# Star Wars score study on YouTube



## alainmayrand (Jun 8, 2015)

Hey guys,

Well, I am trying something out here. I'm getting pretty excited about the upcoming Star Wars score! So I though of doing a series of very short and very informal videos of me looking at different elements from everyone's favourite film score! 

They'll be about 2-3 minutes long (that's the plan), looking at one small usable element at a time. Will come out twice a week and, yeah, that's it. Here's the first one!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jqhBNAJr88

Already got my first comment!  

"I really, really liked it! That is something that many orchestration books misses, the relations betwen the instruments both in dynamics and tone."

Hope you join me there! 

Alain

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http://www.gettingthescore.com (www.gettingthescore.com)
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## CDNmusic (Jun 8, 2015)

Perfect, concise and clear. I'm really liking what you got going here with this short video and module 1 of your course, I'm a fan already and looking forward for more.


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## maclaine (Jun 8, 2015)

This is a great idea, Alain. Thanks for putting this together. I'm looking forward to more of these from you, but my one suggestion would be to try to find a way to record your voice a bit better. It's pretty distorted and roomy sounding, which is taxing for those of us in the world of headphones. Otherwise, great work!


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## alainmayrand (Jun 9, 2015)

maclaine @ Mon Jun 08 said:


> This is a great idea, Alain. Thanks for putting this together. I'm looking forward to more of these from you, but my one suggestion would be to try to find a way to record your voice a bit better. It's pretty distorted and roomy sounding, which is taxing for those of us in the world of headphones. Otherwise, great work!



Thanks and duly noted! I have done some tests yesterday with a proper mic, but didn't work. I think though I had "RighSound" turned off on the webcam. I'll try that.


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## TGV (Jun 9, 2015)

Nice. I liked it too.

Wrt subtitles: if your voice is recorded clearly, the automatic captioning is reasonably ok. I saw only a few transcriptions error (e.g. starwars -> store), but you can point people there if you don't have the time to upload them. And I don't know YT that well, but perhaps you can even edit the automatic captions.


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## Hannes (Jun 9, 2015)

I'm also looking forward to see your next videos; thanks for doing this  

Cheers! o-[][]-o 
Hannes


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## alainmayrand (Jun 9, 2015)

TGV @ Tue Jun 09 said:


> Nice. I liked it too.
> 
> Wrt subtitles: if your voice is recorded clearly, the automatic captioning is reasonably ok. I saw only a few transcriptions error (e.g. starwars -> store), but you can point people there if you don't have the time to upload them. And I don't know YT that well, but perhaps you can even edit the automatic captions.



Yes, I just turned them on today to give it a try. Learning about that myself. It did pretty well.

Alain


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## alainmayrand (Jun 11, 2015)

Video #2 of the Star Wars score study is out.

Here it is. Check it out, click like, subscribe, comment and share!

Still working on improving audio quality. I am currently scoring a feature film and doing an orchestral commission at the same time, so time is limited...! But I'll figure it out.

Thanks!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4Hl_gxAR94

Alain

______________________
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http://www.gettingthescore.com (www.gettingthescore.com)
www.scoreclub.net


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## kclements (Jun 11, 2015)

Enjoying these a lot, Alain. Thanks for doing these. 

Cheers 
kc


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## alainmayrand (Jun 11, 2015)

kclements @ Thu Jun 11 said:


> Enjoying these a lot, Alain. Thanks for doing these.
> 
> Cheers
> kc



Thanks Kayle! My pleasure!


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## DHousden (Jun 13, 2015)

Great stuff, Alain! Looking forward to seeing more


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## endorka (Jun 13, 2015)

alainmayrand @ Thu Jun 11 said:


> Video #2 of the Star Wars score study is out.
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4Hl_gxAR94



"The forces are well distributed" - nice one 

Yoda's theme is one of my favourites, thanks for posting this, really well explained. I love hearing and playing and writing with that bowing style. 

Jennifer


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## alainmayrand (Jun 13, 2015)

endorka @ Sat Jun 13 said:


> alainmayrand @ Thu Jun 11 said:
> 
> 
> > Video #2 of the Star Wars score study is out.
> ...



Ha! Didn't even think about that pun! 

I see you are a string player, which explains your love of that bowing. It's not part of sample library articulations (that I am aware of), so using it requires it to be in your ear and you have to fake it with a modwheel.

Thanks Jennifer! New one coming out today or tomorrow.


Alain



_____________ _________ 
www.alainmayrand.com 
http://www.gettingthescore.com (www.gettingthescore.com) 
www.scoreclub.net


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## alainmayrand (Jun 15, 2015)

Third video of Star Wars score study is up!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ia-3gu8733o

Alain


_____________ _________ 
www.alainmayrand.com 
http://www.gettingthescore.com (www.gettingthescore.com) 
www.scoreclub.net


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## tack (Jun 15, 2015)

alainmayrand @ Mon Jun 15 said:


> Third video of Star Wars score study is up!


I wonder if this the "interlocking, shimmering" technique that Mike Verta has mentioned in many of his masterclasses. (Perhaps not since although some of the sections are arpeggiating in triplets, I recall him saying that it's usually against one or more other sections playing on time to prevent the listener from locking onto a pattern.)

In any case, thanks much Alain for these videos! I'm really enjoying this series.


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## alainmayrand (Jun 15, 2015)

tack @ Mon Jun 15 said:


> alainmayrand @ Mon Jun 15 said:
> 
> 
> > Third video of Star Wars score study is up!
> ...



Thanks!

I am not sure what Mike Verta was saying in his videos, but from you use of the word "shimmering" I would expect it involves movement. So arpeggiation (in triplets or whatever) seems like a good bet!

The type of interlocking I am talking about here is the for orchestrating chords for orchestra. 

Glad you are enjoying them. Make sure you like and share!

Thanks!

Alain

_____________ _________ 
www.alainmayrand.com 
http://www.gettingthescore.com (www.gettingthescore.com) 
www.scoreclub.net


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## alainmayrand (Jun 29, 2015)

Video #4 is up. Recorded a whole bunch yesterday so there is some fun stuff ahead, would appreciate you support in making the videos: so please comment, subscribe and share.



Alain

__________________
www.alainmayrand.com
http://www.gettingthescore.com/ (www.gettingthescore.com)
www.scoreclub.net


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## JF (Jun 29, 2015)

Thank you for doing this, Alain. Learning a lot.


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## alainmayrand (Jun 29, 2015)

JF said:


> Thank you for doing this, Alain. Learning a lot.



You're welcome! 

Alain


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## jcs88 (Jun 30, 2015)

Awesome! Many thanks. Will bookmark for my lunch breaks. My theory isn't good enough to appreciate going through scores on my own, but guided stuff like this is very helpful.


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## PhobiaMusic (Jul 4, 2015)

Excellent stuff for us novice composers -- thanks


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## NoamL (Jul 6, 2015)

Great video series Alain!

Regarding video #3: in my experience intervals of a major or minor sixth are the easiest to tune for doublestops. Perhaps the most difficult interval is the perfect fifth because they have to use the same finger across both strings.

That's why voicings like this work well:

E Vln I
C Vln II
G Vln I
E Vln II


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## mc_deli (Jul 13, 2015)

Thanks!


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## steve614 (Jul 14, 2015)

Sweet. Are more coming????



alainmayrand said:


> Hey guys,
> 
> Well, I am trying something out here. I'm getting pretty excited about the upcoming Star Wars score! So I though of doing a series of very short and very informal videos of me looking at different elements from everyone's favourite film score!
> 
> ...


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## alainmayrand (Jul 14, 2015)

New Star Wars score study video is up! 

#6: idiomatic writing for violins



- Alain


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## alainmayrand (Jul 17, 2015)

NoamL said:


> Great video series Alain!
> 
> Regarding video #3: in my experience intervals of a major or minor sixth are the easiest to tune for doublestops. Perhaps the most difficult interval is the perfect fifth because they have to use the same finger across both strings.
> 
> ...



Thanks Noam. Very true when doing sustained double stops. In this case it's divisi.

Thanks!

Alain


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## alainmayrand (Jul 25, 2015)

Video #7 is up! 

Alain


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## careyford (Aug 8, 2015)

Alain, I'm only a couple videos in at this point, and I have to say you're doing a good job of blending opinion, solid observation, and atmosphere in these videos. Looking forward to how deep you get, and it's definitely a good resource for newer composers and those who don't have a lot of formal training. Thanks for being so generous with your time.


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## devonmyles (Aug 8, 2015)

careyford said:


> Alain, I'm only a couple videos in at this point, and I have to say you're doing a good job of blending opinion, solid observation, and atmosphere in these videos. Looking forward to how deep you get, and it's definitely a good resource for newer composers and those who don't have a lot of formal training. Thanks for being so generous with your time.



Absolutely agree with this.
Loving this video series.


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## alainmayrand (Aug 10, 2015)

careyford said:


> Alain, I'm only a couple videos in at this point, and I have to say you're doing a good job of blending opinion, solid observation, and atmosphere in these videos. Looking forward to how deep you get, and it's definitely a good resource for newer composers and those who don't have a lot of formal training. Thanks for being so generous with your time.



Thank you Richard! Had a look at your website (impressive credentials) which makes me appreciate your comment even more. Thank you!


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## careyford (Aug 10, 2015)

alainmayrand said:


> Thank you Richard! Had a look at your website (impressive credentials) which makes me appreciate your comment even more. Thank you!


You're welcome!


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## alainmayrand (Aug 12, 2015)

Hey guys - Star Wars Score Study video #8 is up!

_______________________
http://scoreclub.net
http://alainmayrand.com
http://gettingthescore.com


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## Assa (Aug 12, 2015)

Thank you very much for doing those videos, much appreciated!


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## JimVMusic (Aug 13, 2015)

These are great! Really enjoyed all of them. Thanks for creating.


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## alainmayrand (Aug 15, 2015)

You're welcome! Thanks!


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## bcarwell (Aug 17, 2015)

Alain, MANY thanks for generously sharing your expertise ! THE BEST I've seen by far. Keep them coming !

A seemingly silly nit but very bothersome and important for me on a daily basis: could you please tell me what that blue mechanical pencil is you use in your videos and where to get one ? It makes excellent visible markings without the hassle of Blackwings or Music Writer conventional pencils.

And while I'm at it, in your Scoreclub video lectures you appear to be using some sort of notebook tablet like a Wacom or whatever but without a stylus pencil. Could you tell me what the hardware and software is you are using for the notation and how you are doing that ?

Again, I really appreciate your videos and hope to become a student soon.

Thanks, Bob


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## ed buller (Aug 17, 2015)

oh and happy birthday

e


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## alainmayrand (Aug 20, 2015)

bcarwell said:


> Alain, MANY thanks for generously sharing your expertise ! THE BEST I've seen by far. Keep them coming !
> 
> A seemingly silly nit but very bothersome and important for me on a daily basis: could you please tell me what that blue mechanical pencil is you use in your videos and where to get one ? It makes excellent visible markings without the hassle of Blackwings or Music Writer conventional pencils.
> 
> ...



Thank you!

Sorry for the late reply, I had a birthday and took some time off.

The pencil is a Papermate Titanium with 7mm 2B leads. I love those pencils and they have a great eraser as well.

The tablet is a Wacom intuos running on Photoshop Elements. I really like it but I'll get a bigger format at some point in the near future.

Thanks Bob!

Alain


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## alainmayrand (Aug 20, 2015)

ed buller said:


> oh and happy birthday
> 
> e



Thanks!


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## alainmayrand (Aug 26, 2015)

Hey guys. Posted video #9 of the Star Wars score study. Here I discuss a very cool concept I call "double function". Much simpler than it sounds, but hey, we have to call it something right? It's certainly not a "cut and paste" approach to orchestration!



Enjoy! Would love to hear your comments over there! Thanks!

Alain

_____________________
http://alainmayrand.com
http://scoreclub.net
http://gettingthescore.com


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## alainmayrand (Oct 26, 2015)

Hi, a quick update to let you know I am now up to 11 in the Star Wars score studies. Here is #11: 

There is also a playlist for the Star Wars videos.

And, at people's request, I have started to post some videos about my own scores, the first being from "The Legend of SilkBoy"



Thanks!

Alain


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## Lassi Tani (Oct 26, 2015)

Thanks Alain! These are really good and just the right length, and good that we get to see your own scores too


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## ed buller (Oct 26, 2015)

very cool. Nice to hear your own stuff too

e


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## alainmayrand (Oct 26, 2015)

Thanks guys!


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## Assa (Oct 26, 2015)

Hi Alain,

great that you now offer your own stuff on your site! Will check this out soon


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## alainmayrand (Oct 26, 2015)

Thank you Assa, very kind of you!


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## Sebastianmu (Dec 6, 2015)

Alain, thank you for the nice little videos! I really enjoy watching them! 
One thing: would you care to talk about what the strings do in b. 74-77 (p.18 HalLeonard), in terms of _harmony_? I just can't wrap my head around what is going on there, it seems so random when I look at it in detail, but when I listen to it, it has a feeling of perfect necessity in the progression of these four bars. I just don't understand how to write things like these, but I love the sound so much! Any hints?


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## Markus Kohlprath (Dec 6, 2015)

Sebastianmu said:


> Alain, thank you for the nice little videos! I really enjoy watching them!
> One thing: would you care to talk about what the strings do in b. 74-77 (p.18 HalLeonard), in terms of _harmony_? I just can't wrap my head around what is going on there, it seems so random when I look at it in detail, but when I listen to it, it has a feeling of perfect necessity in the progression of these four bars. I just don't understand how to write things like these, but I love the sound so much! Any hints?


I´ve been thinking about this passage too some days ago and I came to the conclusion that it might be viewed more strictly polyphonic than harmonic. If you play each of the single string lines by them self they make perfectly sense. So maybe the harmonic implication is not so important or does probably not exist. Maybe it´s more about building up the tension somehow. Anyway there is the C b6 chord in the brass if I remember correctly. The strings go kind of there own way. But for sure it would be interesting if there is a deeper thinking behind this. I don´t know either. Would be great if Alain can commend on that.


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## NoamL (Dec 6, 2015)

How geeky is it that I knew which section you were talking about right away? 

This section is in the middle of a long episode between bar 55 (the last firm impression of Bb major) and bar 89 (arrival in C major).

In the previous section - as the title crawl fades away - Williams had given us some brief bitonality by sketching CM over DbM, then CM over AM, arriving at CM over E+. This last combination is equivalent to Ab+M7. That became the background layer for the piccolo solo.

Which leads into the piu mosso section at bar 74:







The brass is laying down that same *Ab+M7*.

If we do some quick and dirty reasonable reductions in the strings:






It will clarify the structure a lot and we can see that the strings are being composed 'harmonically' at least part of the way through.

The strings are doing a bunch of chords that partially share notes with that background harmony. I can see an FmM7 chord, CM7, FM7 - and then the rest of the second bar outlines FmM7#11, one helluva dissonant chord. Bar 3 & 4 are playing around with Ab+M7 and adding _even more_ dissonant tones to it like the F/B tritone.

But what is the overall harmonic function? I reckon, to "dirty up" the Ab+M7 and intensify even further its dissonance and the buildup to the arrival at C. All of these harmonies _go by so quickly _that the *main impression is Ab+M7* with some frantic string writing around it.


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## Markus Kohlprath (Dec 6, 2015)

Yes good idea to make that reduction. Maybe JW had initially that kind of chord progression and just filled it up with a bunch of notes to give that chaotic impression over the already familiar chord. A great effect that sounds so logical. 
Did you type the whole score into your notation program Noam?


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## NoamL (Dec 6, 2015)

Played it in with my keyboard. Not the whole score just those 4 bars. It's pretty fast with Finale.


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## ed buller (Dec 7, 2015)

is there such a thing as "panchromaticism ? ".....perhaps this is it.

e


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