When music for the silver screen strikes gold
Where film music sits in relation to classical music is not always clear-cut. Is it just ultra-programmatic orchestral music? Does its association with what’s happening on screen constrain or enrich it? Does it – can it – stand alone in its own right? The answer, of course, is that it depends on the score; like all music, some of it will be brilliant, some not so much. What is clear is that those who dismiss movie music as something separate, lesser even, are not only ignoring its often extraordinary creative power, but also denying themselves some really rewarding musical experiences. And now we have Anne-Sophie Mutter, one of our age’s greatest violin virtuosos, telling us so. Our columnist, Edward Seckerson, recalls this month how, as a child discovering music, he met with…
