The Pillars of Film Music

     Film music has always fascinated me. The bold, galloping music of the Dollars trilogy. The grandiose, operatic music of the Star Wars saga. The haunting, heart-pounding music of Halloween. The transcendent, almost religious undertones of Interstellar. And so many more. Honestly, I don't listen to much else nowadays. I've never felt the need to. Film music is so expressive, the leitmotifs so memorable, the emotion so tangible, that the void most people fill with Adam Levine singing about sleeping with the fiftieth woman in a row is mostly filled by film music for me (with hints of post-rock here and there).

     So, in this post, I'd like to highlight the three most important "pillars" in film music. These are, in my view, the rubrics which all film music, "good" or "bad", can be explained with. These are:-

Leitmotif/"Theme"
Tone/"Emotion"
Arrangement/"Soundscape"
Please keep in mind that the way I use these words are not "technical". This is how I define each term:-

Leitmotif- The actual notes pressed on the keyboard/written on the stave. Basically, what most people consider to be a "theme tune".
Tone- The emotional undertones behind a composition. Completely subjective.
Arrangement- The sounds that the orchestrator and composer decide to use for the piece. Broadly divided into electronic, orchestral and choral, but I think those are far too vague to be legitimate distinctions.
Let's dissect some of my favourite tunes from cinema and see how each element comes into play, shall we?

Terminator
Composer: Brad Fiedel

     This iconic theme has a very distinct synth vibe that sets it apart from a lot of action scores preceding it, with an incredibly "hummable" leitmotif. It's the kind of theme that sucks you in. It makes you feel that Arnold's strolling around behind you, probably waiting to take your clothes and motorcycle in the most brutal way he can think of. We'll be cycling back to this one, so keep it mind.

The Big Gundown/La Resa dei Conti
Composer: Ennio Morricone

     Another timeless Morricone masterpiece. There are two strong leitmotifs here, both of which appear throughout the movie constantly. One can be heard right at the beginning, the other is heard properly at 1:22. The soundscape is distinctly Morricone Western stuff, but he adds this incredible Native American chanting which definitely spice up the track. The feeling of fleeting freedom is prevalent throughout.

God of War (2018)
Composer: Bear McCreary

     Just to throw some diversity in the mix (and to show that these principles have a universal quality to them), here's the God of War theme, composed by industry heavy weight Bear McCreary. Due to it being a video game, there are actually three leitmotifs, which play throughout the game. The most instantly recognisable one is most likely the one that plays at the start, the three note progression becoming iconic in its own right. The soundscape is varied, with heavy Nordic influences. The piece has a feeling of "epicness" behind it, as if it was made for a god. Of War. I'll see myself out.

     The thing that makes these pieces (and most film music in general) is how composers twist and twirl these three pillars to fit each scene of the film. Let's start with the Terminator piece in the beginning.

     The piece has various arrangements throughout the saga. The same leitmotif is kept, but the arrangement is switched up each time, in turn changing the tone. For instance, in Terminator: Genisys, Lorne Balfe makes a very Balfe style cover with "Terminated". Far more bombastic and intense than the Fiedel themes. In contrast, Fiedel himself makes a romance theme by slowing down the classic theme and playing it on a piano for the first film.

     We can look back at the Morricone theme to see this too. I can't believe that he makes a "Square Dance" version of such a powerful theme, but that's why he's a legend, isn't he?

     Here you go. Notice the massive shift in arrangement of the two main leitmotifs, starting primarily at 0:42.

     God of War, of course, has a ton of different arrangements of its main theme throughout the soundtrack. Here's the one that plays around with the theme the most creatively, in my opinion.

     So, that explains arrangements, and how they affect the tone of a film score (and hence the film itself). But let's delve a bit deeper. There are quite a few themes which are virtually impossible to change tonally with mere arrangements. The Godfather theme, for instance, is a prime example. There are actually more variations of the theme that you might initially assume, but the tone hardly changes. I think the piece The Godfather Waltz showcases this the best. In about six different arrangements, Nino Rota shows why his theme is just so iconic. The tone remains virtually unchanged throughout, despite using a variety of string and woodwinds instruments and traditionally "chirpier" chord progressions, the tone is still drenched in melancholy.

     There are also many examples of the opposite, where even the slightest change in arrangement unhinges the tone.

     For this, let's look at another classic. Halloween. I probably don't need to post this theme, since I'm sure almost everyone knows the iconic John Carpenter keyboard progression by heart. It's almost as heavy a part of Western pop culture as the themes for The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly or Star Wars. But for the sake of being thorough:-

     However, it then underwent a series of changes that ruined the ominous tone that the simple-but-effective keyboard achieved (in my unpopular opinion). Carpenter (along with Alan Howarth) remade the theme for Halloween 2, and the only way I can describe it is... irritating. It actually starts off really well. The synths are erratic, and really feed into the theme of Michael being "pure chaos". Then, at around, 1:01, it all goes downhill. Everything about it seems off. I'm sure a lot of people disagree with me here, but I for one have no clue what John Carpenter was thinking when he did this.

     There are also many cases where, within a film or a franchise, themes are required to convey the same tone without using the same leitmotif or arrangement. While there are many examples, to me, the best one is probably the tonal similarity between The Maze Runner and The Maze Runner: Scorch Trials.

     While I was slightly annoyed that the main theme of Maze Runner wasn't used enough in it's sequel, John Paesano, the under-rated genius that he is, managed to write a piece that, while not sharing a soundscape or even a leitmotif with the original, still evokes the same frantic spirit of the piece.

     Notice how the Scorch Trials piece sounds more like an RCP score in arrangement than the original Maze Runner piece (RCP stands for Remote Control Productions, probably worth mentioning in another article), yet still doesn't pull any punches, delivering the same nail-biting action feel that you expect from the franchise.

     The last thing I want to talk about is how important definitive soundscapes are for film scores. This is why it frustrates me to no end when I see things like "Only Black Panther's African influenced music was memorable, it's orchestral stuff wasn't" when people refer to the score. A score includes its arrangement/soundscape. It matters. When Ramin Djwadi decides to do an acoustic guitar cover of his energetic theme for Pacific Rim, you notice. When a piano is used so prominently in Game of Thrones for the first time, you notice. When Steve Jablonsky decides to use a flute for Optimus Prime's theme in Bay's Transformers, you notice. When Hans Zimmer and Junkie XL (Tom Holkenberg) decide to use an electric cello (!) for Wonder Woman's theme in Batman V Superman, you notice. When John Williams decides to play the Imperial March on the harp of all things at the end of Star Wars Episode Six: Return of The Jedi, guess what? YOU NOTICE.

     I've already touched upon it, but different arrangements and soundscapes are vital for diversity in film scores. Don't say "This score isn't legitimate because it's not orchestral blah-blah-blah". There's only one thing that can't be taken seriously, and it's your argument.
(All the pieces I mentioned in that paragraph, in order)

     I'm sure that I've lost a majority of the people who started reading this already. There's too much going on in this world to worry about film music, a component of the film that more and more people would rather not notice than have "interfere" with the film. But I believe that it is one of the most important aspects of modern cinema, and it's had an amazing effect on the way I watch movies. If you've stuck with me for this long, thank you. I hope the other Speaking Easy articles won't be this labourious to read. If anything, I hope you've had a chance to listen to some incredible compositions from artists at the top of their game.

     As a treat for you, I give you one final piece to assimilate. This piece is probably my favourite musical composition in any media, for one of the greatest pieces of art in entertainment history, a perfect storm of tones, arrangements and leitmotifs. I give you The Trio/Il Triello, composed by maestro Ennio Morricone. The finale piece for the 1966 film The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, fully extended for your listening pleasure. Enjoy!

Consuming Podcasts

I'm fairly new when it comes to listening to podcasts. I would estimate that I have been listening to them for just over a year now, mostly while I'm at work. I don't know why it took me so long to discover this vast world of broadcast content but I'm glad I did. There are just so many different podcasts in so many different genres that there is bound to be something for everyone. Of course with the advancement of smartphones this has made it easier to find new ways to occupy your time. I have tried several different apps to listen to my podcasts of choice but I finally settled on Pocket Casts. It's a good app but I'm not writing this to talk about which apps I use or which podcasts I listen to. I want to talk about HOW I listen to them. 

2x indicated at the top right

Podcasts are pretty straightforward, you can either download them or stream them. I download them for a couple of reasons: I can listen to them even if I don't have a good 4G signal and I can control my playback speed. It's the second reason that prompts me to write this post. Usually when you listen to an hour long podcast it would take you an hour to listen to it but many of the podcast players allow you to vary the playback speed. I listen to podcasts at 2x the normal speed. While I'm sure this is not news to long time podcast listeners, it does make a big difference. It takes me only 30 minutes for a 1 hour podcast and 1 hour to listen to a 2 hour podcast. This allows me to fit in extra shows during my work day.

I don't want anyone to think that this is an easy adjustment. I had to train myself to listen at the increased speeds. I started listening at normal speeds and gradually increased the speed over a period of a few months. First I increased the speed to 1.2x then 1.5x to 1.6x to 1.8x and ultimately 2x. Making the jump from 1x to 2x is jarring if not done in stages. I had a show playing while I was driving with my teenage son in the car and he couldn't understand anything that was being said. He asked me if it was twice the speed but at the time I think I was only at 1.6x or 1.8x. Most podcasts hosts speak at a moderate speed  but every now and then you have someone that speaks a little faster and you may have to adjust your speed but I don't recall actually having to do that. 

One of the podcasts that I listen to is a local radio morning show and the hardest thing to do now is listen to them live because their normal speaking speed seems sooooo slow. The higher speeds also change the sound of their voices but not enough where they are unrecognizable. They also play a game like "Name that Tune" and I'm able to recognize many of the songs even at the higher speeds. Even though I thought about going higher, I think I have reached my speed limit as anything higher may be too overwhelming.

Now my player of choice is Pocket Casts on my LG G3. Pocket Casts allows you the adjust the speeds from 0.5x to 3x but many of the other players allow similar adjustments.

My Prepaid Adventure

With the recent issue of Target having millions of credit card numbers stolen I have heard many people consider using prepaid cards when making their purchases. I have been using several major prepaid cards of late and have gone to them exclusively when I was on vacation. While prepaid cards have been around for years, the convenience of loading and checking the balances have changed. My focus will be on the PayPal business debit card, the Google Wallet card, and the American Express Serve/Isis card.

I have been using the PayPal card the longest. Originally receiving it when I ordered the PayPal Here mobile register device. This card is for business owners and when you receive mobile payments from your customers the payments go into your PayPal business account. This works out well because you can then access that money by using PayPal business card. Whether it is to make withdrawals or purchases you can use the card for both. From the mobile app you can check your balances, transfer money, request or send money, and add money from a linked account. Adding money from my bank account usually does take a few days to show the funds. The PayPal card carries a MasterCard logo so it can be used almost anywhere you choose. While I have had it the longest, I use it the least.

I ordered the Google Wallet card as soon as it was announced. The card itself is beautiful with it's all white color and the multicolored Wallet logo in the center and black "Google Wallet" text underneath. The front of the card bears no name or card number as that information is all on the the back of the card. The Wallet app itself is easy to use and it uses the card layout that Google is currently using more and more in its OS. Once you log in with your PIN that you set up you have the options of viewing your balance, sending money, viewing transactions, seeing the Google Offers currently available, and seeing your loyalty cards. If your phone has NFC and your carrier supports mobile payments then you also will have the option to use Tap to Pay. Adding money is pretty simple once you have linked a bank account or credit/debit card. Choose what card or account you want to add money from and the amount, submit the transaction and you are done. The money usually shows up within a few seconds but I have recently heard about Google holding some transactions for a few days. After you make a purchase with your Wallet card you receive a notification within a few seconds of completing the transaction telling you where the purchase was made and the amount.
This card also carries the MasterCard logo.

I found out about the American Express Serve card when I installed the Isis mobile payment app on my T-Mobile phone. Isis allows you to use Tap to Pay but it is limited to linking only a handful of cards at the moment. They give you the option of signing up for a Serve card and the sign-up was simple and quick. Adding funds to the card is similar to the Google Wallet card. Log into the app, select add money, and choose your amount. The difference is you add money directly from the app on the Wallet card but the Amex Serve card sends you to the web to add money. There were a couple of occasions where my card was declined even though the funds were available. I also did not like that it shows my remaining balance on receipts while the others don't. The Serve card is not as widely accepted as the other two but it is backed by American Express' excellent customer service.

Overall I prefer the Google Wallet card over the others with the Isis a close second. I tend to use Google Wallet as my daily user and the Isis card for larger purchases. The Google Wallet card also gets more attention and curious looks when I hand it to the cashiers. The good thing is, you can have all three of them and use them as you choose.

Is a Chromebook For You?

Chrome OS Desktop

"What is a Chromebook, what does it do?" That is what I hear the most when I recommend a Chromebook to someone. I have had mine for almost 5 months now and the only device I use more is my Android phone. More than my tablet and more than my Windows desktop. That's not bad for something that was given to me as an anniversary gift without much prior knowledge of Chrome OS. I checked one out at Microcenter once but not to any great extent. My wife bought it for me after seeing it on my Amazon wishlist (more on that at a later time) and getting me the Samsung series 3 Chromebook.

I think it is important to note that I am fully immersed in Google's ecosystem and that probably made my transition a little easier. I have an android phone and tablet and I primarily use the Chrome

 browser on my Windows desktop. I also use Google Docs and

 Google Drive instead of Microsoft Office even though I

App Launcher

have that software. You do receive 100 GB of Drive storage for 2 years when you buy a Chromebook and that is on top of the 15 GB that Google already gives you for free. You also get 12 free Gogo in-air internet passes to use over 2 years and they recently added a trial use of Google Play Music All Access.

While Chromebooks are not usually high end powerful machines, except for the Pixel, they are very capable devices. Even more capable than I initially thought. They don't have the fastest processors or best displays but what they lack in those areas they make up for in other areas like portability, ease of use, sub 10 second boot time, and the overall Google ecosystem. While ease of use is dependent on the The browser based Chrome OS is able to do more than surf the web. The Chrome Web Store is
full of useful apps whether it's for work or play. There are many
 apps that are made by or are similar to many popular Windows
 or Mac programs. The recent addition of desktop apps makes offline
 use easier than before. These apps are designed with the ability to
 run offline and outside of the browser. While the list of desktop apps
 is small right now there are some that I think many will find useful.

Chrome Web Store

So, is a Chromebook for you? That depends on if the majority of the things you do on a computer requires a specific program that has to be installed on a computer. I use Photoshop pretty often and it isn't able to run on my Chromebook but I have my desktop for that. I never really liked using Photoshop on my old laptop anyway so for me the Chromebook is an excellent second computer. And I think that is a good way to look and these laptops. They may not be able to do all the things a Windows or Mac can do but as a second computer that is light weight and portable it is a good, affordable alternative to the conventional operating systems. If you use the Chrome browser on your primary computer you can even use the Chrome Remote Desktop app from the Web Store to log into that computer from your Chromebook and do the things you would normally do if you were sitting in front of it. Google Docs is great for collaborating on projects or just sharing documents with others. Docs can also be used offline once you enable that option.

Chromebooks also have traditional functions and options such as USB ports, SD card slots, and HDMI but there are no DVD drives. You can attach an external hard drive or thumb drive and access their contents or save files to the external devices. The HDMI allows you to add a second monitor or HDTV in case you need the extra screen space. Battery life is excellent, giving me at least 6 hours of normal use and it fully recharges in about 2 hours. Because Chromebooks do not install apps locally they are resistant to viruses and updates often happen without even noticing. They don't generate much heat so fans are not needed and that provides silent use.

While there would be an adjustment period, I feel the learning curve for a Chromebook is low if you already use the Chrome browser. The ease of use and low maintenance has led many schools to switch to Chromebooks for their student's use. For anyone unsure whether Chrome OS would be suitable for them I would suggest using the Chrome browser on their current computer and install apps from the Web Store to find out if they meet their needs. Try living in the cloud for a few weeks and then make your decision. While I sit here typing this post on my Chromebook, I don't miss the traditional laptops at all. After all, there is a reason 3 of the top 5 best selling laptops on Amazon are Chromebooks and it's not just because of price.

Chromecast Review

I have been using the Chromecast device for a few months now. After finding the, pretty much sold out, Google Chromecast at my local Best Buy I can honestly say that it is a $35 well spent.

The day after this device was announced I decided that I wanted to check it out. After seeing that is was sold out on Amazon and the Google Play store I checked Ebay. They were listed for 1.5X or more than what retail price was. I expected as much and decided to check Best Buy's website. They also said that they were sold out online but you could check the local stores for availability. Early in the morning their site said that one of my local stores had it in stock but by the afternoon it was saying "Not Available" at the same location. I called the Best Buy 800 number and had them check 2 locations and was told that both were sold out and they should have more in a few weeks. I decided to stop in anyway on my way home. I had no idea what department they would be in so I headed where the mobile section was. I started looking at tablets and as I glanced to my left I saw two Chromcast boxes sitting at the end of the display. I figured they could be empty displays but was excited when they were the real deal. Even the associate that came over to ask me if I needed any help was surprised to see me with one. I fought the urge to buy both of them and left the other one to another fortunate hunter to find.

I got it home and setup was a breeze. You just plug it into and empty HDMI slot on your TV, plug one end of the USB cable into the device and the other in either into a USB slot on your TV or into the wall with the adapter provided. Next you have to set it up by either going to this website or by using the app from the Play Store. Once connected you name your device and connect it to your Wi-Fi and you are ready to go. Once the playback starts on the television you can continue using your mobile device as you normally would. The media doesn't actually stream from the device, instead it tells the Chromecast where to pull the video from and it plays it through the HDMI connection.

There are only a few apps compatible with the Chromecast at the moment. Netflix, YouTube, Play Music, Play Movies and recently Hulu Plus was added. I tried the YouTube and Netflix apps first and they were a breeze to use. Once the video starts you touch the broadcast button and then select which Chromecast device you want to broadcast to. My Sony TV automatically switches to the correct HDMI input and begins playing the video. At this point your phone, tablet, or computer (whatever device you initiated from) simply becomes the remote to control your playback, pause, fast forward, and rewind. The process is pretty much the same on the Netflix and YouTube apps. The Google Play Music app displays the album art in a screensaver format with the song and artist at the bottom of the screen. For computer use you have to use the Chrome browser and install the GoogleCast extension.

After using the Chromecast for a few months I appreciate how convenient it is to have the ability to send video to your television without having to do anything more than click an icon. I only have one device so far but I do plan on buying another one soon as they are well worth the $35.