those shorter melodic ideas and harmonic variation of them. I like what I've heard thus far. I like his LOST material in the show context but could never warm to it as pure listening. I like parts of his Let Me In quite a bit and The Incredibles and Ratatouille are faves of mine.

after listening to it again on the website, I am really warming to this theme. It's deceptively simple but its orchestration is pretty involved. Was hoping iTunes would have it up today. No such luck.

I concur.

Wonderful post. I like your analogy to photography. It's truly a magical thing when inspiration, talent and technique collide as is the case with John Williams.

While I have always enjoyed the maestro's film and concert works alike, I have found his film scores more emotionally approachable, while I have appreciated his concert works on a cerebral level. I must say though that the final mvmt of his Horn Concerto is really beautiful and very moving for me. Its string elegy reminds me a little bit of Harold's Funeral from Nixon the way it shifts around a tonal centre but is a little "off" harmonically. I also love the thematic imitation that Williams employs on the recap section with the strings foreshadowing the horn line. I believe this is one of Williams' finest works in the last few years, infinitely more enjoyable than Indy 4. Anyone else find this about this work?

Got mine last week. Still going through them. Damn fine scores. Probably more adventurous and broad than Giacchino has gotten on his recent film outings mostly because it sounds like he had a lot of creative and stylistic latitude.

I think it's amazing how modest Williams is. And at this stage, you feel like he's being genuine, that's it's not put on. Amazing how someone with so much musicality can think they are still not at the top, even though the rest of the world knows it to be true.

I just bought Thief and Sorcerer by Tangerine Dream to replace my scratched CDs.

Depends. Do you want music for free or are you willing to shell out some $$$. Most self respecting composers don't give away their music for nothing.

Ordered! Yeay!!

Ha! Just watched Out of Sight last night after a long time and I really enjoyed David Holmes' score. It's kind of trance '70s funk. Really cool. Also loved that trap drum kit cue that underscores the fight between Don Cheadle and George Clooney at the end of the film. Sweet! I don't think an orchestral score would have worked as well for this. But I also like Chris Boardman's Payback which also evokes the '70s (and a little bit of Shire's Pelham 1,2,3) but does have some orchestral elements. These were both written in the '90s though. I think someone was right about pointing out that it's mostly the blockbusters that have suffered the most from poorly written scores. There are still smaller gems that get treated with decent music. I think someone else also mentioned it was Bruckheimer who is really responsible for the noisy mess that is oft associated with these kind of big films, especially since Spielberg has moved from fun entertaining films to more serious films (although I still put JAWS at the top of my Spielberg list).

Hmm, worth a visit to the iTunes store no doubt. I wish iTunes would carry more TD. I have like 20 actual records of theirs from my '80s diet of electronic music but haven't found them available on iTunes. My Thief CD is pretty banged up and I'd love to be able to get a clean copy of this awesome score. I know iTunes US carries Sorcerer. Cool score too. I'm waiting for my Kurzweil PC3LE7 to arrive any day now and it has a ton of classic analog synth sounds like Arps, Solina, GDS, CS80, etc. It's a beast and I'm actually looking at doing an electronic project to accompany the Tai Chi Chuan I learn. Does anyone here like Thelma and Louise by Hans Zimmer? I think it's a really cool marriage of synths and grass roots guitar. I loved that phatt sound Zimmer brought with his CS80. I should use my Arturia CS80v plug-in more come to think of it. That synth was a beast in its day. Vangelis used it for string pads so effectively. Another Vangelis album I love is China.

Weren't they banned afterwards and all their posts stricken from the Board? No. I'm still here and greatly enjoy the Tron: Legacy score. I should give this a try. Is it like the Matrix scores where Davis's orchestra music was married to Juno Reactor?

Turn of a Friendly Card is my all time favorite rock album. Love how the tracks play out. As for Vangelis, I often play Soil Festivities and Antarctica quite a bit. I find both hypnotic and very mesmerizing. Has anyone here listened to Larry Fast aka Synergy? Some nice stuff. Also love Tangram by The Dream. Thief is still a gave of mine as well. Scrap Yard is one kinetic piece. And I enjoy Sorcerer as well. And parts of Firestarter. Don't have much Kitari nor Tomita. Suzanne Ciani I have a little of. I was into synths big time in the '80s and was knocked out when this young German synthesist came onto the scene with a score for a Barry Levinson film in 1988. Can't recall the name of either composer nor the film though...

Tell you what- next time you're in Toronto Ontario, have the balls to say that to my face sonny. Even if you're just trying to be funny, wishing someone death isn't a joking matter. At least where I come from. Milton ain't as tough as you think it is. I'm from Chicago. And I still don't think it's funny nor does it have anything to do with the topic in this thread...

Tell you what- next time you're in Toronto Ontario, have the balls to say that to my face sonny. Even if you're just trying to be funny, wishing someone death isn't a joking matter. At least where I come from.

I don't happen to agree. Look, threads like this are pretty much useless. No one is going to convince anyone of anything no matter how airtight their stance is. I'm not going to change my opinion that much of today's film score are utter rubbish that barely have any positive impact on their film much less have any substantive musical quality in of themselves. Many share my view while others don't. I don't mind. What I take exception to is being insulted or attacked on a personal level for my perspective. I don't much like that, nor would anyone I'd think.

That's the Gen-Y style of music writing. No real technical knowledge or skill, just let the computer do the work. What's worse is that technology is contributing to the atrophy of musicality in even good composers! Someone like James Newton Howard used to really impress me with his writing (Wyatt Earp, Signs) and while he's always used technology, I know for a fact that he still wrote out parts, as in the case of Snow Falling on Cedars. His writing now encompasses a lot of stacked chords and big tuttis. Very little linear motion, less harmonic ideas, just basic vertical writing, the result of plunking away on a keyboard in front of a monitor with the film running by. When anyone is confronted with this, it is difficult to relinquish the visual aspect as our vision is our primary sense. Aural stimulation is secondary. It's not surprising to take note that most really "musical" scores we love were written AWAY from the film. The composer took their timings, watched the moviola, but then stepped away and entered the realm of pure music. So they would concentrate on themes, counter melodies, rhythmic variations, harmonic variations, motives, orchestration, rather than be enslaved to the video rushing by in realtime. Technology has been more of a benefit to the filmmakers than composer. It's resulted in shorter time to compose the music, more music tossed in the 11th hour in favor of worse music as replacement, and the opportunity for technically inept people to exist alongside guys who have monstrous musicality. There will never be a day when I prefer something written by Santaolalla over John Williams. I don't own a score by Djawdi and never will. Jonny Greenwood interests me because he's classical trained and applies techniques that resonate with me and perk up my ears when I listen to his music. Anyhow, I'm listening to JW's Horn Concerto again and as a musician myself, it inspires me. That's my basis for liking something. Does it excite me? Does it move me? It's actually not the technical ability at the end of the day- it's the inspiration. With these really great composers, the technique was always transparent. But you sure as hell notice it when it's not there in the current composers'. And I'm getting so so so so so so tired of the non sequitur of how those who don't like current scores are stuck in trench of orchestral music. I like all types of music, as long as it's well thought-out and well written. I love Shire's Pelham 1, 2, 3. I love Goldenthal's Golden Gate. Or Heat for that matter. I love all of the Eastwood Dirty Harry scores by Schifrin and Fielding and they didn't stick with traditional orchestras. It's about musicianship. Yes, music is an adjunct to the film process, but it doesn't mean it has to be insufferable noise in order to work with the film. We've got like 60 years of solid film scores (if not more) to prove it!

I don't know if film music is better or worse than 20 or 30 years ago but I do know music in film was a shitload better when Goldsmith, North, korngold, Shire, Raksin, Herrmann, Schifrin, Fielding, Barry, Bernstein, Williams, Steiner, Rosza, Kamen, Goldenthal, etc were alive or actively composing. There are a few exceptions these days but even guys I used to like such as Silvestri and James Newton Howard have really begun to bore me trying to emulate what's fashionable. I don't care for it and I've pretty much stopped listening to new scores and either find older Golden or Silver Age scores I've never heard before or else stick with classical music (well, modern orchestral like Stravinsky, Bartok, Prokofiev, Vaughan Williams, etc). I just don't find a lot to like these days. Most recent music purchased should tell the story: Jonny Greenwood's Norwegian Wood (sort of a cross between mid 20th century chamber music and art house film score) Herrmann's The Fantasticks (utterly beautiful concert work) Ikuma Dan 7 Symphonies John Williams' Horn Concerto (probably some of the most beautiful writing he's done in years, and it kills Indy 4) Testament- James Horner. Beautiful score. I also bought Monsters vs Aliens but haven't even gotten through the entire thing. Parts are nice but only the sections that recall the masters I listed above. So basically pastiche. It's also interesting how so many people go ga-ga over The Tree of Life trailer. Why? Because it was tracked with Smetana's The Moldau. Beautiful piece BTW. So if classical music or music constructed in an archaic idiom is so dated, why does a 150 year old piece resonate with all age demographics? Because that music is timeless and will never fail to engage and inspire those who listen to it. I'm sure Santaolalla or whomever will never obtain that kind of stature or legacy. Williams will though.

I played this the other day and there are some truly outstanding tracks. One cue I always wished Williams had included was "Harold's Funeral" which has some haunting string writing that gives way to the Nixon rising theme. Someday it would be nice to hear this without the dialogue in the scene.