Patrick Doyle

Interview by Sijbold Tonkens

PD: I think for directing and acting. I have done my best, one is never totally satisfied. But I think for the movie, costumes, design, it is his finest work, also his finest work as an actor. It is terrific. and in spite for the movie that it is four hours long, it flies very quickly. It grabs your attention from the very beginning. It is on 70mm widescreen, the details are wonderful, the costumes, everything.

ST: Can you tell how you worked on this film?

PD: It was very difficult to find a way in the film, the acting was so wonderful, the text is immaculate, Shakespeare. Kenneth always said to keep the music as simple as possible, to help to present it. help to bring the audience nearer, to make it more accessible and understandable. it was a constant quest.

So that is what I did, it took a long time to find the right melodies, I had to look at the picture a lot of times. There is a complex theme during the ghost sequence in the forest when Claudius is examining his soul. A love theme for Ophelia and Hamlet. And they play it so natural that you think, my God, he did love her. It comes of very powerful. And there is a song that Ophelia sings, which I developed in the score. a theme for Hamlet and her come together. In the End titles Placido Domingo is singing the song.

I am sure people will like it. It is a wonderful spectacle, there is a wonderful epic shot in it. And the last shot in the movie is spectacular. It was shot all of the film, the studio's work, interiors in Shepperton. And the exterior part was Blendham palace, it was once the home of Sir Winston Churchill. Massive, as big as Buckingham Palace.

ST: What orchestra did you use? Was it British?

PD: It was a session orchestra with the best players in London. I particular featured a string quartet. Because so much of the film is internalized, the struggle with Claudius, Hamlet's internal struggle, Ophelia's internal struggle. I preferred there a small orchestra. The harmonies are very exposed.

ST: Do you always work with British orchestras?

PD: I have recorded here and in Los Angeles, there are wonderful players on both sides. They are all very professional and enthusiastic. The string playing is brighter in America. They have exiting techniques. But it is hard to compare.

ST: What is the craziest story in your career?

PD: I don't know, but here is an odd one. I don't use computers; when directors come to my house they expect a Star Trek set with computers and stuff. I don't like that. I work the old fashioned way, I write music down. When I have an idea for a melody I tape it on a cassette, played on the piano, and work it out on sheet paper. But on one day the cassette recorder fell off my desk and broke. I picked up my little daughter's Fisher Price toy cassette recorder and taped a tune one day. And that day film director Regis Wargnier was at the door to listen to some of the music that I just had written for his film Indochine. But letting him in, I had forgotten that I had the Fisher Price on my desk.

He said, "What is this?" I said: "Oh, nothing. A toy." Regis was laughing. "Are you telling me that you are recording the score for Indochine on a Fisher Price?" It did not matter. It had to be orchestrated and played by an orchestra after anyway. I just put ideas on tape and work them out. My recorder was broke that day, and I had to use a substitute. Regis said, "Let me hear it." I was embarrassed and refused to play it for him. But he wanted to hear it. It was not bad after all. He told me, "Let's play and record the rest of the things you wrote for the film so far on the Fisher Price for the film producers in Paris. They are very serious people! They have dollar signs in their eyes. Let's do it for fun." So I played it on the piano and we taped it. The next day Regis called me and said: "They like the Fisher Price." We laughed at it, and even now he ask me, do you still use a Fisher Price? But no, I usually write themes down on paper. As a tune comes up I tape it. But it is the result what counts.

ST: Are you always satisfied when you hear the music for the first time at the recording sessions?

PD: No, not always. Sometimes I have to change it. There was one cue in Hamlet that was too busy. When I looked at it, it was too busy. So I rewrote it. After the sessions one night, I spent about an hour. And the next day we played it and there was much more effect. But if you do your homework beforehand, spend your time with the director going through the entire film, there are no surprises at the sessions. It is to expensive when an orchestra is waiting until you have solved problems. It works a lot better. The recording for Hamlet took six days, 12 to 14 sessions. There is a lot of music. I use click tracks, only a few tracks were free hand. I orchestrate a lot myself, but time forced me to use other orchestrators as well.

ST: What are you working on now?

PD: I already did some music on Great Expectations, because there is a song in the picture. And an arrangement on "Besame mucho." The film is with Robert De Niro and Anne Bancroft. But first of all I am doing Donnie Brasco with Johnny Depp.

ST: What do you think of festivals like these in Valencia where film music is essential?

PD: It is a very good idea. It is good for composers to meet. Talk about, exchange their problems or the positive side of things. And it is nice to meet people who are interested in film music, to explain the process. People do things different all over the world. Festivals are a very good thing. I was honored to have been invited.