The Soundtrack Show

Perhaps the most significant piece of Star Wars music of the prequel trilogy, "Duel of the Fates" for chorale and orchestra boldly captures the struggle between light and darkness. We discuss the personal influences that composer John Williams brings to his compositions, and do a full musical analysis of the concert arrangement of this dynamic and exciting piece. Learn more about your ad choices....

In 1999, Star Wars and its music were about to change forever. In this introductory episode to the Phantom Menace and prequel trilogy, we discuss how George Lucas and composer John Williams had changed the entertainment industry with their genius, and how their work between trilogies is represented by what we see and hear on screen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part 2 of our interview with The Lord of the Rings sound designer David Farmer. We discuss the sounds of the Balrog, the Ents, and other various creatures across all three films. David also describes his technical workflow, and speaks with great fondness about the many months he spent in New Zeland with the crew. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Lord of the Rings sound designer David Farmer joins us for an interview about his work on the films of Middle-Earth. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part IV of The Two Towers focuses on the love story of Aragorn and Arwen, as well as the poems of Tolkien that can be found in the orchestral score. We also break down an exciting action cue, and look at how Howard Shore's music tells the centuries-long story of Gandalf. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part III of our look at The Two Towers focuses on Gollum, Treebeard and more. We also discuss how the music blends themes and story points together. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part II of our examination of The Two Towers focuses on the kingdom of Rohan. We examine its modal melodies and how they are first introduced to us, we listen to how they're orchestrated, and we take a deep dive into Rohan's Anglo-Saxon roots. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our journey through Middle-earth continues as we begin discussing the music of The Two Towers. We discuss the structural challenges of bringing the middle portion of LOTR's giant story to the silver screen, and examine just how composer Howard Shore's thematic score assists in holding the plot together. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our final look at the music of Star Trek puts us in the position of the show's music editors and composers. With so many classic episodes to get through, how did they stretch their music budget to cover an entire season? The music of Sol Kaplan, Joseph Mullendore, Gerald Fried and Fred Steiner is examined, and we also look at a series of clever music edits for tracked scores. Learn more about your...

Music production on a full season of Star Trek begins! Our first two composers get to work, as Alexander Courage and Fred Steiner start writing and recording music at a frantic pace. We'll hear the rest of Courage's work on season one, and listen to Steiner's amazing contributions to Star Trek's musical vocabulary. We also examine the critical role played by the music editors, as they work to esta...

Before making it to air, Star Trek had not one, but two pilots scored by Alexander Courage. Once the first season finally went into production, it took five composers to pull it off. This episode explores the musical, financial and creative realities of 1960s television music production, as we discuss the scores for these two pilots, and the creation of some of the show's musical sound effects. We...

The history of television and the origins of Star Trek are explored through the life and career of composer/orchestrator Alexander Courage, television star Lucille Ball, and Desilu music director Wilbur Hatch. The main title melodies for Star Trek are analyzed and discussed, along with their place in the history of 20th Century television music. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm...

In our final episode on the music of E.T. we listen to the second half of the movie's incredible music, cue by cue. We also discuss the work of film editor Carol Littleton, and vocal sound designer Ben Burtt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Part II we take it from the top, and listen to how the film score for E.T. is constructed in the first half of the movie. We examine multiple themes, and discuss the movie's emotional honesty. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The film score to E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial is widely considered to be one of the most important film scores of all time. We discuss what makes the music so great as a whole, and we discuss the evolution of the score's most important themes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Part III of our series on Ocarina of Time, we tackle our main quest to save Hyrule by learning more complex melodies, mastering new musical dungeons, and ultimately facing off against our bongo-playing, pipe organ-pounding foes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Part II of our series on The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, we look at the first act of the game and discuss all of its musical diversity: the dungeons, the distant lands, and the melodic fragments we learn to play on our digital ocarina. The game's over "music" theme is discussed, as well is hidden homages to the Zelda series' musical past. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone....

The groundbreaking interactive music of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is both diegetic and non-diegetic music, as it plays a central role in both the story and gameplay. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The music to original NES title The Legend of Zelda is discussed. We break down the main overworld theme, talk about its impact, and share memories of the original Zelda experience. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part II of our interview with Carlos Rafael Rivera, we discuss how he wrote around diagetic music and sound design. Themes for the main character are discussed, as well as parts of The Queen's Gambit that feel like a sports movie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We meet and celebrate Carlos Rafael Rivera, the composer for the hit Netflix series The Queen's Gambit. His musical background and career rise are discussed, as well as his overall approach to working with directors. His love for Randy Newman and film music is also covered, and we begin our in-depth discussion of The Queen's Gambit's wonderful score. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megapho...

In part II of our interview with Zach Robinson and Leo Birenberg, we discuss the rock and metal influences in Cobra Kai's score. We also talk about their use of thematic material, musical humor, and the show's return to Okinawa. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We get a chance to sit down with Cobra Kai composers Zach Robinson and Leo Birenberg, as they discuss their music, their process, and their love of film scoring. The various musical styles of the Karate Kid franchise are discussed, as well as their own unique take on this hit TV series. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In our second episode on the music of Karate Kid, we take a close look at the music of Mr. Miyagi, the pan flute music of Zamfir, and how it tells the story of Miyagi and Daniel's friendship. More songs are discussed, and we hear restored music in the movie's dramatic finale for the very first time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices