Music and Movies - A Brief History

Before motion pictures were able to incorporated dialogue, music was used to add another element of entertainment with the images people were viewing on screen.

Prior to the 1926 film Don Juan, which is credited with being the first movie to have synchronized sound, live musicians would play music inside the theaters. It's believed this was done, at first, to cover up the sound of the noisy film projectors of the era and to cover up any uncomfortable silences that might have occurred in the audience while watching silent characters on screen.

As technological advances continued to be available to the pioneer movie makers, the importance of music in films became of great importance and has evolved to what is has become today.  Whether you've seen one movie or thousands, it's hard to imagine them having the same impact on us without the incorporation of music.

Like big named actors are pursued to star in the next big blockbuster, musical composers such as John Williams and Hans Zimmer are sought out to create magical and memorable musical pieces to be a part of today's motion pictures. Scores for mega hit films like Jaws, Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Driving Miss Daisy, The Godfather, James Bond, Jurassic Park, and so many more have become a part of pop culture. They are often just as loved and recognizable as the actual films themselves.

Here is an interview from 1989 where the great John Williams discusses his thought train as he composes music for a film.