A film score is music created especially to go along with a movie or TV show. This music is made up of short pieces called cues, which are played at certain times during the film to help tell the story and make scenes more emotional. Composers write the score, often working with the film’s director or producer. The music is usually performed by a group of musicians, such as an orchestra, instrumentalists, or singers, and recorded by a sound engineer. The word "score" is less commonly used for music in plays, TV shows, radio programs, or video games, which is usually called a soundtrack or incidental music.

Film scores can be very different in style, depending on the type of movie. Most scores are based on Western classical music, but some use jazz, rock, pop, blues, new-age, ambient, or music from other cultures. Since the 1950s, many scores have included electronic sounds, and today, some mix traditional instruments with electronic ones.

With the invention of digital technology, many films now use computer-made sounds to copy real instruments. Some scores are created entirely by composers using software, synthesizers, and other tools.

Songs like pop or rock songs are usually not part of a film’s score, even though they are part of the soundtrack. In musicals, some songs may share ideas with the score, but scores rarely have lyrics unless sung by a choir or soloist during a cue. Songs played in a scene, such as a radio playing in a car, are also not part of the score. However, sometimes a composer writes an original song for a movie, like James Horner’s "My Heart Will Go On" from Titanic, which was written for Celine Dion.

Terminology

A film score is a type of music used in movies. It can also be called background score, background music, film soundtrack, film music, screen composition, screen music, or incidental music.

Process of creation

The composer often starts working on the music near the end of filming, around the same time the film is being edited. Sometimes, the composer is present during the entire filming process, especially if actors need to perform with or react to original music in the film. Before the editing is finished, the composer sees an unfinished version of the film called a "rough cut" and discusses with the director or producer what kind of music is needed for the film’s style and tone. The director and composer watch the entire film together to identify scenes that need original music. During this process, composers take detailed notes about the timing of each music section, including when it starts, ends, and how it should match specific moments in a scene. This process is called "spotting."

In some cases, filmmakers adjust the film’s editing to match the flow of the music, instead of adjusting the music to fit the final film. For example, the film Baby Driver, directed by Edgar Wright, was edited to fit the music. Director Godfrey Reggio edited his films Koyaanisqatsi and Powaqqatsi to match the music of composer Philip Glass. Similarly, director Sergio Leone and composer Ennio Morricone worked closely, and the final scenes of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Once Upon a Time in the West, and Once Upon a Time in America were edited to match Morricone’s music, which he had prepared months before the films were made.

Another example is the finale of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, directed by Steven Spielberg. Spielberg let composer John Williams create the music freely, even without seeing the film. Spielberg later adjusted the scene to match the music.

Sometimes, composers write music based on the script or storyboards without seeing the film. This gives them more freedom to create music without worrying about specific timing or matching the emotions of a scene. Directors who want music to be flexible during post-production often use this approach. For example, composer Hans Zimmer wrote music for Inception without seeing the film, and composer Gustavo Santaolalla did the same for Brokeback Mountain.

When writing music for film, one goal is to match events on screen with musical events in the score. Composers use different methods to sync music with the film, such as special timing software, math formulas, or free timing with reference timings. Composers use a system called SMPTE timecode to help with syncing.

When syncing music to the film, a small amount of time (3–4 frames) can be added or removed without affecting the accuracy. A technique called "free timing" uses a stopwatch or visual cues on the film, such as vertical lines or bursts of light, to help musicians play at the right time. These visual cues are added by the music editor based on the composer’s instructions. The timings on the clock or film match specific beats in the composer’s score.

A written click track is a method of writing music with consistent timing, such as four beats in 2.66 seconds, to help maintain a steady tempo without using a metronome. Composers use written clicks when planning to conduct live musicians. Other methods, like using a metronome, can sometimes make performances feel stiff. A standard BPM (beats per minute) value can be converted to a written click using the equation:

60 / BPM × X = W

Written clicks are rounded to the nearest 1/3 or 2/3 of a second. For example, at 88 BPM, the calculation is:

60 / 88 × 4 = 2.72, which rounds to 2.66 seconds.

Once the composer identifies where in the film the music should start, they calculate the beat number using the equation:

(BPM × SP) / 60 + 1 = B

After the spotting session and timing details are set, the composer begins writing the score. Some composers use traditional methods like pencil and paper, while others use computer software such as Digital Performer, Logic Pro, Finale, Cubase, or Pro Tools. Software allows composers to create MIDI mockups for the filmmaker to review before the final recording.

The time a composer has to write the score varies. Some projects may take only two weeks, while others take up to three months. Normally, the writing process lasts about six weeks.

The music’s style depends on factors like the emotions of the scene, the characters, and the setting. Composers may use different instruments, genres, or styles to create unique sounds. For example, Howard Shore used a tin flute in The Lord of the Rings to represent the Shire and evoke a Celtic feeling.

Some scores include popular music to reflect a specific time period or character. For example, Guardians of the Galaxy and Back to the Future use songs like "The Power of Love" and "Back in Time."

Composers also draw from global influences to create memorable sounds. In The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, Ennio Morricone combined post-tonal music, Celtic songs, Gregorian chants, and mariachi trumpets to create the iconic spaghetti western sound.

Once the music is written, it must be arranged or orchestrated.

Elements of a film score

Most films include between 45 and 120 minutes of music. However, some films use very little or no music, while others have music that plays almost the entire time.

Sometimes, film composers are asked to copy the style of music from a temporary track used during production. In other cases, directors prefer the temporary music over the original score created by the composer. A famous example is Stanley Kubrick’s film 2001: A Space Odyssey, where Kubrick chose to use existing classical music, such as pieces by György Ligeti, instead of the score written by Alex North. Kubrick had also hired Frank Cordell to create a score for the film. Other examples include Torn Curtain (Bernard Herrmann), Troy (Gabriel Yared), Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Alan Silvestri), King Kong (Howard Shore), Air Force One (Randy Newman), and The Bourne Identity (Carter Burwell).

Films often use different musical themes for important characters, events, or locations, a technique linked to the work of composer Richard Wagner, who used recurring musical ideas called leitmotifs. These themes may change slightly depending on the situation they represent and are often included in the background music. Themes tied to specific characters or places are called motifs, and the rest of the music in a track usually centers around these motifs.

This technique is often unnoticed by casual viewers but is well known among fans of specific genres. For example, John Williams’ music for Star Wars includes themes linked to characters like Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, and Princess Leia. Similarly, the Lord of the Rings films use recurring themes for main characters and locations. Another example is Jerry Goldsmith’s Klingon theme from Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), which later composers reused in their own Star Trek films. Michael Giacchino used character themes in the 2009 film Up, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Score. His music for the TV series Lost also relied heavily on themes tied to specific characters and situations.

"Source music" (or a "source cue") is music that comes from a visible or implied source within the story. In film theory, this is called "diegetic" music because it originates from the "diegesis," or the world of the story. An example is the use of Frankie Valli’s song "Can’t Take My Eyes Off You" in The Deer Hunter. Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 film The Birds is an example of a movie that uses no non-diegetic music. Dogme 95 is a filmmaking movement started in Denmark in 1995 that avoids using non-diegetic music in its films.

Artistic merit

The artistic value of film music is often discussed by experts. Some people believe it is very important, citing composers like Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Aaron Copland, Bernard Herrmann, and others. Some experts think film music is a major part of classical music in the late 20th century because it is the type of classical music most people hear. In some cases, music from films has been added to the official list of important classical music. These are usually works by famous composers who have created film scores, such as Sergei Prokofiev’s music for Alexander Nevsky or Ralph Vaughan Williams’ score for Scott of the Antarctic. Others believe most film music is not valuable, arguing that it often copies older music. Film score composers usually create about three to four scores each year. While the most famous works by composers like John Williams are not yet part of the official classical music list, some classical musicians and critics are beginning to recognize the broader contributions of composers like Williams. For example, Norwegian composer Marcus Paus has said that he considers Williams "one of the great composers of any century," who has "found a very satisfying way of using complex and unusual musical styles within a larger musical structure," and who "might have come closest to achieving a vision from the past that children of the future would be whistling complex musical patterns." Despite this, since many people know these works better than other classical music, major orchestras sometimes perform them, as do pop orchestras.

In 1983, a group called the Society for the Preservation of Film Music was created to protect the "byproducts" of making film scores, such as written music, documents, and studio recordings. These materials are needed to perform the music in concerts or record it again. Sometimes, it takes many years before a film score is released on CD after being stored in archives.

History

The history of music in films is not clearly agreed upon, but it is often linked to artistic traditions from the 1800s known as Romanticism. According to Kurt London, early film music was not created for artistic reasons but to cover the loud noise from film projectors. In the early days, there were no soundproof walls between the projector and the audience, so the noise made it hard for people to enjoy the movies. Cinema owners began playing music to help mask the noise, as it was a practical solution to improve the viewing experience. However, film historian James Wierzbicki argues that early film showings, like those by the Lumière brothers, were social events where the projector noise was not a problem. As films moved from exhibition spaces to vaudeville theaters, which already had musicians, it became common to add live music to films. Audiences expected music in these theaters, so it naturally became part of the film experience.

Before recorded sound was used in movies, music was often played by in-house pianists, organists, or even full orchestras. At the Lumière brothers' first film screening in 1895, a pianist performed. In 1914, the Oz Film Manufacturing Company used a full-length score by Louis F. Gottschalk for their films. Other examples include Victor Herbert’s score for The Fall of a Nation (1915) and Camille Saint-Saëns’ music for The Assassination of the Duke of Guise (1908). Nathaniel D. Mann’s score for The Fairylogue and Radio-Plays (1908) was also created around the same time but combined film and stage performances. Most music at this time was made up of pieces by famous composers and was organized into categories like "dark," "sad," or "action" to match the film’s mood.

German cinema had a strong influence during the silent film era. Films like Die Nibelungen (1924) and Metropolis (1927) by Fritz Lang featured original orchestral scores written by Gottfried Huppertz. Other films, such as Nosferatu (1922) and Faust (1926), also had original scores. Some movies mixed original music with traditional folk tunes. These styles were inspired by German Romantic music, especially the ideas of Richard Wagner, who used themes and motifs in his operas. These ideas later influenced film composers like Max Steiner.

In France, before talking pictures existed, Erik Satie created what is considered the first "frame by frame" film score for René Clair’s Entr'acte (1924). He carefully timed the music to match the film’s scenes, using short, flexible musical ideas that changed with the film’s pace. American composers like Virgil Thomson and Aaron Copland were influenced by Satie’s work.

When sound was introduced to films, director Fritz Lang used very little music. In M – Eine Stadt sucht einen Mörder (1931), the only music was a short piece by Edvard Grieg. In Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse (1931), there was only one musical piece at the beginning and end of the film. One rare moment of music in M was a song sung by a character, used to show his madness.

Early attempts to combine sound and images failed because of technical problems. Phonographs, the only way to record sound in the early 1900s, could not be synchronized with film projectors. Sound was also hard to amplify. By the 1920s, radio improvements and sound-on-film technology made synchronization possible. A major milestone was Max Steiner’s score for King Kong (1933), where music matched the action, such as when a character’s footsteps were highlighted by background chords.

Although film music in the 1940s lagged behind advances in concert music, the 1950s brought modernist film scores. Director Elia Kazan worked with Alex North on A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), using dissonant sounds and jazz. He also collaborated with Leonard Bernstein on On the Waterfront (1954), blending jazz and classical styles. Leonard Rosenman used atonal music in East of Eden (1955) and Rebel Without a Cause (1955), inspired by Arnold Schoenberg. Bernard Herrmann, working with Alfred Hitchcock, created innovative scores for Vertigo (1958) and Psycho (1960). Non-diegetic jazz, like Duke Ellington’s score for Anatomy of a Murder (1959), also became a modernist innovation.

Composers

This list shows composers who created music for one of the 100 most successful movies in terms of money made but have not been nominated for important awards like the Oscar or Golden Globe.

• William Alwyn – Swiss Family Robinson (1960)
• Joseph DeBeasi – American Sniper (2014)
• David Buttolph – House of Wax (1953)
• Brad Fiedel – Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
• Alexander Janko – My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)
• Bill Justis – Smokey and the Bandit (1977)
• Harald Kloser – The Day After Tomorrow (2004), 2012 (2009)
• Heitor Pereira – Despicable Me (2010), The Smurfs (2011), Despicable Me 2 (2013)
• Trevor Rabin – Armageddon (1998), National Treasure: Book of Secrets (2007)
• Thomas Wanker – 2012 (2009)
• Pharrell Williams – Despicable Me (2010), Despicable Me 2 (2013)
• Chris Wilson – My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)

Relation with directors

Sometimes, a composer works with a director by creating the music for many of that director's films. John Williams' long-term partnership with Steven Spielberg and George Lucas is one of the most well-known in film history. Williams created the music for all of Spielberg's films except five, and for every movie in both of Lucas' popular movie series, Star Wars and Indiana Jones. Williams won all five of his Academy Awards while working with these two directors. Additionally, Danny Elfman created the music for all of Tim Burton's films, except for Ed Wood (music by Howard Shore) and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (music by Stephen Sondheim).

Production music

Many companies provide music for films, TV shows, and commercials in exchange for payment. This type of music, often called library music, is owned by production music libraries. These libraries allow customers to use the music in movies, TV, radio, and other media. Examples of such companies include Warner Chappell Production Music, Jingle Punks, Associated Production Music, FirstCom Music, VideoHelper, and Extreme Music. Unlike music publishers for popular or classical music, which usually own less than half of the rights to a song, production music libraries own all the rights. This means customers can license the music without asking the composer for permission, which is required when using music from other publishers. This happens because most music created for libraries is made under a "work for hire" agreement, meaning the library owns the music from the start. Production music is helpful for media producers because they can easily find and license music at reasonable prices.

Production music libraries usually offer a wide variety of musical styles and genres, making it easier for producers and editors to find what they need in one place. The size of these libraries varies, with some having a few hundred songs and others having thousands. The first production music library was created by De Wolfe Music in 1927, when sound was introduced to films. This company originally made music for silent films. Another library was started by Ralph Hawkes of Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers in the 1930s. APM, the largest music library in the United States, has more than 250,000 songs.