sci-fi cinema and music

[graham miller <grahammiller@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> hey all
>
> i'm doing some very preliminary field research for my thesis work and i=

> was wondering if i could probe the techno people for some info...
>
> i'm trying to draw up a list of all the science-fiction films that have=

> diagetic music within them, that is, music that can be heard by the
> characters in the film.  the classic example would be the star wars
> cantina scene, where luke meets han solo for the first time - that benn=
y
> goodman dixielandish john williams alien band...
>
> even if the film doesn't take place in the future, i'm still interested=
,
> such as the club 'tech noir' in terminator or that industrial metal clu=
b
> in the first part of the matrix where neo meets trinity... if you guys
> can think of any other good ones please let me know - i do have a small=

> list but i'm sure there are plenty that i've missed, especially smaller=

> more obscure stuff...
>
> i'm interested in the fact that although many sci-fi films place a grea=
t
> deal of emphasis in imagining what these alternate worlds/realities
> might look like (industrial design, costumes, architecture...) very
> little though is put into the way the music of these worlds might
> actually  s o u n d. as in the case with star wars, the music is almost=

> always rooted in the present, or even the past (vangelis echoing film
> noir musical clich=E9s for blade runner, substituting sax for synth,
> ect).  there is very little attempt to imagine the way musicians might
> perform or the way music might sound, say, a hundred years from now.
>
> with the exception of the now-shelved aphex twin/chris cunningham film
> version of neuromancer (and possibly the dust brother's fight club
> soundtrack), there has been a startling lack of 'progressive' popular
> electronic music in any sci-fi cinema - diagetic or non-diagetic (as in=

> the score, or the music the characters can't hear...) john williams, et=

> al, are very nice and all, but not particularly progressive when it
> comes to the overall Future of music, i.e. even most hollywood composer=
s
> are writing in archaic styles.
>
> anyway, that's just an inkling of where i'm going with this, but i'm
> curious to hear your thoughts. my main argument is that the sound desig=
n
> of these films may have had a greater impact on the aesthetics of
> popular electronic dance music (i.e. techno) than their actual scores..=
=2E
>
> thanks!
>
> graham

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