What Is The Last Score You Listened To? (older scores)

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

Yes, I realize everyone except me and like 3 other people in the world dislikes it.

I want the complete score!

[crocodile 7,984]

I've never heard it.

Karol

[Jonesy 55]

[Incanus 5,713]

Yes, I realize everyone except me and like 3 other people in the world dislikes it.

I want the complete score!

You are crazy man! Totally bonkers!

That said I am among those 3 people besides you who like that score.

[Hlao-roo 389]

NP: All I Want for Christmas (Broughton)

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

The Last Star Fighter

I'm really loving the use of electronics in this score. It's that goofy "electronic farting" method that Goldsmith often employed in the late 80's and the 90's.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

I listened to a little bit of Predator 2. Kicks ass, wish I listened to it years ago.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

It has melodies. How could you enjoy that?

[RedBard 71]

[Hlao-roo 389]

Ripped straight from The Unfinished Journey.

[RedBard 71]

Except The Unfinished Journey came after Far and Away.

Oh... you were making a joke there, weren't you?

[Incanus 5,713]

Alan is the master of subtle jocundity. He'll sneak upon you if you are not careful.

Wyatt Earp by James Newton Howard:A fantastic sprawling Western score that is full of big melodies and emotions. The full score has suitable highlights sprinkled along the way to keep the listening experience constantly engaging. Along with Broughton's Silverado and Tombstone one of the best of the Western revival of 80s and 90s going more the route of Dimitri Tiomkin and Alfred Newman than Morriconean Western tradition.

[RedBard 71]

Funny you should mention Western scores. I can't help but compare most western music to Aaron Copland's work.

[Incanus 5,713]

Funny you should mention Western scores. I can't help but compare most western music to Aaron Copland's work.

Well he certainly has had his hand in inventing part of what we now recognize as the musical depiction of the West (along with the general idea of orchestral Americana). Silverado and Wyatt Earp are perhaps closer to the Coplandesque Americana for the most part than Tombstone though, leaning on folk song-like melodies translated through orchestra. JNH mentions in the interview (of the LLL 3 disc release liner notes) how he was still in his more melodic phase at the time of writing Wyatt Earp (refering it as piano-styled writing) and how he has been consciously moving away from it. He also says you could not get away with a score as big or so openly emotional these days refering to the fact how the aesthetics of film making and most of all audiences have changed.

[RedBard 71]

Well he certainly has had his hand in inventing part of what we now recognize as the musical depiction of the West (along with the general idea of orchestral Americana). Silverado and Wyatt Earp are perhaps closer to the Coplandesque Americana for the most part than Tombstone though, leaning on folk song-like melodies translated through orchestra. JNH mentions in the interview (of the LLL 3 disc release liner notes) how he was still in his more melodic phase at the time of writing Wyatt Earp (refering it as piano-styled writing) and how he has been consciously moving away from it. He also says you could not get away with a score as big or so openly emotional these days refering to the fact how the aesthetics of film making and most of all audiences have changed.

I don't blame JNH for harboring such a view. From what I've observed lately, film-goers are of the increasing opinion that the score is just another way to accent the subject material on the screen instead of taking on a life of its own within the whole of the film itself; i.e. film scores are seen as an element to pander to audience, not emotionally elevate them, and on the rare occasion that they do (like with almost every Zimmer score in the last 10 to 15 years), it's more for an internal kind of elevation that, in any other context, would induce the kind of physical sensation that one could just as easily get from going to a rock concert; i.e. it's great to listen to and the bass shakes your internal organs, but it only serves to pander. Or maybe I'm just being cynical and pessimistic about the future of the film score industry, and all before I've even had a chance to score a film for a major studio film myself.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Zimmerz leik kewl n maeks moi bass shaek

[RedBard 71]

Omagawsh, soooh treawh. Zimmerz tots maeks ma bass shaek, tew.

[Hlao-roo 389]

Well he certainly has had his hand in inventing part of what we now recognize as the musical depiction of the West (along with the general idea of orchestral Americana). Silverado and Wyatt Earp are perhaps closer to the Coplandesque Americana for the most part than Tombstone though, leaning on folk song-like melodies translated through orchestra. JNH mentions in the interview (of the LLL 3 disc release liner notes) how he was still in his more melodic phase at the time of writing Wyatt Earp (refering it as piano-styled writing) and how he has been consciously moving away from it. He also says you could not get away with a score as big or so openly emotional these days refering to the fact how the aesthetics of film making and most of all audiences have changed.

Audiences today are more sophisticated and don't need composers to fill in the emotional blanks for them.

[Incanus 5,713]

Well he certainly has had his hand in inventing part of what we now recognize as the musical depiction of the West (along with the general idea of orchestral Americana). Silverado and Wyatt Earp are perhaps closer to the Coplandesque Americana for the most part than Tombstone though, leaning on folk song-like melodies translated through orchestra. JNH mentions in the interview (of the LLL 3 disc release liner notes) how he was still in his more melodic phase at the time of writing Wyatt Earp (refering it as piano-styled writing) and how he has been consciously moving away from it. He also says you could not get away with a score as big or so openly emotional these days refering to the fact how the aesthetics of film making and most of all audiences have changed.

Audiences today are more sophisticated and don't need composers to fill in the emotional blanks for them.

Verily they are. Verily I say.

I think all kind of film music is alive and well today, its spotlight in the mainstream varies though.

[RedBard 71]

Well he certainly has had his hand in inventing part of what we now recognize as the musical depiction of the West (along with the general idea of orchestral Americana). Silverado and Wyatt Earp are perhaps closer to the Coplandesque Americana for the most part than Tombstone though, leaning on folk song-like melodies translated through orchestra. JNH mentions in the interview (of the LLL 3 disc release liner notes) how he was still in his more melodic phase at the time of writing Wyatt Earp (refering it as piano-styled writing) and how he has been consciously moving away from it. He also says you could not get away with a score as big or so openly emotional these days refering to the fact how the aesthetics of film making and most of all audiences have changed.

Audiences today are more sophisticated and don't need composers to fill in the emotional blanks for them.

Verily they are. Verily I say.

I think all kind of film music is alive and well today, its spotlight in the mainstream varies though.

True, and with some brands of film music being more popular than others.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

Well he certainly has had his hand in inventing part of what we now recognize as the musical depiction of the West (along with the general idea of orchestral Americana). Silverado and Wyatt Earp are perhaps closer to the Coplandesque Americana for the most part than Tombstone though, leaning on folk song-like melodies translated through orchestra. JNH mentions in the interview (of the LLL 3 disc release liner notes) how he was still in his more melodic phase at the time of writing Wyatt Earp (refering it as piano-styled writing) and how he has been consciously moving away from it. He also says you could not get away with a score as big or so openly emotional these days refering to the fact how the aesthetics of film making and most of all audiences have changed.

Audiences today are more sophisticated and don't need composers to fill in the emotional blanks for them.

It's often hard to gauge how genuinely you mean something, but I do actually agree with this though "sophisticated" may not be the right word. I think people are just more interested in filling in those blanks for whatever reason. There's more desire to participate in a deeper way, to bring one's own perspective to things, and music veering in a more subtle direction makes perfect sense. It's a move towards "impressionism" away from "expressionism." I for one am a fan of it. Why not try new things? Oh yeah, JWFan....

[Incanus 5,713]

Well he certainly has had his hand in inventing part of what we now recognize as the musical depiction of the West (along with the general idea of orchestral Americana). Silverado and Wyatt Earp are perhaps closer to the Coplandesque Americana for the most part than Tombstone though, leaning on folk song-like melodies translated through orchestra. JNH mentions in the interview (of the LLL 3 disc release liner notes) how he was still in his more melodic phase at the time of writing Wyatt Earp (refering it as piano-styled writing) and how he has been consciously moving away from it. He also says you could not get away with a score as big or so openly emotional these days refering to the fact how the aesthetics of film making and most of all audiences have changed.

Audiences today are more sophisticated and don't need composers to fill in the emotional blanks for them.

It's often hard to gauge how genuinely you mean something, but I do actually agree with this though "sophisticated" may not be the right word. I think people are just more interested in filling in those blanks for whatever reason. There's more desire to participate in a deeper way, to bring one's own perspective to things, and music veering in a more subtle direction makes perfect sense. It's a move towards "impressionism" away from "expressionism." I for one am a fan of it. Why not try new things? Oh yeah, JWFan....

Now now don't be a tragic hero Pilgrim. We have room for musical intro- and extroverts.

[RedBard 71]

It's a move towards "impressionism" away from "expressionism." I for one am a fan of it. Why not try new things? Oh yeah, JWFan....

New doesn't necessarily mean a step up from the previous offering.

Though I must admit that I do like impressionistic music. Thank you, Saint Saëns.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

No one said it did. But in this case, in my experience, it is.

Saint-Saëns wasn't really an "impressionist."

[RedBard 71]

I was thanking Saint Saëns for getting me to enjoy impressionistic music even more. I never claimed he was an impressionist.

I know how he spoke out against Wagner's and Debussy's work, talking about how he saw their developments into impressionism as an erosion of the Classically-inspired forms and harmonies which he cherished and which he used throughout his life. I still like his Carnival of the Animals and Danse Macabre; I just don't share his opinions (dated as they are).

[Hlao-roo 389]

It's often hard to gauge how genuinely you mean something, but I do actually agree with this though "sophisticated" may not be the right word. I think people are just more interested in filling in those blanks for whatever reason. There's more desire to participate in a deeper way, to bring one's own perspective to things, and music veering in a more subtle direction makes perfect sense.

Actually, I almost posted something along these lines. Yeah, less top-down, more participatory. In certain cases, respecting that viewers might bring their own preferences, values, and ideas to the table. But more the sense that music need not play the overtly explanatory role it may have played in the past.

[RedBard 71]

It's often hard to gauge how genuinely you mean something, but I do actually agree with this though "sophisticated" may not be the right word. I think people are just more interested in filling in those blanks for whatever reason. There's more desire to participate in a deeper way, to bring one's own perspective to things, and music veering in a more subtle direction makes perfect sense.

Actually, I almost posted something along these lines. Yeah, less top-down, more participatory. In certain cases, respecting that viewers might bring their own preferences, values, and ideas to the table. But more the sense that music need not play the overtly explanatory role it may have played in the past.

A film score is never dependent on the tastes of those listening to it. If this were the case, then all film scores would be made simply to pander instead of to elevate.

[Hlao-roo 389]

A film score is never dependent on the tastes of those listening to it.

The impact of a piece of music is generally subject to the tastes of its listeners, though some effects are more universal than others.

[KK 3,307]

Well he certainly has had his hand in inventing part of what we now recognize as the musical depiction of the West (along with the general idea of orchestral Americana). Silverado and Wyatt Earp are perhaps closer to the Coplandesque Americana for the most part than Tombstone though, leaning on folk song-like melodies translated through orchestra. JNH mentions in the interview (of the LLL 3 disc release liner notes) how he was still in his more melodic phase at the time of writing Wyatt Earp (refering it as piano-styled writing) and how he has been consciously moving away from it. He also says you could not get away with a score as big or so openly emotional these days refering to the fact how the aesthetics of film making and most of all audiences have changed.

Audiences today are more sophisticated and don't need composers to fill in the emotional blanks for them.

It's often hard to gauge how genuinely you mean something, but I do actually agree with this though "sophisticated" may not be the right word. I think people are just more interested in filling in those blanks for whatever reason. There's more desire to participate in a deeper way, to bring one's own perspective to things, and music veering in a more subtle direction makes perfect sense. It's a move towards "impressionism" away from "expressionism." I for one am a fan of it. Why not try new things? Oh yeah, JWFan....

It's often hard to gauge how genuinely you mean something, but I do actually agree with this though "sophisticated" may not be the right word. I think people are just more interested in filling in those blanks for whatever reason. There's more desire to participate in a deeper way, to bring one's own perspective to things, and music veering in a more subtle direction makes perfect sense.

Actually, I almost posted something along these lines. Yeah, less top-down, more participatory. In certain cases, respecting that viewers might bring their own preferences, values, and ideas to the table. But more the sense that music need not play the overtly explanatory role it may have played in the past.

It's kind of like film itself in that regard, isn't it?

Films before the 60s went for theatricality, and played more like flashy theatre done with a big budget in front of a camera before subtlety became the rising trend, favouring realism and impressionism over more extroverted performances and direction. Similarly film music is shaped after the changing industry, now favouring a more impressionistic approach, over the "theatricality" of the old Korngold fanfare days.

Culture in art needs to change by necessity, and it's rarely for the "better" or the "worse". It's just the way of things.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

Quite so.

[Hlao-roo 389]

Films before the 60s went for theatricality, and played more like flashy theatre done with a big budget in front of a camera before subtlety became the rising trend, favourite realism and impressionism over more extroverted performances and direction. Similarly film music shapes after the changing industry, now favouring a more impressionistic approach, over the "theatricality" of the old Korngold fanfare days.

Dog wagging the tail?

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

More realistic and relatable.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

You need more realistic and relatable material.

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

Especially in a film where a flying alien is brought back to life through the power of love.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

The modern music grounds it in gritty, nihilistic reality.

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

I'd love to see how the E.T finale music would work in the ending of The Dark Knight.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

I'd rather hear Nelson Riddle's music when Batman fights Bane.

[publicist 4,643]

Films before the 60s went for theatricality, and played more like flashy theatre done with a big budget in front of a camera before subtlety became the rising trend, favourite realism and impressionism over more extroverted performances and direction. Similarly film music shapes after the changing industry, now favouring a more impressionistic approach, over the "theatricality" of the old Korngold fanfare days.

Culture in art needs to change by necessity, and it's rarely for the "better" or the "worse". It's just the way of things.

While there are parts of past moviemaking where this might apply, it's also a gross misrepresentation of the films of say, John Ford or William Wyler, to pick some obvious examples. It's the same for film music, really: to compose in modern idioms instead of classical patterns doesn't automatically mean drab soundspheres that are just part of the sound design.

That's what (often) happens today. In a nutshell: modernization is good and well, but if you make a composer part of the technical team without any desire to let him produce 'opinioated' music, that's not advance that's regression. It may work in a show like BOARDWALK EMPIRE or THE WIRE, they dispense with score altogether, why not? But when a movie features 60, 70 minutes of original 'music' (obviously deemed 'needed' by its makers) that tries the hell to stay out, why bother at all?

[crocodile 7,984]

Yeah, if you include the score, pay the composer and musicians you might as well have some sort idea what kind of role can it play in your movie. If not, just buy some library music and do what you will.

Zodiac by David Shire. Now this is actually the good example of the opposite. Filmmakers had no intention of including the score and intended to use mostly source pieces. But then, they decided to hire a composer to do 40 minutes of music that actually adds some sort of texture to the film. It's sparse but highly intelligent music that's used properly.

Karol

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

More realistic and relatable.

[alicebrallice 134]

<3

[crocodile 7,984]

Nothing like your daily dose of Thomas Newman. Having said that, it's one of those score I'm not familiar with.

For me, it's Leonard Rosenman's The Lord of the Rings today. Which is quite wonderful. My old CD wouldn't play properly so I bought a really cheap new copy of this earlier today.

Karol

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

My favorite Newman score is Meet Joe Black. It's pretty good!

Anyway, I listened to 9 hours straight of binaural recordings of The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean at Disneyland.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

ET&Elliot4Ever praising Tom Newman? Such is the power of Alice.

[Gruesome Son of a Bitch 6,488]

I saw Meet Joe Black in 1999 to see the trailer for The Phantom Menace. Unlike everyone else, I actually enjoyed the film and thought the score was wonderful.

[RedBard 71]

ET&Elliot4Ever praising Tom Newman? Such is the power of Alice.

Probably went down the rabbit hole to reach a land where people praise Tom Newman.

Alfred was the best of the Newmans, anyway.

[Wojo 2,453]

Alfred E., yes.

[Hlao-roo 389]

I'm partial to Lionel, myself.

[chuck 154]

Wyatt Earp by James Newton Howard:A fantastic sprawling Western score that is full of big melodies and emotions. The full score has suitable highlights sprinkled along the way to keep the listening experience constantly engaging. Along with Broughton's Silverado and Tombstone one of the best of the Western revival of 80s and 90s going more the route of Dimitri Tiomkin and Alfred Newman than Morriconean Western tradition.

What about Jerry Goldsmith's Bad Girls?

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

Cinema' Pardiso

Listening to this score has gotten really interested in exploring Morricone's filmography. Where's the best place to start? (other than The Mission which I've already heard)