bored

Honestly, when it comes to JW sequel scores, I'll take a Chamber of Secrets over a Prisoner of Azkaban any day. Sure Prisoner of Azkaban is technically better, more inspired, and more original, but Chamber of Secrets at least feels like it belongs in the same musical landscape as the first film. Plus I'll take thematic development over technical achievement any day. 
 
I would have agreed and liked Prisoner of Azkaban better, if Williams hadn't dropped virtually every theme that had been developed in the first 2 films. The new themes are great and all, but the loss of the friendship, family, and Voldemort themes especially, really cripple a lot of my investment in that score. I also have to retroactively blame Williams, or the director for starting that trend in the Potter films of abandoning most of the pre-established material, which is partially what led to such emotionally devoid and mostly lame sequel scores. 
 
Plus there's a lot of inspired original material and development that is often ignored in Chamber. I love Williams cementing the Ron / Weasley theme, especially in "Letters from Hogwarts", there's a great new theme for the flying car, which also hosts several well-placed friendship theme reprises. The 3-note motif becomes more distinct and thoroughly developed (besides the temp-tracks which I admit are disappointing), which I always loved, since I always thought of that theme as representing Harry and Voldemort's rivalry more than anything anyway, especially considering its first appearance is when Harry gets his fortune left by his murdered parents, before the Stone is shown. Plus there's that wonderful allusion to the Hogwarts Forever theme when Gryffindor's sword appears. 
 
Yes the Attack of the Clones references are disappointing, but then there's little touches like the Wand of Phoenix theme being used when Hermione is petrified, subtly hinting at Voldemort being the culprit, or Gilderoy Lockhart's theme being a spin-off of Hedwig's / Magic theme, as a way of characterizing an arrogant wizard. Plus I love the one-off themes like Hermione's in "Hermione and The Mudbloods" (which has elements of the family theme), that are great set-ups to be used in future films.
 
A lot of this might seems unimportant, but all of these details helped build the world of the series, as well as the sound of the music. Disregarding all of this for new and creative music, that only has a few tangential relations to the first films' music always rubbed me the wrong way. It's like if in Return of the Jedi, Williams or the director just said: "Ah fuck it. Let's just have a completely different sound to the music in this one, and only keep Luke's theme and the Rebellion theme." I know Double Trouble and Pettigrew's theme have ties to the Nimbus 2000 / Mischief theme, and that's great, but there's not much else in the score like this, that ties it into the last 2 films smoothly. 
 
I agree that it would have been nice to see the themes that got concert suites developed and used more often, but I do like the way they are developed already as well. I like that Dobby's theme is more subtle and unsettling in the score until his freedom where it gets a grander, and heartwarming treatment. Fawkes isn't in much of the movie so I think the more obvious, and straightforward uses make sense to make it more memorable. I also don't personally see the dislike of the use of Myrtle and Lockhart's themes. They were used in traditional Williams fashion in their relevant scenes, (Lockhart's theme doesn't really fit when he's being forced into the Chamber to me), and Myrtle's theme is especially well developed considering her low screen time. It even has a wonderful hybrid variation with Hedwig's theme in "Myrtle's Tale". 
 
I agree that the Chamber theme was used well, but I don't know if I think it should have been used with the Basilisk. Sure it would have been great to get the bombastic rendition heard in the suite, but I also like the idea that it's used as an ever looming threat of what could be, and when it's revealed that Voldemort is the cause, it's only Voldemort material used for the Chamber onwards. Yes, I count the temp tracking of "The Face of Voldemort" because the theme is still in the movie, and Voldemort therefore still has his original thematic material. I think if Williams had more time, he probably would have composed new variations of Voldemort's main 2 themes anyway for those scenes. 
 
Don't get me wrong, I love Prisoner of Azkaban's score, but I do think its originality is a detriment as much as it is a benefit. It keeps some elements of the sound of the first 2 scores, but the lack of retained themes, and building on what came before really makes it feel more like a black sheep that doesn't belong more than anything. A very smart, and a fine specimen of a black sheep, but a black sheep nonetheless. P.S. Apologies for the essay, I might have gone too far in a few places. 

I don't know. Potter Scoring Project is doing a pretty good job of it. Plus he could always do what he did with The Force theme in Revenge of the Sith and distort the themes in different situations. Hell if you really think some of the themes wouldn't work in the form they're in now, he could always turn them into a minor key. 

All the incidental stuff, I really didn't miss. But I think there would have been places for plenty over the course of the films like family, friendship, Voldy, Hogwarts, Myrtle, Fawkes, Dobby. The point being they didn't need to all be mushed into every movie but scattered throughout the films meaningfully with each score focusing on its own new identity primarily, it could have given a nice strong feeling of cohesive world-building. So that by the time "Leaving Hogwarts" shows up in 8 it's more than just that old cue out of the attic, it's been on the journey. That would have been the ideal for me and why it could get so frustrating every year because I was only ever looking for a few minutes' worth of the old shit. Obviously I understand Doyle, Hooper, Desplat had other negotiations to be concerned with in composing those scores, it was probably plenty enough for them in those months to make sure Hedwig's Theme was well represented along with everything else on their plate, but didn't make it less annoying when all you want is that extra inch.
 
I also always just thought the "childish" thing was a dumb apology for losing the Williams stuff because yes, melodies are easily transformed and also the "dark" sequels are packed with silly comical magical music and sentimental themes anyway so...
 
It's not really hard to imagine Williams' friendship theme plopped somewhere into this cue
 
 

Bill Ross is the key to all this, if we get Bill Ross working. Cause he's a funnier character than we've ever had in the movies.

Honestly, when it comes to JW sequel scores, I'll take a Chamber of Secrets over a Prisoner of Azkaban any day. Sure Prisoner of Azkaban is technically better, more inspired, and more original, but Chamber of Secrets at least feels like it belongs in the same musical landscape as the first film. Plus I'll take thematic development over technical achievement any day. 
 
I would have agreed and liked Prisoner of Azkaban better, if Williams hadn't dropped virtually every theme that had been developed in the first 2 films. The new themes are great and all, but the loss of the friendship, family, and Voldemort themes especially, really cripple a lot of my investment in that score. I also have to retroactively blame Williams, or the director for starting that trend in the Potter films of abandoning most of the pre-established material, which is partially what led to such emotionally devoid and mostly lame sequel scores. 
 
Plus there's a lot of inspired original material and development that is often ignored in Chamber. I love Williams cementing the Ron / Weasley theme, especially in "Letters from Hogwarts", there's a great new theme for the flying car, which also hosts several well-placed friendship theme reprises. The 3-note motif becomes more distinct and thoroughly developed (besides the temp-tracks which I admit are disappointing), which I always loved, since I always thought of that theme as representing Harry and Voldemort's rivalry more than anything anyway, especially considering its first appearance is when Harry gets his fortune left by his murdered parents, before the Stone is shown. Plus there's that wonderful allusion to the Hogwarts Forever theme when Gryffindor's sword appears. 
 
Yes the Attack of the Clones references are disappointing, but then there's little touches like the Wand of Phoenix theme being used when Hermione is petrified, subtly hinting at Voldemort being the culprit, or Gilderoy Lockhart's theme being a spin-off of Hedwig's / Magic theme, as a way of characterizing an arrogant wizard. Plus I love the one-off themes like Hermione's in "Hermione and The Mudbloods" (which has elements of the family theme), that are great set-ups to be used in future films.
 
A lot of this might seems unimportant, but all of these details helped build the world of the series, as well as the sound of the music. Disregarding all of this for new and creative music, that only has a few tangential relations to the first films' music always rubbed me the wrong way. It's like if in Return of the Jedi, Williams or the director just said: "Ah fuck it. Let's just have a completely different sound to the music in this one, and only keep Luke's theme and the Rebellion theme." I know Double Trouble and Pettigrew's theme have ties to the Nimbus 2000 / Mischief theme, and that's great, but there's not much else in the score like this, that ties it into the last 2 films smoothly. 
 
I agree that it would have been nice to see the themes that got concert suites developed and used more often, but I do like the way they are developed already as well. I like that Dobby's theme is more subtle and unsettling in the score until his freedom where it gets a grander, and heartwarming treatment. Fawkes isn't in much of the movie so I think the more obvious, and straightforward uses make sense to make it more memorable. I also don't personally see the dislike of the use of Myrtle and Lockhart's themes. They were used in traditional Williams fashion in their relevant scenes, (Lockhart's theme doesn't really fit when he's being forced into the Chamber to me), and Myrtle's theme is especially well developed considering her low screen time. It even has a wonderful hybrid variation with Hedwig's theme in "Myrtle's Tale". 
 
I agree that the Chamber theme was used well, but I don't know if I think it should have been used with the Basilisk. Sure it would have been great to get the bombastic rendition heard in the suite, but I also like the idea that it's used as an ever looming threat of what could be, and when it's revealed that Voldemort is the cause, it's only Voldemort material used for the Chamber onwards. Yes, I count the temp tracking of "The Face of Voldemort" because the theme is still in the movie, and Voldemort therefore still has his original thematic material. I think if Williams had more time, he probably would have composed new variations of Voldemort's main 2 themes anyway for those scenes. 
 
Don't get me wrong, I love Prisoner of Azkaban's score, but I do think its originality is a detriment as much as it is a benefit. It keeps some elements of the sound of the first 2 scores, but the lack of retained themes, and building on what came before really makes it feel more like a black sheep that doesn't belong more than anything. A very smart, and a fine specimen of a black sheep, but a black sheep nonetheless. P.S. Apologies for the essay, I might have gone too far in a few places. 

How to Train Your Dragon trilogy.

Finished a 9-minute track for my sci-fi album. Decided to throw in some sci-fi ambience and Halo 3 ODST references, in addition to the more traditional Goldsmith / Williams / Holst style. 
 
 

For anyone interested I made a track for The Dark Knight Rises using James Newton Howard's missing thematic material. 
 
 

I love Spider-Man 2, and agree it's a wonderful maturation of the themes, but Spider-Man 1 has always been a classic for me. I imagine this isn't a popular opinion around here, but I think every note, and every track in the film, is perfect in Spider-Man (2002). Each for completely different reasons. 
 
My example is always the film version of the track "The Fire". It could have just been another epic / heroic track with slight suspense, but how it starts off right out the gate, as suspenseful and terrifying, building up perfectly to what seem to be dissonant resolution in the trombones, and suddenly the Spider-Man "B" theme springs from the trumpets. Then the uncertainty in the strings and woodwinds, to the eventual buildup to a new variant of the main Spider-Man theme. Not to mention the pure tension onwards after Spider-Man re-enters the building. Every note of that track adds so much to that scene's tone and atmosphere. 
 
 
Still have to listen to Batman Returns as well, but I have my doubts on whether it can really beat the first film's score.

I love Spider-Man 2, and agree it's a wonderful maturation of the themes, but Spider-Man 1 has always been a classic for me. I imagine this isn't a popular opinion around here, but I think every note, and every track in the film, is perfect in Spider-Man (2002). Each for completely different reasons. 
 
My example is always the film version of the track "The Fire". It could have just been another epic / heroic track with slight suspense, but how it starts off right out the gate, as suspenseful and terrifying, building up perfectly to what seem to be dissonant resolution in the trombones, and suddenly the Spider-Man "B" theme springs from the trumpets. Then the uncertainty in the strings and woodwinds, to the eventual buildup to a new variant of the main Spider-Man theme. Not to mention the pure tension onwards after Spider-Man re-enters the building. Every note of that track adds so much to that scene's tone and atmosphere. 
 
 
Still have to listen to Batman Returns as well, but I have my doubts on whether it can really beat the first film's score.

Thank you @superultramegaa, we're so glad to hear!!
 
Today, we get a look at some new themes as well as reflections about Harry's mom (RIP). Hope you enjoy Cue No. 3: Talk of Lily!

Loved the mixing on this one! Might be the most realistic-sounding track yet!

With the re-introduction of Harry and Dumbledore, we get to see reprisals of some very early music from the series. We hope you enjoy the nostalgia trip as much as us! Here's Cue No. 2: Dumbledore Appears.

That new Wonder Woman choir was the most pathetic theme I've ever heard in my life. I watched the Snyder Cut with my friends, and every time that theme came up instead of HZ's theme, we burst out laughing. We even began to reference Minnie the Moocher whenever we heard it.
 
0:49
 

Without crapping on them too much (cause I find the people who constantly crap on cape movies almost as insufferable as the ones who love them to death) I feel it's mostly because of how the movies are made. And I'm speaking mostly of the Marvel movies over the years.
 
It doesn't leave much room for good scoring in my half assed opinion.  Those films don't breathe for a second and it's nonstop action pieces that even the most brilliant composer would have trouble keeping up with to make sense of it all.

Spider-Man (Elfman) Avengers: Endgame (Silvestri) Avengers: Infinity War (Silvestri) Superman (Williams) Batman Returns (Elfman) Spider-Man: Far from Home (Giacchino) Wonder Woman 1984 (Zimmer) Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (Bates) Batman (Elfman) Captain America: The First Avenger (Silvestri)

You got us. We had to switch orchestras for licensing purposes 
 
But actually @superultramegaa, thanks for the feedback! We did add the usual reverb presets but hadn't really reexamined them after the end of Order. But I think it's about time we messed with it going forward. [we had mostly worried about losing details when working with the reverb before.] This is the benefit of having realtime fan comments though - we're fine with doing sort of a preemptive remaster of HBP with some new settings and a rerelease of the first cue 
 
So here we go! A "London" version of cue no. 1.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1F6r5XaxFoE2Xt9i26ePj2oX--JZFV9HP/view?usp=sharing

I have been slowly making my way through Herrmann's work recently, and though I love a lot of it, none of it has the emotional resonance or staying power as LOTR, or even the Hobbit scores for me.
 
I'm not saying Shore's music is objectively better, because it probably isn't, but I adore sci-fi and fantasy scores that not only create melodies that represent what they're meant to perfectly, but also do everything they can to be lore-friendly and assist in world building just as much as the film itself does.
 
The decision to get the choir to sing poems and dialogue from the books, in Tolkien's languages, and the way themes are used to expand, or build on lore that the content of the film couldn't cover, are genius ideas (yes I know the choral languages were not only Shore's work but it still improves the music's quality overall). 
 
So to answer the thread, Herrmann is probably objectively a stronger, and more innovative composer, but I think Shore's LOTR music is more appealing overall and has stronger memorability for general audiences (with the exception of the shower string clusters from Psycho). 

We treat it like this because it is; which isn't the same as to say Shore is the peak composer.
 
As has been said elsewhere, compositions don't necessarily need great tunes (which Rings doe have, but never mind) to be great. Der Fliegende Hollander doesn't have a tune half as good as Rienzi...

LotR has many great themes and motifs, sorry they didn't resonate with you. 

I don't understand why some people seem to treat the LOTR scores as some kind of peak for film music. I don't think LOTR is Shore's best work. He is good at suspense/horror, just don't let him write melody, in my opinion.
 
The LOTR scores are widely overrated. They are competent pastiche scores, but nothing new. Herrmann wrote many scores that are much better than LOTR.

Meh. Great composers don't have to be great melodists.

Herrmann never wrote a score as good as The Lord of the Rings.
 

Thanks, everyone! This feedback means so much to us, we are super glad you're looking forward to HBP!
 
@mrbellamy that is awesome, and we're excited to tackle this scene when we get there. I felt the same that the theme reference was amazing but possibly unintentional, but I'd join in on the restraining-order-receiving for that one. 
 
For today - we're so excited to be releasing the first cue from HBP! Thank you to all who have listened to the first two scores we've put out! We probably wouldn't have gotten to this point had there not been a response. (Actually that's a lie, we may have, but it makes it so much more fun to have other fans to share this with.)  Here's Cue No. 1: Opening and the London Attack!
 
MS
 

It'll be hard to top Desplat's blending of his theme for Ron, Harry, and Hermione with Williams' Dobby theme, but I'm sure they'll figure something out.