Music for the Movies

[Ferretfancy]

A couple of weekends ago I went to a concert given by John Wilson and the John Wilson Orchestra in music by some of the best known Hollywood film composers.I should say straight away that they are a terrific orchestra in this genre and it was a very enjoyable evening.
I've seen them before at the Proms and elsewhere.

The programme included music by Korngold, Jules Styne, Cole Porter, Johnny Mercer, Franz Waxman, Max Steiner, Henry Mancini and others, sometimes in individual items but also as more extended suites.

As I say, the playing and style was terrific, but I did have reservations. Does film music stand up when played on the concert platform?
As I left the Festival Hall I felt oddly unsatisfied, rather like eating chocolates and forgetting what they tasted like. Generally speaking the extracts from films that had originally been stage musicals came across better than music intended to heighten the action in dramatic terms.

Of course, we all know the 'big tunes' such as the theme from Gone With The Wind, but what about the underscoring which makes up so much of the content. This is music which is not really meant to be listened to, at least in a concentrated way. We should be aware of it as a mood heightener to the action, whether dramatic or romantic.

I was struck by the skill with which the various composers approached the dynamics. If the action called for a quietly scored passage it was never that lightly scored. For instance a gentle string phrase would be boosted by the horns, nothing was allowed to fall below mezzo forte. This was designed to make a more satisfactory balance with the dialogue and action. I know I am stating the obvious, but when played on the concert platform the lack of dynamic contrast was rather disturbing, sometimes verging on the dull.

Now, I'm not knocking film music, but simply questioning how well it stands up in isolation. Walton, Copland, Vaughan Williams and many others produced some of the most memorable music for some fine films, and John Wilson has done marvellous work in restoring material, sometimes when the only surviving notes were on on the original sound track. I'm just questioning how well it works in the concert hall. Comments please.

[muzzer]

I'd be inclined to agree, and then I remembered seeing John Barry conduct an entire concert of his work, not something he did often, and it was fabulous. Ditto Ennio Morricone now I think of it. So maybe you need the composer in the room. And obscure cues were never meant to exist apart from the film they accompany. That said, John Wilson is rightly lauded for bringing works to performance you wouldn't otherwise see and hear live.

[BBMmk2]

I love John Wilson's work and his orchestra. If like me, when the particular music is being played, I like to imagine the film and scene that the music portrays. I never go away unsatisfied.

If the music is good music, then the music should speak for itself.

[french frank]

As I say, the playing and style was terrific, but I did have reservations. Does film music stand up when played on the concert platform?

You've given the answer yourself, haven't you? "I should say straight away that they are a terrific orchestra in this genre and it was a very enjoyable evening." In that context, the music 'stood up', and probably the majority of those attending the concert wouldn't otherwise go to 'a concert'. The main consideration is not the quality of the music, it's the type of audience (i.e. is it the type of audience that enjoys this music?). If people thoroughly enjoy it, what other justification does it need to be played in a 'concert hall'?

But, that isn't to say it would have the same effect if pieces were slotted into a classical concert, any more than bits of jazz, Broadway musical, or Top Twenty hits.