We don't go to the movies to listen to the music. And you've surely heard the one about the way to judge the worth of a soundtrack score: the less you notice the music the better. Neither old saw is, of course, accurate. They never have been, and especially not now.
Film and music--particularly classical music--have been married ever since the end of the last century, when the Lumiere brothers found they could assuage Parisians' fear of silence and the dark by inviting a pianist to accompany their short films with comforting classical ditties.
It has been a rocky, often dysfunctional marriage. Any music lover with the temerity to set foot into a mall multiplex will quickly discover the manic sonic barrage that is the latest form of spousal abuse Hollywood is exerting on its classical partner. Still, listen hard enough through the excruciating sound effects of, say, "Batman & Robin," and you will hear undisguised proto-symphonic Wagner written by an interesting, classically trained composer, Elliot Goldenthal, who divides his time between concert music, experimental theater music and the big screen.
What's more, the movies have rediscovered real classical music with a spate of successful recent films like the Beethoven biopic "Immortal Beloved," "32 Short Films About Glenn Gould," "Touts les Matins du Monde," "Mr. Holland's Opus," "Shine" and "Paradise Road." And did you happen to notice that the plot of the recent "Fifth Element" revolves around a Space Age diva who still finds some futuristic life left in "Lucia di Lammermoor," Donizetti's opera?
Now more are on the way. "The Red Violin," which traces a Stradivarius through history and around the world and which stars Samuel L. Jackson, has just finished shooting. Faye Dunaway has optioned Terrence McNally's play "Master Class," so that she can immortalize her stage portrayal of opera great Maria Callas. Even Madonna is said to be boning up on her music theory to play an inspiring urban music teacher in her next film.
In addition, the movies, which have a long history of enticing classical composers to the silver screen, have taken a liking to some of today's luminaries. Grammy winner John Corigliano, whose "AIDS" Symphony has become a modern classic, is writing the music for "The Red Violin"; Chinese emigre experimentalist Tan Dun, whose "Symphony 1997" was premiered as part of the Hong Kong hand-over festivities, has completed his first feature score, for "Fallen," which stars Denzel Washington; and famed Minimalist Philip Glass wrote the music for Martin Scorsese's new film about the Dalai Lama, "Kun Dun," to be released in December. Sally Potter's "The Tango Lesson" will include Yo-Yo Ma on the soundtrack, and Potter has directed a music video of Ma as well, in conjunction with the cellist's forthcoming recording of tangos by Astor Piazzolla.
