Music by William Motzing Music in the film: Music only appears a couple of times within the film, as opposed to underscore. In one scene pianist bashes out a tune, under a flag that looks suspiciously anachronistic: In another scene, the team indulges in a chant/war cry on the field. See this site’s ‘about the film’ section for the chant and translation: In the final scene, the Kangaroos walk down a dark city street singing a team song about winning a few: Composer William Motzing: Composer William Motzing has had a diverse musical career, having come to Australia in 1971 with Blood, Sweat and Tears. Working on Phil Noyce’s hit Newsfront was a major step for Motzing. He had been involved in arranging records, bands, and worked on about a hundred LPs, but wanted to get involved in film music. Phillip Noyce had heard an original orchestral piece used on on a Jon English rock and roll album. It opened one of the songs and it impressed Noyce. He invited Motzing to dinner, discussed music and what the film needed, and Motzing got the gig. The film offered the chance to do a pastiche of newsreel music, but more importantly Motzing wanted to tie the underscore together musically and use it as a way of reflecting the main character Len, and his upright nature. He also wanted to be able to use it to express aspects of the company Len worked for, the man and his employer and what he did, so he designed a core theme which would be adaptable to various situations. The music for The First Kangaroos is very different, attempting to emphasise the comedic elements with whimsy and musical flourishes. Motzing's site, Spare Parts Productions, still active as of March 2019, and saved to WM here, provided this short CV: William Motzing (BMus, MMus) was born in the USA. He graduated with a Bachelor of Music from Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York and continued his studies earning a Masters Degree from Manhattan School of Music.He went on to study conducting with Ernest Matteo, Nicholas Flagello, Ionel Perlea and Olga von Geczy; composition with Ludmila Ulehla and John Mayer at Birmingham Conservatoire(UK) and arranging with Rayburn Wright. During his career as a professional trombonist Bill performed with Kai Winding Septet, Jon Eardley Quintet, Gerry Mulligan Big Band,Bill Russo Big Band, Sal Salvador Big Band, Eastman-Rochester Symphony and the Pittsburgh Symphony. His diverse career has also included being the sound designer for Blood,Sweat and Tears for three years. In the classical arena Bill has conducted major symphony orchestras including the Australian Chamber Orchestra and the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestras. In Europe he has conducted the BBC Radio Orchestra,the Irish Radio/Television Concert Orchestra, the Czech Philharmonic, the Budapest Opera Orchestra and the Babelsberg Film Studio Orchestra in Berlin. Bill has composed, arranged, produced and conducted stage productions including Academy Award presentations and over 100 albums and CDs in the USA, Australia and Europe. As a composer/arranger his film credits include The Quiet American, Soul Food and the Simpsons. In Australia he is well represented via filmscores and television series including Mother and Son, Come in Spinner, Brides of Christ and Young Einstein. He currently teaches theory, arranging, modern jazz history, improvisation and ensembles at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Bill continues to perform his works regularly in Sydney and inspires all musicians he comes in contact with. Motzing also had a wiki listing here, which catches up with the news that he died in January 2014. In turn this links to an obituary published in The Sydney Morning Herald on 25th March 2014 under the header Howzat! An American’s perfect pitch, here and saved to WM here. It was written by Motzing’s son Bill: Bill Motzing wrote music for more than 30 films, including famous Australian ones such as Newsfront (1978), Silver City (1984) and Young Einstein (1988). He also wrote for television series such as True Believers (1988), Mother and Son and Prisoner, as well as recording more than 30 albums. Despite his public work, Motzing was no respecter of famous names. He conducted his son's school orchestra and musicals as well as arranging works for, among others, INXS, John Williams, international symphony orchestras and Sherbet. He would always accept a project he thought was worthwhile, regardless of the money or prestige. William Edward Motzing was born on August 19, 1937, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the son of William Motzing snr, a machinist in a steel mill, and his wife, Mary (nee Rairigh), who worked in accounts for a clothing retailer. He went to the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, where he took a bachelor's degree in 1958, then a master's degree from the Manhattan School of Music in New York in 1960. Also in 1960, he became the youngest member of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and married Bette Anne Loder. After a couple of years he began performing with jazz groups and worked with the Radio City Music Hall orchestra in New York from 1964 to 1971. As well, from 1968 to 1971, Motzing went around the world as sound designer for the band Blood, Sweat & Tears. After visiting Australia with the group, he moved to Sydney in 1972 to become a lecturer in the jazz program at the NSW State Conservatorium of Music (now Sydney Conservatorium of Music) and later at the Australian Film Television and Radio School. In the 1970s and '80s Motzing arranged and conducted strings and horns on many local hits, including Peter Allen's I Still Call Australia Home (added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia registry in 2013) and Billy Field's Bad Habits, the title track of the best-selling album in Australia in 1981. Motzing took a gold award at the 12th Tokyo Music Festival for Bad Habits. Sherbet's Howzat, arranged by Motzing, as well as being a hit locally, reached the Top 5 of the UK charts and the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. In 2008 he also arranged and conducted Don't Wait Until Tomorrow for Leo Sayer. Sayer said of Motzing: ''I spent so many happy hours in the company of this great man, and great musician, often witnessing the incredibly inspiring effect he had on young musicians, always displaying an easy grace and wisdom. He really cared about his students, followed up on their progress, kept a big door open for all at his house, and they loved him back.'' In Motzing's film work, his score for Young Einstein won the Australian Film Institute (AFI) Award for best original music score and the APRA Music Award. In all, Motzing was nominated for five AFI awards. He also conducted orchestras, including the Australian Chamber, the Australian Opera and Ballet and the Sydney Symphony orchestras. In Europe, he conducted the BBC Radio Orchestra, the Irish Radio/Television Concert Orchestra, the Czech Philharmonic, the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra of the Hungarian State Opera and the Babelsberg film studio orchestra in Berlin. There was some confusion when his son, also Bill, who sounded just like him on the telephone, also went into music. The confusion reached a peak when the younger Bill began playing drums and one day the older Bill turned up to a gig with his trombone when the band was expecting a drummer. In 2008, Motzing was told he had Parkinson's disease, but he continued to teach at the conservatorium until he retired in 2011. In 2013, he was diagnosed with Shy- Drager Syndrome, a rare, incurable, aggressive disease that stops the body's major organs. He returned to New York to live with his son and family. Bill Motzing is survived by his children Bill and Carrie, daughter-in-law Martha and five grandchildren. Bette Anne died in 2010. (Below: William Motzing) (Below: William Motzing on the right, here conducting the music for the Australian feature film Kokoda at Studios 301, with composer John Gray on the left) .