Reeled In: Pre-existing Music in Narrative Film

Description

How and why is pre-existing music used in films? What effects can its use have on films and their audiences? And what lasting impact can appropriation have on the music? Reeled In is a comprehensive exploration of these questions, considering the cinematic quotation of Beethoven symphonies, Beatles songs, and Herrmann scores alike in films ranging from the early sound era to the present day, and in every role from ‘main title theme’ to ‘music playing in bar’. Incorporating a discussion of such factors as copyright and commerce alongside examination of texts and their effects, this broad study is a significant contribution to the scholarship on music in screen media, demonstrating that pre-existing music possesses unique attributes that can affect both how filmmakers construct their works and how audiences receive them, to an extent regardless of the music’s style, genre, and so on. This book also situates the reception of music by film, and by audiences experiencing that music through film, as significant processes within present-day culture, while more generally providing an illuminating case study of the kinds of borrowings, adaptations, and reinventions that characterize much of today’s art and entertainment. Cover Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Contents List of figures and tables Acknowledgements Introduction Remit Defining pre-existing music Using pre-existing music Manners of quotation Plan of the book Notes and references 1 Production contexts and considerations Rights and licensing (Re)selling pre-existing music Production systems and attitudes Pre-existing music and directorial control Notes and references 2 Intention and interpretation Recognizing audiences Investigating film scores Guiding interpretation Intentional readings Judging intention Notes and references 3 Functions of musical reference Time and place Musical agents Form and expectations Unity and coherence Notes and references 4 Post-existing music Audience Cultural influence and ownership Challenging conceptions Notes and references Conclusion Notes and references Filmography Index