# Classical music that resemble film music



## MoonFlare (Jun 28, 2012)

Are there any particular pieces you recommend that has "film music nature" to them? There are many styles of classical music; I'm looking for the pieces that resemble film music the most. Any suggestions?


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## Christof (Jun 29, 2012)

There are many:

Holst-The Planets
Dvorak-symphonies
Stravinsky-Rite od springs, firebird
Shostakovich-symphonies
Ecvard Grieg


and many, many others, mostly music from the late 19th century.


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## Scrianinoff (Jun 29, 2012)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9IV5u9iwuQ&feature=player_embedded (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9IV5u9i ... r_embedded)


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## Scrianinoff (Jun 30, 2012)

Why does some film music resemble 19th century classical music? Due to lack of imagination or inspiration? Sometimes perhaps, and I would say in the majority of those cases a lack at the director's side. They drop a temp score of classical music snippets under the picture, and give the composer the mandate: "Make something like that".

'Good composers borrow, great composers steal' - Stravinsky

Think about that quote, it's fun, it has several meanings.


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## RiffWraith (Jun 30, 2012)

Scrianinoff @ Sat Jun 30 said:


> Why does some film music resemble 19th century classical music? Due to lack of imagination or inspiration? Sometimes perhaps, and I would say in the majority of those cases a lack at the director's side. They drop a temp score of classical music snippets under the picture, and give the composer the mandate: "Make something like that".



Very rarely are films temped with classical music. Many years ago, sure. Nowadays, and for the past couple of decades, films are temped with other film score music. Which is actually worse, if you think about it.

Cheers.


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## Scrianinoff (Jun 30, 2012)

RiffWraith @ Sat 30 Jun said:


> Which is actually worse, if you think about it.



I tend to agree. But why is it worse? Because classical music has a few centuries of variation and film music only a few decades? The difference in time investment by the composers is also a factor in the nature of the music itself. Mahler for example could ruminate for years on the material of a symphony. As a film composer he would have had a few days, surely that would have had an effect.

Some classical composers would probably have been totally unfit to compose film music. The sheer speed you need to have to be able to keep those dreaded deadlines can only be accomplished with a specific type of mind and a specific way of working and a specific tolerance to lack of sleep. Then, what would film music sound like if (film) composers could take at least a year to write the music, I don't mean a full time one year investment, but a year time to dwell on the musical ideas, while also working on other things. I know, this will never happen, but still I like to dream how it would change some of the music.


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## TGV (Jun 30, 2012)

Scrianinoff @ Sat Jun 30 said:


> Some classical composers would probably have been totally unfit to compose film music.


Actually, quite a few of the well-known film composers were classical composers: Korngold, who studied under Mahler and Zemlinsky, Copland (http://www.mfiles.co.uk/composers/Aaron-Copland.htm), Philip Glass, and their students. Even Schönberg wrote film music, after fleeing Europe, much like Korngold, Weinberg, etc. Someone like Hermann could also be considered a classical composer, at least starting out as such: studied under Grainger, was chief conductor of the CBS Symphony Orchestra, and wrote music for traditional concert hall setting.

But indeed, it is doubtful that someone like Wagner or Bruckner could have success as film composers, although I doubt that any film composer is faster than Bach!


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## Scrianinoff (Jun 30, 2012)

TGV @ Sat 30 Jun said:


> [...] although I doubt that any film composer is faster than Bach!



Bach, the supreme musical genius of the previous millennium! I think the people living throughout this current millennium will be very lucky if another musical genius of his magnitude will be born again. Present company in this forum not included


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## RiffWraith (Jun 30, 2012)

Scrianinoff @ Sat Jun 30 said:


> RiffWraith @ Sat 30 Jun said:
> 
> 
> > Which is actually worse, if you think about it.
> ...



Because if the director wants the composer to stick to the temp from movie a, the score will sound like movie a. Now we have movie b, with a similiar score. Now along comes a director, who temps his movie with the score from movie b. Now we have movie c, with a score similiar to movie a and movie b. Now along comes a director, who temps his movie with the score from movie c. Now we have movie d with a score similiar to movie a, movie b and movie c. And before you know it, originality is out the window, everything sounds like everything else, and the scores are nothing but watered down versions of other scores. All because the director wants the score to sound like this or that, and refuses to take any chances.

The human race has a long way to go.


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## Scrianinoff (Jun 30, 2012)

RiffWraith @ Sat 30 Jun said:


> everything sounds like everything else



That's how some people I know think about it, that for centuries now everything sounds like everything else: '*Always this same old boring orchestra*!'  Kidding aside, good point though.


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## MoonFlare (Jul 2, 2012)

Great, thanks for sharing your knowledge!


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## dcoscina (Jul 2, 2012)

Someone already mentioned Shostakocvich. The second mvmt of his 10th Symphony kicks ass as does the first mvmt of his 12th Symphony. Check out recordings by Haitink conducting. Awesome action styled music.


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## jamessizemore (Jul 2, 2012)

Beethoven's imdb page:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0002727/


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## jamessizemore (Jul 2, 2012)

Beethoven's imdb page:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0002727/


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## dannthr (Jul 2, 2012)

Ralph Vaughan Williams - Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis

Maurice Ravell - Daphnis Et Chloe

Anton Dvorak - New World Symphony

Bela Bartok - Concerto for Orchestra

Edvard Elgar - Enigma Variations: Nimrod Mvt


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## MoonFlare (Jul 8, 2012)

Excellent! Thanks very much guys!


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## ScoringFilm (Jul 9, 2012)

Perhaps the subject should read:

'Which orchestral music is re-constituted (copied/plagiarised/stolen) in Film Music' as the subject somehow implies the other way round!

Justin


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## BopEuph (Jul 9, 2012)

Wow, this thread is great! What a way to start down the deep, dark path that is composing!

Thanks for this one, guys.


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## Ed (Jul 9, 2012)

Stuff like this from Bartok I think:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szC8cS9M-Ew

Obviously the FX techniques but also I feel like its right out of the Alien era of film scoring. You can see where film composers have stolen from stuff like this.

I do think Neptune, especially the first half is magical and probably my favourite of the planets and most filmic. 

Williams has ripped off, I mean been inspired by, a lot of classical stuff  The Rite of Star Wars, I mean Spring, for example. :D


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## handz (Jul 9, 2012)

Yesterday I was watching http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110074/ in TV and again noticed taht even the original music is by Carter Burwell (and people adore it in comments) maybe not all knows that the most memorable music on the beggining and end (and also some troughout the movie) is taken from Khachaturians Spartacus ballet - which I relly love. It is not so well know as Gayaneh which contains famous sabre dance or also adagio taht is used in 2001 and Horner made Ripleys theme of it in Aliens, but the love theme is gorgeous - it is essence of classical movie love themes. (and I believe in Krull, love theme is also inspired by this)


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