Scott Bradley's Music for MGM's Cartoons Helen Alexander
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Alexander, Helen (2015) Happy harmonies and disturbing discords: Scott Bradley’s music for MGM’s cartoons. PhD thesis. https://theses.gla.ac.uk/6809/ Copyright and moral rights for this work are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This work cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Enlighten: Theses https://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] Happy Harmonies and Disturbing Discords: Scott Bradley’s Music for MGM’s Cartoons Helen Alexander Bachelor of Music, University of Glasgow Master of Music, University of Glasgow Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Music) School of Culture and Creative Arts College of Arts University of Glasgow March 2015 © Helen Alexander 2015 3 Abstract The musical scores of composer Scott Bradley for the cartoons of the Metro- Goldwyn-Mayer studio form the basis of this dissertation, which uses close observation and analysis to address some of the pertinent technical and cultural issues that have been raised in the literature of musicology and of cartoon studies. Bradley’s collaborations with three sets of directors are discussed separately in order to highlight three academic concerns. An investigation into the various practical necessities and cultural influences on Bradley’s work with directors Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising sets the historical scene at the beginning of the composer’s career. I examine the pervading style of these cartoons and their music in order to reveal some of the personal preoccupations that Bradley’s work would exhibit throughout his life. And I interrogate the general musicological approach to the audiovisual pairing and cartoon scoring practices in order to re-evaluate close synchronization as a variegated technique capable of diverse and nuanced effects. Director Tex Avery and Bradley have independently been considered by various scholars for their adoption of modernist techniques. Their collaboration produced works that challenge the distinction of popular entertainment and modernist art, in a way that is shown to be both multifaceted and difficult to quantify. The position of their cartoons in terms of more frequently recognized modern artforms and its own tradition of slapstick comedy complicate any simple distinction between the two fields. The directorial team of William Hanna and Joseph Barbera produced cartoons that amalgamated some of the techniques learned from the other animators in this study. As well as being the most famous of MGM’s cartoon series, their Tom and Jerry cartoons were the most consistent in terms of style. The comic formula of this series is examined from the relatively new academic area of ‘comic timing’. I explore the possible effect of a constant musical presence on the audience perception of pacing and thereby add a new perspective to an aspect of comedy that has not before been considered with reference to music. © Helen Alexander 2015 5 Table of Contents Abstract ...................................................................................... 3 List of Figures ............................................................................... 7 Acknowledgements ......................................................................... 9 Author’s Declaration ...................................................................... 11 Introduction ................................................................................ 13 1 Chapter One: Hugh Harman, Rudolf Ising and Cartoon Music Fundamentals 19 i. Beginnings: Scott Bradley, Hugh Harman and Rudolf Ising ................... 21 ii. Mickey-Mousing .................................................................. 35 iii. Stylistic Influences .............................................................. 49 iv. The Little Mole ................................................................... 62 v. The Field Mouse.................................................................. 65 vi. Conclusion ........................................................................ 72 vii. Figures ............................................................................ 74 2 Chapter Two: Tex Avery and ‘Vulgar’, ‘Cartoon’, ‘Slapstick’ Modernism ... 85 i. Introduction: Ragging the Lion ................................................... 85 ii. Avery and Bradley ............................................................... 88 iii. Pseudo-Modern ................................................................... 96 iv. Truth to Materials .............................................................. 103 v. Response to Modern Life and the Machine .................................. 117 vi. Self-Reflexivity and the Brechtian Cartoon ................................. 129 vii. Conclusion ....................................................................... 137 viii. Figures ........................................................................... 139 3 Chapter Three: William Hanna, Joseph Barbera and Musical Comic Timing145 i. The History of Tom and Jerry ................................................... 145 ii. Bar Sheets ....................................................................... 150 iii. Definitions of Comic Timing ................................................... 155 iv. Character Timing ............................................................... 158 v. Audience Timing ................................................................ 165 vi. Large-Scale Timing ............................................................. 174 vii. Conclusion ....................................................................... 186 viii. Figures ........................................................................... 188 Conclusion ................................................................................. 199 Bibliography .............................................. Error! Bookmark not defined. © Helen Alexander 2015 7 List of Figures Figure 1.1 Bosko and Bruno ......................................................... 74 Figure 1.2 Mickey and Pluto ........................................................ 74 Figure 1.3 Comparison of songs from Three Little Pigs and Run, Sheep, Run! .......................................................................................... 74 Figure 1.4: The Little Mole, theme for Sonny (transcribed from the cartoon, 1’28” approx.) ........................................................................ 75 Figure 1.5: The Little Mole, ‘Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman’ juxtaposed with the theme for Sonny ...................................................................... 75 Figure 1.6: The Little Mole, theme for the fairy palace ....................... 75 Figure 1.7: The Little Mole 7’00” approx. ....................................... 76 Figure 1.8: Song from The Field Mouse, mm. 13-36 (based on Part 2, pp. 3-6 of conductors’ score (original is written in full without repeats)) ............ 76 Figure 1.9: The Field Mouse, mm. 148-149 (based on conductors’ score, Part 6, p. 7); the approach of the combine harvester ............................... 77 Figure 1.10: The Field Mouse, mm. 180-183 (based on Part 6, p. 10 of conductors’ score); the approach of the combine harvester .................. 78 Figure 1.11: The Field Mouse mm. 188-195 (based on Part 6, pp. 12-14 of conductors’ score); the approach of the combine harvester .................. 79 Figure 1.12: The Field Mouse, mm. 210-211 (based on Part 6, pp. 17-18 of conductors’ score); the approach of the combine harvester .................. 80 Figure 1.13: The Field Mouse, mm. 241-252 (based on Part 7, pp. 1-3 of conductors’ score); the combine harvester is shown in full view ............. 80 Figure 1.14: Transcribed from The Field Mouse, approximately mm. 37-56; the mice harvesting wheat ......................................................... 81 Figure 1.15: Thanatopsis, movement III .......................................... 84 Figure 2.1: Puttin’ on the Dog (04’31” approx.), copied from the orchestral score. ................................................................................. 139 Figure 2.2: First six bars of Bradley’s unpublished ‘Sketches for Str. Quartet on 12 tone technique’. ............................................................. 139 Figure 2.3: Puttin’ on the Dog (04’12” approx.), copied from the orchestral score. ................................................................................. 140 Figure 2.4: Puttin’ on the Dog (05’04” approx.), copied from the orchestral score. ................................................................................. 140 Figure 2.5: Little Rural Riding Hood (02’27” approx.), copied from the orchestral score. .................................................................... 140 Figure 2.6: ‘Grotesque’ twelve-tone images .................................... 141 Figure 2.7: Compiled sounds during the opening titles for Happy Go Nutty (1944), transcribed from the cartoon. ........................................... 142 Figure 2.8: Unlikely machines in The House of Tomorrow .................... 142 © Helen Alexander 2015 8 Figure 2.9: The Wolf’s