A Brief History of Movie Music

Imagine Steven Spielberg’s Jaws without those ominous two notes in John Williams’ brilliant score. Or The Godfather without Nino Rota’s iconic theme.

Instructor Andrew Muson, A-list session player with top artists and on countless soundtracks, shines a light on the art of film music, taking us from its earliest days as accompaniment to silent movies, through the advent of “talkies” with the groundbreaking The Jazz Singer, to what is considered its Golden Age — the focus of this fascinating five-part course.

Together you’ll explore the power of Bernard Herrmann’s hypnotic, vertiginous score for Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo, the lush, passionate music Max Steiner wrote to capture the blossoming of Bette Davis’ character in Now, Voyager, Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s sweeping epic Academy Award-winning score for Robin Hood and others, including Leonard Bernstein’s brilliant music for West Side Story — a film defined as much by its finger snaps, Latin rhythms and achingly beautiful melodies as by its storyline. Using audio tracks and video clips to illustrate his commentary, you’ll look at the history, art and science of film music through the lens of the composer, and come away with a deepened appreciation of this often overlooked art form — essential to many of the greatest films of all time.

Sessions will take place on May 7, 14, 21, 28, and June 4 from 12 to 2 pm ET. This program will be recorded and available for later viewing by those who register.

Andrew gives you a glimpse into the class below