# Zimmer on The Dark Knight score



## mderrico (Mar 2, 2009)

Here's one for all you Zimmer fans  He's got some nice toys!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9-fw9l7 ... re=related


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## José Herring (Mar 2, 2009)

Chris Nolan nailed it by saying that it's a painful score to listen to but somehow it nails the film. Any way it's one score that completely redefines what kind of role music can play in a film. I've been studying this score for a while and I can't really make heads or tails of it. It's brilliant in a lot of ways, but its one score that can't live independent of the images and performances.


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## PolarBear (Mar 2, 2009)

I think the score can very well stand alone on itself.

What I still haven't figured out, how less brilliant it would have been, if there wasn't the creativity of the collaboration from two major composers that both anticipated to do such a thing for a long time already. And that they had more time than only a week to do such a thing. What the scores does prove to me is, that there is quite some potential not being an "average" Hollywood score but yet still meet all implications of our times.

I dunno how much of it went into Dark Knight, but Zimmer usually providing already temp tracks before doing the music, so maybe this is also a factor in creativity. Surely is the time he spent on figuring something out, that works without knowing before for sure that it would work.


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## Andreas Moisa (Mar 2, 2009)

What struck me as odd was that I first saw the movie, then listened a lot to "Why so serious?" because it's been the #1 Temp Track since it came out and then I watched the movie a second time-with a little bit of disappointment. Not disappointment of the music of course but how it was used in the movie. On the CD you have this 9 minute piece which is really brillliant and in the bank robbery scene this track was cut and torn in pieces to match the picture. Anyone noticed this too?

Apart from this, thanks for the link - the German DVDs don't have a Making-of :( 

Andreas


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## José Herring (Mar 2, 2009)

I had the opposite experience. I first heard the score and was scratching my head trying to figure it out "musically" then I saw the film and it all made sense.


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## choc0thrax (Mar 2, 2009)

Anyone know which Zeta cello that is?


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## Waywyn (Mar 2, 2009)

Andreas Moisa @ Mon Mar 02 said:


> On the CD you have this 9 minute piece which is really brillliant and in the bank robbery scene this track was cut and torn in pieces to match the picture. Anyone noticed this too?



Right as you mention it, I didn't notice that on the Dark Knight, but on Star Wars EP03 during the first battle scene. I think I listened to that following part directly after the maintheme for probably a few hundred times. For the first time I was simply enjoying the movie by not taking care about anything which is related with my job ... but when I watched it the second time (after I got the soundtrack) I noticed that this battle piece is totally cut up to pieces.

LoL, I think I wouldn't even dare to press the cut shortcut in my sequencer in order to see the scissors and float with it over a John Williams wave file :D


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## dcoscina (Mar 2, 2009)

The video is interesting but the end result sounds a little too close to Elliot Goldenthal's work with the Kronos Quartet on HEAT (1995). That was an amazing score BTW.


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## choc0thrax (Mar 2, 2009)

Not surprising since Dark Knight is sort of copying Heat's style. Although Heat>Dark Knight easily.


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## gsilbers (Mar 2, 2009)

what is that thing he has under the main screen? looks like lemur /mutant / jazz midi controller 
but it has ableton live looking clips.


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## Andreas Moisa (Mar 2, 2009)

> what is that thing he has under the main screen? looks like lemur /mutant / jazz midi controller
> but it has ableton live looking clips.



It's a HP L5006tm Touchscreen Monitor sending MIDI control Data. He had this things custom build... But I think it's a very clever thing and not so hard to do - so I wonder why no-one (company) does this. He doesn't use Keyswitches but Programchanges - the convenient thing is that he has a button where tremolo is written on and pushing it activates the tremolo samples...I mean this approach is now in Cubase 5 with VST Expression...



> LoL, I think I wouldn't even dare to press the cut shortcut in my sequencer in order to see the scissors and float with it over a John Williams wave file



Obviously it's just us thinking that way...but then again I am using this approach myself often now and it works pretty good. That is taking a track and maybe crossfading to a different track, this way things happen that I never could have "composed". Back to the Dark Knight, I am pretty sure the music in the bank robbery scene is cut pretty wildly compared to the CD. I think cuts aren't even "in time" Have a look/listen:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Fq-CBeAhHU


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## gsilbers (Mar 2, 2009)

that is pretty cool. is there some thread or website with more info.?


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## Andreas Moisa (Mar 2, 2009)

There's an incredible article about his own library here:
http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jul07/a ... irates.htm

It all looks insane but basically he just goes the route that actually works...


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## Justus (Mar 3, 2009)

Thanks, it's very interesting indeed!!


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## gsilbers (Mar 3, 2009)

thanks, 


i remember that article, but in the website it has more pixs and its longer. 


there is also a youtube video of greg williams and in the middle there is the tech guy explaining the machine room and its crazy!! very cool indeed. 
2 pro tools HD, one to be a mixer/dsp for all giga computers and the other to recive all 
audio for the printmaster.


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## synthetic (Mar 3, 2009)

Cool video, thanks. When I visited he had even more Moogs in there! 

Yeah, the touchpad (guess it's not a secret anymore) has cool shortcuts like "velocity +20," "velocity -20" etc. Does anyone know how to make a "velocity +20" shortcut in Logic? It would be cool to highlight a clip and press a keystroke for that.


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## Andreas Moisa (Mar 3, 2009)

I have an AKAI MPD24 and basically I could use the Pads the same way - but unfortunately I'm too dumb to program stuff like this...my idea was to use the pads to send program changes to Kontakt, having an instance of Kontakt loaded with certain articulations and switching through them with my mpd pads - but I couldn't figure this out. Any ideas?


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## Hannes_F (Mar 3, 2009)

synthetic @ Wed Mar 04 said:


> Does anyone know how to make a "velocity +20" shortcut in Logic? It would be cool to highlight a clip and press a keystroke for that.



Totally unrelated but when working in Overture I use an accent for that. :roll: >8o 
I love it.


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## Hal (Mar 4, 2009)

PolarBear @ Tue Mar 03 said:


> Well, even if nothing helps within a certain sequencer, most of them do have usual keyboard shortcuts. You could write your own little program in any of the common program languages C/C++/Java/whatelse listening for "pad" events and translate those into predefined keyboard events (like Alt+E+xyz for editing xyz) or even keystroke sequences (to have xyz set to +20 and then virtually hit enter). Doable for all sequencers, maybe you have to deal with a few timing issues for triggering. If you have special sequencer functions or ports that can be used it's the better option to do.



I dont know about logic but its very fast to do that in Cubase/nuendo
assigning keys,shortcuts and Macros.

about the video few weeks ago its was when the DVD came out every body was talking to me about this video and as i dont have the DVD i searched it on youtube and watched it like 3 times since,yeah big zimmer fan here.
and the last one to get the DVD was the producer of the movie am working on and he "again" asked me if i watched this video because he wants a theme like this in the movie !
Have no idea how am i gonna do that..


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## PaulWood (Mar 5, 2009)

Andreas Moisa @ Wed Mar 04 said:


> I have an AKAI MPD24 and basically I could use the Pads the same way - but unfortunately I'm too dumb to program stuff like this...my idea was to use the pads to send program changes to Kontakt, having an instance of Kontakt loaded with certain articulations and switching through them with my mpd pads - but I couldn't figure this out. Any ideas?



I'm using a programmable PC keyboard (144 keys) with macros to insert patch changes when I hit a key.

So, for example, Key number 1 is "Stac Short". When I hit it, the macro does something like (can't remember exactly):

- Shift+Alt+1 (which I have set as a key binding in Sonar to Insert > Bank/Patch Change)
- Tab Tab (to select the Patch dropdown menu)
- Down arrow 5 times (to select patch 4 in that list)
- Enter

That then inserts the patch change at the selected point on that MIDI track.

P


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## PaulWood (Mar 5, 2009)

An extension of the above would be to use it to control MIDI functions (Velocity +/- 20 etc.)

Hmm... There's a thought :D


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## John DeBorde (Mar 5, 2009)

Anybody think it didn't look like Hans was getting a good level on the Zeta cello?


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## Stevie (Mar 7, 2009)

That's what I use for shortcuts.
I still need to introduce color coding for faster access.


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## johncarter (Mar 13, 2009)

John DeBorde @ Thu Mar 05 said:


> Anybody think it didn't look like Hans was getting a good level on the Zeta cello?



Martin Tillman on the cello was playing soft on that part. If you listen to the track on the album it starts very soft like you hear in the making off. Then the dynamics goes up


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