AMM 4M: Exercise #1

Creating a Mood Using Timbre And Texture

You are going to create a movie score for one of three short video clips. Your primary job with this score is to help establish the "mood" of the clips focusing on using specific "timbres" and "textures" to help satisfy the director's notes.

The three clips all deal with heroes, two returning, and one reluctantly going into duty under very different circumstances, locations and from very different eras.

The three clips, with "director's notes" are:

I) BR_Scene_4:

The setting is a futuristic, urban scene with flying vehicles and overcrowded streets. It is very dark, rainy and incredibly crowded. This "hero" has been reluctantly called back into duty to perform one more service. He is very cynical, jaded and was essentially blackmailed back into service.

He is waiting to be contacted with details about his upcoming mission. The music needs to reflect the cynicism, and darkness of the scene, but also recognize that he is a person of some substance and integrity.

 

II) GL_Scene_12:

The victorious Emperor is returning to a triumphant, cheering city. Setting is very bright and upbeat.

However, this hero is not a true hero. He has in fact gained his position through deceit and murder. He has no real interest in the glory of his city, but only in furthering his own personal glory at the expense of any who get in his way.

Your music needs to reflect the obvious celebration and glory of the returning hero, but also needs to have a sense of impending doom, and reflect the potential dangerousness and evil of the character, particularly as he is greeted warily at the end of the scene.

III ROTK_Scene_59:

This scene is very pastoral and quiet. An idyllic scene of peace and rural beauty. The hero is returning to his family after a tremendous victory in a place that is worlds away from his home in terms of brutality, darkness, evil and complex imagery.

While your music needs to somehow reflect the greatness which the hero has achieved, it has to also reflect the fact that to the hero, and to his family, the most important aspect is not that he is returning as a hero, but that he is returning to his family as a father and husband.
1) Download the scene(s) from the NDAS drive onto the C drive of your computer. You may view these scenes using Quicktime or Media Player.
  • Each scene has a "large" version which can be viewed separately and a "small" version for use within Cubase and Reason when you create your score.
2) Select the scene you will score and decide on the timbres and textures and general style of music you will use in your score.
  • Decide on the style, tempo and overall structure of your score.
  • Open Cubase/ and or Reason and experiment with different sounds and combinations of sounds.

3) Write a brief report which describes the structure of your score, lists the instrumentation, and explains how your score will satisfy the "director's notes."

Hand this in to Mr. Thompson for future discussion.

4) When your score has been approved begin work on your score using the instructions found at:

Syncing Cubase and Reason to a video Clip.

5) When your score has been finished:

Create file of the finished score.