Think about those moments in your films where the air thickens, a subtle shift occurs in the audience's understanding, yet no character utters a specific line, and the visuals remain seemingly neutral. Often, it's the score that carries this weight, communicating unspoken layers of meaning, foreshadowing impending events, or subtly revealing a character's hidden motivations.
The power of film music extends far beyond simply providing an emotional backdrop. Consider the strategic use of a recurring motif, perhaps initially associated with a seemingly minor detail, that subtly evolves and intensifies as a character's inner turmoil grows. Or think about a dissonant harmonic shift that precedes an unseen threat, creating a sense of unease long before it visually manifests. Even the choice of instrumentation – the fragile vulnerability of a solo cello versus the ominous weight of low brass – can speak volumes about a character's true nature or the underlying tension of a scene.
These aren't just "pretty tunes"; they are carefully crafted sonic brushstrokes that add depth and nuance to your narrative. As a composer, my focus is on understanding the subtext of your story, the unspoken emotions that simmer beneath the surface. By employing subtle scoring techniques, we can enrich the audience's experience, allowing them to feel and intuit elements of the story that lie beyond the explicit.
I'm curious, what are some instances in films that have particularly struck you with their use of score to communicate subtext? I'd love to hear your thoughts and discuss how music can become a powerful, unspoken language in your cinematic storytelling.
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We are professionals and as you have eloquently stated, we often have significant experiences in writing cues that support or move on scenes. So when it comes to writing a cue for an emotional scene after awhile, we are pretty good at creating that music. So this begs two questions:
1. What if the music we write is not seen the same way by our stakeholders.
2. If there is an emotional scene, when and how do we decide that the scene is better off without music.
In my last project, for example there were two very emotional scenes - one where an elderly mother with dementia is getting increasingly frustrated (a dialog scene) and the subsequent scene where the daughter goes into the bathroom and cries (about 60 seconds of non-dialog). I wrote two cues that I judged as perfect music support. I really thought I nailed it. The stakeholder decided the performances were themselves sufficiently powerful and did not require any music.
As composers, we are service providers to our stakeholders and as such, no music was used in any of those scenes. This experience highlighted what I failed to recognize/overlooked. Filmmakers and other stakeholders have opinions that stretch to both ends of the 'spectrum'. Some are comfortable with music to support emotional and stressful sections of the film, others use scores sparingly while others prefer there be no music. As a great current example, for those of you who have watched the very popular HBO/MAX series "The Pitt" - 16 episodes and no music.
Yes - music well crafted can really support emotional scenes but those cues need to be congruent with your stakeholder's style and with their buy in, preferably up front in a spotting session.