# The concept of "trailer music"



## Fer (Feb 6, 2016)

Hi all, in this forum i read sometimes posts about "trailer music" as if the music of trailers were some kind of musical genre. Anybody could tell me if there is something special about this music? (perhaps in the mix?) I really dont understand why it is not called just "epic orchestral music", or just symphonic music.
Cheers,
Fernando


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## Vakhtang (Feb 6, 2016)

Hey,

this thread should cover some of your questions I think; http://vi-control.net/community/thr...the-difference-tips-advice-insight-etc.46982/


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## Wibben (Feb 6, 2016)

There are two things that make Trailer music different from what you say, Epic orchestral music. The structure and the purpose. Trailer music is made to sell drama, basically. It's made to fit into advertisement. This affects the structure of the music, with very well defined parts/segments or "Acts" as it's called. Once you've listened to a couple of trailer tracks you'll start to hear how similar the structure is in all of them, with intensity building up in 3 parts of the track and ends with a big bang. This is because someone has figured out that this is the optimal way to sell a movie in a trailer format, with a calm intro, intense buildup in act 2 of the trailer and then all out heroic drama at the last minute/30 seconds of the trailer, where the music is at it's most intense. 

Epic orchestral music could be anything, and definitely sound like trailer music, but is the track made for trailer makers or is it made for listening? I think that's the biggest difference 

Also, not all trailer music is orchestral


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## Fer (Feb 6, 2016)

Ok i see now.. thanks; so its really just about strucure...that makes sense


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## Eurig Gwilym (Feb 6, 2016)

Interesting... do trailer music develop the themes used in act 1 or is there a tendency to just create different sections?


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## RiffWraith (Feb 6, 2016)

Fer said:


> Ok i see now.. thanks; so its really just about strucure...that makes sense



No, it's def not just about structure. That's part of it, yes, but it's about other things as well. Energy, production... what I would call 'fullness'... Remember, you are trying to sell something.

Cheers.


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## Rv5 (Feb 7, 2016)

I think Two Steps From Hell kind of broke the mould a bit - their approach was to write trailer music with more of a fuller orchestral sound and pop song sensibility I remember reading somewhere, and as you'll hear in their music. What I remember seeing was the explosion of an online community sharing the industry only releases on YouTube or through other means with massive communities growing to the point TSFH have ammounted plays in the billions on YouTube. This paved a way for the genre to establish itself to the public and them establish a different kind of foothold in the trailer industry, more of a 'band/artist' as opposed to trailer house, loads of trailer music albums were released to the public and the line between epic orchestral and previous specific trailer music has become a little more blurred. One big difference in defining the genre I suppose is trailer music doesn't have to be orchestral in nature at all. Somtimes mashed, strangled, distorted, drum heavy, guitars, synths, sound design without an orchestra in sight. Two Steps From Hell I woud argue revolutionised the genre. By the by I've heard Heart of Courage used in another three placements this year so far, the mileage of the track is unreal. It's embedded in pop culture - trailer fans know it, TV and film fans know it, sports fans know it, 'Got Talent' fans know it etc etc. So epic-orchestral is widely associated with trailers and trailer music. Certanly trailer tracks that have those '3 acts' give editors more options and so potentially open the track up for more licensing possibilities, so structure is important with regards to the trailer trends. Listen to loads of stuff basically, look at what's just come out and what's coming out, you'll see trends. Even so it's second guessing the market..

"It's a gamble," says Jeff Fayman, co-owner of Immediate Music, a trailer library he runs in conjunction with his partner, Yoav Goren. "There's a chance that, for all the thousands of dollars we spend on hiring out Abbey Road with an orchestra and all the months we spend in pre-production, post-production, editing and mixing, none of the music we make will ever be licensed." (http://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/aug/25/movie-trailer-music)


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## Dean (Feb 9, 2016)

Eurig Gwilym said:


> Interesting... do trailer music develop the themes used in act 1 or is there a tendency to just create different sections?



Hey Eurig,most theme based trailer cues will develope from act 1 - 3 and have great edit/hit points etc.But most trailers are made up of at least 2 or more different tracks because they are looking for something that fits exactly what the trailer needs which means they've been editing to about 20+ tracks,.so inevitably they''ll pick different tracks for different acts,some are heavily edited aswell (using stems) plus added sfx,,.. if you're really lucky one cue can carry the entire trailer if it has the right theme/tone /intensity throughout. And then sometimes they'll use an original song or a cover then you're screwed!  D


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