Can A Film Score Be Considered Classical Music?

Can a film score be considered classical music?

First, we have to understand the two definitions of a film score and classical music to determine if classical music can be in film and considered as a film score. A film score is background music in a TV series or film, whereas, classical music is for live performances and listening, but both musical compositions are for entertainment purposes.

Film composers and classical music composers use the same musical building blocks to produce a musical composition. The format, style or genre in film will determine the song's usage; film music in scenes is to create a mood for the audience. Musical sound effects are an important theory for a composer to master as the music their writing imitates a sound to create the mood in each scene. A film score can be just sounds as each mood in a film changes, therefore, the songs must change for each mood.

Background music and narrative music are the two kinds of music in a scene that has a dialog. Background music heightens the mood of a scene where narrative music tells a story. The underscore is the background music score and makes up the majority of music in the film, such as, dialog, chase scenes and romantic settings throughout the movie.

Classical music refers to music produced or rooted in the tradition of Western art, ecclesiastical or Christian music and concert music from a period around the 9th century to the 21st century and codified between 1550 and 1900. Many musicians today play classical music. Classical music can credit in a film score depending on the format or style and theme of a film project. Thomas Newman a film composer from Los Angeles, CA whose classical compositions scored in films, such as, "American Beauty and "Meet Joe Black" are just one example of today's film composers who write classical music.

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 1827) born in Bonn, Germany and moved to Vienna, Austria in his early twenties was one of the world's most famous composers of classical music. Beethoven successfully wrote classical music scores from 1794 through 1800 and his music played around the world for over 180 years.

The classifications of six periods of music by stylistic differences are:

• Before 1400 Medieval or Gregorian chant, mostly religious from the fall of the Roman Empire (486 AD) to the beginning of Renaissance in 1400, characterizes Medieval.
• 1400-1600 Renaissance is another word for rebirth referring to restore the philosophical and artistic ideals of classical antiquity.
• 1600-1750 Baroque music is lively and tuneful music that expresses fundamental order of the universe.
• 1750-1820 Classical music is balance, structure and characterized with structural clarity with intellectual freedom. Classical music is the main principle of new age enlightenment with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart being a well-know famous classical music artists.
• 1820-1900 Romantic music broke the rules of classical music exploring large ensembles, extreme emotions and wild orchestration.
• Beyond 1900 20th Century or age of technology does not have rules of the classical time, but has the stylistic freedom to write as they please.