MUSIC, ON THE OCEAN?

We think of famous directors as being in total control and understanding of all facets of filmmaking. A guy like Stanley Kubrick had a sharp pencil in all departments, but most of them are lacking comprehension in the area of music scoring; that thing you stick on in 'post', is how most of them would think about what should be one of the most considered part of the filmmaking process. One of the worst in this regard, I have heard, is director Ridley Scott. Apparently, he is nothing short of unconscious during this phase.

The great Alfred Hitchcock got many a great score from his composers -- especially Bernard Herrmann. Hitch was not sure he wanted music to accompany the shower scene in Psycho (1960). Hermann suggested to the director that it might just work with a little knife music. The result was not only a classic movie moment but what is perhaps the most well known musical phrase of all film, if not all time -- the screeching violins.

Earlier in his career, Hitchcock, like many a director, was exploring the use of music and sound in cinema. For Lifeboat (1944), he was concerned that music would not make a lot of sense or fit in to the story. Who, afterall, would hear music in a lifeboat in the middle of the ocean? "Where is the music coming from?", asked Hitch. Film composer David Raksin caught wind of this remark and asked, "ask Mr. Hitchcock where the camera's coming from".

Hugo Friedhofer eventually supplied 'music to float in a lifeboat by'.