The music within the film "The Kite Runner" is a fusion between East and West and it invokes both the excitement and joy reflected in elements of the story as well as the terrible sadness represented in others.
The opening credit is underscored with lively Middle Eastern music with woodwinds, strings, and percussion. In the beginning scenes in Afghanistan there is a sort of mystic Middle Eastern sounding chant as the camera pans over the landscape. This conveys the beauty of Afghanistan in the 1970s and is in contrast with the desolate wasteland that Amir returns to later in the film. Several elements of classical Hollywood score are also used is this film; for example, when the boys run after the kite in the first scene (the kite scene before Amir wins the tournament) the drum pounds in time with their feet and serves as an example of illustration. During the second tournament illustration is used again as the kite takes off the music goes up in pitch as if it is also "taking off".
Unlike a traditional Hollywood score, the music within "Kite Runner" is not wall to wall. During dialogue there are many moments of silence. One can notice that during the more serious scenes silence is used to convey the heaviness of situations while lively music is used during scenes of excitement or danger.
While most of the music is underscoring, there are also several examples of diegetic music. At young Amir's birthday party the band plays traditional Middle Eastern Music, which is played at older Amir's wedding. When Amir graduates from college, however, the music played at the bar on the jukebox is eighties American pop music. The differences between traditional culture and American culture serves as an interesting contrast in Amir's life, especially when he returns to Afghanistan and the music reflects that.
The end credits of the film are also Middle Eastern sounding as where the beginning credits, but it is a much more soulful representation which illustrates a maturity and wealth of experiences, some happy others sad. Strings allow this soul and depth to come through.
The music within "The Kite Runner" is a good reflection of both the joy and sadness of the film and the conflict between two different cultures.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Big Fish
Danny Elfman's score for "Big Fish" has elements of the classic Hollywood score. The music is primarily underscoring and is wall to wall during the fantasy "flashback scenes" but is not wall to wall during the scenes in real life except when the story is being told. The score differs from the classical Hollywood score in that it is not a full orchestra, only subtle strings and piano. There is a slight fairy tale aspect of the film, and the music reflects that invoking elements of mystery, awe, and wonder.
Music also establishes time and place in scenes where popular music is used it is music of an era to establish that time. For example, the Siamese twins are singing a typical lounge type song that establishes the setting. In addition, in the circus scenes, there is an amount of typical circus music one would expect to hear which establishes the scene.
The coolest element about the music in "Big Fish" is it's ability to connect the reality of life with the mystical story through the music. While the score differs from whimsical to somber, like the story, it is able to tie them together to create a really seamless transition between reality and fantasy.
Music also establishes time and place in scenes where popular music is used it is music of an era to establish that time. For example, the Siamese twins are singing a typical lounge type song that establishes the setting. In addition, in the circus scenes, there is an amount of typical circus music one would expect to hear which establishes the scene.
The coolest element about the music in "Big Fish" is it's ability to connect the reality of life with the mystical story through the music. While the score differs from whimsical to somber, like the story, it is able to tie them together to create a really seamless transition between reality and fantasy.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Titanic
Anyone who was old enough to remember cannot think of "Titanic" without thinking of Celine Dion belting out "My Heart Will Go On" on the radio. It is a classic example of a song being used to mass market a film and increase it's popularity. The film's iconic score can also be heard instrumentally at several parts throughout the film. For example, during the scene where Rose and Jack are at the bow of the boat, "Flying". Also, the song can be heard instrumentally when an adult Rose drops her necklace in the ocean at the film's climax.
Other than "My Heart Will Go On", music plays a huge role within the film. The music, beginning with Rose's flashback, is light and characterized by an almost humming sound. The human sounding whispers convey that Rose's memory is akin to a whisper from the past. The music becomes more vivid and intense at times when strong emotion is conveyed; for example, excitement when Jack watches the Dolphins jump alongside the ship, or fear when Rose wades through the sinking ship to rescue Jack from the Master of Arms.
In addition to conveying emotion, music in "Titanic" also serves to establish time and place. It also serves to highlight the contrast between the passengers in first class and those in steerage. When Rose is in the company of her mother and their group, the music is soft chamber music, waltzes, mostly played by string quartet, which incidentally plays a large role later in the film. In contrast, during the party below deck, the music is loud, with foreign instruments to convey that the people listening are not of one nationality. Also the instruments heard are less "traditional" than those in the string quartet; things like fiddles, bag pipes, and drums.
Diegtic music plays a large part in "Titanic." The earlier mentioned String Quartet serves as a powerful and emotional reminder of the power of music when they play together even as the boat continues to sink. Another interesting little quirk of the music in "Titanic" is the little song, "come see Josephine in her flying machine..." which Jack sings to Rose during the height of their love affair, and which Rose sings to herself, as she clutches to life and freezes on the floating door.
The music within "Titanic" is both powerful and poignant, and it serves the purpose of conveying emotion as well establishing time and place.
Monday, March 9, 2009
The Color Purple
Just like the plot of the film, the music within "The Color Purple" is characterized by emotional lows and joyous highs. The music in the beginning of the movie is innocent and childlike, characterized by instruments that invoke emotion, such as strings and woodwinds. Underneath the seemingly childlike music, the music has a deep emotional complexity that foreshadows the trials and tribulations Celie will grow through.
At the beginning of the film the music is mostly underscoring,with the exception of a wedding scene in which the organ music is diegetic. Also, to establish time and place, some more folksy instruments are used, such as the harmonica which can be heard clearly during the scene in which a young Celie cleans the house, or the banjo, which is present during the cloudy day when in Celie sees a drunken Shug Avery for the first time.
Certain characters don't necessarily have a leitmotif, but the music changes drastically to represent them. Sofia, for example, spunky and sassy, especial in comparison to the meek Celie, is represented with equally spunky music. Shug Avery, the sexy jazz singer, is characterized by a saxophone music. One hears her music even before she appears on screen, when Mister gets ready to visit Shug as he leaves, the nightclub music is played. Throughout the film, that nightclub music is played whenever Shug is around, and sometimes it is diegetic, such as the record player when she's in the bathtub or when she sings to miss Celie at Harpo's club.
As the Miss Celie grows and the time period changes, the music also matures to indicate the passage of time. When the time is shown as 1922, I first noticed that the music began to change from the strings and woodwinds of the beginning of the movie to Ragtime music, which is more appropriate for the time period.
In another scene to establish time, a record player plays "Noel" over the radio and then the diegetic music changes to underscoring and plays during the period when a considerably less spunky Sofia, broken by circumstance, is greeted by her family.
Overall, the music in "The Color Purple" reflects the joie de vivre of certain characters and moments while simultaneously representing the tragedy of the characters lives.
At the beginning of the film the music is mostly underscoring,with the exception of a wedding scene in which the organ music is diegetic. Also, to establish time and place, some more folksy instruments are used, such as the harmonica which can be heard clearly during the scene in which a young Celie cleans the house, or the banjo, which is present during the cloudy day when in Celie sees a drunken Shug Avery for the first time.
Certain characters don't necessarily have a leitmotif, but the music changes drastically to represent them. Sofia, for example, spunky and sassy, especial in comparison to the meek Celie, is represented with equally spunky music. Shug Avery, the sexy jazz singer, is characterized by a saxophone music. One hears her music even before she appears on screen, when Mister gets ready to visit Shug as he leaves, the nightclub music is played. Throughout the film, that nightclub music is played whenever Shug is around, and sometimes it is diegetic, such as the record player when she's in the bathtub or when she sings to miss Celie at Harpo's club.
As the Miss Celie grows and the time period changes, the music also matures to indicate the passage of time. When the time is shown as 1922, I first noticed that the music began to change from the strings and woodwinds of the beginning of the movie to Ragtime music, which is more appropriate for the time period.
In another scene to establish time, a record player plays "Noel" over the radio and then the diegetic music changes to underscoring and plays during the period when a considerably less spunky Sofia, broken by circumstance, is greeted by her family.
Overall, the music in "The Color Purple" reflects the joie de vivre of certain characters and moments while simultaneously representing the tragedy of the characters lives.
Monday, March 2, 2009
E.T.
The Music from E.T. is a a return to the classical Hollywood score. Instead of using popular pre-existing music, an odd combination of only a few instruments, or extreme dissonance, E.T. uses a full orchestra. One could also recognize that E.T.'s score was composed by the same man who composed the Star Wars score, John Williams, because in several scenes they sound very similar.
Throughout the movie the music is most often whimsical and childlike, characterized by many woodwinds to emphasize innocence. I was not able to pick up on noticeable leitmotifs, but there was most definitely a theme, and it is varied throughout the film. The first time we hear this E.T. theme is when Elliot looks out the window. The whimsy of the music represents the way in which E.T. symbolizes wonder and childhood innocence.
In addition to the more magical aspects of the theme, it is also used to convey sadness and tragedy, such as during the death scene, and also to convey fear, such as in the scenes in which Keys and the Federal Agents are chasing after E.T.
The most memorable scene from E.T. is the scene in which the children ride bicycles which E.T. then makes fly. The music is a full orchestral bicycle theme, one that is easily recognized as one of the most famous in all movie music.
Throughout the movie the music is most often whimsical and childlike, characterized by many woodwinds to emphasize innocence. I was not able to pick up on noticeable leitmotifs, but there was most definitely a theme, and it is varied throughout the film. The first time we hear this E.T. theme is when Elliot looks out the window. The whimsy of the music represents the way in which E.T. symbolizes wonder and childhood innocence.
In addition to the more magical aspects of the theme, it is also used to convey sadness and tragedy, such as during the death scene, and also to convey fear, such as in the scenes in which Keys and the Federal Agents are chasing after E.T.
The most memorable scene from E.T. is the scene in which the children ride bicycles which E.T. then makes fly. The music is a full orchestral bicycle theme, one that is easily recognized as one of the most famous in all movie music.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
The Sting
While in reading the blogs of my fellow classmates I have noticed that a fair amount found the music a strange choice in this movie. I can understand that point of view, the music is out of place historically, ragtime was pre-1900s, and this is set in the mid 1930s. In addition it's hard to associate the danger and suspense depicted in the movie with a tune we most commonly hear via ice cream truck. However, the music choice, in a lot of ways, reminded me of another classic action flick, "Pulp Fiction".
The first reason I made this comparison is that the music, as previously mentioned, is historically out of place in both "The Sting" and "Pulp Fiction". While "The Sting" features ragtime, "Pulp Fiction" has funk music from the seventies such as "Jungle Boogie" and Rock music from the 1950s such as Chubby Checker's "Never Can Tell" which is played during the iconic Jack Rabbit Slim's Twist Contest.
Another comparison I draw between the two movies is that while the music fits in pace and excitement with the plot, it is in contrast with some of the depictions of suspense and violence because of it's lighthearted nature. When one thinks of ragtime one doesn't usually thing of Mobsters. In the same way, a low-key mellow song such as "Jungle Boogie" seems out of place in a film about hit men.
While I note similarities between the films, there are several contrasts. For instance, in "The Sting" there is not very much music during scenes, and very little diegetic music. Instead the music is used mostly in transitions and obviously at the beginning and end of the film. In "Pulp Fiction" the music is almost continuous. Also, in "The Sting" in contrast to other films we have watched, the music is played solely by piano, a far cry from the full orchestra classical films we viewed initially. Comparing this with "Pulp Fiction's" score of mainly contemporary is apples and oranges.
While the music of "The Sting" is perhaps an odd choice, it's playfulness and upbeat nature provide a contrast with the subject matter, one which reminds me of the contrast within another film, "Pulp Fiction".
The first reason I made this comparison is that the music, as previously mentioned, is historically out of place in both "The Sting" and "Pulp Fiction". While "The Sting" features ragtime, "Pulp Fiction" has funk music from the seventies such as "Jungle Boogie" and Rock music from the 1950s such as Chubby Checker's "Never Can Tell" which is played during the iconic Jack Rabbit Slim's Twist Contest.
Another comparison I draw between the two movies is that while the music fits in pace and excitement with the plot, it is in contrast with some of the depictions of suspense and violence because of it's lighthearted nature. When one thinks of ragtime one doesn't usually thing of Mobsters. In the same way, a low-key mellow song such as "Jungle Boogie" seems out of place in a film about hit men.
While I note similarities between the films, there are several contrasts. For instance, in "The Sting" there is not very much music during scenes, and very little diegetic music. Instead the music is used mostly in transitions and obviously at the beginning and end of the film. In "Pulp Fiction" the music is almost continuous. Also, in "The Sting" in contrast to other films we have watched, the music is played solely by piano, a far cry from the full orchestra classical films we viewed initially. Comparing this with "Pulp Fiction's" score of mainly contemporary is apples and oranges.
While the music of "The Sting" is perhaps an odd choice, it's playfulness and upbeat nature provide a contrast with the subject matter, one which reminds me of the contrast within another film, "Pulp Fiction".
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
To Kill A Mocking Bird
The music in to "Kill a Mocking Bird "is representative of the childhood innocence. In the beginning of the film the children are running around in the summer and the this music is characterized with tinkling piano music. When their play is interrupted by something ominous and scary, such as when Scout rolls into the Radley yard, the piano music turns ominous and horns and strings and percussion in low tones become more noticeable and add suspense. The town is also represented in the music, the music is very up and down, almost like what would be played during a square dance, with music more like "a fiddle" and less like a violin.
Other than the music, also notable are the silences. When Atticus gives his "to kill a mocking bird" speech at the dinner table music is absent. It is also absent during the confrontation in front of the courthouse and again during the entire trial proceedings. The silence emphasizes the importance of the words, and since the screenplay is based largely upon the novel, the rhetoric certainly has reason to claim center stage.
Another cool feature in the music of "To Kill A Mocking Bird" is the idea of a literal mocking bird is represented with a flute during key moments. After the courtroom scene before the verdict is announced one can hear the flute music. Again, after the final climatic scene in which Boo Radley saves the children from Bob Yule again the flute "mockingbird" can be heard.
Other than the music, also notable are the silences. When Atticus gives his "to kill a mocking bird" speech at the dinner table music is absent. It is also absent during the confrontation in front of the courthouse and again during the entire trial proceedings. The silence emphasizes the importance of the words, and since the screenplay is based largely upon the novel, the rhetoric certainly has reason to claim center stage.
Another cool feature in the music of "To Kill A Mocking Bird" is the idea of a literal mocking bird is represented with a flute during key moments. After the courtroom scene before the verdict is announced one can hear the flute music. Again, after the final climatic scene in which Boo Radley saves the children from Bob Yule again the flute "mockingbird" can be heard.
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