Music Plots

Think about your favorite movie. Now describe what makes it your favorite. The one thing you probably didn’t mention was the music. Behind every movie, no matter the genre, there is some type of music that builds onto the excitement of the whole adventure. Without soundtracks, movies would have no beginning, middle, or end. I listen closely to the music in a movie to find the effectiveness of the story. 

In my opinion, without amazing music assisting the plot of the story, a movie isn’t as exciting. The effectiveness of a soundtrack starts with the composer. A composer has the toughest job and usually gets the least credit. Composers have to know what kind of music is appropriate and where and how to build to the climax of the story. One of my favorite composers is Michael Giacchino, he can effectively build up a story with some great melodies. Giacchino is probably one of my favorites because he is willing to stretch the limits of each instrument. For example, he has string players play on the other side of the bridge to get the high pitched sound that builds excitement in action movies. He also has had a harp player play the lowest note, which can’t be heard as well and is hardly used. When you hear this note however, it gives the piece a whole new interpretation. This note gives the whole sound track an ominous sound, like thunder heard in the distance. Another factor that Giacchino changes is the percussion. In the soundtrack Lost, Giacchino used actual parts of an airplane to put in a certain sound that can’t be found with any other instrument. Giacchino always tries to give his music authenticity both within the time period and with the actual sounds of authentic instruments. Without pressing these limitations, Giacchino would not separate himself from the crowd of composers, he would have been one in the same. 

Another effect that clearly separates Giacchino from other composers is his use of a live orchestra. To me, live orchestras give the overall sound a fuller more rich sound. Today people can synthesize every instrument on a computer, the sound that is produced however, is nothing like the tone of a professional player. Synthesized music lacks a certain quality of human investment in a piece. For example, in the Incredibles, Giacchino recorded a live orchestra using cassette tapes. By recording it on cassette tapes, the whole tone was given a 1950s sound. The slight difference in the recording on cassette tapes gave the music a sound which fit perfectly with the superhero movie. If a computer synthesized soundtrack was made, this authenticity would not be as prominent and it would have been less effective. Without these slight differences in a soundtrack, the music seems too unreal and it puts a damper on the effectiveness of the movie itself. 

While people sit and watch movies waiting for the climax, I wait to see how a composer will build up to that climax. Generally, the better a composer pushes the plot along, the more interested I become in the movie.