# Acquiring Rental Film Scores



## themusicman926

I am a music student and I have always had a love for film music. Just recently, I started trying to find the scores for some of these films I've always loved to study. For the most part, I have found the music in some written form through online forums. The problem is though, these scores are often incomplete or of not very good quality, and handwritten scores aren't always the easiest to understand. So, I have been looking around for sources that are a little more reliable lately. The places I have been looking are big name music preparation companies, such as Boosey & Hawkes and Joann Kane Music. Although Boosey & Hawkes is primarily classical, I have found 2 film scores by Leonard Bernstein (On The Waterfront and West Side Story), which are readily available for perusal on their website. Now, some of you may be familiar with a recent "fad" among orchestras in which they show a film, and perform the score live, often using the original orchestrations. This got me thinking that the companies who licensed these "film with live orchestra" or "live to projection" concerts would be a good source to find some film scores, as they are the ones who rent out the scores (which are often newly engraved) and other materials. The two companies I turned to were IMG Artists and Disney Concerts. The main scores that IMG had that I was looking for were some MGM musicals from the 50s, including "Singin' in the Rain" and "An American in Paris". Disney had the scores for "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and "Star Wars" (Episodes IV-VII). My hopes were to contact the companies with my inquiries that I would like to rent the score for the film (I definetly wasn't expecting to acquire the scores for free) just for personal study. I did this for both companies, and I never received a response from either. I'm not sure if this is because they just don't rent the scores out for personal study, but if anyone has possible suggestions how I can acquire these scores, that would be great.


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## Vox Gabrieli

There is a manuscript library in Glendale with a complete collection of film scores. If you're not on the west coast, a mailing or copying service may exist. Unfortunately, I cannot remember the name, but it would make a fine treasure hunt if you have the attention for it! 

Best of luck to your endeavors.


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## themusicman926

Vox Gabrieli said:


> There is a manuscript library in Glendale with a complete collection of film scores. If you're not on the west coast, a mailing or copying service may exist. Unfortunately, I cannot remember the name, but it would make a fine treasure hunt if you have the attention for it!
> 
> Best of luck to your endeavors.


Thanks for that info. I'll have to look into that.


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## Vox Gabrieli

Hi,

I made a few inquiries on behalf of the discussion and came up a bit short. The place I had visited was actually Gene Kelly's private archive of music and films he had been in. Since my visit to the archive was over two years ago, I was incorrect on the information!

I still remember there being a separate film score library in the area... 


























His wife was very pleasant and engaging!


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## themusicman926

That’s pretty interesting. Do you possibly have any scans of those scores?


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## Vox Gabrieli

Not a chance! Pulled these from Facebook. I wasn't the sentimental type back then, and moreover, abhorred notation software and scanning. You may encrypt them yourself if you have the time.

Edit: Depending on what score you're looking for, I may be able to help point you in the right direction. There are of course many unconventional methods of acquiring scores.


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## Vox Gabrieli

Visit JoAnn Kane Music Service based in Culver City, CA. I wouldn't guarantee much luck if you aren't a director! Perhaps they can offer a scan at a modest fee if you tell them you're a student with lots of cash! :lol:

I'm very glad you enlightened me with this topic, I wouldn't mind putting some Morricone on for a venue!


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## mbhaub

There is nothing more frustrating than to get access to film music scores. There are some people (John Waxman, for one) who make a good living renting out music for performance, often at exorbitant prices, I should add. There are some people who have reconstructed scores (like the dazzling Naxos series) but they either won't or can't rent music out. Even some of the great music that has been recorded (Silva Screen, RCA, Varese Sarabande) is hard to get hold of. There are music librarians at the major studios, like MGM (Sony), Universal and such, but they are too busy to deal with casual users. One conductor I know who has done a lot of film music has spent decades building relationships with people in charge of these libraries and even he gets frustrated at how difficult it is to get the music. There are many issues involving licensing fees of the composer and his estate, the arranger/orchestrator, the copyist --- it's endlessly complex. And a shame. There's obviously a market for this music but the owners seem to have little interest in making it available to orchestras.


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