Adventures of Robin Hood
- 1938
- Korngold's score is remarkable for its length (nearly three-quarters of the film), colorful orchestration, dramatic support and thematic transformation
- Contains swashbuckling fight scenes incorporating the following characteristics:
- A full symphonic orchestration, emphasizing brass and percussion
- Loud dynamics
- Passages of quick notes
- Irregular and hard accents
- Occasional motivic references
Outside of the fighting sequences the score contains an abundance of melodic ideas:
Use of leitmotifs associating the themes with individuals is looser and motivic relationships between themes often suggest underlying connections between characters
Much of the material in the score is derived from the Robin Hood theme.
Robin Hood Trailer
Composer Profile-Bernard Herrmann
- American Born 1911- 1975
- Got his start as a composer for radio dramas for CBS in New York c.1930s
- Won the Academy Award for Best Score for All That Money Can Buy in 1941
- Used the theremin in his score for The Day the Earth Stood Still [ex. music clip]
- Known for using bizarre instrumental combinations to achieve the necessary color: He used nine harps in Beneath the 12 Mile Reef (1953); Five organs in Journey to the Center of the Earth (also featured the ancient "serpent" instrument)
- Partnered with Alfred Hitchcock on many films including The Trouble with Harry (1955), Psycho (1960) and Marnie (1964)
- Psycho was considered his magnum opus using only strings to create a "black and white" sound to match the back and white picture
- Scored movies for Brian De Palma and Martin Scorsese (Taxi Driver 1976)
- Had abrasive personality but highly regarded and respected for his talents as a composer
- Always orchestrated his own scores
- Operated as an independent contractor and never signed a long term contract with a major studio
- Innovative and created new colors of sound through pioneering methods of orchestration
- Revolutionized film scoring in two distinct ways: (1) Customized the size of the orchestra to fit the scene (2) Used short chord cues at times instead of long melodic lines feeling that wall-to-wall music was not always effective
- Known for using dark sonorities in his scores through low brass, low woodwinds and low strings