Film music has come a long way. Traditionally film scores were a closed door affair. It was all done within the studio system. There were a handful of composers working for the studios. It was a well oiled machine. While film music was of the highest quality, it didn’t have the critical acclaim or seriousness that ‘concert’ music did. There were concert music composers and there were film music composers. Today film music has gained in stature as an art form of it’s own.
There are thousands of websites dedicated to film music. There are fan sites, review sites and numerous sites withupdates and info of all kinds. Fans now clamor for the latest releases and out of print scores. It’s even come to the point where they’re demanding material that the composer is reluctant to release. With the proliferation of the internet, there seems to be no shortage of interest in film music.
There are now film scores on tour. Notably there is the Star Wars concerts going on this month and the upcoming Lord of The Rings concert. These are no longer added pieces in pops concerts but concerts of their own.
There has been an explosion of film music across many genres. It’s no longer just the domain of the soundtrack as another source of income for a feature film. Film music is now part of rock concerts and DJ sets. It has reached a whole new level as far as acceptability and popularity. Along with this goes the popularity of the composers themselves.
It has come to the point where film music and the business of film scoring has come pretty close to the business of being a rockstar. It’s common in the industry to pay top dollar for a composer not just because of their ability to compose but also their status and popularity. Film companies know that with certain composers comes a certain level of buzz and celebrity with the film community. With the proliferation of sites noted above, there will most likely be a certain amount of buzz generated online. Just check to see how many sites that are devoted to Danny Elfman and you will see the point.
Because of the decline in CD’s and sales figures within the music industry, many musicians are now looking to the film industry as another potential source of income. Film composers now consist of not only classically trained musicians but pop, rock and jazz musicians as well. It is also common for electonica artists and songwriters to get into writing for film. There are now thousands of composers competing in a field that is already over saturated. Much like the rock and pop business, there a select few on top making top dollar with there are thousands vying for a place among them. And like the pop and rock genres, most of the money is being made by a select few while the income for the ‘working composer/musician’ has dropped considerably.
Another similar development in the film industry is the ‘hit’ film composer. You may recall the sensational hit ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ that brought A.R. Rahman into the spotlight. Even though Rahman had numerous credits it was this runaway hit that brought him into a whole new level. Like the pop stars of the day, a hit film (and it’s score) may catapult a composer into a whole new level; regardless, it seems, of their past accomplishments.
While film music is now more popular than ever, there are many problems plaguing the industry. Composers now get paid less for more music. Most skilled workers within the film industry (writers, cinematographers, actors, etc.) have an association or union for representation of their behalf. Composers still have very little in the way of powerful organizations fighting for their say. What sets composers apart is the fact that there is no scale or industry standard. Ultimately, it’s within the power of the film company to set the budget for the composer to whatever they see fit. This rockstar mentality within the industry just serves to widen the chasm between pay scales.
The music written for a film is one of most important decisions a film producer can make. Yet many music budgets make up as little as 1% of the total budget. Deadlines and production times are also shrinking. Such an important element shouldn’t be delegated with such a tiny percentage of budget and time.
I’m pretty sure there are as many ways as creating a musical score as there are composers. Every composer has their preferred way of composing. There is the iconic picture most of us have in our minds of a composer working feverishly at the piano, banging away, looking for the perfect chord or melody. This is just one of the many ways composers work when writing for film. With the advent of newer technologies and the studio’s never ending quest for shorter deadlines and smaller budgets, the process continues to evolve.
I’m reminded of how many ways composers can work after reading this Variety article about Hans Zimmer and the way he goes about putting together a score. I’ve written about Hans and his composition process here before. Hans wasn’t going to be considered for an Academy award because he hadn’t composed the score on his own and had numerous collaborators. The decision to disqualify him was over turned but it was clear that the Academy wasn’t clear about all of the ways that composers put together musical scores. Hans has always been very open about his process and how he goes about putting together all of the different parts and people in each of his scores.
Hans actually puts together quite a few elements of the score before even seeing one frame of film. He has many collaborators, all with their special area of expertise. More and more composers are expected to know all of the different areas in composing, orchestration and engineering while still having a particular area of expertise. Most of the composers in the Variety article are capable of executing all of the necessary operations in putting together a score but choose collaboration when the budget allows. This allows the various players to focus on their area of expertise and allow collaboration between very creative people.
There has been a lot of talk about the right and wrong way of putting together a score. There have been numerous articles about the lost art of melody writing and some articles putting down the use of too much technology in modern scores. The truth is that all of these arguements are valid within context. There are films that scream out for a traditional score with huge orchestral themes and melodies. Then there are some films that need just minimal sound FX and even some that need little to no music at all (the Sopranos jumps to mind here). There is no one perfect way to score a film and there is no one perfect way to compose the score for that film. It may involve a lot of talented musicians performing together on a Hollywood sound stage or it may involve one guy with a handful of FX loops. It really isn’t that simple most of the time and in the end it really comes up to the director and the film.
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