Uncategorized : What's your take on music for… by Milo Coello

Probably the two most powerful words in the film scoring world!

Minimal to me means Phillip glass and Steve reich

I agree with you Curt (of course I do, I'm a composer haha!). A good strong score helps maintain a proper flow of the film and complement it with emotional dynamics. Of course, many times silence is extremely powerful. Amazing composers Glass and Reich, two absolute masters of minimal music!

I think film music is very important but I do have to say that I feel that the type of film will dictate the type of music and style. What good is a fantasy film without a beautifully rich score to support the character of the film. In the same right, what would the point of a deeply rich score be in a comedy or urban war type film. I think that as we continue forward, music in films will simply expand into every genre and possibly create its own genre.

I have found that many many many times independent directors and/or producers lack the language to convey what they want musically in their films. Usually they know what they want to achieve emotionally, but really do not have a clues as how to convey these ideas in english. Many are afraid the music will overpower and overshadow the film, and as such I find that usually the trend is that the director will want something akin to "musical wallpaper". They want music there, they know they need it, but they really don't want it to move or do anything which is pointless. I find frequently that I compose two scores- one exactly as I have been directed, and one that I feel is a bit more edgy. Most of the time, after I show it to the director they go with the edgier ideas. I have been lucky to compose for many films with a group of filmmakers that absoloutely LOVE film music- their iPod's are full of scores by Elfman, Williams, Zimmer, Goldsmith, Horner, etc etc,.. They like everything from simple minimal electronic musical scores, to the big bombastic Korngold/ Mahler orchestral style. And even though they are hardcore film score buffs, they STILL struggle with finding the language to covey what they want. I have found that these people often (dangerously) speak in terms of other composers "I want Thomas Newmann's Lemony Snicket score for my film!". I am lucky because these people love working with me and I am very fortunate because they love most of everything that I write for them. They will usually come at me with their misguided attempt to explain what they would like and I go off and write what I want and they love it. NOW- mind you,.. This is a very very rare situation, and doesn't happen everyday,.. It's just that we are on the same wavelength and have incredible respect for each other. I have worked with them for over 10 years and 5-6 films and they trust me now, so I am incredibly lucky. However when I work with others I find that people frequently lean towards incredibly minimal musical score, and I think that is largely borne of three elements: Low budget, inexperience, and lack of ability to use musical language to explain what they hear. Just my two cents.

Oh my Gosh! Music is just as important as the dialogue! The right music can make a crappy scene the best thing. You cannot have a good movie without good music. I love scores, and buy them frequently. The right music can help the viewer understand what is going on in the scene. You can also trick the viewers with the music and make them think something is going on when it isn't. Music is soooo important!

Music Kills. It can create atmosphere and suspense, be an emotional catalyst or a part of the plot. Thus, a neglected soundtrack can bog down an otherwise good project. Now regarding the inclination towards minimal, like it is mentioned above, the lack or inability of communication certainly plays its part in it. Along the lack of communication you may find inexperience and/or lack of resources. We're talking about indie, and indie means low to no budget, playground for weirdos and boot camp for aspiring cinematographers. So, the director may not have the budget to hire a full fledged pro for the job, and/or may be unable to get a hold of someone with enough under his belt to get the job done properly(and free), so they'll stick to the friend's friend that does some music. This leads to less complex and polished work. And of course minimalistic soundtrack and simpler melody aren't necessarily bad things. If striking a single detuned string on a guitar with a rusty screwdriver hits that nerve you want it to hit, then heck, print it!

What a vast subject! Different projects will need different approaches and the only 'right music' will be the score that best fits the scene. Budgetary concerns are always there, yet often there are creative ways to circumvent the limitations. I find there is a great trove of contemporary scores to enjoy. One could argue that the repetitive use of Bistro Fada in Midnight in Paris is a somewhat minimalist approach yet I found it truly engaging and effective. I know that the term minimalist in the course of this discussion has a different connotation, but a low budget can require the use of repetition and it can be effective. What I find tedious is what i hear to be a reliance on a bag of cliche's. I have no idea if these stem from directorial insistence or from a paucity of compositional ideas. Most likely a combination of the two. I mentally scream every time I hear another O Fortuna rip off as metallic monsters chew up some town full of screaming buxom beauties and cute heros.