How You Became a Fan

Heading West

3/20/2015

by Richard S.

Growing up in London, I developed an instant affection for film music. Everything from Vangelis’ Blade Runner to Henry Mancini’s Condorman struck a chord. Yet, one soundtrack transcended the genre for which it was written: Bruce Broughton’s Silverado. It’s a Western score which both leads… and follows. When a character gets shot, we feel the emotional impact due to Broughton’s delicate motifs. By comparison, I don’t feel Tombstone carries the same level of depth and thematic heft.

Shortly after my tenth birthday, I moved to Wales and that’s when the world changed. Three important aspects of my life were born: reading, writing and the music of Max Steiner. The latter contributed cracking soundtracks for King Kong (1933) and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948). Suffice to say, these films were enhanced tenfold by the music.

The first score I ever purchased (on audio tape, then CD) was 1492: Conquest of Paradise. Vangelis received a Golden Globe nomination for his work, although many people believe the music doesn't work too well in context. Regardless, I still find the opening track Hispanola to be highly imaginative and deeply moving.

Throughout the new millennium, the music of Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Dimitri Tiomkin, Robert Folk and John Ottman has caused my fascination to grow.

Since March 2011, I have been writing critiques for Betty Jo Tucker’s website ReelTalk Movie Reviews. Overall, it’s been one of the greatest experiences of my life.

Richard writes First Listen reviews for Film Score Fans. Check him out!

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more super than superman

11/29/2014

1 Comment

by Jørn T.

Jørn runs one of the best soundtrack sites on the web: www.soundtrackgeek.com. He's got fantastic reviews and features. We're thrilled to have him share some thoughts here at Film Score Fans!

Follow Jørn on Twitter - @soundtrackgeek

Here is (probably) my earliest film music memory:

I was a big comic fan growing up, especially superhero ones like Superman, Spider-Man, Hulk, Batman and X-Men. I bought the limited comics we had available and I think it was around 1984 when I saw the movie Superman for the first time and it was awesome. I was only 1 year old when the movie originally came out so that's why I was late to the party.

I remember that white Warner logo zooming in. This was 1984 so I had the privelege of watching it on my dad's old TV which wasn't exactly top notch, even in '84.

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the twin brother speaks!

8/7/2014

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by the twin.

I was introduced to film scores by my brother who came to understand the beauty and power of the scores at a much younger age than I. He started collecting tapes like Star Wars, Forrest Gump, and The Three Muskateers. I found that, when listening to these tapes, two things happened: 1) I could easily relive the movie and 2) I could expand on the universe of that film. For example, I used to listen to the Overture of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country and come up with stories for Star Wars: Episode VII. I had it all figured out - that was 1992. Forget that this musical mixing could make a Trekkie or Star Wars Fanboy's head explode, I could have easily beat Disney to the punch on Episode VII. I guess I'll just have to trust J.J.

I was introduced to film scores without realizing it. I think, for most people, original scores are like a character that gets no credit. The best example I can give is Star Wars. Forget its almost religiously zealous followers. Focus on the movie itself. Focus just on what the music did for the movie. During the 1970s, most sci-fi films had a campy, electronic score. This matched the poor quality of most of those films. The music sounded as fake as the special effects looked. With Star Wars, however, John Williams wrote a full score like it was any other movie. I'd love to see Star Wars with a normal '70s sci-fi soundtrack - a lot of "futuristic" laser sounds and music to match. The movie would be awful.

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ANIMATED UPBRINGING

8/4/2014

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by Daniel S. from California

From the first time I went to a theater, to every moment I watch a movie at home, the music is always what pushes things along. Without it, a film would be like a home video of sorts, except with special effects and all that shibang. Emotion would more than likely not be as easily transmitted to the audience. Thanks to music, I know that everytime I step into an auditorium, I will be going for an amazing experience.

My first movie experience in a theater was the Disney film “Dinosaur”. I was amazed by not how grand the images looked, but also by the clarity and size of the sound. They way it enveloped everything you were seeing on screen, and how it accompanied it. My second film in a theater, was “Spider-Man”.

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FROM NES TO SPOCK AND VADER

8/3/2014

1 Comment

by me @FilmScoreFans

Let's start with this: I was an emotional kid. I'm pretty sure I experienced elation and rage earlier than most of my peers. At least that's what their questioning looks told me. But most important, I led a childhood full of nostalgia. When I was five, we moved out of our house in Indiana to be closer to family in Pennsylvania. I remember standing in front of the house crying. My parents just didn't get it. I wasn't sad or scared. I was remembering all the good times. Heavy stuff for a pre-K kid.

At this point you're probably asking, "Hey... um... I thought this was about film music?" Ok, here we go.

When I was in elementary school, I was obsessed with my Nintendo Entertainment System. Sorry, I'm not old enough to remember Atari, and I certainly didn't have any "Super" or "64" written anywhere on my first gaming system. After moving through the obligatory fascination with Mario and his friends, I landed squarely in the world of Mega Man. It does not matter that this was 8-bit music. It was good and don't you dare disagree with me. I remember being fascinated by the main title themes, but I was completely hooked the first time I ever stepped into Magnet Man's stage. It just always made me feel... wistful...? That can't be the right word. Is it? Somebody look that up for me.

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Heading West

more super than superman

the twin brother speaks!

ANIMATED UPBRINGING

FROM NES TO SPOCK AND VADER

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