Fitzgerald Perfect Beat v4 n3 July 1999 Scores; a diverse, fascinating and informative account of some recent Australian film music and the place of music within the Australian film industry. .. ~ ~ The contributions in Screen Scores are grouped under four whichheadings, Coyle f describes as "overlapping and complementary" (9). 'Music and Textual Identity' SCREEN SCORES comprises a group of case studies of some well-known Australian films- the Mad Max trilogy (1979; 1981; 1985), Romper Stamper (1992), The Piano (1993)- as II well as several more experimental 'art-house' films by director-composer Philip Coyle, Rebecca (ed) (1998) Screen Scores: Studies·in Contemporary Australian Brophy2. Each of these chapters examines some of the techniques used in creating Film Music, Sydney: Australian Film Television and Radio School l the soundtrack and suggests some ways of reading the relationship between the film and music. The chapters in the section entitled 'Musical Associations' this(as title JON FITZGERALD suggests) tend to focus on the way soundtracks can be viewed in a socio-cultural context and the authors examine a diverse selection ofthemes: the use of indigenous music in Australian films; the role of popular songs in the successful films Muriel s ilm music must rate as one of the most fascinating yet frustrating art fonns Wedding (1994) and Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994); the use of film music for those concerned with documenting aspects of popular culture. Music has and sound in ltalo-Australian cinema; and the idea of 'musical narrative' in Shine immense power to enhance visual images and heighten r emotional responses; (1996). Contributions to the third section, 'Directors and Film Music' focus on the but describing the creation, function and reception of film music is highly problem­ ways in which certain individual Australian film directors (Peter Weir, Yahoo atic. For example, who actually creates the music and what is the creative process? Serious, Yoram Goss) have been involved in the creation of the music used in their Since the authorship of a soundtrack "is now either devolved among a number of films, and explore some of the issues raised by the collaborative process. The final personnel or is more a product of the director, producer (and perhaps mixer/sand section, 'Film Industry' contains three chapters which provide insights into some editor/s) than the composer" (Coyle: 141), a researcher would need to gain access of the everyday practicalities and difficulties facing the Australian film composer. to all of these contributors before being able to comment with confidence on the dynamics of creation pertaining to a particular film. Similar problems arise when one attempts to use words to describe a particular soundtrack. Even those actually Screen Scores contains a wealth of factual information as well as thought-provoking involved in the creation of soundtracks often speak different languages as they ideas about the creation, function and reception of Australian film music. Among attempt the difficult task of welding visual and sonic material. David Roach this substantial and significant body of work I found some contributions especially (collaborator with director Yahoo Serious on the films Young Einstein [1988] and interesting. Rebecca Coyle's study of the genesis of the eclectic musical palette for Reckless Kelly [1993]) comments on working with composer William Motzing: Yahoo Serious' comedies clearly contextualises the director's work, and Coyle is "[i]f you don't speak the same language, you need to work out a kind of sign able to draw on extensive personal interview material to examine the creative language so you can both get across what you mean" (cited in Coyle: 155). How process and offer some perceptive interpretations of the role of music in Serious' then, does the soundtrack analyst decide upon an appropriate descriptive/musi­ tilms. Despite having to negotiate a potential minefield of technical terminology, cologicaVtechnological terminology? Things are not much easier when one ·at­ Philip Samartzis somehow manages to provide a clear and fascinating examination tempts to comment on the way film music actually works, since there is of course of how Philip Brophy employs contemporary technology to create musical no guarantee that audiences respond to a particular example of music in the manner soundscapes complementing his provocative visual images. Bruce Johnson and intended by the creators; or as interpreted by critics. Gaye Poole contribute a thorough and well-argued assessment of Peter Weir's involvement with film music as viewed against the notion of the director as auteur. By providing insights into the everyday concerns of Australian film music compos­ Given the extent of these issues, it seems that comprehensive analysis of a film ers, the chapters by Mark Evans and by Michael Hannan and Jude Magee provide 1 soundtrack is beyond the scope of any individual researcher • However, it is equally an effective counterbalance to the more theoretically-based contributions. Finally, evident that film music has been "a sadly neglected art" (Gorbman cited in although Coyle makes it clear in the introduction that Screen Scores was not Magowan: 106), and that this is especially true within Australia. Despite the designed to profile individual composers, the entryshort by Australian film com­ considerable reputation ofAustralian films-both locally and internationally-there poser Jan Preston makes for a highly appropriate 'afterword'. Preston provides a has been little comment on Australian film music. One way of moving forward then, window into an individual composer's working process, and she discusses some is to conceive of film music research as a collective andenterprise, to facilitate the general issues of relevance to Australian film composers. process whereby individual researchers can make a contribution towards assem­ bling a body of information which can be used as a basis for informed film music criticism. This is the approach editor Rebecca Coyle has taken in compiling Screen 1 Some of the points raised by Preston surface as recurring themes throughout the j Perfect Beat Ill v4 n3 July 1999 Perfect Beat - v4 n3 July 1999 I 1 ~ Screen Scores .· ..·.· ..... ·.··· Fitzgerald ·r.~·' f '• book, and merit further comment. Perhaps first and foremost is the issue of Another recurring theme is the collaborative nature of film soundtrack composition, Australian film music budgets, or rather the inadequacy of Australian film music i fj and issues connected with the collaborative process and 'ownership' of the musical budgets. Working in the area of film music in Australia is not the glamorous vision for the film. Composer Jan Preston tnakes her view about the relationship occupation which the public might imagine when they see the star status afforded between composer and director very clear: to leading Hollywood film composers such as John Williams. As Coyle notes in the ft introduction "sound practitioners working in the Australian film industry point to [b1 asically !feel that. althoughfilm is a collaborative medium, it is still one person vision and it works best itwhen is just that. So I don i' mind the limited budgets and resources applied to Australian film music and sound ... and s working with directors who are fussy or hard to please. Usually they argue that this is not a film element that is highly valued and carefully marketed" I will be the ones who are really pleased when you find just the right (2). In fact Mark Evans (in a chapter on film music costs and copyright) produces music for theirfi/m. Far worse are the whoones don 't know what they figures which demonstrate "the decreasing size of film budgets in Australia" during i want. (212) the 1990s ( 188). Preston comments that"[s ]ometimes the score has to rest with the MIDI demos because there's no budget for real instruments. I think that it's a shame Director Yahoo Serious echoes Preston's sentiments: that so many Australian composers have to be satisfied with a machine score" (214). [t1he main thing in my stuff is collaboration. It's always wonderful to The monetary situation can also be exacerbated at times by the producer's decision hear suggestions from everyone ... But what you 've got to have is control to use existing songs to "enhance the cross-marketability of the film"; a decision ! so that youwhen 're working with the artist ... you're really protecting which "may deprive the composer of a viable budget for the composition and I their art form. You say, 'I have a vision that this is the way the music production of original music" (Hannan and Magee: 199). As if inadequate budgets should be and this is the way thefilm has to be, and how can your vision were not problem enough, composers also regularly face extreme time constraints, fit into that?'. (cited in Coyle: 149) since they often begin work very late in the production schedule. Composer Martin However, it is clear that in some situations the director's vision and commercial Armiger observes that there is "invariably a tight completion schedule which allows imperatives do not always sit well with the composer. In discussing Serious' little time for rewriting" (cited in Hannan and Magee: 198). i international hit film Young Einstein, Coyle describes the involvement of Martin ( Armiger (one of three composers to have worked on the music) as "a series of Inevitably then, inadequate budgets and time pressures can limit creative possibili­ receding compromises in which, despite Serious's claims of artistic protection, ties and necessitate artistic compromises; which means that Australian film music I' Armiger believes his authorial 'vision' was altered by the changing visions of the at times compares unfavourably with film music produced overseas (especially in I core team ... and the demands ofinternational distributors" (!51). Hollywood). It is interesting in this regard to compare film music with another, more pervasive area of sound-to-picture production, that of advertising music.