So I am currently in a holding pattern, circling as I wait for something to score.
Having been brought on to the project early (because of the songs they needed) it is normal for me to be waiting for the animation at this point. Knowing this I decided it would be good to use this time to do two things:
- Write some themes
- Study some music and grow
As I wrote thematic ideas following my architecture, I also took the time to study great themes with this question in mind “what makes a tune a classic tune?”
Is it something that is simply part of the ether or can it be pinned down and scrutinized?
I have looked at a lot of the greatest tunes, tunes I liked instantly and remembered forever and proceeded to compare them. I have indeed reached some conclusions. Maybe there is a book in my future? Or some seminars? Or maybe I’ll keep it to myself…
I have also spent some time studying great score, especially the ones which have influenced film scoring greatly;
- Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring”,
- “Petroushka”
- “The Firebird”
- Ravel’s “Daphne and Chloe” and
- Mussorgsk’y “Pictures at an Exhibition” orchestrated by Ravel.
And I don’t mean just listening, but really digging into the language and orchestration. I do hope to make good use of this as I write the score to “The Legend of Silk Boy.”
I have also been sight-reading lots of Grieg and Prokofiev, and right now I am sight-reading some Satie. It’s pretty good and very film-score friendly!
Oh, and I purchased a bunch of John Williams piano arrangements to sight-read as well, in order to grasp what makes his music jump off the page in such a natural way.
Life is all about balance, and in my case this means being happy with what I achieved musically while still striving to grow. This project gives me that time to grow, and I am happy about that. But still, I can’t wait to get going on that underscore!
