Psycho

Movie: Psycho
Composer: Bernard Herrmann
Release: 1960

I chose Psycho to do next simply because it's a classic and is pretty recognizable.  I really don't have an order yet of how I'm going to do these posts.  At the moment I'm just picking out scores at random.

The thing about Psycho is that most people mistake the music played during the shower scene as the theme of the movie.  Instead - there's another main theme that shows up almost ad nauseum throughout the show.  Even though this theme is played in almost every track, with no variation, Herrmann has written a terrific piece for this movie.  The entire thing is done only with strings and the composer uses the sometimes-eerie qualities of the violin to great effect.  Because the movie frequently jumps back and forth between the Bates Motel and the town, this theme is effective in representing the impending horror.

Something I find very interesting about this soundtrack is that the entire thing is done with only a string orchestra.  The orchestration is simple, yet is exceptional while watching the film.  While this isn't a soundtrack I would ever put on just to listen to, it really does a great job enhancing the story on screen.  Here are a few of my favorite cues:

"Prologue" - I don't care how many times they repeat this theme in the movie, I still love this short piece of music.  It's repetitive and lasts only about two minutes, but I'm still a big fan.

"The Murder" - This isn't really a great piece of music, but it's just so darn famous I had to include it on the list.  While it's not extremely pleasant to listen to, you just can't help but picture the infamous shower scene when you hear it.

"The Car" - One of the few tracks that doesn't include either theme - this one does a great job at maintaining the fear in the movie.  Between Hitchcock's filmmaking and Herrmann's score writing in this scene, pushing a car into the river has never been scarier.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

While it might seem strange to start off this blog with a Harry Potter soundtrack, especially considering the grand scope of film scores, I chose it for three reasons.

1. It is written by John Williams, who is one of the most recognized and accomplished film composers of all time.

2. I already knew the score well enough to write about it.

3. The cd was sitting next to me.

So here goes....

Movie: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (also known as the Philosopher's Stone)
Composer: John Williams
Release: 2001

The first movie of the Harry Potter franchise is the sixth most profitable movie of all time.  Because of this and its die-hard fan base, "Hedwig's Theme", and the entire soundtrack, have become extraordinarily recognizable.  John Williams not only composed a score, but created theme music for one of the most popular fictional characters today.  Enough of that though, I'm here to talk about the music.

The music is pretty characteristic of Williams' style.  It has a few, strong main themes that are twisted and turned throughout the movie.  Williams tends to state his themes very clearly in the beginnings of his movies, and goes on to alter them from there - in the same vein as Wagner and his leitmotifs.  (Don't worry all you music purists, I'm not saying that Williams is equivalent to Wagner - although I am a fan of both)  

Other characteristics of his music show up in this score as well.  The harp is used frequently, as well as auxiliary percussion (especially during times of stress or danger in the movie) - all accompanied by strong brass lines in the horns and trumpets.  There are moments in this score that remind me of Hook and Star Wars.  "The Quidditch Match" is almost just an altered version of moments from the most recent Star Wars movies.  To most soundtrack fans, though, this won't come as a surprise; Williams' music can sound similar at times.

With all that said, however, I still thoroughly enjoy this soundtrack.  The thematic material is pretty amazing, and the incidental writing expertly matches up with the film.  This is John Williams after all - he's pretty experienced at doing this sort of thing.  Here are a few of my favorite tracks.  (and to my good friend Laura - your blog has clearly inspired me - but I'm giving you credit here)

"Harry's Wondrous World" - I don't think this is actually featured as a whole within the movie.  Instead it plays during the end credits, despite being the second track on the cd.  However, it combines almost every theme within the movie (like most good end credits do).  Above all, I love this track for its orchestration, because Williams' use of the strings and french horns in this is pretty phenomenal.

"Platform 9 3/4 and Journey to Hogwarts" - This track covers a great deal narratively, and provides for a lot of different music within just one single track.  In my opinion, the highlight of this track starts at 1:40, when the students are seeing Hogwarts for the first time.  We hear a variation on the main theme and it captures the movie perfectly.

"The Quidditch Match" (I already mentioned this one a little, so I'm not going to add any more - just a really fun track.)

"Mr. Longbottom Flies" and "Hedwig's Theme" - The two tracks are quite similar so I just put them together.  These two involve almost every one of the themes Williams uses in the film.  Furthermore, many of the motifs used in these tracks carry over to the later Harry Potter movies, even after different composers were hired.

That's all I'm going to post on this one.  It's late, and this is getting pretty long - I'll have to work on editing.  Let me know what you think!