# Really good movie scores



## danae

Since there is no such topic either, I'm starting one. Off the top of my head I can think of these:

Last of the Mohicans
Exotica
A.I.
Jaws
Nightmare before Christmas
Batman
Dracula
Blade Runner
2001 Space Odyssey
Dances with wolves
The conversation
Signs
Catch me if you can
Requiem for a dream
The piano
Crash


----------



## MEDIEVAL MIAMI

My favorite of all times: Batman: The Animated Series.


----------



## Tapkaara

Bram Stoker's Dracula is classic. By Kilar, one of my favorite modern composers. I also enjoy William's Star Wars scores.


----------



## danae

Tapkaara said:


> Bram Stoker's Dracula is classic.


 It's in my list.


----------



## Tapkaara

danae said:


> It's in my list.


I read your list and I am reiterating my affection for the score in my post.


----------



## danae

Tapkaara said:


> I read your list and I am reiterating my affection for the score in my post.


Oh OK.

bla bla (for some reason this message has to be at least 10 characters long!!)


----------



## JSK

Lawrence of Arabia has an excellent score.


----------



## Rasa

Star Wars. Great score.


----------



## Marco01

Rasa said:


> Star Wars. Great score.


I was about to ask how it had yet to be mentioned!


----------



## LvB

Gottfried Huppertz's scores for Fritz Lang are tremendous works in a Straussian vein, especially the one for _Metropolis_; I wish the music would come out on CD.
Jerry Goldsmith's score for Robert Wise's _Star Trek: The Motion Picture_ is a _tour de force_, and extremely well integrated symbolically with the underlying structure of the film.
Prokofiev's score for Eisenstein's _Alexander Nevsky_ is deservedly acclaimed; the 'Battle on the Ice' alone would elevate this one to the peaks of film scoring, imo.
Anything by Bernard Herrmann is going to be at least interesting, of course, but his scores for Wise's _The Day the Earth Stood Still_ and Joseph Mankiewicz's _The Ghost and Mrs. Muir_ are magnificent in quite different ways. Of his scores for Hitchcock, _Vertigo_ is the stand-out, I think, though the choice is hard.... 
And I've always liked David Shire's score for Walter Murch's _Return to Oz_; I'm not otherwise a big fan of Shire's work, but this one is beautiful, haunting, and at times very moving.


----------



## Herzeleide

Elisabeth Lutyens: _The Skull_.


----------



## danae

Also, adding to my previous list, and keeping in mind your additions, I forgot all about Yann Tiersen's Amelie, as well as Elmer Bernstein's compelling score for "To kill a mocking bird" (1962)


----------



## danae

Also Cape Fear (1962) by Bernhard Hermann, as well as the remake (1991) with an adaptation of the Hermann score by Elmer Bernstein.


----------



## Rasa

Yann Tiersen should be put on a stake, hung, burned and then buried in salt.


----------



## danae

Rasa said:


> Yann Tiersen should be put on a stake, hung, burned and then buried in salt.


I'm talking about the specific music for this specific film and not about Yann Tiersen in general. For this film, Tiersen's music was not breathtaking, but certainly more than simply adequate.


----------



## handlebar

My favs are:

Road to Perdition
Amadeus
Impromptu
The Music Teacher
A Song to Remember
Tous les Matins du Monde
2001: A Space Oddessy
Lawrence of Arabia
Memoirs of a Geisha
Schindler's List
Crouching Tiger,Hidden Dragon
Hero

Jim


----------



## Weston

Think what you will about my cheesy tastes, but Basil Poledouris' brassy thunderous score for _Conan, the Barbarian _ could not be more perfect for its subject, and the recording is phenomenal.

Most of my other favorites are already mentioned above - especially _2001_. The score for _ST: The Motion Picture _mentioned above uses a device called the cosmic beam - a very long wire stretched over a girder with an electric guitar pickup underneath. It makes some very bizarre sounds that are used to represent V-ger. I hope it wound up in the soundtrack disc and was not just considered sound effects. For me it is part of the music. (I don't have the soundtrack CD.)

I should also mention Miklós Rózsa whose score for _Ben-Hur _is archetypal sword and sandal music, one of my favorite genres of movie scores.


----------



## Tapkaara

Weston said:


> Think what you will about my cheesy tastes, but Basil Poledouris' brassy thunderous score for _Conan, the Barbarian _ could not be more perfect for its subject, and the recording is phenomenal.
> 
> Most of my other favorites are already mentioned above - especially _2001_. The score for _ST: The Motion Picture _mentioned above uses a device called the cosmic beam - a very long wire stretched over a girder with an electric guitar pickup underneath. It makes some very bizarre sounds that are used to represent V-ger. I hope it wound up in the soundtrack disc and was not just considered sound effects. For me it is part of the music. (I don't have the soundtrack CD.)
> 
> I should also mention Miklós Rózsa whose score for _Ben-Hur _is archetypal sword and sandal music, one of my favorite genres of movie scores.


2001 uses classical music to astoundingly power effect. For that matter, Kubrick's Clockwork Orange is very much the same way. How can forget the attempted rape then fight scene to Rossini's Thieving Magpie...?


----------



## david johnson

that movie where the score was 28 to 3.


----------



## PostMinimalist

Does anyone else think the music by Hans Zimmer for Angels and Demons sounds like Arvo Part?


----------



## PostMinimalist

Also the score for 'A Man For All Seasons' was superb even if very short. A pastiche Elizabethan rammy!


----------



## Drowning_by_numbers

post-minimalist said:


> Does anyone else think the music by Hans Zimmer for Angels and Demons sounds like Arvo Part?


Yes, it does a bit! I'm not a film music person but I do love a bit of Hans Zimmer.

Now here is a question: Is it true that Danny Elfman cannot read music?? I told this too a friend on my course who's ambition is to be a film composer and I think I broke his heart so some confirmation would be good! I don't think it can be though...


----------



## PostMinimalist

There are a few big name composers who's forte is not interpreting the dots. Howard Shore is one and It wouldn't surprise me to find that Danny Elfman who is a bit of a rocker, is another.

Don't get me wrong I don't mean they can't find middle c with a searchlight and a tem of bloodhounds but if a bach fugue alnded on the music stand they couldn't 'first time' it.

FC


----------



## Tapkaara

Drowning_by_numbers said:


> Yes, it does a bit! I'm not a film music person but I do love a bit of Hans Zimmer.
> 
> Now here is a question: Is it true that Danny Elfman cannot read music?? I told this too a friend on my course who's ambition is to be a film composer and I think I broke his heart so some confirmation would be good! I don't think it can be though...


As far as I know, yes, Elfman can read/write music. It's shocking about Howard Shore though...I wonder how he writes, then?


----------



## danae

Elfman can read and write music, but like many other film composers, he doesn't orchestrate his music. There are many film composers, such as John Williams for instance, who conduct their own music and are masters in orchestration. Elfman is not one of them.


----------



## Sorin Eushayson

Okay, I know I'm being stereotypical when I say this, but I really enjoy the Lord of the Rings soundtrack. Here me out here. I was listening to it the other day and was surprised by how competent, confident, and original the writing sounds; not just your average music score. I think Shore's got a good head on his shoulders when it comes to this sort of thing.


----------



## Air

Sorin Eushayson said:


> Okay, I know I'm being stereotypical when I say this, but I really enjoy the Lord of the Rings soundtrack. Here me out here. I was listening to it the other day and was surprised by how competent, confident, and original the writing sounds; not just your average music score. I think Shore's got a good head on his shoulders when it comes to this sort of thing.


It's all well here.

It many sound a little immature but I immensely love the LOTR soundtrack (and the movies for that matter), it's so epic (more immaturity here) and special. My favorites are the "Rohan", "Minas Tirith", and "Shire" themes for their vivid images of the landscapes. The "Black Riders" theme is too cliched for me, probably because of its resemblance to every other "hooded ghouls" theme I've ever heard (a.k.a "O Fortuna").

Air


----------



## tegels

Thomas Newman's score to Oscar & Lucinda. Far and away the best film score I've ever heard. Road to Perdition also comes high on my list too (am listening to it now). Both scores are characterised by a gentle 'speaking' intimacy. Newman can handle big drama scenes too, made all the more effective by his previous delicate music which he ramps up to cover bigger sounds. Conjures depth very quickly. Unlikely to be the sort of composer chosen for an all out action film, though


----------



## livemylife

I second Memoirs of a Geisha and Schindler's List. Not very fond of yo yo ma, but he did a good job on that soundtrack. Red violin was good also.

Forrest Gump! Probably because it is my favorite movie.


----------



## Tapkaara

Akira Ifukube's score to the original Godzilla (Gojira) (1954) is a classic. Now, before any of you snicker at this, I can tell you this is, for sure, an above average sci-fi/monster score for films of this period.

The score is dark, brooding and funereal. In the original film, Godzilla is a metaphor for the power, terror and destruction of atomic weapons. Ifukube's score perfectly complements the dark, despair-laden tone of the film.

Again, this is not typical 1950s Saturday morning sci-fi music. This is a unique score of much understated impact. I encourage anyone in here to seek it out; it's easily available on CD.


----------



## livemylife

I forgot to mention, Young Frankenstein with Gene Wilder.


----------



## marinermark

Miklos Rosza's "Spellbound" score featured the Theremin, one of the first electronic instruments. The "Spellbound Concerto" (piano) is one of my favorites. The march from "Captain From Castile" (Alfred Newman) is far more stirring and exciting than any 'real march' ever written.


----------



## shsherm

I really enjoy several of the scores that Erich Wolfgang Korngold wrote for the movies. He deserved the Academy Award he received for "The Seahawk".


----------



## Metalheadwholovesclasical

Lord of the Rings. 

Not too sure if that was mentioned yet. But anyways, an absolutely epic score.


----------



## dpsmith

*unknown childerns movie. i need help*

HELLO!

i have been looking everywhere for the soundtrack or a copy of a movie i had as a child. i was hoping someone could help me with the title. i have no clue what it is.

"SYNOPSIS"
----
it is a cartoon in which 2 orchestras are different kingdoms. the "people" in these kingdoms are actual instruments. the son of one kingdom falls in love with the daughter from the other kingdom.... its like romeo and juliet. the kingdoms fight... but with music!!
its a great piece but as i said i have no idea what it is called or where i can find it.

DPS


----------



## tahnak

*Good Scores*



Metalheadwholovesclasical said:


> Lord of the Rings.
> 
> Not too sure if that was mentioned yet. But anyways, an absolutely epic score.


Yes absolutely! I was listening to the score of the 'Fellowship of The Ring' yesterday and My God! It is magnificent writing by Howard Shore.


----------



## danae

dpsmith said:


> HELLO!
> 
> i have been looking everywhere for the soundtrack or a copy of a movie i had as a child. i was hoping someone could help me with the title. i have no clue what it is.
> 
> "SYNOPSIS"
> ----
> it is a cartoon in which 2 orchestras are different kingdoms. the "people" in these kingdoms are actual instruments. the son of one kingdom falls in love with the daughter from the other kingdom.... its like romeo and juliet. the kingdoms fight... but with music!!
> its a great piece but as i said i have no idea what it is called or where i can find it.
> 
> DPS


Try the www.imdb.com (International Movie Database)


----------



## danae

I just watched "Witness" by Peter Weir. Maurice Jarre has done a great job with the score.


----------



## tahnak

danae said:


> I just watched "Witness" by Peter Weir. Maurice Jarre has done a great job with the score.


Yes. Maurice Jarre is brilliant in the film.

Today, I heard the theme of Schindler's List played by Itzhak Perlman and John Williams' score and I feel that this is William's best work to date.


----------



## danae

tahnak said:


> Today, I heard the theme of Schindler's List played by Itzhak Perlman and John Williams' score and I feel that this is William's best work to date.


Yea, Schindler's list is a really inspired score. But I don't think it's his best one. Recently I heard the soundtrack from "Catch me if you can" and I was .... well... impressed in a way that I've never been impressed by Williams before. It's fantastic.


----------



## Frederik Magle

Lots of good scores have been mentioned, allow me to add a personal favorite of mine:

Elliot Goldenthal's score for "Alien 3". The movie may not be the greatest, but the score is amazing. As far as I know he worked on it exclusively for a year, putting in the same effort as he would have for a symphonic "concert work" and although it works in the movie it can fully stand on its own in my opinion.


----------



## Yoshi

I like most Hans Zimmer's film scores


----------



## Luke34

Besides the obvious ones (Hermann's Hitchcock scores, John Williams (who is the reason I got into classical music as a career or indeed at all), Shore's _LOTR_, Danny Elfman), I'll say that I really love John Tavener's score for _Children of Men_ (which is my favorite movie). It's the only film score he's done--he usually writes sacred choral music, and since the film has a strong spiritual/religious allegory aspect, his background definitely works in its favor. Also, Michael Giacchino's work (especially for Pixar).

Also, Shore orchestrates his own music. So it's not like he's an illiterate rocker who happens to come up with a good tune once in a while.


----------



## Mrs Amys Music

Some of my favorites are:

1. A Beautiful Mind
2. The Terminal
3. The Little Women
4. Sense and Sensibility 
5. A & E's Pride and Prejudice


----------



## PartisanRanger

Luke34 said:


> Also, Michael Giacchino's work (especially for Pixar).


I really liked his work on Up. Michael Giacchino has been getting a lot of work these days, he also scored the recent Star Trek movie. I wasn't too impressed with that effort, though.


----------



## Marco01

William Walton - *Richard III *
Miklos Rozsa - *Ben Hur *


----------



## Cortision

I really enjoy *Antarctica* by Nigel Westlake.


----------



## Luke34

PartisanRanger said:


> I really liked his work on Up. Michael Giacchino has been getting a lot of work these days, he also scored the recent Star Trek movie. I wasn't too impressed with that effort, though.


I liked _Star Trek_ pretty well--not nearly as much as _Up_, which is easily my favorite film score (and film!) of 2009 thus far, but the repeated chords over the titles of _ST_ were pretty awesome, and the main theme (which, being a giant dork, I solfèged in my head so I could remember it later) was not bad as well. And given the extremely low minimum that is apparently required nowadays for a sci-fi/action score, I'm inclined to be forgiving.


----------



## PartisanRanger

Yeah, it wasn't too bad. I have to say, the bombastic enemy theme (forget what they were called now...) stuck in my head for a while. But yes, Up was great in all respects.


----------



## shsherm

Earlier this evening I was listening to a radio show on KUSC in LA about the host's reccomendations for the best film score recordings. The list is available on KUSC.org.


----------



## Patchman

Blade runner and Alien are my favorite soundtracks, The former really means a lot to me, specially the parts that play when Rachel appears on the screen and the "tears in the rain" speech, that part and speech can mellow out anything, even when applied to a grindcore song. The Latter is just one of the creepiest and inspiring, I chose them because i feel they convey what their respective films are about perfectly and are very unique and stylish.

Also at the risk of sounding like an idiot, I also love the x-men score. I don't know if this counts since it's not a film (it did have a film later with variations on the original pieces) but I love the music of Escaflowne, Yoko kanno in general (well, I would not try most of Rahxephon and Ghost in the shell: stand alone complex, and talking about that, the original GITS movie has a great score too "Ghost city" is one of my favorites), in fact and again at the risk of sounding like an idiot, the jazzy music she did with her band for Cowboy bebop contains some of my favorite Jazz songs in it, they're pretty intense and for me that's hard to say about most jazz.



> It many sound a little immature but I immensely love the LOTR soundtrack (and the movies for that matter), it's so epic (more immaturity here) and special. My favorites are the "Rohan", "Minas Tirith", and "Shire" themes for their vivid images of the landscapes. The "Black Riders" theme is too cliched for me, probably because of its resemblance to every other "hooded ghouls" theme I've ever heard (a.k.a "O Fortuna").


Yes, definitely on top of my list too, the movie may be considered in the "overrated" ground these days but it's accomplishments are undeniable. My favorite part of those scores is in "The return of the king", when king Theoden is making his speech before the charge (in fact i have been looking for it for years, but I never find it how it's played in the movie, which had great effect, I can only find parts of it in seperate parts) I will have to be a bit simple and say it just pumps you up for anything.



> Akira Ifukube's score to the original Godzilla (Gojira) (1954) is a classic. Now, before any of you snicker at this, I can tell you this is, for sure, an above average sci-fi/monster score for films of this period.
> 
> The score is dark, brooding and funereal. In the original film, Godzilla is a metaphor for the power, terror and destruction of atomic weapons. Ifukube's score perfectly complements the dark, despair-laden tone of the film.
> 
> Again, this is not typical 1950s Saturday morning sci-fi music. This is a unique score of much understated impact. I encourage anyone in here to seek it out; it's easily available on CD.


Yes, yes it is, that is all.

I almost forgot Akira, most of you already named the classics in movie scores, so I'm left with Japanese animation films, well it's not like they aren't great anyway, if no one has mentioned the batman score yet, well there it is, IMO on of the most memorable themes for a character, and that's good because for me the music and visuals in the old batman movies (including the first two) are the only thing I can save from them.


----------



## marinermark

Speaking of Antarctica, Vaughn-Williams adapted his "Scott of the Antarctic" score to his "Antarctic Symphony." I haven't heard the original movie score, but I enjoy the symphony.


----------



## Golaud

Cortision said:


> I really enjoy *Antarctica* by Nigel Westlake.


I haven't heard Antarctica but I am of the opinion that Westlake's score for *Solar Max* is the finest Imax score ever and by a country mile...


----------



## chillowack

_Clash of the Titans_ by Laurence Rosenthal. Although the movie itself had the misfortune to occur before the advent of CGI (and therefore looks rather primitive by today's SFX standards), the score has always struck me as one of the most inspiring heroic film themes. For years I thought it was by John Williams, because the melody is so striking, which is a Williams hallmark.


----------



## Library Bob

*A few personal favorites...*

Doctor Zhivago - Maurice Jarre
Titanic - James Horner
Experiment in Terror - Henry Mancini
Born Free - John Berry
Elmer Gantry - Andre Previn
JFK - John Williams


----------



## PartisanRanger

Library Bob said:


> Titanic - James Horner


I could do without the Celine Dion version, but the piano version of Horner's Titanic theme is really quite beautiful.


----------



## Yoshi

Not saying they're the best or anything, I'm just gonna name some movie soundtracks I like:

Pirates of the Caribbean 1,2,3 (this can be considered my favourite)

And in no order:

Jurassic Park
Edward Scissorhands
The Phantom of the Opera
Requiem for a dream
Lion King 
Armageddon 
Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain
Sweeney Todd
Chronicles of Narnia
A Clockwork Orange
Amadeus
Close encounters of the third kind
Angels and Demons
The DaVinci code
The Dark Knight 

I probably forgot a few.


----------



## Fergus

Star Wars Episode 4: A New Hope
Star Wars Episode 5: The Empire Strikes Back
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Superman
The Piano
Clockwork Orange
Chariots of Fire


----------



## Mirror Image

Alwyn: Odd Man Out - This is the best movie score I've ever heard.


----------



## Aramis

I've recently watched war movie "The Bridge at Remagen" and liked the music. It was composed by Bernstein.

Main theme:


----------



## dmg

Dances with Wolves - John Barry
Gone with the Wind - Max Steiner
Breakfast at Tiffany's - Henry Mancini
Jurassic Park - John Williams
Memoirs of a Geisha - John Williams
Star Trek - Jerry Goldsmith
Transformers - Steve Jablonsky
King Kong - Max Steiner
E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial - John Williams
Harry Potter - John Williams
Lawrence of Arabia - Maurice Jarre
Ben-Hur - Miklós Rózsa
Glory - James Horner


----------



## Aramis




----------



## audiophilia

Some of my favourites:

Cinema Paradiso -- Morricone
The Mission -- Morricone
The Untouchables -- Morricone
Once Upon a Time in America -- Morricone
King's Row -- Korngold
The Best Years of Our Lives -- Friedhofer
Between Two Worlds -- Korngold
Marnie -- Herrmann
Vertigo -- Herrmann
Farenheit 451 -- Herrmann


Lots more...


----------



## Argus

The Dollars Trilogy - Morricone
Most of John Carpenter's films especially Assault on Precinct 13 and Escape from New York
Midnight Express - Giorgio Moroder
Aguirre: Wrath of God and other Werner Herzog films - Popol Vuh

Thats all I can think of at the minute that haven't already been said.


----------



## The Cosmos

The fountain - Clint mansell/Kronos Quartet/mogwai
Koyaanisqatsi - glass (the entire film is just hypnotic!)


----------



## PartisanRanger

The Cosmos said:


> The fountain - Clint mansell/Kronos Quartet/mogwai


I saw this movie and was quite struck by the music, which pulls together the movie's three stories together very well. Leave it to Clint Mansell to make another great score for Arronofsky, I guess.


----------



## Argus

I watched The Third Man last night for the first time and have got to say that is the best score played on a single instrument ever. Anton Karas and his zither really made that film great. 

Does anybody know where I can find sheet music for the Harry Lime theme for solo guitar. I can work out the main melody but, with the zither being such a weird instrument, I can't quite get the accompaniment.

I also watched Citizen Kane for the first time the other day. I thought Herrmann's score was good but not as good as the work he did for Hitchcock later on in his life. Good film, even though it's vastly overrated, but I preferred The Third Man.


----------



## Organum

Weston said:


> Think what you will about my cheesy tastes, but Basil Poledouris' brassy thunderous score for _Conan, the Barbarian _ could not be more perfect for its subject, and the recording is phenomenal.


Man I LOVE the Conan score. One of the greatest. Ever notice the not-so-subtle quote of the ascending chords from Rite of Spring's "Spring Rounds" section in the Wheel of Pain music?


----------



## mamascarlatti

The Cosmos said:


> Koyaanisqatsi - glass (the entire film is just hypnotic!)


Glad someone else likes Glass - my favourite film score is "The Hours"


----------



## Aramis

- music from french movie, L'armee des ombres, about resistance movement during Word War II. Great movie and great score.


----------



## musicmaven

There Will Be Blood - Jonny Greenwood from Radiohead did an amazing job with this.


----------



## james786

I have seen of these movies but now my favorite if Avatar.


----------



## zimmerman

Very good posts  3 of mine are:

Eternal Sunshine of The Spottless Mind
New York, I love You
The Hours


----------



## sara

Joe Hisaishi's work for Hayao Miyazaki is pretty spectacular.

If I only had to choose two favourite scores from this 'team' it would have to be the scores of Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke.


----------



## tahnak

james786 said:


> I have seen of these movies but now my favorite if Avatar.


Excellent score by James Horner


----------



## Guest

audiophilia said:


> Some of my favourites:
> 
> Cinema Paradiso -- Morricone
> *The Mission -- Morricone*
> The Untouchables -- Morricone
> Once Upon a Time in America -- Morricone
> King's Row -- Korngold
> The Best Years of Our Lives -- Friedhofer
> Between Two Worlds -- Korngold
> Marnie -- Herrmann
> Vertigo -- Herrmann
> Farenheit 451 -- Herrmann
> 
> Lots more...


I love Morricone's score for the Mission. Great movie as well. The music is sensational.


----------



## Danny

I tend to find a lot of film music just does not work without the images or is a little unsatisfactory when stripped of its place in the film..

One of my recent favourites though

"The Village" James Newton Howard with Hilary Hahn


----------



## TWhite

Some of my favorite scores: 

William Walton: HENRY V
Sergei Prokofiev: ALEXANDER NEVSKY
Eric Wolfgang Korngold: THE SEA HAWK/KINGS ROW/JUAREZ/PRIVATE LIVES OF ELIZABETH AND ESSEX
Bernard Herrmann: ON DANGEROUS GROUND
Miklos Rosza: DOUBLE INDEMNITY/EL CID
Dimitri Tiompkin: RED RIVER
Victor Young: THE UNINVITED/RIO GRANDE
Jerome Moross: THE BIG COUNTRY
George Anthiel: THE PRIDE AND THE PASSION (silly film--GREAT score!)
Aaron Copland: THE HEIRESS/THE RED PONY
Franz Waxman: EDGE OF DARKNESS/THE FURIES

Tom


----------



## James clerk

By far... The Lion King.


----------



## linceed87

yes, lion king s superb
also pans laberynth of javier navarrete is great
i cant beleive no one said forest gump by alan svlvestri or back to the future


----------



## cw4257

The movie "Heat" has a lasting impression in my mind. The Kronos Quartet was superb in shifting moods from calm to edgy and vice versa. 

"Out of Sight" had some incredible jazz numbers.


----------



## Argus

I watched There Will Be Blood recently and found the original score by Johnny Greenwood from Radiohead to be quite excellently fitting for the movie. Also, the use of Brahm's Violin Concerto worked well to contrast the mood, especially at the finale.


----------



## DeusEx

The Dark Knight, Batman Begins - Hans Zimmer & James Newton-Howard
Transformers - Steve Jablonsky
The Chronicles of Narnia - Harry Gregson-Williams
Lord of the Rings - Howard Shore
Crimson Tide - Hans Zimmer
The Illusionist - Phillip Glass

Avatar? It's essentially a Horner mashup. Works well, though.


----------



## Huilunsoittaja

I'm surprised no one mentioned the Bourne Trilogy yet. Although the _Bourne Identity_ doesn't have much of a real soundtrack, the _Bourne Supremacy_ and _Bourne Ultimatum_ have EXCELLENT soundtracks. John Powell composed the music.





 Here's a preview.


----------



## sryu

Alexadre desplat
"birth"


Quite brilliant, especially the prologue. Watch the movie.


----------



## Mr.Vivaldi

I'd have to say Lord of the Rings even though its not on the list.


----------



## jurianbai

Just watched The Water Horse - Legend of the Deep. It's a fantasy movie for children with fair storyline. But I really like the soundtrack which has supposely Scottish folk song. Composer is James-Newton-Howard :


----------



## Kopachris

A couple favorites as a whole (the whole soundtrack put together):
_Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End_ -- Great use of instrumentation throughout the course of the movie to develop the main theme.
_Star Trek (2009)_ -- Very powerful scoring to outline the action and enhance scenes lacking in dialogue.
_2001: A Space Odyssey_ -- I think you know why. 

Several other favorites, though usually only in sections:
The whole _Star Wars_ original trilogy (and most of John Williams' music) -- John Williams knows how to write a good theme, but doesn't do much development (much like a lot of Romantic composers).
_Avatar_ -- Nice idea to hire an ethnomusicologist and integrate the language of the Na'vi into the music.
The _Lord of the Rings_ trilogy -- Haven't really heard the whole soundtrack at a time, sorry. 

Honorable mention:
_Descent: FreeSpace -- The Great War_ and _FreeSpace 2_ -- Okay, they're not movies, they're video games, but they have great music nonetheless!


----------



## Nix

Lord of the Rings- Shore
Vertigo- Herrmann 
Shawshank Redemption- Thomas Newman
The Mission- Morricone
The Village- JNH


Started out with film music, moved towards classical. Sadly, the only soundtracks I've listened to in almost a year are the first two mentioned. But I suppose that just means I've moved onto something better!


----------



## Rasa

1921 Metropolis. Definitely go look on Youtube. Score in the tradition of Strauss, thourhough leitmotif work throughout the movie...


----------



## Rob

My favourite scores:

"The Land Before Time" & "Willow" *James Horner*
"The Day the Earth Stood Still" & "Vertigo" *Bernard Herrmann*
"Batman: Mask of the Phantasm" & "Batman: The Animated Series" *Shirley Walker*
"To Kill a Mockingbird" *Elmer Bernstein*
"Double Indemnity" *Miklós Rózsa*
"Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" & "A New Hope" & "E.T." *John Williams*
"Alexander Nevsky" *Sergei Prokofiev*
"The Adventures of Robin Hood" *Erich Wolfgang Korngold*
"Batman" *Danny Elfman*
"Star Trek: The Motion Picture" *Jerry Goldsmith*
"You Only Live Twice" *John Barry*
"The Elephant Man" *John Morris*
"Beauty and the Beast" *Alan Menken*
"The Goonies" *Dave Grusin*
"Once Upon a Time In the West" *Ennio Morricone*

Pure genius, all of it.


----------



## Chris

The Cruel Sea (1953) - *Alan Rawsthorne*


----------



## Ven

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Last of the Mohicans
Gladiator

some of my favorites


----------



## Ven

Oh yeah, almost forgot to add:

House of Flying Daggers


----------



## marinermark

*Morricone DVD*

I just watched "Morricone Conducts Morricone" with symphony orchestra and chorus. 20+ selections from his movie scores. Outstanding! DVD available from Netflix. Hear it through headphones. In addition to "Good, Bad & Ugly," other particularly good scores are "Canone Inverso," "The Mission" and the quirky "Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion."


----------



## snowsurfer

DeusEx said:


> The Dark Knight, Batman Begins - Hans Zimmer & James Newton-Howard
> Transformers - Steve Jablonsky
> The Chronicles of Narnia - Harry Gregson-Williams
> Lord of the Rings - Howard Shore
> Crimson Tide - Hans Zimmer
> The Illusionist - Phillip Glass
> 
> Avatar? It's essentially a Horner mashup. Works well, though.


Yes im so glad someone said Transformers by Jablonsky. Seriously i just made an account to reply to this haha. I listen to that score all the time and its the best thing ever. So epic


----------



## tgtr0660

Almost anything by Ennio Morricone, specially his Sergio Leone trilogy music, The Mission, and Cinema Paradiso. 

Maurice Jarre's score for Jesus of Nazareth is underrated. So is James Bernard's bombastic but effective music for Dracula 1958.


----------



## Jeremy Marchant

_Koyaanisqatsi _(Glass)


----------



## GermanViolin

I REALLY like the score for "The Last Samurai". Very nice! And it added to the emotion of the whatever scene was going on, especially during the battles and other intense moments. What I've noticed is that a score that has a really strong, or even solo, cello part seems to wrench at my heart strings (all puns intended). Agree? Disagree?


----------



## moody

I know some of these are duplications:

Korngold. The Adventures of Robin Hood. The Sea Hawk. Anthony Adverse. The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex.

Walton. Spitfire Prelude and Fugue. from "The First of the Few".

Vaughan Williams. "Scott of the Antartic".

Sir Arthur Bliss. "Things To Come". First sound film to have a specially written score.

Prokofiev. "Alexander Nevsky". "Ivan the Terrible". "Lieutenant Kizheh".

Eric Coates. "The Dambusters" inc. The Dambusters March.

Richard Addinsell. The Warsaw Concerto. featured in the film "Dangerous Moonlight".


----------



## Il_Penseroso

Prokofiev for Eisenstein's Ivan the Terrible I II


----------



## hyogen

Rasa said:


> Yann Tiersen should be put on a stake, hung, burned and then buried in salt.


haha, why? i just heard one of his pieces for the first time yesterday


----------



## hyogen

GermanViolin said:


> I REALLY like the score for "The Last Samurai". Very nice! And it added to the emotion of the whatever scene was going on, especially during the battles and other intense moments. What I've noticed is that a score that has a really strong, or even solo, cello part seems to wrench at my heart strings (all puns intended). Agree? Disagree?


http://www.head-fi.org/t/600927/favorite-movie-scene-accompanying-favorite-song-soundtrack-and-why posted this this morning


----------



## gabem

ALL TIME FAVORITE movie score is THE MISSION. Beautifully composed and arranged by the master Ennio Morricone!


----------



## mwd

"Prokofiev's score for Eisenstein's Alexander Nevsky is deservedly acclaimed; the 'Battle on the Ice' alone would elevate this one to the peaks of film scoring"

One of my top choices, together with his "Gadfly Suite" and what about Walton's "Spitfire Prelude".

MWD.


----------



## mwd

Danny,

I wholheartedly agree. Every time I have listened to a concert of film music I have been dissapointed. Very few scores seem to stand up on their own. However some composers have successfully developed suites from their scores.

It would be nice todevelop a list of these.

MWD.


----------



## Mesa

Wholeheartedly deserving of the Oscar, particularly for the almost sickly sweet Married Life.


----------



## Argus

Geinoh Yamashirogumi - Akira





The best fusion of gamelan, gagaku, electronica, rock and classical you'll ever hear.


----------



## gr8gunz

Great Scores:

Poltergeist
Rudy
The Sandpebbles
Star Trek

Yeah, I like Goldsmith.


----------



## Badinerie

There are so many, some have been mentioned, others are

Anatomy of a Murder. Duke Ellington

Spirited away. Joe Hisaishi

Hobsons choice. Malcolm Arnold

The Battle of Britain William Walton

I'll probably think of a lot more when I shut my laptop down lol!


----------



## PetrB

mwd said:


> Danny,
> 
> I wholheartedly agree. Every time I have listened to a concert of film music I have been dissapointed. Very few scores seem to stand up on their own. However some composers have successfully developed suites from their scores.
> 
> It would be nice todevelop a list of these.
> 
> MWD.


John Corigliano ~ The Red Violin Concerto, extracted from his score for the film of the same title (wonderful movie)

Aaron Copland ~ Music for Movies, a concert suite in four segments, from some of his film scores,in this order; The City, Of Mice and Men, The City, Our Town

Already mentioned, film scores first, reworked as concert pieces thereafter:

Sergei Prokofiev ~ Cantata, 'Alexander Nevsky' from his score for the Eisenstein film.
Vaughan-Williams ~ Symphony No. 7 'Antarctic'


----------



## PetrB

Georges Auric, two scores, both from wonderful and iconic Cocteau films:

La belle et la Bête









Orphée


----------



## adrianedwards

Ah, Georges Auric...magnifique! Don't forget the scores for those most English of films, "Lavender Hill Mob" and "Passport to Pimlico"
May I mention the Powell & Pressburger films. Brian Easdale is rightly admired for his score for "The Red Shoes" and "Black Narcissus", and this music has been well represented in the recorded music catalogues. But the composer who scored their earlier films, Allan Gray, seems quite overlooked. For me, he is the more haunting and inventive. "I Know Where I'm Going" and "A Matter of Life and Death" contain wonderful music, which would stand up perfectly well on their own as concert suites, but no-one has thought to do this. (Rumon Gamba has done a great job with so many other film composers).
Approaching music & film from the other direction -- the use of pre-existing music in movies was perhaps never done better than by Stanley Kubrik. He introduced me to Ligeti (2001) and helped me appreciate Schubert (Barry Lyndon).


----------



## Celesta

Oh there are so many! It's impossible to pick one, or two, or three. Here are my faves:

Metropolis
A Woman of Affairs
The Red Shoes
The Third Man
Gone With The Wind
Now, Voyager
Beauty & The Beast (1946)
Vertigo
Psycho
Goldfinger
You Only Live Twice
The Nun's Story
Spartacus (1960)
Rebecca (1940)
The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
The Bible
Angels & Insects
Dracula (1979)
Damage
The English Patient
Lawrence of Arabia
Dr. Zhivago
Papillon
Planet of The Apes (1967)
Chinatown
The Mummy (1999)
Coco Before Chanel
Somewhere in Time
The Last of the Mohicans
Jaws
Raiders of the Lost Ark
E.T.
Robin & Marian
Out of Africa
Shadow of the Vampire
The Wind & The Lion
The Lion in Winter


----------



## tdc

This is a really good movie score (Angelo Badalamenti):

_Blue Velvet_


----------



## Joe B

I just watched "The Imitation Game" last night and was really impressed with Alexandre Desplat's sore.


----------



## Jacck

Joe B said:


> I just watched "The Imitation Game" last night and was really impressed with Alexandre Desplat's sore.


yes, I like several of his soundtracks


----------



## Jacck

Some time ago I watched the movie "Nocturnal Animals" and was captivated from the first scene (dancing naked fat women) and at this scene playing the music of Abel Korzeniowski. Here is some of his music from other movies


----------



## Harrowby Hall

Well, just for starters:

William Walton _Henry V_
Ralph Vaughan Williams _ Scott of the Antarctic_
James Horner _The Wrath of Khan_
John Williams _Warhorse_
John Williams _ ET_ 
Henri Mancini _Breakfast at Tiffanys_
Joe Hisaishi _ Spirited Away_
Elmer Bernstein _ The Magnificent Seven_
Kotringo _ In This Corner of the World_
Yuji Nomi _ Whisper of the Heart
_
Contribution by Eric Coates for the "Dam Busters March" and William Walton for "Battle in the Air" in _The Battle of Britain_?

And what about the contributions of Richard Rodgers, Frederick Lowe and Leonard Bernstein for Carousel, My Fair Lady and West Side Story?


----------



## Jacck

Bruce Broughton - Young Sherlock Holmes
first time hearing, quite good


----------



## ldiat

wasn't the score or part, of the movie PLATOON by a famous composer?? i forget


----------



## Gordontrek

Anything by Bernard Herrmann:





or Jerry Goldsmith:


----------



## Jacck

ldiat said:


> wasn't the score or part, of the movie PLATOON by a famous composer?? i forget


Barber's Adagio for Strings.


----------



## Jacck

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind Soundtrack
great movie, great soundtrack, especially the intro titles music


----------



## ldiat

Jacck said:


> Barber's Adagio for Strings.


yes! thank you!


----------



## Jacck

Miklós Rózsa - Ivanhoe


----------



## Jacck

Alfred Newman - Love Is A Many Splendored Thing


----------



## Jacck

Basil Poledouris - Robocop


----------



## Flamme

Wicked score for a wicked movie.


----------



## Blancrocher

Georges Delerue - Jules et Jim
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLzhk329J-YhK0OplMG2xqH6-p6Iot_6Jy


----------



## Jacck

Flamme said:


> Wicked score for a wicked movie.


nice, but it was not composed by Richard Band. This comes from Psycho Soundtrack by Bernard Herrmann and was probably borrowed for this movie


----------



## Pugg

perhaps not they greatest but fore sure a contender.


----------



## Flamme

Jacck said:


> nice, but it was not composed by Richard Band. This comes from Psycho Soundtrack by Bernard Herrmann and was probably borrowed for this movie


Its not the same...! I think ive read somewhere band has a right to psycho score...


----------



## Jacck

Dust it off - The Do - I Origin OST


----------



## eugeneonagain

One of my all-time favourites is Alex North's stirring score for _Spartacus_. However, I can't help drawing the parallel between the main title and other bits and Shostakovich's 7th symphony. I think I know what North was listening to for inspiration when he got the job!


----------



## Jacck

Guy Farley - Modigliani


----------



## jegreenwood

Saw "The Death of Stalin" (a comedy) this afternoon. The score by Christopher Willis is mock Shostakovich/Prokofiev. 

There's also some real Mozart, Tchaikovsky and Chopin.


----------



## Jacck

Stardust


----------



## MAS

Jacck said:


> Stardust


I love this movie! Score by Ilan Eshkeri.


----------



## Jacck

Prometheus - Harry Gregson-Williams Soundtrack


----------



## pianozach

OPENING POST:



danae said:


> Since there is no such topic either, I'm starting one. Off the top of my head I can think of these:
> 
> Last of the Mohicans
> Exotica
> A.I.
> Jaws
> Nightmare before Christmas
> Batman
> Dracula
> Blade Runner
> 2001 Space Odyssey
> Dances with wolves
> The conversation
> Signs
> Catch me if you can
> Requiem for a dream
> The piano
> Crash


That is a very good list, although I'm not familiar with all of your choices. I wouldn't place *Nightmare before Christmas* on a Top 100 list of Film Scores though. I could easily name 25 that are better. It appears that most of your scores are fairly recent (the oldest original score being *Jaws*, unless your inclusion of *Dracula* is the 1931 Bela Lugosi version, which didn't really have a dedicated original score until much later. The original Dracula used snippets of Swan Lake, Schubert's Unfinished Symphony, and some Wagner, as the budget didn't allow for an original score. Phillip Glass composed a score for it in 1998. Anyway, when you say "Dracula" has a "really good movie score, I don't know which of the dozens to which you may be referring, but I'll guess that you are referring to the 1992 Francis Ford Coppola *Bram Stoker's Dracula*, with a score composed by Wojciech Kilar, although you could be referring to the 1977 *Count Dracula*, with a score by Kenyon Emrys-Roberts. Oh, there's also the 1958 *Dracula* starring Peter Cushing, and a score by James Bernard).

I'm thinking that *Blade Runner* had two different scores, one for Europe and one for North America or something. Vangelis composed the score. Oh wait, no, that was *Legend*. Tangerine Dream did the score for the American version, although director Ridley Scott wanted Jerry Goldsmith, who then spent half a year composing an excellent score, which, surprisingly, did fare well with test audiences.

Blade Runner had an orchestral version of Vangelis' score recorded, which both the Scott and Vangelis did not think was very good.

I also don't know if you can count 2001: A Space Odyssey - it's an oddity compilation score (one of the first extraordinarily successful orchestral versions of a compilation soundtrack).

There is a new version of *Miklós Rózsa*'s *Ben-Hur*, often considered to be the best film score ever written (along with the likes of Citizen Kane, Vertigo, To Kill a Mockingbird, King Kong, Doctor Zhivago, The Magnificent Seven, etc.).

2 hours and 42 minutes' worth of the score: "The complete 157-minute score, including previously unreleased music, has been re-recorded in stunning and dynamic 24-Bit 96kHz digital sound, performed by the award-winning City of Prague Philharmonic, conducted by Nic Raine"


----------



## pianozach

dpsmith said:


> HELLO!
> 
> i have been looking everywhere for the soundtrack or a copy of a movie i had as a child. i was hoping someone could help me with the title. i have no clue what it is.
> 
> "SYNOPSIS"
> ----
> it is a cartoon in which 2 orchestras are different kingdoms. the "people" in these kingdoms are actual instruments. the son of one kingdom falls in love with the daughter from the other kingdom.... its like romeo and juliet. the kingdoms fight... but with music!!
> its a great piece but as i said i have no idea what it is called or where i can find it.
> 
> DPS


*Music Land *is a Silly Symphonies animated Disney short released in 1935. Across the Sea of Discord from the Land of Symphony is the Isle of Jazz.


----------



## pianozach

Just did a quick tally of this thread.

*John Williams*: 35 mentions, 7 of them for Star Wars films, 4 for E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial
*Jerry Goldsmith*: 15 mentions (6 of them for Star Trek)
*Ennio Morricone*: 15 mentions (5 for The Mission)
*Hans Zimmer*: 14 mentions
*Bernard Hermann*: 12 mentions (5 for Vertigo)
*Erich Wolfgang Korngold*: 12 mentions (3 for The Sea Hawk)
*Sergei Prokofiev*: 10 mentions (6 for Alexander Nevsky)
*John Barry*: 10 mentions

Honorable Mentions:
Miklós Rózsa (9)
James Horner (8)
Howard Shore (8) (all for Lord of the Rings)
James Newton Howard (7)
Maurice Jarre (7)
William Walton (6)

Many films called out did not give a version or year (such as Little Women), and several films were compilations of classical composers (2001 and A Clockwork Orange, to name two). Interestingly, The Dark Knight's score was composed by both Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard, splitting the score to illustrate the duality of Batman/Bruce Wayne.

One other, The Lion King has an orchestral score by Zimmer, but also an immensely popular songtrack of five songs by Elton John/Tim Rice.

Also noteworthy that there is another thread here arguing the merits of *John Williams*, and whether he should be considered a "classical" composer. All I can say is that he seems to be quite well liked in spite of his dubious "art music" credentials. 18 of his films were mentioned.

*Going by film title:
*
8 Lord of the Rings
6 2001 
6 Alexander Nevsky 
8 Lord of the Rings
6 Star Wars
5 Star Trek: The Motion Picture
5 The Mission
5 Vertigo
4 Ben-Hur 
4 E.T.
4 The Dark Knight

Some call-outs for films seem to be more for _*franchises*_, such as *Star Trek* and *LotR*


----------



## Zauberfloete

Many of these have already been mentioned, but here is a list of my favourite soundtracks:

- Any Kubrick film, especially, but not limited to, A clockwork Orange, Eyes Wide Shut, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Barry Lindon.

- Amadeus (for obvious reasons)

- Soundtracks by Vangelis, especially Blade Runner, Antarctica, 1492 Conquest of Paradise, Chariots of fire.

- Last of the Mohicans

- Tron: Legacy

- Trainspotting

- Braveheart

- Kundun

- Sweeney Todd

- some of John William's early soundtracks, I'm not familiar with his more recent works 

There are probably more I have forgotten to mention...


----------



## pianozach

Zauberfloete said:


> - some of John William's early soundtracks, I'm not familiar with his more recent works


*Williams*' more recent scores are just as good as his early scores, although the earlier ones took a few more risks I think.

Now he's reached his stride, and his scores seem to be mostly formulaic: You can almost predict where and how they'll go. But they are still excellent, and he still manages to find melodic themes that are distinctly original, while his orchestrations generally aren't.

I enjoy the scores for most of the *Kubrick* films, although I was really turned off by *Eyes Wide Shut*.


----------



## Zauberfloete

Somehow I forgot to mention:

- The Neverending Story

- Waking Ned Devine


----------



## Jacck

One of my favorite soundtracks is for the movie Himalaya by Bruno Coulais


----------



## Jacck

I dont know if anyone mentioned Alan Silvestri, but he also made a couple of good OSTs. I have 5 of his scores. For example the Abyss (a pretty good scifi movie)





or the Predator soundtrack


----------



## Jacck

and I forgot the Contact, which is probably my all time favorite scifi movie


----------



## Jacck

Trevor Jones - The Dark Crystal 




this is my favorite score from Trevor Jones and possibly in my TOP10 overall

another good from one from Jones is the Dark City (a movie worth watching, sort of darker version of Matrix trilogy)





other scores of his I like are Excalibur and Merlin


----------



## Jacck

I forgot how good the Merlin score is


----------



## Jacck

I guess almost everybody knows that *Howard Shore* composed the great Lord of the Rings score, but his other scores are worth exploring too


----------



## Subutai

There are of course many, but one of the finest (under rated) scores ever to grace a (mediocre) film is Basil Poledouris score for Conan the Barbarian. It really is a masterpiece of any genre.


----------



## SanAntone

One of my favorite scores is by *The Dust Brothers* for _Fight Club_.


----------



## Mark Dee

If you've seen 'The Dish', you'll remember that is contains a lot of 60's hits, but don't forget Edmund Choi's wonderful score (including the theme, which I find just perfect).


----------



## Mark Dee

Mark Dee said:


> If you've seen 'The Dish', you'll remember that is contains a lot of 60's hits, but don't forget Edmund Choi's wonderful score (including the theme, which I find just perfect).


with The Sand Pebbles a close second:


----------

