“I think film scores generally go kind of underappreciated,” Berkeley High School senior Avi Neta observed, “Most of the time, people will say, ‘wow, what a great movie.’ But it’s less often that you’ll hear someone say ‘that movie had a great score.’”
No matter how underrated they may be, film scores are an essential part of the movie experience. What would “Star Wars” be without its iconic theme? The sudden burst of brass fanfare as the distinctive yellow typeface of the franchise recedes across the starry screen is just as well-known as any plot point of the main movies. How scary would “Psycho” be without its terrifying screeching soundtrack?
Unlike books, it can be difficult for films to concretely communicate what’s going on inside a character’s head without constant voiceover narration. Scores are an indispensable tool for conveying emotional undertones. A scene that might seem perfectly normal can become eerie when backed by unsettling chords. Neta explained, “(A score is) more of a background element, like cinematography, that subtly informs the way that the film is perceived.”
Even during the Silent Era, music was an intrinsic part of the cinematic experience. In-person musicians would improvise or read a piece to back the movie. Then, with the invention of synchronized sound, film scores became a fundamental part of film storytelling. Up until the 1950s, scores were primarily orchestral. Later the music spread into different genres, and the introduction of the synthesizer into the music scene further transformed the nature of scores, integrating popular-style music. Filmmakers can also incorporate songs written independently of the film. BHS junior Nico Otto said, “I think that the best music for film is when it kind of has a combination of both. When it has original scores for the movie and then it also maybe pulls in some songs that aren’t from it.”
“I think it’s interesting when films or TV shows (use popular songs with) lyrics … that are very related to what’s happening in the film,” BHS senior Maya Gearen said, “It not only makes you think about what’s happening in the film more but it also makes you think about the lyrics in that song which is cool because I feel like a lot of times we listen to popular songs and we don’t really think about what they’re saying.”
Some films commission multiple artists to create album-like scores. “Barbie” featured bespoke songs from Charli XCX, Lizzo, and Dua Lipa. While the songs sounded like normal pop songs, the lyrics were tailored to the film. Or, soundtracks can be compiled to indicate a specific time period — the synth-heavy Stranger Things themes and 80s playlist immediately immerse viewers in the decade.
Otto recalled the impact that the “Heathers” soundtrack had on her when she first heard it. “It has super cool synth-y 80s background music. I remember watching the movie and just being like ‘wow, what artist did this music? It’s so good.’ And then I looked at it and I’m like oh, this is literally the original score for the movie.”
Neta, who experimented with scoring short films in his AP Music Theory class, even said he would consider composing scores for a career, “It’s a job that is probably going to stick around … there are so many great film scores out there. I think that even though it’s under-appreciated, it’s not in any way less than other kinds of music. It’s just a different style. And I think it’s really cool,” Neta said.