Soundtrack Nerd

About a month or so ago, I caught the end of "A Few Good Men" when it was showing on FX. And I have to say, what stood out to me wasn't the "You-can't-handle-the-truth" drama, but the music scoring at the end of the film. I had to IMDB it to find out who the composer was (Marc Shaiman, for those of you who were wondering). What can I say, I'm a soundtrack nerd. I love how composers can create moods and heighten the emotions of a film. It's like they have this gift where they're able to take what a situation or experience feels like, or what a character feels or thinks, and express it musically.  

It's magic.

And brilliance.

On the rare occasion, I can guess who the composer is while listening to the score in the film. I admit it, I'm the one in the group that states, "This score is FANTASTIC!" while watching a totally AMAZING movie. I still appreciate the acting, the direction, the special effects, the cinematography....

But, oh, the SOUNDTRACK!!!

Here are just a few of my favorite composers, and a very brief showcase of their genius.


Michael Giacchino



The man behind Up, The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Star Trek, Lost, MI:4 - Ghost Protocol....just to name a few!

Alan Silvestri



I decided to share this track from The Avengers since it's one of his later works - but I could've also shared Back to the Future, Forrest Gump, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Practical Magic, Night at the Museum......stop me at any time....

Hans Zimmer



There's a lot to choose from among the repertoire of Mr. Zimmer - The Lion King, Rain Man, Days of Thunder, Pirates of the Caribbean 2, 3, & 4, Inception, Gladiator, The Prince of Egypt, As Good As It Gets, A League of Their Own, Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, or something from one of the other 149 titles listed on IMDB.com. But one of my all-time favorite scores of his is The Holiday. It's been in my radio alarm clock for the past year.

Patrick Doyle



He may not be as familiar a name as other composers, but in my opinion, Mr. Doyle has created some of the most beautiful scores, including Sense & Sensibility (1995), Mrs Winterbourne, Love's Labour's Lost, Thor, and Brave. This track from Nanny McPhee is overwhelmingly beautiful. Listen to it with your eyes closed.

Rachel Portman



Only You may be one of her lesser-known works, but it's a gem. Other must-listens by Rachel Portman: Benny and Joon, Chocolat, Emma, The Legend of Bagger Vance, Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas.

James Newton Howard



Like Hans Zimmer, J.N. Howard has many, many film scores to his credit (135, according to IMDB.com), including E.R., The Hunger Games, Pretty Woman, The Fugitive, The Sixth Sense, Signs, and Peter Pan (2003). What I love about this track from The Village is how JNH can make the score to a thriller beautiful.  (Check out the music around 2:38 - it's ridiculous!!)

Mark Isham



My sister shared this track with me, and I fell in LOVE with this, because....well, it just sounds like love. So now, if I don't hear this in my head when I'm with a date, I'll dump him. (Heehee - name that movie!) Not only has Mark Isham composed such emotionally-powerful pieces for Once Upon a Time, but his credits also include Miracle, The Majestic, Life As a House, October Sky, and Of Mice and Men (1992). Just try to keep your eyes dry. (Oh, yeah, he also did Point Break....)


Thomas Newman



Listening to the Finding Nemo soundtrack, I always feel like I'm floating in the ocean....or flowing in the EAC. That's just the brilliance of Thomas Newman - he somehow melodiously captures very specific atmospheres and moments. Some classic soundtracks of his (besides Nemo) are WALL-E, Meet Joe Black, Phenomenon, The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, Fried Green Tomatoes, and Jumpin' Jack Flash.

John Williams 



Known as the "composer of some of the most recognizable themes in the history of film," this post wouldn't be complete without John Williams. Besides the above track from Episode IV (one of my fav pieces - it's gorgeous), this genius' opus also includes the original Harry Potter theme, Indiana Jones, E.T., Home Alone, Hook, Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, Catch Me If You Can....the list of fantastic scores just keeps on going.   Referring back to Star Wars - Episode IV, a piece of trivia that I found fascinating, courtesy of IMDB.com:

"George Lucas planned to score the film with existing classical music like Stanley Kubrick had done on "2001: A Space Odyssey" before Steven Spielberg introduced him to composer John Williams. Lucas and Williams agreed on a classical 19th-century Romantic music style with liberal use of leitmotif for the score. Since the movie would show worlds never seen before, the music had to serve as an 'emotional anchor' for the audience to relate."

That's one of the elements of film scores that I love: they can transport us to new worlds, while still keeping us emotionally anchored. Film scores help us to connect and relate to the world we're viewing - whether it's a familiar-looking neighborhood, a well-known city, or "in a galaxy far, far away."