Classical Music And The Movies (With Sound)
- 1. J.S.Bach: THE GOLDBERG VARIATIONS [Go to this page and scroll down to "The Goldberg Variations (157k) David Hirsch" - it's near the bottom of the page.]
- 2. Johann Strauss II: ON THE BEAUTIFUL BLUE DANUBE[a.k.a. THE BLUE DANUBE WALTZ] [Go to this page, scroll down to Strauss, and click on "On The Beautiful Blue Danube (op.314)(140k) Scott P.Anderson"]
- 3. Richard Wagner:RIDE OF THE VALKYRIES
- 4. Felix Mendelssohn: SYMPHONY NO.3 'ITALIAN', 1st MOVEMENT [Go to this page and scroll down to the appropriate link.]
- 5. Carl Orff:CARMINA BURANA [Go to this page, scroll down to "Orff, Carl", and click on "O Fortuna from 'Carmina Burana' (66k) Hiroki Kobayashi"]
- 6. Tomaso Albinoni: ADAGIO IN G MINOR [Go to this page and under Albinoni (at the top of the page) click on the first of the two versions listed.]
- 7. Samuel Barber:ADAGIO FOR STRINGS [Go to this page, scroll down to Barber, and click on the appropriate link.]
- 8. J.S.Bach:TOCCATA AND FUGUE IN D MINOR [Go to this page and scroll down to "Toccata and Fugue in Dmin (24k) Michele Tornatore".]
- 9. Maurice Ravel:BOLERO
- 10. Ludwig van Beethoven:SYMPHONY NO.9 'CHORAL', MOVEMENT 4: PRESTO [Go to this page, scroll down to to NO.9 (where you will also find the words to Schiller's ODE TO JOY), and click on "4.Presto".] [Thanks to DaveMog]
- 11. Frederic Chopin: PIANO CONCERTO NO.1 [Go to this page, scroll down to "Piano Concerto No.1", and click on the link(s).] [Thanks to DaveMog]
Alas! some of the directions I have given have been royally screwed up by the webmasters of the sites involved, some of whom are pathetically insecure about links to their sites. Oh well, you'll find the files somewhere there.
This list is a work-in-progress. I would welcome suggestions citing remarkable examples of the use of classical or 'serious' music in movies.
For a much, much more complete but rather impersonal version of this list, go to Classics from the Silver Screen.
---
1. This sublime work is a favourite of Hannibal Lecter's too - at least, according to the movie version of The Silence Of The Lambs. It's the music he's enjoying as he kills the two cops and escapes from his cage.
2. Of course, this piece has been used in many movies, but I think its most remarkable use was by Stanley Kubrick in 2001: A Space Odyssey. Whenever I re-watch 2001, that moment when we flick from the flying bone to the flying spaceship (thus bypassing a couple of million years of human history) always sends a thrill through me. Then our creations in space begin dancing to this greatest of waltzes. (Alas, this MIDI version is far from satisfactory, but it's the best I've been able to find.)
3. Apocalypse Now. "I love the smell of napalm in the morning!" (Another less than satisfactory version, but you'll recognise the music.)
4. Breaking Away. Cycling to the classics. (I'm afraid this version is barely recognisable.)
5. Excalibur. Profane songs from medieval times. (This is the first song in the work, called 'O Fortuna'.)
6. Gallipoli. One of the saddest pieces of music for one of the saddest of war stories.
7. Platoon. Again: sad music, sad war story.
8. Rollerball. Dramatic music for a dramatic sf movie.
9. 10. (That is, the movie titled 10.) Perhaps the sexiest piece of music ever written. Too bad about the movie. (This is a pretty good version of Bolero.)
10. A Clockwork Orange. The symphony was inspired by a poem called "Ode to Joy". Its use in the movie is, in part, ironical, since what joy there is in the movie is taken in violence.
11. The Truman Show. See DaveMog's comment below.
A couple more memorable moments, at least to me:
(of course) Beethoven's Choral Symphony (Symphony #9) in A CLOCKWORK ORANGE
Chopin's Piano Concerto #1 in E Minor, movement #2, the Romance & Larghetto in THE TRUMAN SHOW, which is a beautiful accompanyment to Truman's budding romance.
Thanks for these moments. I don't have much time right now, but I'll add them to the list later.
Looking at the comment logs, you and I are both scarcer than usual. I wonder which of us is busier. :) I'm looking forward to a little more Listology time for both of us.
The govt here, in its finite wisdom, is introducing a goods and services tax, so everyone is buying up big before it hits: busy, busy, busy. Six day working week lately. (The modern employment paradox: if you're out of work you've got loads of time but no money to spend, if you're in work you've got the shekels but no time to spend them.)
I'm sure you've been missed most. There's been a Jim-shaped hole in TL lately. And another J is conspicuously absent - exam time?)
I'm trying to fix my absence. Maybe carve out a little TL time each day. I suspect Jenhowel and BarbieOO will be sparse during the summertime, as they probably spend more time in front of computers procrastinating when school's in session. :)