Section V: Music Plays a Role

Question 1

Who is credited with reviving the large-scale symphonic film score in the 1970s?

Answer 1

John Williams

Question 2

When was the first Star Wars movie made?

Answer 2

1977

Question 3

After the first Star Wars movie was made, how many prequels did it have?

Answer 3

3

Question 4

What cue was not played by the London Symphony Orchestra in the original Star Wars movie?

Answer 4

the cue “Cantina Band”

Question 5

In Dune, why was the scene where an Atreides warrior played the baliset cut out?

Answer 5

because they felt it put too much emphasis on the music and less on the movie

Question 6

What is another name for the “Main Title” theme in Star Wars?

Answer 6

Luke’s Theme

Question 7

Why was Williams worried about the recording session for Luke’s Theme?

Answer 7

he thought the music was overwritten or overcomplicated

Question 8

Why did Williams think Luke’s Theme was overwritten?

Answer 8

because of a particular part in the song where the trumpets have to play a high C, which if you didn’t know is difficult on trumpet

Question 9

What is another phrase that means saturation scoring?

Answer 9

wall-to-wall music

Question 10

What is saturation scoring?

Answer 10

where there is music in almost all of the movie and there are very few parts without it

Question 11

When was saturation scoring dominantly used?

Answer 11

in the era of silent films

Question 12

What award did the film score from Star Wars receive

Answer 12

a “Best Original Score” Oscar

Question 13

In 2005, the American Film Institute published rankings of the best American film scores of all time. What rank was Star Wars on this list?

Answer 13

it was Number 1

Question 14

Why was 20th Century Records hesitant to release an album of the Star Wars soundtrack?

Answer 14

It thought no one would be interested in symphonic music scores

Question 15

In June, they started selling the Star Wars soundtrack. How many copies were sold by mid-July?

Answer 15

650k

Question 16

How many sales did the “Main Title” single reach in total?

Answer 16

4+ million copies and 190 million dollars

Question 17

What is the top-selling film album?

Answer 17

the Star Wars soundtrack

Question 18

What is diegetic music?

Answer 18

music the audience and the actors can hear

Question 19

What is non-diegetic music?

Answer 19

music the audience can hear but actors can’t

Question 20

Why is the Cantina Band (in Star Wars) a favorite of audiences?

Answer 20

because music in sci-fi films is often non-diegetic and Cantina Band is diegetic

Question 21

What does Cantina Band do to the atmosphere of that scene?

Answer 21

it relaxes it by a lot

Question 22

In Star Wars, what was the bass line performed on?

Answer 22

an Arp synthesizer

Question 23

How did Williams make the alien effects?

Answer 23

he had 9 musicians who played trumpet, saxophones, clarinet, a Fender Rhodes piano, a Caribbean steel drum, other percussion instruments, and an Arp synthesizer

Question 24

Ragtime style is an example of what musical genre?

Answer 24

jazz

Question 25

What does ragtime style feature?

Answer 25

many syncopated rhythm patterns with a steady accompaniment

Question 26

Even though the music was made to imitate an alien effect, the musical structure was typical of what musical genres/styles?

Answer 26

jazz and ragtime style

Question 27

What pattern were the alien effects in?

Answer 27

A A B A

Question 28

What is a walking bass pattern?

Answer 28

pitches that ascend and descend by step

Question 29

Why was music so essential in the movie Close Encounters of a Third Kind?

Answer 29

because that was how the aliens communicated with the earthlings

Question 30

What is another word for “do”?

Answer 30

the resting tone

Question 31

What was “do” labeled as in the Middle Ages?

Answer 31

“ut”

Question 32

What pitches did Guido use when he created solfege?

Answer 32

“re-mi-fa-so-la”

Question 33

Solfege is the focus of a song mentioned in the resource guide called ________.

Answer 33

The Sound of Music (1959)

Question 34

The French call the successive pitches in a musical alphabet solfege. What do the Italians and English call it?

Answer 34

Italians - solfeggio
English - sol-fa

Question 35

Who invented the hand signs for solfege?

Answer 35

John Curwen

Question 37

What did he want the motif for alien/human dialogue to sound like for Close Encounters?

Answer 37

he wanted it to sound like a doorbell, more of a greeting than a melody, and he needed it to be fast

Question 38

What key was the motif for communication in Close Encounters?

Answer 38

key of C

Question 39

Why did Williams want the motif for communication in Close Encounters to end on a G or “sol”?

Answer 39

because it had an unfinished quality, suggesting the need for continuation

Question 41

When did Back to the Future make its debut?

Answer 41

1985

Question 42

What did the film Back to the Future do to imply that it needed a sequel?

Answer 42

it added a plot twist

Question 43

What was the top-grossing film of 1985?

Answer 43

Back to the Future

Question 44

How much was each Back to the Future sequel budgeted?

Answer 44

40 million for each sequel

Question 45

When did Back to the Future II and Back to the Future III come out?

Answer 45

2 - 1989

Question 46

When was WALL-E released?

Answer 46

2008

Question 47

What year is WALL-E set in?

Answer 47

2815 A.D.

Question 48

When was Inception released?

Answer 48

2010

Question 49

Who directed Inception?

Answer 49

Christopher Nolan

Question 50

What is the braaam?

Answer 50

a word that describes a heavily accented note that is loud, heavy, and is a low register chord