There has been a hundred year history of movie sound. The Sting, Dune, Jaws, Gladiator…Would these movies be quite as iconic without their incredible scores?
Journalist, broadcaster and film critic Mark Kermode, along with writer and radio producer Jenny Nelson, explored film scores in their talk at Edinburgh international book festival. They are Co-authors of Surround Sound: The Stories of Movie Music.
Surround Sound is a book of interviews with film composers, on the genres and evolution of film music. They also looked at the context and structure. Jenny and Mark had worked on a film musicradio show together, when it became clear Jenny could help move the book project along.
In this talk they shared their passion for the craft of making music for movies and a composer’s ability to elevate a film from ‘great’ to ‘epic’. There are the connections between composer and director – you want to sound like the film (not yourself) - or sound like the director. Radiohead’s guitarist Johnny Greenwood wrote to the themes and not to the scenes, On films such as there will be blood. Sometimes there is some kind of alchemy that can’t be explained.
A good film score will make or break a film. In fact most of the greatest films have incredible scores.
WHY do all the best movies have great and distinctive and highly memorable music -
Scott Joplin’s music for - The Sting.
The Godfather – Nina Rota
Hans Zimmer - Dune
The Graduate – Paul Simon
Blade Runner - Vangelis
Star Wars – John Williams
Gladiator – Hans Zimmer
Out of Africa – John Barry
Chariots of Fire - Vangelis
In the live score – the slight imperfections of live music made by humans: the mistakes are where creativity happens. There are now many film screenings with a live score. The film Drive my Car breaking new ground through vocals, chorale music. Integrated music birdman
A good film score will make or break a film. In fact most of the greatest films have incredible scores.
Jenny Nelson’s website -
“We cover A LOT, from how a score is made, how composers put the director’s vision into sounds, and the evolution of movie music from the silent era to the present day, to examining specific musical or cinematic genres that hold particular significance for Mark, such as Horror, Electronica and Pop.
We spoke to many talented and inspirational composers who kindly took the time to share their experiences and working methods with us – people like Hildur Gudnadottir, Michael Abels, Isobel Waller-Bridge, Jonny Greenwood, Warren Ellis, Lorne Balfe, Jocelyn Pook and Laura Karpman. Our aim has been to write a book about film music that’s accessible and entertaining and, hopefully, a great read, whether you’re a film score aficionado or you have a general interest in this broad and beautiful world.
The official back cover blurb is: How can a film score make you cheer, shiver, cry or punch the air in exhilaration? How do directors communicate their musical vision to composers? And when does a soundtrack take on a life of its own?
Award-winning film critic Mark Kermode and radio producer Jenny Nelson embark on a full-throttle trip down the glorious rabbit hole of film composition, exploring the evolution of film scoring from silent films to the present day and examining how what we hear has an impact on what we see.
Including interviews with extraordinary talents from Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood to Oscar-winning composers Rachel Portman, Anne Dudley and Howard Shore, and ranging from classics to blockbusters to horrors, Mark Kermode’s Surround Sound is a thrilling take on how great scores are brought to life on the silver screen.
Mark Kermode is an English film critic, radio and tv presenter, author and podcaster. He is the co-presenter (with Ellen E. Jones) of the BBC Radio 4 programme Screenshot, and co-presenter (alongside long-time collaborator Simon Mayo) of the film-review podcast Kermode & Mayo's Take. Kermode is a regular contributor to The Observer, for which he was chief film critic between September 2013 and September 2023. He plays bass in a skiffle band, Dodge Brothers – they play accompaniments for silent films.
