{"id":2923,"date":"2021-03-19T12:03:23","date_gmt":"2021-03-19T16:03:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/parsons\/?p=2923"},"modified":"2021-05-04T10:22:14","modified_gmt":"2021-05-04T14:22:14","slug":"parsons-playlists-transcendental-film-soundtracks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.richmond.edu\/parsons\/2021\/03\/parsons-playlists-transcendental-film-soundtracks\/","title":{"rendered":"Parsons Playlists: Transcendental Film Soundtracks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome back to Parsons Playlists<\/a>! Today we’re featuring a collection of film soundtrack music curated by Music Library student manager Colin (Class of 2021).<\/em> <\/p>\n

Films have been my go-to source of entertainment for years. In high school, my friends and I became heavily invested in the awards season of movies, in which we tried to watch every film that was nominated for Best Picture<\/a> by the Academy<\/a>. Movies are not measured for enjoyability by their success winning awards, nor do awards automatically make a movie \u201cgood.\u201d Rather, this activity was something that my friends and I enjoyed doing, and exposed us to a lot of new films and directors. Particularly interesting for us in watching films was hearing the soundtrack, as all of my friends and I were involved in my school\u2019s music program. We loved talking about the scores of films, and the impact that specific songs have through their leitmotifs or influence on the narrative. For example, we were obsessed with the soundtrack from La La Land<\/a><\/em>, because, well let\u2019s be honest; who can\u2019t tap their foot or hum along with the songs when listening to its music?<\/p>\n

\"La<\/p>\n

Richard Wagner<\/a> had a great influence upon the film industry and its scores due to his methodical approach to writing operas, in which the music he composed enhanced the narrative through the use of leitmotifs<\/a>, or short musical phrases that indicate the appearance of a character or narrative theme. This concept was recognized by the film industry, and was expanded on by different film composers, specifically Max Steiner<\/a> who is known as \u201cThe Father of Film Music<\/a>.\u201d Steiner was heavily influenced by Wagnerian musical concepts, and would incorporate leitmotifs, non-diegetic sounds<\/a> and other elements that enhanced the musical experience in movies and their relation to narratives. Since Steiner, films have grown to incorporate songs into their soundtracks that are either specifically written for the movie from a preexisting band, or the rights are bought from a band to include their song in the movie. The songs themselves share the same focus that Steiner envisioned for his films, in that songs are used for a narrative purpose in order to advance the plot, express the emotions of a specific character, and\/or give credibility to the environment in which the film or a scene takes place. <\/p>\n

\"Max

A sampling of films scored by Max Steiner<\/p><\/div>\n

With this playlist, I wanted to highlight songs used in films that transcend just their immediate presence in the film. The rules of this playlist are rather loose, in that the songs included may have been written for the specific movie in which they are famous for being in, or written before the movie and added to the soundtrack and become a staple song for the film. I have included highly popular choices that the general film-viewing population would agree with, such as \u201cMy Heart Will Go On\u201d in Titanic<\/a><\/em> and \u201cDon\u2019t You (Forget About Me)\u201d in The Breakfast Club<\/a><\/em>. However, I have also offered some of my personal choices of songs that I believe greatly enhance the movie and urge audiences to listen to the song outside of the filmic experience, but do not necessarily have the history or popular recognition by audiences. I hope that choices like \u201cSlip Away\u201d from Booksmart<\/a><\/em> and \u201c(I\u2019m Gonna) Love Me Again\u201d from Rocketman<\/a><\/em> will expand your music and film libraries. I have organized the songs in order of their film\u2019s release date, and my personal choices begin with \u201cSend Me on My Way\u201d from Matilda<\/a><\/em>. And this playlist does not feature any instrumentally focused soundtracks that typically appear in large blockbuster films, but rather individual songs focused on lyrics. I hope you enjoy this eclectic playlist and relive some great film experiences through music!<\/p>\n

\"Movie<\/p>\n

\u201cSomewhere Over the Rainbow\u201d by Judy Garland<\/a> – The Wizard of Oz<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cSingin\u2019 in the Rain\u201d by Gene Kelly <\/a>– Singin\u2019 in the Rain<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cMoon River\u201d by Audrey Hepburn <\/a>– Breakfast at Tiffany\u2019s<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cMrs. Robinson\u201d by Simon & Garfunkel<\/a> – The Graduate<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cBorn to be Wild\u201d by Steppenwolf<\/a> – Easy Rider<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cStayin\u2019 Alive\u201d by Bee Gees<\/a> – Saturday Night Fever<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cEye of the Tiger\u201d by Survivor<\/a> – Rocky III<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cFootloose\u201d by Kenny Loggins<\/a> – Footloose<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cPurple Rain\u201d by Prince <\/a>– Purple Rain<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cDon\u2019t You (Forget About Me)\u201d by Simple Minds<\/a> – The Breakfast Club<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cTake My Breath Away\u201d by Berlin<\/a> – Top Gun<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201c(I\u2019ve Had) The Time of My Life\u201d by Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes<\/a> – Dirty Dancing<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cIn Your Eyes\u201d by Peter Gabriel<\/a> – Say Anything<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cUnchained Melody\u201d by The Righteous Brothers<\/a> – Ghost<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cI Will Always Love You\u201d by Whitney Houston<\/a> – The Bodyguard<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cMy Heart Will Go On\u201d by C\u00e9line Dion<\/a> – Titanic<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

\"Movie<\/p>\n

\u201cKiss Me\u201d by Sixpence None the Richer<\/a> – She\u2019s All That<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cTiny Dancer\u201d by Elton John<\/a> – Almost Famous<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cLose Yourself\u201d by Eminem<\/a> – 8 Mile<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cDancing Queen\u201d by ABBA<\/a> – Mamma Mia!<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cHappy\u201d by Pharell Williams<\/a> – Despicable Me 2<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cCan\u2019t Stop the Feeling\u201d by Justin Timberlake<\/a> – Trolls<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cSend Me on My Way\u201d by Rusted Root <\/a>– Matilda<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cSomebody to Love\u201d by Queen<\/a> – Ella Enchanted<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cLife is a Highway\u201d by Rascal Flatts<\/a> – Cars<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cHoedown Throwdown\u201d by Miley Cyrus<\/a> – Hannah Montana: The Movie<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cHeroes\u201d by David Bowie <\/a>– The Perks of Being a Wallflower<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cMystery of Love\u201d by Sufjan Stevens<\/a> – Call Me By Your Name<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cHelplessly Hoping\u201d by Crosby, Stills & Nash<\/a> – Annihilation<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cShallow\u201d by Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper<\/a> – A Star is Born<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201cSlip Away\u201d by Perfume Genius<\/a> – Booksmart<\/em><\/a>
\n\u201c(I\u2019m Gonna) Love Me Again\u201d by Elton John & Taron Egerton<\/a> – Rocketman<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n