Customer Reviews

On the Track: A Guide to Contemporary Film Scoring

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An excellent book, and the principal how-to text in the field of film scoring. It's used as the text in university-level film-scoring classes, and it's on the desk of many practicing feature-film composers. Karlin and Wright teach their subject by means of interviews and case studies, and also discuss the terms and technologies that relate to the gear being used today. Content-wise, Karlin and Wright don't hold back, presenting a whopping 886 pages of information. Ron Simpson, Brigham Young University Author of MASTERING THE MUSIC BUSINESS

This is the greatest book I ever seen. It' a complete guide for film and tv scorig. It analyses every aspects and tasks of the film music production for a composer. From the spotting to the business... It explains very clearly the concepts, also with a lot of quotations from today's most famous film composers, editors, executives, producers, directors... (more than 100 professionals have contributed with quotations to this 'bible'). There are many many printed score examples. It is very up to date, with modern films examples, and there's also a chapter concerning digital music composition. I've copied the whole contents pages, so you can see this book professionality.

Just don't care about the price, it's really a great investment. I was in doubt to buy it for the price, but when I've opened it I've realized that my money was spent in a great way.

CONTENTS
of On the Track by Fred Karlin and Rayburn Wright

Foreword by John Williams
Preface to the First Edition
Preface to the Second Edition
Acknowledgments for the First Edition
Acknowledgments for the Second Edition
Introduction
How iv Use This Book

I PRELIMINARIES

1 The Filmmaking Team
Meeting the Filmmakers. The Director. Communicating with the Director. Support and Guidance. Two-Way Dialogue between Director and Composer. The Producer. The Producer's Power. Communicating with the Producer. The Film Editor. The Music Editor. Music Executives and Supervisors.

2 The Script, Meetings, and Screenings
The Script. The First Meeting before Screening the Film. The First Screening. First Cut, Fine Cut, and Assembly. The First Discussion after Screening the Film. Composing before the Film Is Finished.

3 Role Models and Temp Tracks
Specific Film Scores or Cues as Role Models. Specific Film-Scoring Styles Used as Role Models. Specific Classical Pieces or Styles Used as Role Models. The Composer's Use of Role Models. Evoking a Role Model Inadvertently. Role Models and Plagiarism. Temp Tracks. Music Editors and Temp Traclcs--How It's Done. Why Filmmakers Use Temp Tracks. How Composers Work with Temp Tracks.

4 Spotting the Film
Talking It Over. Making Decisions. When To Use Music. Starting a Cue. Ending a Cue. Short Cues, Transitions, and Long Cues. The Importance of the Acting. The Director Communicates. Spotting Notes and Timing Notes. Changes in the Spotting after Scoring. Score Lengths.

5 Budgets and Schedules
Cost Factors. Figuring Costs. Working with a Smali Budget. Scoring Union or Nonunion. The Assumption Agreement. Working with the Contractor. Composing Fees. Budget Estimates. Time to Compose. Copying Time.

II CONCEPTUALIZING

6 Developing the Concept
Characterization. The Central Character. The Singie Dramatic Theme. Two Dramatic Themes. Ethnic/Geographic Considerations. Musical Styles. Combining Two or More Stylistic Elements. The Process of Elimination. Scores for Study.

7 Demonstrating the Score: Mockups and Electronics
Electronic Mockups. Mockups for Communication. Changes.

III TIMINGS
8 Timings and Clicks I
Free Timing. Using Clicks and Clock. Metronome Equivalents. When Timings Don't Sync. Requirements on Extremely Accurate Hits. Ritards, Fermatas, Accelerandos.

9 Timings and Clicks II
Music Editors. Cut Back Cues and Split Chases. Tempo and Mood Changes within Cues. Meter Changes within Cues. Timings with a Calculator. Using Videorecorders, Digitized Video and SMPTE Time Code. Drop-Frame or Non-Drop-Frame? Avoiding Confusion in Math Problems. Hardware and Software.

IV COMPOSING
10 Playing the Drama
Audience Expectations. Don't Tip the Story. Tone. Main Titles. Whose Point of View to Play? Playing the Overview. Playing What the Scene is Really About. Getting Inside the Character's Feelings. Playing the Environment or Location. Playing the Situation. How Intensely to Play the Drama less Is More/Understating the Drama. Avoiding Emotion. De-emphasizing a Scene. The Power of Silence. Playing through the Drama. Phrasing the Drama. Hitting the Action. Highlighting. Red Herrings. Scoring the Film Like a Ballet. Underscoring the Dialogue. Scores for Study.
11 Genres and Source Music
Genres. Action. Comedy. Documentaries. Historical and Period. Horror. Source Music. Interweaving Source and Score. Scores for Study.

12 Composing
Creative Considerations: Work Process. Intuition and the Subconscious. Writer's Block. Preparation. Planning the Score. Organizing the Score. Unity and Variety. Research. Tempo or Pulse. Personal Taste and Style. Beginning the Sketch.

13 UsingMelody
Motifs. Multiple Motifs. Unaccompanied Melody. Two-Voice Texture. Giving the Melody Character. Adapting a Theme. Hit Records. Scores for Study.

14 Using Harmony
Harmonic Languages. Harmony Resulting from Linear Writing. Harmonic Pedal Point and Ostinatos. Using Harmony for Characterization. Using Harmony as a Theme. Tension. Scores for Study.

15 Using Rhythm
Tempo and Pulse. Sketching the Rhythms. The Percussion Section and Electronics. The Orchestra as Rhythm. Rhythm as a Thematic Idea. Rhythmic Ostinatos. Uneven and Changing Meters. Polyrhythms. Scores for Study.

16 Using Orchestration
Characterizing the Film's Dramatic Theme. Suggesting Locale with Color. Symphonic Orchestration. Fresh Sounds and Interesting Combinations. Change the Color, Change the Emotion. Orchestral Effects. Smail Budgets. To Orchestrate or Not to Orchestrate? Sketches. MIDI Sketches. Transposed or Concert Pitch-Scores? The Art of Orchestration. The Composer/Orchestrator Relationship. Orchestrating from MIDI Sketches. Using Synths and Orchestra Together. Typical Orchestra Setups. Know the Instruments. Short Cuts. Orchestration Schedules. Changes. Other Practicalities. The Business Aspects of Orchestration. Scores for Study.

17 Technical and Practical Considerations
Technical Considerations. Streamers. Recording. Practical Considerations. Preparing to Record. Save Your Music. Checklists.

V RECORDING
18 Recording: The Scoring Stage
The Scoring Stage. Underscoring, Prerecording, and Set Recording. Scoring Primarily or Completely with Electronics. Prerecording Electronic Tracks. Prerecording Acoustic Tracks and Soloists. Planning. The Mixer. Producing the Music. Conducting. Conducting Aids. Film Sound. Recording Format. Headset Mixes. Rehearsal Protocol. Creative Responses. Working with the Director. Changes on the Scoring Stage. Recording. Working with the Mixer. Playbacks. Overdubbing (Layering or Stacking). Prerecording an On-Screen Performance. Time Pressures on the Stage. Recording Away from Home. Timing Corrections while Recording. Postmixes and Sound Processing. Using Samples in Final Mix. Remixing for a Soundtrack Album.

19 Dubbing: The Final Mix
The Composer on the Dubbing Stage. The Dubbing Stage and the Participants. Preparing the Music for Dubbing. Predubbing. The Music Mixer. Dubbing Stage Sound. First Adjustments during the Mix. Overail Music Levels. Changing/Losing Cues. As the Director Sees It. Dubbing Stage Protocol. Dubbing with Dialogue. Losing a Score. Dubbing Schedules. Previews. Scores for Study. VI ELECTRONIC AND CONTEMPORARY SCORING

20 Using Electronic Music
Electronic Instruments as Acoustic Re-creations. Electronic Instruments for Unique Sounds. Blending Electronic and Acoustic Instruments. Scoring with Electronics. Recording Electronic Music. Scores for Study.

21 Using Contemporary Music
Using Contemporary Rhythm Sections. Contemporary Scores. A Closer Look at Three Contemporary Scores. Scoring with a Solo Artist. Scoring with a Group. Contemporary Source Music. Scores for Study.

22 Scoring for Television
Television Series. Main Titie Themes. Composing. Working with the Producers. Dubbing. Scoring with Orchestra. Scoring Long Form. The Use of Songs. Television!Film Differences.

VII SONGS
23 Musicals and Prerecording
Prerecording (Prescoring). Prerecording Grease and Fame. Postrecording (Postscoring). The Classic Musicals and Beyond.

24 Songs
The Functions of a Song. Content. Songwriting Collaboration. Syncing the Lyric to the Visuals. Rewriting, or Writing Another Song. Demonstrating the Song. The Artist. Hits and Big Business. Footloose: An Origina1 Compilation Song Score. Yentl: An Origina1 Song Score by One Team of Writers.
VIII THE BUSINESS
25 The Business
Getting the Job. Moving from Television to Films. Demos. Being Heard. Agents. Film and Television Deal Points. Commercials. ASCAP and BMI. Music Budgets. Licensing. Soundtrack Albums. Music and Business.

Epilogue. On the Track
The Interviewees and Authors
Appendix A. Study Assignments
Appendix B. Footage/Timing Conversions
Appendix C. Calculator Methodfor Timings
Appendix D. Drop-Frame
Glossary
End Notes
Bibliography
Web Sites
Music Excerpts
Index

If there is one book that is essential for today's aspiring film composers, THIS IS IT!

It answered all the questions I had, as well as several I didn't!

The score examples are very helpful in clarifying the techniques of film scoring.

If you are an aspiring film composer, get this book. IT IS A MUST!

Fred Karlin and his orchestration teacher Rayburn Wright both passed away but their spirit comes alive through the pages of this book. Fred's love for film music and to impart fledgling composers to imbibe the intricacies of film music composition is well documented and presented and is current with examples of cues from movies till 2002 in the 2nd edition of the book. Fred's reverence for film composers is both inspirational and exhaustive and reveals what a brilliant human being he was. This world and the music community needs people like this who have taken their chosen art form and has the good heart to share that information which is hard earned to let other men take lead and become CAUSE over their own vistas of expression in film music. Fred is BRILLIANT AND ALIVE. It is inevitable that you can't help but think of him with gratitude and call out to him and say THANK YOU. These are the people who can bring about changes in the field of film music education and the evolution of man in general by helping us create better art. This is the Veda of Film Scoring. Its that good.

Absolutely the best book out there. Unfortunately, it is no longer in print. When I purchased the book; it originally cost me $.. dollars which I thought was quite expensive at the time. Not so anymore. I have used this book again and again. Includes Click Book as well which is wonderful. If you are SERIOUSLY interested in film scoring as career or even in scoring the occasional film this book is a MUST. Repeat MUST. It is worth $... or more.

Happy Composing,
Sincerely,

ROTEWOLF

This is by far the most thorough book on the subject of film scoring that I've ever come across. The foreword by John Williams says it all really, this book is packed with years of experience and would help absolutely anybody in the field or aspiring to get in it. It's use of film score examples (from film's you've actually heard of) is fascinating, like a peek behind the curtain of your favorite play, you get to see sections of scores by John Williams, Thomas Newman, Jerry Goldsmith, James Horner, James Newton Howard, Hanz Zimmer, Danny Elfman...need I go on. From conceptualizing to timing music to picture, from compositional techniques to the business of film music this book is crammed full with goodies. Anybody interested in this field shouldn't even think twice about picking this bad boy up.

This is a tremendous book on film scoring. For a long time it was really the only book on film scoring. And this edition is far better than the previous one. The previous one was massive because it contained a "Click Book" at the end, which was a like a huge matrix that would help you figure out how to calculate sync-points. It's completely irrelevant today so I'm glad they nixed that part of the book.

A couple of my former instructors from USC's film scoring program are interviewed in it, namely, Christopher Young and David Spear. And those two composers have helped me become the composer I am today. I have written the score to a film called "The Grudge 3" that was produced by Spider-Man 3 director Sam Raimi, and from the series that first starred Sarah Michelle Gellar.

I also worked for Christopher Young closely for many years and orchestrated 27 Hollywood features including Spider-Man 3, Ghost Rider and Fantastic Four 2.

Now, my resume includes head of music composition at a leading contemporary 4-year music college. If you're really serious about becoming a successful film composer visit [...]. I teach an online crash course on how to start working as a film composer.

The most comprehensive book I have read on the subject. Chockablock full of inside information; this is the Bible as far as I'm concerned! I refer to this book again and again - invaluable source of information; a must have. Very recommended!! Worth double the price. Excellent examples, loads of text to back it up and .... just read it.

Great text for film scoring - I learned of it from Berklee School of Music course I took.

This book is a MUST for everybody who is involved in the film industry (composers, producers, directors, film and music editors, etc...) and wants to know the insides of composing film scores:

It has many examples, references, quotes and the expertise of such a great composer as Karlin is.

Wanna be serious in this business, must get it.

It's worth buying it.