Scoring a film scene
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Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can create a piece of music for a short scene.
Key learning points
- Film composers have to carefully match musical changes to precise cues and timestamps.
- Manipulating the tempo is one method that helps to fit sections of music to specific timings.
- Sometimes transitions between sections are deliberately sudden to match sudden changes in the action.
- Composers can also make more musical transitions by ‘blending’ features of the two sections to create a seamless change.
Keywords
Cue - a precise moment in a scene where something happens, requiring the music to match it
Timestamp - a specific moment in time in a composition (e.g. 01:25 - 1 minute and 25 seconds)
Musical transition - when two sections of music are linked in a coherent and musically satisfying way
Common misconception
Changes between moods in a scene should always be sudden.
This is not always the case. Sometimes it is more appropriate to create a gradual change so that the shift isn't dramatically obvious. This might be where there is a gradual change of mood or action in a scene.
Teacher tip
Consider extending learning by challenging pupils to create an additional section of the scene from 1:20 - 1:40, with a contrasting mood. They can choose to transition into this contrasting section either using a seamless transition or a sudden shift.
Equipment
DAW, notation software, keyboard or other suitable instrument as a composition tool
Licence
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