Original Music of Movie

                          Written by Nick Skywalker

Ladies and gentlemen,

     Do you like music? Do you like movie? Today my topic is original music of movie.

     Simply to say, movie music is all the music that is used in movie. First I’d like to express two nouns: “non-source music” and “original music”.

     “Non-source music” means we can not find a reasonable source of music. A simple example, though you can’t see some is playing the violin, you can hear the music played by the violin. The purpose of playing such music, is to polish the effects and shows of the movie. But such sound is not real, that is to say, it doesn’t exist in the real world. The real sound in the movie is dialogues and the effect of sound. And movie music which is not a real sound is a skill of the expression of movie art, a movie language. At first when movie music appears, source music is used but now most of the time it is non-source music. And most of non-source music is “original music”, to ask a person to write music particularly for a single movie.

     How to use such music to provide a contrast to plot? Such problem is not just what the music writer should face and deal with, and it often refers to director, play-writer and so on. Now I’d like to say some examples to describe some ways to use original music.

     First, I introduce a way that is to write a piece of music for one person or one thing. Take “Jaws” for example, every time when the shark is coming, the audiences can hear urgently string, maybe audiences can not see the shark, but they know the shark is coming. However, the director played a little joke to audiences: once such music is plays but the shark doesn’t appear again, instead of that, a swimming boy whose swimsuit looks like the skin of shark. But after a moment, the real shark is coming without music until the last moment it attacks a person suddenly. These pictures give audiences a deep memory. And music plays a very important part here. And I think the best used in this way in a movie is “The Legend of 1900”. 1900 is an orphan adopted by a sailor and grows up on the ship and never left the ship. He plays the piano well in the hall of the ship. Once, one of his friends asks him whose music he is playing, and he points to a passenger, says: “His!” We can see this passenger, wearing noble’s clothes but looks like sneaking. In fact he is a passenger from third class cabin and maybe he has stolen a cloth. The music is played slowly when the man stops to look around and hurriedly when the man passes the crowed quickly. It seems the music and the man, they are one. And when 1900 is making a record, he suddenly sees a beautiful girl through the window. The music come natural and sudden rises and sudden falls following the girl who passes one and another window, appears and disappears. This movie won the 57^th Golden Globe Prize for Original Music.

     Next I’d like to introduce a way that is to use a slow and quiet music to provide a contrast to a tense plot. “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” has a plot: Faramir commands his troops to recover the lost capital. He knows the mission will be failed but for respecting to his father and the country, he would rather die. All the movie music for the charge is just a quiet song sung by a hobbit in the movie. The pictures are played slowly and the music is played slowly and quietly gives audiences a feeling of sorrow, like a sigh. However sense of sight or hearing, all shakes the hearts of audiences.

     At last I’d like to introduce a way that using music to hint something. Most of us know James Horner because of “Titanic” but before that, he has written some music for some movies. “Brave Heart” is one example. This movie shows the deeds about Scotland national hero, Wallace, against the colonizing rule of England. The movie is of great momentum. So the movie music here is also very important. At the beginning, the floating sound of flute brings the audiences to the high mountains of Scotland and the people of Scotland living plain and honest. But the melancholy sound of violin shows that they are oppressed by English. Four French horns’ inauspicious chord hints the dark and evil power of rule. After the transition of string, a single French horn suddenly plays surge music like an expectation of the birth of a hero to save his nation. But with the cold answer of cello, we guess the hard ways of the hero. This music is the prelude of the movie, and the life of Wallace is hinted in this music. Same way used in “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring”. Still use flute to show the hobbits’ happy life. But in the air of the celebration, the power of the ring is getting stronger and stronger. Then the music turns to minor, and provides a shadow to the happy hobbits. The music is used a uncommon chord to hint the increasing power of the ring. In “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” used chorus and symphony to hint Frodo’s contradiction and the great power of the ring when Frodo is going to destroy the ring. All these music help “The Lord of the Rings” win Oscar Prize for Original Music twice.

    Finally, we see how important of the original music in a movie and its great effect. So I think when we are seeing a good movie, we should not forget to pay attention to its original music. So what are you waiting for? Come and get a record of original music of a movie. In fact, I’m going to buy one, so, goodbye!