Mail Bag: Film Music Scores

Compiled by Lukas Kendall

Here are two letters we got in response to the items last Friday about where to find film music scores -- the actual written manuscripts.

From: Donny Gilbert, dggilb@franklincovey.com

As a composer and a huge fan of film music, I have tried to get my hands on scores for as long as I could remember. I have had some reasonably good success in some of my endeavors. I have managed to procure some pretty sweet scores that are relatively hard to come by, and have been invaluable in my studies. I will admit that I have not taken as drastic measures as Hal Jackson to procure some of these scores, but there are some alternatives that could be pursued that might help.

Some of these examples some ardent fans might not like, but these scores have been extremely helpful in studying. As most of you might be aware, Hal Leonard has (tried to) publish Williams concert arrangement of some of his pieces. I will admit that they have managed to pull off a miracle or two, such as the concert suite from Phantom Menace, Cowboys Overture, ET, etc. But others have been extremely difficult to get from Hal Leonard, such as the Summon the Heroes score, which I have had on order for over three years now! I've contacted Hal Leonard and they have given me various excuses, which I either agree with or brush off. But Hal Leonard has given us some other areas. They have published watered-down arrangements of various Williams' themes (I must also admit that the Calvin Custer arrangements of these pieces are CRAP!!!!), but the jewels do not lie in the orchestral arrangements but in the band arrangements! Now before you get that look on your faces here me out. From what I have noticed, these band arrangements are damn near note for note of the actual Williams arrangements (the ones that Hal Leonard publishes). The obvious difference is instrumentation, but all the notes are there! The colors are different, but everything you need is there. Another difference is that most of these arrangements are a whole step lower in there key schemes because bands sound better in flat keys than in sharp (ask why Sousa wrote all his marches in flat keys).

The Hal Leonard arrangements (usually done by Paul Lavender) are top notch, and include some scores that aren't available anywhere else: the End Credits for Far and Away, the Midway and 1941 marches, JFK (although the JW signature edition is supposed to be out, it is currently out of print!?). Summon the Heroes ,although it is slightly different in terms of some instrumentation, mainly 6 trumpet parts instead of 8 but it is note for note with the recording. I have even stumbled over some rarities such as a concert suite from Monsignor, and Fanfare for Ten Year olds and Star of Bethlehem (the original Home Alone 1 version, not the Home Alone 2 version). A good rule of thumb is that if it published by Hal Leonard, it is 95% what you hear on the recording (except again for instrumentation). I would say these are a very useful, and if you want to test your orchestration, try reconstructing what you see and hear, it can only help. (don't try to perform it in concert though).

These suggestions obviously do not help when it comes to the full blown scores for the movies, but it is a place to start, and it can't hurt. These scores are also affordable, usually around $10 or so. But keep on looking and keep on studying.

From: Loran Alan Davis <lad184@psu.edu>

As a film composer, I have been reading with interest the numerous comments about the availability of film score manuscripts. I share your frustration that the studios keep these manuscripts under lock and key - especially when you consider that the major studios are more concerned with their song deals with the record companies than they are with the underscore. Our options are few: either make an appointment (assuming you have musicological-related credentials) with one of the few Universities that hold film music collections or go to the music division at the Library of Congress. In both cases, you are not allowed (most of the time) to photocopy the manuscript or remove it from the collections room. If you are a well-trained composer and orchestrator, you can always do a take-down while listening to a soundtrack or watching a movie, but it just isn't the same as gazing upon the original manuscript - often in the hand of the orchestrator or composer.

Well, my friends, I am in a position to offer some help. As most of you know, most film composers do not own the rights to the music they compose. However, scoring independent films is a different matter. Due to limited budgets, composers often make a deal to retain the rights to the music. That is what I have done with The Last Prediction, the film I am currently scoring for Burning Gunn Entertainment.

I intend to make available (for sale, of course - but at a reasonable price) my manuscripts for the film - both the sketch version and the full-score version. I realize this isn't the same thing as owning a copy of the manuscript for Citizen Kane, but it does give you an opportunity to own a film score manuscript. I understand that many of you don't know me, so I recommend that you visit my web page at <http://www.gunnlace.com/loran.htm> where you can listen to on-line cues of my music and request my free demo CD. As soon as the score is ready to be published, I will make an announcement.

I hope this helps. I don't always have the chance to retain the rights to my music. When I do, I will do my best to make the manuscripts available to film score fans at a low cost. (Just remember, I still own the music - you're buying the manuscript, not the rights!) By the way, for those of you who wonder about this sort of thing: I do actually write down my music, I orchestrate my own music, and the manuscripts are in my own handwriting. I'm just like the rest of you - I can't stomach composers who are "hummers": using ghost-writers, then taking all the composing credit. You don't know how bad I would love to name names, but I can't prepare manuscripts when I am off fighting a court battle because I claimed that the music for **** was really composed by *** ***.

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