Showing posts with label 1993. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 1993. Show all posts
Friday, November 22, 2024
Saturday, May 16, 2020
ScoreCues YouTube Channel: The Ultimate Playlist Collection for Discovering Film, Television, and Video Game Scores
Article by Travis Elder
Posted December 2, 2017
ScoreCues YouTube Channel Playlist - 1993 - Best Film and Television Scores
By accident I got
into listening to scores. As a young
teen in 1989, I bought the soundtrack to Batman. I ended up with Danny Elfman's score. I figured it would make good bed time
listening. Little did I know that this
"bedtime" album would be my introduction to a musical artform I would
come to appreciate for the next thirty years and counting.
Back then, discovering new scores was nothing like today.
It was much harder. At first, my
selection was limited to the few cassettes I could afford and the rare movie I
caught that let me hear the score in context.
One day, I discovered a gold mine of new scores at my local library, The Orem Public Library, in Orem,
Utah. I checked out dozens. For the first time, I had access to a literal library of scores. Along
the way, I discovered works such as Basil Poledouris's Conan, James Horner's
Star Trek II, and Jerry Goldsmith's Rambo.
I can still remember listening to James Horner's Star Trek II and
wondering what happened to the awesome Star Trek theme from the first
movie? Needless to say, I was hooked.
Before long I got a
job and could afford to buy more scores.
I remember going to a Sam Goody in 1993 at the University Mall and making a big purchase of
CDs that included Total Recall, The Last of the Mohicans,
and 1492: Conquest of Paradise. During that same time, I discovered a local,
specialty CD shop, Crandall Audio. In
addition to carrying a decent-sized film score section, they also had a feature
that none of the big box stores had at the time: previewing albums before
purchasing. This was revolutionary. Simply select a shrink-wrapped CD, and give it to the clerk who would then open the disc, and
pop it in a CD player at a listening station.
It was great. I remember seeking
out and finding Toto's Dune, which I still have in my collection today.
Fast forward about
thirty years to the digital streaming age, and
discovering great music scores has never been easier. Several years ago I started a YouTube channel to collect my favorite film, television, and video game score cues in a variety of playlists, which currently number over 300. These playlists fall into four main categories:
Best
of by Year (1976-2021)
Essentials
Works by Composer (John Williams, James Horner, Jerry Goldsmith, Danny
Elfman, Hans Zimmer, and more)
Themed
Playlists (Action, romance, minimalism, piano, great themes, sports, Star
Trek, comic books, and more)
Franchise Highlights (Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Harry Potter, Terminator, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Battlestar Galactica, James Bond, Batman, and many more)
Some of the most popular playlists (as of October 2021) on the channel include Best of Hans Zimmer Action Set Pieces, Best of Basil Poledouris, Best of Alan Silvestri, Best of Jerry Goldsmith, Best of John Powell, Best of Harry Gregson-Williams, Best of Danny Elfman, Best of Brian Tyler, Best of Phillip Glass, and Best of Mark Isham. Give these and many more a spin today.
Saturday, December 2, 2017
The Vanishing by Jerry Goldsmith (1993)
A review of the soundtrack album by Travis Elder
Posted December 2, 2017
Follow @moviescores
The year 1993 was a renaissance of sorts for my youth. I worked at a movie theater, watched lots of movies, consumed popcorn in bulk, drank gallons of soda, and did my homework in between movie showings. What more could a geeky teenager ask for? It was during this time that I discovered Jerry Goldsmith's alluring score for The Vanishing. The score quickly grew on me as I caught segments of it during my theater checks, so much so that when Varese Sarabande finally issued a limited edition album in 2007, I quickly snatched it up.
The Vanishing is an obscure, psychological thriller that was poorly received by audiences and critics alike. The film follows Jeff Harriman's (Kiefer Sutherland) obsessive search for his girlfriend Diane Shaver (Sandra Bullock) after she mysteriously disappeared at a gas station while they vacationed. So clinically obsessed is he that when Diane's abductor, Barney Cousins (Jeff Bridges), shows up on his doorstep, he is all too eager to follow a path that few would take. Cousins promises to reveal Diane's fate if Jeff gets into his car and comes with him right then. So begins Jeff's unlikely and unsurprisingly chilling journey to discover what befell his girlfriend including a return to the gas station where Cousins abducted Diane. Fortunately for Jeff, his new girlfriend, Rita (Nancy Travis), intervenes to attempt saving him from his own blind stupidity.
The film's main theme opens the score in The Practice, which plays as Cousins, a chemistry teacher and ironically family man, sadistically practices and plans his abduction. He even times how long a chemically infused handkerchief held over his own nose takes to knock him out. Goldsmith's theme for Cousins' villainous planning is a fiendish two-note motif, a smooth and flowing, waltz-style theme accompanied by precisely calculated rhythmic backing. The theme's harmonic slinkiness belies so well Cousins cruel intentions as it leads you along with its attractive, flowing grace. It becomes all the more frightening when Goldsmith morphs the theme into dissonance as if to say, "Gotcha!" Of course, Goldsmith does these kinds of themes so well. He did so in the previous year's Basic Instinct and he would do so again in the next year's even more superior effort in The Shadow.
For the relationship between Jeff and his girlfriends, Goldsmith crafts a love theme that he most often arranges in plaintive form because it represents the loss Jeff feels for Diane. As such, it often comes across mournful and regretful such as it does when it first appears in Apologies. It never reaches the glitzy heights of Forever Young, or the elegance of The Russia House, though these themes share commonalities. The theme does get a few tender performances such as with woodwinds in Forever and with both strings and woodwinds in A Night's Sleep. Perhaps the most effective, technical use of the theme occurs in Drink where Goldsmith intertwines it in counterpoint to unsettling effect with the nefarious two-note motif. The highlight performance though occurs in End Titles where we are treated to a sultry performance pared with jazzy percussion and piano much like Goldsmith did with even better results in The Russia House's concluding cue with that score's love theme. This closing rendition saves The Vanishing's love theme from footnote status. Even so, it pales in comparison to another romantic theme in another thriller that same year composed by James Horner for Darby in The Pelican Brief.
Mention must also be made of the pivotal role synth elements play in the score. Throughout, Goldsmith incorporates his trademark electronics of the time (think Total Recall, Star Trek Insurrection, and even Rambo). Included are synth rhythms, pulses, pops, claps, tings, and growls. For example, in New Message (at 2:19) and Abduction (at :02) we hear an elongated synth growl that Hans Zimmer would later replicate with great effect in Crimson Tide two years later. The electronic elements add to the suspenseful ambiance and enhance both the intrigue textures and the action set pieces. What could otherwise function as mundane underscore becomes much more interesting as Goldsmith morphs, arranges, contracts, and expands his synthetic elements in a variety of ways.
3. Statistics (1:52)+
4. Steps (1:07)
5. Apologies (2:13)~
6. Forever (1:37)~
7. Diane’s Missing (2:34)*^
8. That’s It (:55)~
9. Passing Time (:37)~^
10. A Night’s Sleep (1:40)~
11. Weekend Duty (2:12)
12. The Password (4:40)#
13. The Vision (3:44)~#+
14. New Message (2:29)
15. Hello, Jeff (:39)
16. Let Me Tell You (3:18)+#
17. A Variation (2:18)
18. The Lure (1:00)+
19. Abduction (2:40)*+#^
20. Don’t Tell (:52)
21. Drink (4:01)+#~
22. Surprise (2:07)#
23. Where’s Jeff? (3:46)^
24. Let’s Talk (9:00)*+#~
25. End Titles (3:17)*~
Total album time: 65:02
Album release year: 2007
+Contains main theme
#Contains two-note villain motif
~Contains love theme
^Action cue
*1993 Favorites Pick
Recommended, shortened album program
Posted December 2, 2017
Follow @moviescores
The Vanishing is an obscure, psychological thriller that was poorly received by audiences and critics alike. The film follows Jeff Harriman's (Kiefer Sutherland) obsessive search for his girlfriend Diane Shaver (Sandra Bullock) after she mysteriously disappeared at a gas station while they vacationed. So clinically obsessed is he that when Diane's abductor, Barney Cousins (Jeff Bridges), shows up on his doorstep, he is all too eager to follow a path that few would take. Cousins promises to reveal Diane's fate if Jeff gets into his car and comes with him right then. So begins Jeff's unlikely and unsurprisingly chilling journey to discover what befell his girlfriend including a return to the gas station where Cousins abducted Diane. Fortunately for Jeff, his new girlfriend, Rita (Nancy Travis), intervenes to attempt saving him from his own blind stupidity.
The film's main theme opens the score in The Practice, which plays as Cousins, a chemistry teacher and ironically family man, sadistically practices and plans his abduction. He even times how long a chemically infused handkerchief held over his own nose takes to knock him out. Goldsmith's theme for Cousins' villainous planning is a fiendish two-note motif, a smooth and flowing, waltz-style theme accompanied by precisely calculated rhythmic backing. The theme's harmonic slinkiness belies so well Cousins cruel intentions as it leads you along with its attractive, flowing grace. It becomes all the more frightening when Goldsmith morphs the theme into dissonance as if to say, "Gotcha!" Of course, Goldsmith does these kinds of themes so well. He did so in the previous year's Basic Instinct and he would do so again in the next year's even more superior effort in The Shadow.
For the relationship between Jeff and his girlfriends, Goldsmith crafts a love theme that he most often arranges in plaintive form because it represents the loss Jeff feels for Diane. As such, it often comes across mournful and regretful such as it does when it first appears in Apologies. It never reaches the glitzy heights of Forever Young, or the elegance of The Russia House, though these themes share commonalities. The theme does get a few tender performances such as with woodwinds in Forever and with both strings and woodwinds in A Night's Sleep. Perhaps the most effective, technical use of the theme occurs in Drink where Goldsmith intertwines it in counterpoint to unsettling effect with the nefarious two-note motif. The highlight performance though occurs in End Titles where we are treated to a sultry performance pared with jazzy percussion and piano much like Goldsmith did with even better results in The Russia House's concluding cue with that score's love theme. This closing rendition saves The Vanishing's love theme from footnote status. Even so, it pales in comparison to another romantic theme in another thriller that same year composed by James Horner for Darby in The Pelican Brief.
Mention must also be made of the pivotal role synth elements play in the score. Throughout, Goldsmith incorporates his trademark electronics of the time (think Total Recall, Star Trek Insurrection, and even Rambo). Included are synth rhythms, pulses, pops, claps, tings, and growls. For example, in New Message (at 2:19) and Abduction (at :02) we hear an elongated synth growl that Hans Zimmer would later replicate with great effect in Crimson Tide two years later. The electronic elements add to the suspenseful ambiance and enhance both the intrigue textures and the action set pieces. What could otherwise function as mundane underscore becomes much more interesting as Goldsmith morphs, arranges, contracts, and expands his synthetic elements in a variety of ways.
No doubt this score remains obscure because of the film's box office failure and its limited release by Varese in 2007, long after its debut. If not for my job at a movie theater, I could easily have missed it. Much of the score, its themes and synth elements, are very typical of Goldsmith, which is both a strength and a weakness. However, too often thriller scores become tiresome because the quieter sections tend toward boring, monotonous droning. Not so here as Goldsmith's keeps things interesting with his intelligent and snappy integration of synth permutations. Goldsmith's effective use of counterpoint is also appreciated. In the end, the score remains a nostalgic favorite that I return to for its slyly seductive main theme, the end credits performance of the love theme, and Goldsmith's trademark combination of orchestra and synth in both in its suspenseful sections and its action music. Sadly, the Varese Sarabande limited release is now out of print, but copies remain on the secondary market including Amazon.com.
1. Practice (4:50)*+#
2. The Stars (1:05)3. Statistics (1:52)+
4. Steps (1:07)
5. Apologies (2:13)~
6. Forever (1:37)~
7. Diane’s Missing (2:34)*^
8. That’s It (:55)~
9. Passing Time (:37)~^
10. A Night’s Sleep (1:40)~
11. Weekend Duty (2:12)
12. The Password (4:40)#
13. The Vision (3:44)~#+
14. New Message (2:29)
15. Hello, Jeff (:39)
16. Let Me Tell You (3:18)+#
17. A Variation (2:18)
18. The Lure (1:00)+
19. Abduction (2:40)*+#^
20. Don’t Tell (:52)
21. Drink (4:01)+#~
22. Surprise (2:07)#
23. Where’s Jeff? (3:46)^
24. Let’s Talk (9:00)*+#~
25. End Titles (3:17)*~
Total album time: 65:02
Album release year: 2007
+Contains main theme
#Contains two-note villain motif
~Contains love theme
^Action cue
*1993 Favorites Pick
Recommended, shortened album program
Monday, September 6, 2010
Scoring with the Human Voice
ScoreCues YouTube Playlist - Sole-Stirring Vocal Works From Soundtracks
One of my favorite score elements is the use of the human voice. Voice is used in scores in many ways including as a chorus or choir (Exultate Justi from John Williams' Empire of the Sun), solo voice (Charlotte Church in James Horner's A Beautiful Mind), chanting (Assassination from Cliff Eidelman's Star Trek VI) or as more of a background texture, element, or accent (How Could You Leave Us from John Ottman's Superman Returns). One of my first experiences with voice in a score came in 1989's Batman by Danny Elfman. I still remember marveling at the mystery and power of the track "Descent into Mystery," a cue, which scores Batman's decent into his hidden lair with a somewhat worried Vicki Vale. The cue begins softly, builds, and then ends with a climactic crash of Batman's theme, all along the chorus gives added mystery and excitement. That same year I heard James Horner's Glory featuring the Boys Choir of Harlem. Glory is a veritable powerhouse of choral excellence. Cues like Charging Fort Wagner, Epitaph to War, and Closing Credits have the set the bar for many composers since. As is often the case with composers today, Horner drew inspiration from classical works of long ago. In the case of Charging Fort Wagner, from Carl Orff's O Fortuna from the cantata Carmina Burana. Horner is just one composer of many (John Williams Duel of the Fates from The Phantom Menace) who has imitated Orff's work and with great success at that.
What follows below is a list of favorite score cues utilizing the human voice. The playlist above includes many more and is updated regularly (view the playlist on YouTube view and listen to all the tracks).
What follows below is a list of favorite score cues utilizing the human voice. The playlist above includes many more and is updated regularly (view the playlist on YouTube view and listen to all the tracks).
1492 Conquest of Paradise\Light and Shadow
Abyss\Bud on the Ledge
Alexander\Titans
Alice in Wonderland\Alice's Theme
American Journey - 2002 Winter Olympics\Call of the Champions
Amistad\Dry Your Tears, Afrika
Apollo 13\Dark Side of the Moon
Apollo 13\End Titles
August Rush\August's Rhapsody
Avatar\Becoming One of the People-Becoming one with Neytiri
Avatar\Climbing Up Iknimaya - The Path to Heaven
Avatar\Jake's First Flight
Avatar\Gathering All the Navi Clans for Battle
Band of Brothers\Main Titles
Band of Brothers\Requiem
Batman\Descent into Mystery
A Beautiful Mind\Creating Governing Dynamics
A Beautiful Mind\All Love Can Be
The Blue Planet\The Blue Planet
Brainstorm\Michael's Gift to Karen
Casper\Casper's Lullaby
Charlotte's Web\The Plan Begins
Children of Dune\Inama Nushif (Montage).
Christopher Columbus The Discovery\The Discovery (Gloria)
Christopher Columbus The Discovery\Come O Come, Emmanuel
Conan the Barbarian\Riders of Doom
Command & Conquer 4 Tiberian Twilight\The Prophet's Ascension
Crimson Tide\Roll Tide-Hymn- Father Strong to Save
Cutthroat Island\Main Title- Morgan's Ride
The Da Vinci Code\CheValiers de Sangreal
The Da Vinci Code\Rose of Arimathea
The Da Vinci Code\Poisoned Chalice
Dances with Wolves\Stands With a Fist Remembers
Deep Impact\Goodbye and Godspeed
Dinosaur\The Eggs Travels
Dinosaur\Across the Desert
Dune\Paul Meets Chani
Edward Scissorhands\Edward Meets the World- Storytime
Edward Scissorhands\Edward Meets the World- Beautiful New World-Home Sweet Home
Edward Scissorhands\Poor Edward- The Grand Finale
Elizabeth: The Golden Age\Divinity Theme
Elizabeth: The Golden Age\Horseback Address
Elizabeth: The Golden Age\Storm
Empire of the Sun\Cadillac of the Skies
Empire of the Sun\Exsultate Justi
Endurance\Mother is Sent Away
Enemy at the Gates\12 - Tania (End Credits)
Evan Almighty\The Flood
Fantastic Four\Main Titles
The Final Conflict\The Final Conflict (Main Title)
First Knight\Arthur's Farewell
The Four Feathers\A Coward No Longer
Gladiator\Now We Are Free
Glory\A Call to Arms
Glory\The Year of Jubilee
Glory\Burning the Town of Darien
Glory\Charging Fort Wagner
Glory\An Epitaph to War
Glory\Closing Credits
The Gospel of John\Follow Me
The Chronicles of Narnia\The Battle
Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire Soundtrack\The Quidditch World Cup
Hidalgo\Montage
Hook\You Are the Pan
Hook\Farewell Neverland
How to Train Your Dragon\This is Berk
How to Train Your Dragon\Forbidden Friendship
How to Train Your Dragon\Romantic Flight
Hunt for Red October\Hymn to Red October (Main Title)
Hunt for Red October\Nuclear Scam
Raiders of the Lost Ark\The Map Room- Dawn
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom\Approaching the Stones
The Island\ My Name Is Lincoln
Journey to The Center Of The Earth\The Center Of the Earth
Jurassic Park\Theme from Jurassic Park
King Kong\The Empire State Building _ Beauty Killed the Beast
K-19 The Widowmaker\Journey
Krull\Epilogue & End Credits
Lady in the Water\The Great Eatlon
The Lamb of God\In Paradise
The Land Before Time\The Great Migration
Legend - The Jerry Goldsmith Score\Reunited
The Lion In Winter\Main Title-The Lion In Winter
The Lion King\This Land
The Lion King\To Die For
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring\The Bridge of Khazad Dum
The Two Towers\Foundations of Stone
The Two Towers\Evenstar
The Two Towers\Farewell To Lorien
The Lord of the Rings_ Return of the King\The End of All Things
Medal of Honor: Frontline\Arnhem
Mighty Joe Young\Dedication and Windsong
The Mighty Soundtrack\My Noble Knight
The Mission\On Earth as It Is in Heaven
The Mission\River
The Mummy\The Sand Volcano
The Mummy Returns\Alan Silvestri\The Mummy Returns\Mummy Returns
The Nativity Story\A Star Shall Come Forth
The Nativity Story\In Rosa Vernat Lilium
Carmina Burana\O Fortuna
The Passion of the Christ\Bearing the Cross
The Passion of the Christ\Mary Goes to Jesus
The Passion of the Christ\Raising the Cross
The Passion of the Christ\Resurrection
Plunkett And Macleane\Hanging
Pope Joan\Anno Domini 887
Pope Joan\Silent Wedding
Pope Joan\Pilgrimage To Rome
Pope Joan\Liber Pontificalis
The Power of One\Mother Africa
Alexander Nevsky\Alexander Nevsky, Op. 78_ VII. Alexander’s Entry into Pskov
Rudy\Rudy (Main Title)
Sahara\All Aboard!
Saving Private Ryan\Hymn to the Fallen
The Scarlet Letter\Agnus Dei
Sneakers\Main Title
Spider-Man 2\Spiderman 2 Main Title
Star Trek\Nero Death Experience
Return of the Jedi\Final Duel-Into the Death Star
The Phantom Menace\Duel of the Fates
The Phantom Menace\Passage Through the Planet Core
Revenge of the Sith\Battle of the Heroes
Revenge of the Sith\Grievous Speaks to Lord Sidious
Shadows of the Empire\Destruction of Xizor's Palace (excerpts)
Superman Returns\How Could You Leave Us
Time Machine \Eloi
Time Machine \Stone Language
Time Machine \Godspeed
Titanic\Southampton
Titanic\Hymn to the Sea
Transformers\Autobots
Transformers\Decepticons
Transformers\Arrival To Earth
Valkyrie\They'll Remember You
The Water Horse Legend of the Deep\Swimming
We Were Soldiers\Flying High-Sgt. MacKenzie
We Were Soldiers\End Credits-Sgt. MacKenzie-The Mansions Of The Lord
Willow\Elora Danan
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