Film Score

So as I said I would, I finally got around to evaluating the claim that Joel McNeely’s score to the novel and video game Shadows of the Empire “borrows” plainly and unashamedly from the ballet The Quest by 20th century British composer William Walton. I’ll say right now that my findings lend a lot of credence to the forum post that inspired my investigation: I think somewhere along the way Joel McNeely thought to himself “Gee, this ballet sounds a lot like Star Wars, so why don’t I rip it off for Shadows of the Empire?...

Not everyone is familiar with the installment of the Star Wars franchise titled Shadows of the Empire, but that’s mostly because it was a media event that never made it to the big screen. Nonetheless, the video game it spawned deserves some recognition among video games for its use of a fully orchestrated, studio recorded, original soundtrack composed by film and TV composer Joel McNeely. Shadows of the EmpireThe 1996 multimedia project involving a novel, comics, and video game, among others....

There’s something special about the fifth scale degree of the tonic (major) key when raised a half-step. Granted, there’s something special about every non-key pitch in a tonal system, but what really captivates me about the flat six is its affective power in a Romantic context. Take a minute to listen to this excerpt: what do you feel when you hear the horn make its solo entrance above the sustained bassoon and strings?...

It’s a curious thing how an artist who has reached a certain level of creative maturity becomes somewhat of a prisoner to idiosyncrasy. Many composers, to take music as an example, have some kind of musical trademark. Some exhibit their signature flourishes subtly or almost imperceptibly, while others do us the convenience of posting a big, blinking, neon sign in the sky. At the moment, I’m starting to think that there’s a lot in the music of film composer James Horner that is big, blinking, and neon....