E-Mail Bag 9/17/97

Compiled by Jeff Bond

Oh boy, we need our own FSM newsgroup. The reader responses keep coming in. Here are the latest:

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Marcelo Vita:

I went last Sunday to see Lawrence of Arabia, which just got a new release of the 1988 restored version here in NY. I'm not a particular fan of Maurice Jarre, but it's amazing how well his music plays on that film. I had seen it a couple of times on laserdisc, but the theater experience is really something else.

Furthermore, on a season filled with Batman & Robin, Fire Down Below and The Fifth Element, David Lean's masterpiece shouts to every one in Hollywood: "look at me you dumb bastards!"

It's funny how, during the intermission, people on the restroom started to whistle the main title, probably completely unaware of how film music is incorporated into the fabric of society. Of course, lucky for us, we know that.

One final thing. I was talking to a friend the other day, someone that doesn't follow film music, and we tried to identify what would be the most recognizable film tune ever. Some names were sugested, so tell me your opinion:

The James Bond Theme

The Jaws theme

Rocky

Gone with the wind

Star Wars

About the only other thing I can think of would be Bernard Herrmann's murder music from Psycho, although I'm not sure that qualifies as a "tune. " But then, I don't think the motif from Jaws does, either.

Readers, do you have any thoughts for the "most recognizable film tune ever"?

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Saul Pincus, 76363. 2066@compuserve. com:

Regarding John Williams scores not available on CD, I believe you can add Heartbeeps (1981) to that list, though I don't know if there was ever an LP or tape release for this one at all. Some time ago I came across a multi-generational tape dub of what seems like the session masters for the score, listened to it, and understood why. It's atypical for a Williams score of the era, filled with electronics. In general it doesn't make a great listen, but then who's to say it wouldn't if Williams had had a chance to sequence his music for release?

It's been 16 years since I saw the film in theatres, though. Maybe once Universal gets their act together and dusts off this buried film for home video (it's never been out, from what I know) we'll all get a better chance at evaluating this equally swept-under-the-podium score.

I remember watching Heartbeeps when it was on cable during the early '80s. Back then there was a simple reason for watching movies like Heartbeeps: They were on cable, dammit! I really only remember the title music, which was a mildly charming little electronic melody, but there was a sweeping, lyrical bridge for strings that was quite beautiful.

Note from Lukas: I didn't include Heartbeeps in that list because I was concentrating on Williams scores since E.T.

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Rich Ewalt, REwalt1031@aol. com

I agree with Doug Adams's article on Planet of the Apes completely. It has been my favorite film score for going on 30 years now! (Coincidently, Journey to the Center of the Earth is the first film score I ever remember noticing. I was five at the time, and it is still a favorite.)

I have probably listened to the old Project 3 LP of Planet over 100 times, and the CDs many more. Beyond the new music and sequencing, which are terrific, I have to say the most impressive thing about the new release is its clarity. I hear things now which I have never heard before. The stereo separation helps make this a primer on film scoring and orchestrating. Even after all those hundreds of listens, I found myself listening with a greater attention that I have in years to, not only the music, but to how the orchestration works. How Goldsmith moved from one exotic instrument to another.

I've never understood the 'criticism' of modern music. Dissonant, modern music, even serial writing like Pelham, can have as much of an emotional impact as the most lyrical moments of Herrmann or Rota. The coldness of Anton Webern's music may make it fairly inaccessable to the casual listener, but there are rewards to be found there, just the same. However, I cannot see the difficulty of listening to, say, Penderecki's Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima, or George Crumb's Night of the Electric Insects (See the Exorcist). To me this music speaks in a way many classical or baroque pieces never will.

I have always found that modernistic approaches in music speak quite directly to my emotions. Maybe that's because I was raised on '60s television and monster movies, which frequently used modernistic approaches in their music to generate fear, excitement, anger and yes, even a strange kind of beauty.

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Kyle Shold writes:

I am in total agreement concerning the soundtrack compilation problem discussed. There needs to be more variety in the ones that are issued. Why is it that every time a 'new' John Williams compilation comes out it has to have the same titles on it, save one? I haven't heard Mr. Williams' America: The Dream Goes On, but I don't want to pay good money for the CD when it has Star Wars, E. T. , Jaws, CE3K, Superman, etc. , etc. They maybe some of his best and most recognized works, but they are on a hundred different discs and I already have those hundred. So how can I hear that ONE track that I want? The companies that put these out think that nobody would want to hear anything else but those classics. BS! Do they think that the average everyday person who doesn't give a rip about film music is going to run right out and purchase the newest release? Most people I know want to hear the latest from Jewel, Weezer, Lisa Loeb among others commonly heard on the radio. They think Berard Herrmann is a character in the Sunday funnies. These record labels don't realize that they need to gear these things towards a certain market and that they are only beating a dead horse by re-releasing the same stuff.

I want to see more compilations like Danny Elfman's Music for a Darkened Theater. Why doesn't Basil Poledouris have a CD like this? It's because everyone thinks he only did The Hunt for Red October. I'd even like to see more albums like Summon the Heroes. It has several works by several different composers but all of them are compiled along a common theme.

Slowly but surely it seems that many labels are beginning to realize the niche market that makes up the film music community (Rykodisc MGM report by Lukas Kendall). They still don't realize that we are capable of spending disgusting amounts of money to get the music that we crave.

Attention Music Labels: Pull your heads out of your marketing departments ass and get with the program.

Basil Poledouris does have a compilation CD available, but it is a promotional effort that's currently unavailable in record stores. As for the major music labels, until approaches to mass marketing are radically altered, we're never going to see the kind of anal-retentive approach to movie music compilations that most fans would prefer. Even Silva Screen, which we can assume is largely run by film music afficianados, has to bow to the realities of the market place. Future "serious" movie score album releases will have to acknowledge realistic sales goals (of 3-5,000 as opposed to typical major label minimum requirements of 50,000 units) and budget their releases accordingly in order to get these albums out.

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From Mike Quigley (Mr. Mike):

re: the comment on Bartok and Stravinsky, "I call for a moratorium on the invocation of these two names to describe film music."

Oh yeah? What about some of Jerry Fielding's music where he rips off Bartok note-for-note, as in The Nightcomers? (This does not dim my opinion that Jerry Fielding was one of the greatest film score composers ever... ";-).

Please insert ubiquitous quote about great artists only stealing from the best here.

TOMORROW: An article on finding film music scores - the manuscripts, i.e. the printed music. Stay tuned true believers.

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