# Just Realized that Tom & Jerry was a "Film Scoring" Art!



## Abdulrahman (Aug 26, 2020)

There's not a single person on earth who doesn't know the name, Tom & Jerry. I can't believe that all this time, the only language that we heard in the cartoon was the music. It was the driving force of each episode. There was no dialogue or acting talents, just animation with musical scores.

Scott Bradly really made a masterpiece. He understood the musical aspect of every move the characters made. We were so engaged in the action to the point that we never even noticed the music. Yet, it was the one doing the action.

Tom & Jerry was a masterclass in film scoring AND orchestration as well!

I would love to read an article about the process, the recordings, picture syncing from the original creators.


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## TGV (Aug 27, 2020)

There's also a performance by John Wilson at the BBC proms of a Tom and Jerry medley:
.

Quite interesting to watch. In the description, you'll find some remarks about the scores.


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## Rory (Aug 27, 2020)

Abdulrahman said:


> I would love to read an article about the process, the recordings, picture syncing from the original creators.



The Wikipedia article on Carl Stalling, who worked for Walt Disney, talks about the relationship between making the music and making the animation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_W._Stalling


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## PatrickS (Aug 27, 2020)

Couldn't resist referencing this Tom & Jerry classical masterpiece:

Tom and Jerry - The Cat Concerto [1947]


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## Abdulrahman (Aug 27, 2020)

PatrickS said:


> Couldn't resist referencing this Tom & Jerry classical masterpiece:
> 
> Tom and Jerry - The Cat Concerto [1947]



Yesterday, my friend was telling me that was his favorite episode back when he was a kid


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## rudi (Aug 28, 2020)

Thanks for that.... appreciate it as a kid... and appreciate it even more as an adult!


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## Abdulrahman (Aug 28, 2020)

I see I'm not the only one who appreciates Tom & Jerry score. 
Then here's a preview which could give you enough insight into the orchestration of Scott: https://www.all-sheetmusic.com/out/media/pdf/EMR4996.pdf


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## d.healey (Aug 28, 2020)

PatrickS said:


> Tom and Jerry - The Cat Concerto [1947]


Looney Tunes Rhapsody Rabbit - 1946


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## Martin S (Aug 28, 2020)

Yes !!! - Instantly brings me back to my childhood, and I LOVE it even more today Leagues better (on ALL parameters) than the shite cartoons shown today.

Funny thing, that even as a child I noticed the music was incredible (and incredibly hard to play) even though I knew absolutely nothing about music at all and only began to play bass when I was 17. These cartoons and their music are symbiotic - one can't exist without the other. Yet, if you only hear the music, the pictures automatically appears in your head/mind (just look at the BBC musicians smiling faces in @TGV 's clip above; it says it all  - even despite the difficult/hard passages they actually are playing)


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## Abdulrahman (Aug 28, 2020)

Martin S said:


> just look at the BBC musicians smiling faces


I, myself, kept smiling the whole time uncontrollably like an idiot.


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## Consona (Aug 30, 2020)

Yea, some of the older pieces in Tom and Jerry are utterly amazing. Such lessons on music structure. 

Some of the newer stuff lacks that and is less coherent and more of a bunch of various separate segments for every situation rather than one consistent agile piece of music that underscores what's happening on the screen while still being the same piece of music.

So, again (as with Star Wars, Star Trek, Rambo, Planet of the Apes, etc., etc.), if you want to get better, listen to and study the older stuff.


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## Abdulrahman (Aug 30, 2020)

Consona said:


> So, again (as with Star Wars, Star Trek, Rambo, Planet of the Apes, etc., etc.), if you want to get better, listen to and study the older stuff.


I have always wondered why have we drifted away from the classic Hollywood sound. The music back then was so organic, colorful, and rich in orchestration. It's like each score is a masterclass on its own. Nowadays, it seems everyone is going on the same path, Hans Zimmer's style. It's not like I have something against Hans himself. On the contrary, I admire him and he's an inspiration to me as well. But as composers, we have lost our sense of good harmony and orchestration. We just want the easy way. Epic hybrid massive drums and blasting brass and choir. Whenever I want to enrich my orchestration knowledge, I always go back to the old soundtracks and classical pieces. I'm just grateful we still have composers who continue to give us new orchestration examples and good music structures like John Williams and Joe Hisaishi.


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## Ashermusic (Aug 31, 2020)

Abdulrahman said:


> I have always wondered why have we drifted away from the classic Hollywood sound. The music back then was so organic, colorful, and rich in orchestration. It's like each score is a masterclass on its own. Nowadays, it seems everyone is going on the same path, Hans Zimmer's style. It's not like I have something against Hans himself. On the contrary, I admire him and he's an inspiration to me as well. But as composers, we have lost our sense of good harmony and orchestration. We just want the easy way. Epic hybrid massive drums and blasting brass and choir. Whenever I want to enrich my orchestration knowledge, I always go back to the old soundtracks and classical pieces. I'm just grateful we still have composers who continue to give us new orchestration examples and good music structures like John Williams and Joe Hisaishi.



Agreed.


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