What Can Music Tell Us?

Rocky III


Music can tell us what has happened in a film, what is happening in a film and gives us clues to what may happen in the next few moments. For example, strings or piano played in a soft manner can let us know that there has been a sad meaningful moment in the film (not always) and this use of music may invite the viewer to be more empathic with a certain character or scene. In the same way, an orchestral march could begin to play which may show that; things are going to get better. 
In the film Rocky III, for most of the film, Rocky Balboa played by Sylvester Stallone has met a ferocious opponent who he feels is a better fighter than him and one that he is scared of getting into the ring with. As an audience, we know that at some point Rocky will sort himself out and get on with beating this Clubber Lang, we are just waiting for it to happen. 
Two scenes that show how the mood of a film is changed by music are when Rocky has a failed training session with a previous opponent and now friend, Apollo Creed, which is followed by a heated conversation with his wife where he admits for the first time that he is afraid. The pace of this conversation slows down when Rocky is told that he has to ‘believe in himself’ and not ‘blame himself for things’ which is a sad moment and supported by the piano solo that is quietly playing in the background. Booming kettledrums and trumpets just wouldn’t have worked in this scene. However, a few moments and a kiss later is when the scene and music change.
The first few notes on Rocky’s trumpet theme can be heard over the transition of scenes, and what was two adults having a hug is replaced by two boxers having a run and all of a sudden the mood has changed dramatically. The sadness we may have felt with Rocky has disappeared and now we feel like he can do it. I guess that by listening to the music now being played, we feel like we could do it ourselves. At this point we already know that he will go on and win the fight (previous films would have told us that Rocky tends to win at the end) and the music has played a huge role in making us believe this. 

It would be a very interesting observation to see how people may have been watching this at the cinema. As soon as the trumpet theme starts, I imagine that slumped shoulders and thoughtful faces would have been replaced by an expression of hope and excitement, and possibly a thrill as to what was going to happen next. 


Would this have been the same if these scenes had the music of one another? 
I don’t think so!! In fact it just wouldn’t have worked at all and I can’t see any director or composer doing anything different (unless it was a film/musical spoof). 
These two scenes with no music wouldn’t have had the same emotional effect on the viewer, and by listening to the music with no picture would have been a different experience. By marrying the two together, we can seem to be more involved with the characters as we watch a couple of powerful scenes where the combination of music and picture compliment each other.
Concerning the effect a film score can have on a film, Caryl Flinn , a professor of Media Arts writes : 

'Picture and track, to a certain degree, have a composition of their own but when combined they form a new entity. Thus the track becomes not only a harmonious complement but an integral inseperable part of the picture as well. Picture and track are so closely fused together that each one functions through the other. There is no separation of I see in the image and I hear on the track. Instead, there is the I feel, I experience, through the grand total of picture and track combined.' (Flinn, p.46)    



 

Rocky - YouTube Link - In this clip, you can see the final moment of Rocky’s conversation with his wife and the lead in to his training session, complete with positive music. Note the last note being played at the beginning of the clip, which is the end of the slow piano piece.
(note - I would embedded the video itself but it had been disabled) 

Diegetic/Non-Diegetic Music

When watching a film, more often than not there will be music that accompanies the images we are watching and whether we realise it or not, this music can help us in a number of ways to resolve what is maybe happening in the film, provide depth to a character or environment or introduce a new scene. Maybe some people think that it is ‘cheating’ a little to use music to help carry a story but quite often, even though we may not be fully aware of the music being played during the film, it may be afterwards that we realise how good or important it was.
This realisation may take place when we watch the film a second time or in fact go out and buy the soundtrack. Clearly, from a commercial point of view the music has done its job and also has reinforced a relationship that has bonded the moving images and sound together.

But what of the music? 

The terms DIEGETIC and NONDIEGETIC are ones that are used in film criticism and come from the term ‘diegesis’ which is the world of the narrative. These can can be defined as follows ;

DIEGETIC – This is where the sound (and it’s source) is present on screen and comes from within the ‘narrative sphere’ of the story. The sound, which can be music, voices or sound effects can be heard, played or manipulated by the characters in this story space.

In Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, when Vincent and Mrs Mia Wallace (John Travolta & Uma Thurman) go for dinner at Jack Rabbit Slim’s restaurant, Vincent is persuaded to accompany Mia in the twist contest to the song ‘You Never Can Tell’ by Chuck Berry. Because this song is within the narrative of the story and it is clear that all characters can hear it being played in the restaurant, it would be classed as diegetic music or ‘actual sound’.

Another example of diegetic music is a piece from the film Back to the Future, when Marty McFly is playing along with the band at a school prom night. Marty (Michael J Fox) is on stage and the band react to what he is playing, even at the point when his guitar solo gets a little ‘crazy’ and their confusion is apparent in their faces. This music has played a big part in the actual storyline and it’s source (band on stage) can be seen/heard by all characters on screen.

NON-DIEGETIC - This is the kind of music that exists where the characters can’t hear it, and where there will be no identifiable source. A good example of non-diegetic sound would be any background music (although there will be a few examples where this is diegetic, (Quentin Tarantino uses this contradiction well).

The dramatic orchestral music or other pieces of music can be looked at as being ‘just’ for the audience to listen to, and where it may typically influence a persons emotional reaction to a scene.

In the previous post, where I talk about my experience of listening to the music of Superman, here the non-diegetic music (that only the audience can hear) has changed my mood somewhat, giving me a ‘hero’ feeling.

One comment on YouTube regarding this title sequence was 'This music makes you want to be a better person. Am I the only one who thinks that?'

In this clip from Star Wars - The Phantom Menace, Obi-Wan is having a lightsaber duel with Darth Maul with no music at all. The sound effects of the jedi’s weapons, the humming of the space station, and footsteps taken are all considered to be diegetic music that both characters will be able to hear. However at 44 seconds into the clip when Obi-Wan is pushed away to his certain doom, a piece of non-diegetic music (that the characters cannot hear) is played over the top and creates a kind of tension where you feel Obi-Wan has lost. However, another piece of music then starts to play that gives the viewer the idea that there may still be a chance for Obi-Wan. A musical clue to what may happen next, and it does. Obi-Wan defeats Darth Maul,which is reflected in the music being played.

In this next clip from The Wizard of Oz, the conversation that is going on between the three characters is almost mirrored by the music being played as background, but that has a very close resemblance to what is being said. Here the non-diegetic music is supporting the narrative, but at the same time it is giving the audience a more emotional attachment to the scene. 

In    

N

Stand Up and Cheer!!

It was Summer 2006 and Bryan Singer’s ‘Superman Returns’ was on general release at the cinema and I was there, ready to rekindle an old childhood memory of watching the Man of Steel fly around in blue tights, bashing bad guys along the way.

Within a few moments of the film starting where the title sequence was whooshing in and out the actor’s names, my excitement was building. I could feel something inside stirring, ready for action, a force almost willing me to stand up and shout ‘GO ON SUPERMAN!!! YOU CAN DO IT’.

This emotional response my body was experiencing wasn’t to do with what I was watching, but in what I was listening to.

John Williams, in my view had created a ‘musical masterpiece’ that started off with the original Superman film in 1978 and had been reworked by other composers in subsequent films following the life of the Kryptonian, up to the most recent film mentioned above, 28 years later.
Was part of my excitement due to the fact that I knew what Superman was all about? He was a superhero who could melt metal with his eyes, fly around the Earth and perform a ‘quick change’ in a phone booth. As a child I would have been jumping around myself, taking on the role as the Man of Steel and at the same time singing away to the now infamous theme tune.
Was I excited whilst watching the 2006 film because of this association I already have with Superman and his cinematic presence, or had the music been powerful enough to shake me within without this past experience? Perhaps a bit of both.
I guess for many people who watched the original Superman films, the music was key in giving people that ‘hero feeling’ within themselves allowing a feeling of soaring optimism and at the same time making a statement about the film and main character they were about to watch. This music was the first thing that viewers would listen to (before any character dialogue) and it would say something about the film that may not have been possible by pictures alone, or a different score.

• Would a different piece of music have worked with this film?
• Is the music that important?
• Does it make a difference to our experience when watching moving images?
• How would we experience a film with no music? 

Along with the theme music to Superman, John Williams has also composed music to a huge amount of films including Raiders of the Lost Ark, ET.the Extra-Terrestrial, Star Wars, Jaws and more recently Catch Me If You Can and Memoirs of a Geisha.

If somebody were to ask John Williams if music is important in films, the answer I think would be a big yes and the list of films he has worked on and been nominated for Academy Awards, would be proof of this.

A film with no music, I think would be a bit dull and would certainly have made my trip to the cinema less exciting when watching Superman Returns.