The Hollywood Film Music Reader

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Edited by Mervyn Cooke

Type

Studies

Subject

Technique > Music

Keywords

music, Hollywood

Publishing date

2010

Publisher

Oxford University Press

Language

English

Relative size

Physical desc.

Paperback • 392 pages
6 x 9 ¼ inches (15.5 x 23.5 cm)

ISBN

978-0-19-533119-6

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Book Presentation:
• Expert introductions contextualize writings within the history and theory of film music
• A fascinating compendium of both well-known and difficult to find or out-of-print texts from across the twentieth century, and
• Features first-hand accounts by leading composers along with writings of critics and commentators

A rich and informative look at the experiences of composers working under high pressure in the US film industry, The Hollywood Film Music Reader brings readers from film's earliest days to the modern blockbuster era. Beginning with the origins of movie music in the heyday of silent film, the book traces film music's progress through Hollywood's so-called Golden Age to changes in musical styles and working practices from the 1960s to the present. Also included are vivid first-hand accounts from composers such as George Antheil, Elmer Bernstein, Aaron Copland, Adolph Deutsch, Jerry Goldsmith, Bernard Herrmann, Henry Mancini, Thomas Newman, André Previn, David Raksin, Miklós Rózsa, Max Steiner, Dimitri Tiomkin, Franz Waxman, and John Williams, along with testimonies from composers working in animation and documentary film. The book concludes with a section of criticism and commentary, including an essay on film music by Sidney Lumet and Igor Stravinsky's provocative views on the subject.

About the Author:
Edited by Mervyn Cooke, Professor of Music, University of Nottingham Mervyn Cooke is Professor of Music at the University of Nottingham. His many books include monographs and edited volumes on the music of Benjamin Britten, jazz, twentieth-century opera, and film music.

Press Reviews:
"an invaluable resource... Anyone with an interest in film music, whether as a general reader or serious scholar, should find it illuminating." - Mark Wilderspin, Times Literary Supplement

"certainly a useful addition to the literature and will be welcomed by students of film music." - Julie Brown, Music and Letters

See the publisher website: Oxford University Press