Trek Music

[evangelist6589]

The music score in season 1 was excellent and season 3 second best but for some reason season 2 seems to not have great music. Why did the producers decide to get rid of the season 1 music? Terrible choice. Some of it is retained in season 2 but not much.

John

 

[Michael]

Um, “Amok Time”, “The Doomsday Machine”, “Return to Tomorrow”?

Case closed.

 

[Talos IV]

And "Metamorphosis." and "Mirror, Mirror."

All three seasons have great music, unique to each season. Even the much-maligned "Spock's Brain" has an original score that's quite excellent.

 

[Christopher]

Why did the producers decide to get rid of the season 1 music?

Contractual obligation. In order to ensure that composers and musicians stayed employed, union rules didn't allow TV producers to reuse stock music from one season in the subsequent season. If they did want to reuse a music cue, they'd need to bring in musicians and a conductor to re-record it.

Besides, the only reason they reused music at all was lack of money. If they'd been budgeted for it, they would've had newly composed music in every episode, as most US shows are required to do these days. The typical pattern for shows in the '60s and '70s was to budget for original scores for about the first 1/3 or so of the season, then recycle those scores (and maybe various library cues composed specifically for generic use) throughout the rest of the season, then start over with another batch of new scores in the following season, and so on. Due to the limitations on reuse of earlier seasons' music, this meant that each season would generally have its own distinct library of music cues.

And I have no idea why you think season 2 of TOS had disappointing music. I think the music got progressively better from season to season. (Although season 2 did feature the one genuinely poor score of the series, Samuel Matlovsky's "I, Mudd" score, which even the producers disliked and hardly ever reused.)

 

[feek61]

Most of the TOS music is fantastic. Probably the ones I don't care for and skip when they come on are "I Mudd" and "Trouble with Tribbles"

 

[EnriqueH]

I just finished listening to the entire series music, and I enjoyed pretty much all of it.

I just didn't like listening to the sound made in every Tribbles theme, that little "eeeyo eeyo". ARRRRRGH! In its defense, it plays well on screen, but not so when you're LISTENING to it in the car.

Speaking of Trek music, I just finished listening to the Star Trek V soundtrack yesterday (the expanded one from Intrada) and I enjoyed the hell out of it.

But that little WHINE he added during the Klingon theme drove me NUTS. Goldsmith ruined his Klingon theme with that whine. I had to laugh when the VERY LAST SOUND we hear on the soundtrack is that stupid noise.

STV's soundtrack has grown on me. I used to think it absorbed the silliness of the worst parts of the movie, but I like it a lot now. Much like the movie itself. I *finally* understand what the movie's defenders see in it: the comraderie of Kirk, Spock and McCoy.

 

[Christopher]

I just didn't like listening to the sound made in every Tribbles theme, that little "eeeyo eeyo". ARRRRRGH! In its defense, it plays well on screen, but not so when you're LISTENING to it in the car.

But it's clever how they made it. It's the sound of a trombone glissando played back at high speed.

 

[RandyS]

Speaking of Trek music, I just finished listening to the Star Trek V soundtrack yesterday (the expanded one from Intrada) and I enjoyed the hell out of it.

But that little WHINE he added during the Klingon theme drove me NUTS. Goldsmith ruined his Klingon theme with that whine. I had to laugh when the VERY LAST SOUND we hear on the soundtrack is that stupid noise.

STV's soundtrack has grown on me. I used to think it absorbed the silliness of the worst parts of the movie, but I like it a lot now. Much like the movie itself. I *finally* understand what the movie's defenders see in it: the comraderie of Kirk, Spock and McCoy.

My favorite parts of V's score has always been (and still is) the music played over the credits when Kirk is climbing El Capitan, and the music played over the scene where Kirk Spock, Bones, and Sybok are making their way toward Shaka Ree and everybody else is watching from the bridge. Thankfully, those two cues were always a part of the soundtrack going back to 1989.

 

[doubleohfive]

I just finished listening to the entire series music, and I enjoyed pretty much all of it.

Speaking of Trek music, I just finished listening to the Star Trek V soundtrack yesterday (the expanded one from Intrada) and I enjoyed the hell out of it.

Agreed, entirely.

But that little WHINE he added during the Klingon theme drove me NUTS. Goldsmith ruined his Klingon theme with that whine. I had to laugh when the VERY LAST SOUND we hear on the soundtrack is that stupid noise.

Nope. While it's not the masterpiece the score to The Motion Picture was, I did appreciate Goldsmith's attempt to add a more alien-sounding, primal horn to the Klingon theme here. It added more color, texture and nuance to the score which was already borrowing heavily from TMP.

(Have you noticed, too, that in the other thread people complaining about Horner repeating himself don't seem to have this same problem with Goldsmith?)

STV's soundtrack has grown on me. I used to think it absorbed the silliness of the worst parts of the movie, but I like it a lot now. Much like the movie itself. I *finally* understand what the movie's defenders see in it: the comraderie of Kirk, Spock and McCoy.

I loved The Final Frontier score when I first heard it. For a long time, the theme was my favorite rendition of the Goldsmith TMP theme. There has yet to be a Star Trek soundtrack I haven't loved.

For those interested, you can still get most of these amazing, well-crafted expanded or archival editions of the soundtracks from LaLaLand Records, Intrada, Varese Sarabande, Screen Archives, or GNP Crescendo

My favorite of course is the TOS megaset, which is still available for purchase from LaLaLand here.

 

[evangelist6589]

Why did the producers decide to get rid of the season 1 music?

Contractual obligation. In order to ensure that composers and musicians stayed employed, union rules didn't allow TV producers to reuse stock music from one season in the subsequent season. If they did want to reuse a music cue, they'd need to bring in musicians and a conductor to re-record it.

Besides, the only reason they reused music at all was lack of money. If they'd been budgeted for it, they would've had newly composed music in every episode, as most US shows are required to do these days. The typical pattern for shows in the '60s and '70s was to budget for original scores for about the first 1/3 or so of the season, then recycle those scores (and maybe various library cues composed specifically for generic use) throughout the rest of the season, then start over with another batch of new scores in the following season, and so on. Due to the limitations on reuse of earlier seasons' music, this meant that each season would generally have its own distinct library of music cues.

And I have no idea why you think season 2 of TOS had disappointing music. I think the music got progressively better from season to season. (Although season 2 did feature the one genuinely poor score of the series, Samuel Matlovsky's "I, Mudd" score, which even the producers disliked and hardly ever reused.)

I think season 2 had the worst music of the series. The music was not terrible it just is not the best. I think the season opener had terrible music bye the way. Yes I think Spocks Brain from season 3 was a better overall episode. Even season 3 at times had bad music (the cowboy episode can't recall the name of it for one). I am not all that convinced season 2 is a better season than season 3, but no question season 1 takes the cake for the best season of TOS.

 

[Christopher]

^The "season opener" for season 2 was either "Amok Time" in broadcast order or "Catspaw" in production order. Both were scored by Gerald Fried, who contributed three scores to season 2 (those two and "Friday's Child") and only one each to the other two seasons ("Shore Leave" for S1 and "The Paradise Syndrome" for S3). Fried's scores were extensively tracked throughout the second season as well. So it sounds to me like you're just not a fan of Fried's style.

The "cowboy episode" in season 3 was "Spectre of the Gun," scored by Jerry Fielding, who also did "The Trouble With Tribbles."

 

[Indysolo]

Fried is the sound of season two, and that delights me to no end.

Neil

 

[CorporalCaptain]

In terms of seasons, season two is probably my personal favorite, but I love all the music.

 

[Esteban]

Fried is the sound of season two, and that delights me to no end.

Neil

Well said. Although I'll always loves me my Steiner, Fried--from Shore Leave to Paradise Syndrome, with Amok Time in between, was something special. Not as important to me, but notably, he is the most quoted ST scorer in popular culture not counting Sandy's (and Gene's) theme.

 

[Christopher]

Fried is the sound of season two, and that delights me to no end.

Well, I'd say that Sol Kaplan's "Doomsday Machine" score was almost as important to S2's scoring as Fried's episodes. And George Duning and Fred Steiner also did three episodes each (not counting Steiner's "Star-Spangled Banner" arrangements for "The Omega Glory").

 

[Indysolo]

No doubt, but when I think of season two, it's Fried's music that captured the sense of fun of the season more than any other.

Neil

 

[EnriqueH]

Nope. While it's not the masterpiece the score to The Motion Picture was, I did appreciate Goldsmith's attempt to add a more alien-sounding, primal horn to the Klingon theme here. It added more color, texture and nuance to the score which was already borrowing heavily from TMP.

(Have you noticed, too, that in the other thread people complaining about Horner repeating himself don't seem to have this same problem with Goldsmith?)

Yeah, that's true.

I loved The Final Frontier score when I first heard it. For a long time, the theme was my favorite rendition of the Goldsmith TMP theme. There has yet to be a Star Trek soundtrack I haven't loved.

Yeah, I'm currently listening to STVI, which I have some problems with, but overall, I have to admit it's an excellent soundtrack (even though it's not always Star Trek per se IMO, but more on that when I finish listening to it.)

For those interested, you can still get most of these amazing, well-crafted expanded or archival editions of the soundtracks from LaLaLand Records, Intrada, Varese Sarabande, Screen Archives, or GNP Crescendo

My favorite of course is the TOS megaset, which is still available for purchase from LaLaLand here.

Hear, hear!

In November and December, my folks got me the TOS soundtrack for all 3 seasons, and Treks I-VI from these sites and I'm already almost done!

^The "season opener" for season 2 was either "Amok Time" in broadcast order or "Catspaw" in production order. Both were scored by Gerald Fried, who contributed three scores to season 2 (those two and "Friday's Child") and only one each to the other two seasons ("Shore Leave" for S1 and "The Paradise Syndrome" for S3). Fried's scores were extensively tracked throughout the second season as well. So it sounds to me like you're just not a fan of Fried's style.

The "cowboy episode" in season 3 was "Spectre of the Gun," scored by Jerry Fielding, who also did "The Trouble With Tribbles."

Fried is the sound of season two, and that delights me to no end.

Well, I'd say that Sol Kaplan's "Doomsday Machine" score was almost as important to S2's scoring as Fried's episodes. And George Duning and Fred Steiner also did three episodes each (not counting Steiner's "Star-Spangled Banner" arrangements for "The Omega Glory").

I love Season 2's music.

1 is my favorite, I think, but man, I gotta love me some Amok Time. Just phenomenal.

 

[Christopher]

(Have you noticed, too, that in the other thread people complaining about Horner repeating himself don't seem to have this same problem with Goldsmith?)

The complaints I hear about Horner are that he reuses themes from one movie or franchise in a totally unrelated one. Goldsmith would reuse themes within a single series, but it's not like he ever used a Rambo theme in Star Trek or a Planet of the Apes motif in Alien. Even when Gremlins 2 called for a Rambo parody, he did a variation of Gizmo's theme with a Ramboesque sound rather than quoting his own Rambo themes. (Although he did use a quote of his Gremlins theme as a gag in Looney Tunes: Back in Action when the hero's car was revealed as a Ford Gremlin, but that was a joke that fit the Looney Tunes musical idiom.) His overall body of work is far less repetitive and more diverse than Horner's.

 

[Daddy Todd]

Even when Gremlins 2 called for a Rambo parody, he did a variation of Gizmo's theme with a Ramboesque sound rather than quoting his own Rambo themes. (Although he did use a quote of his Gremlins theme as a gag in Looney Tunes: Back in Action when the hero's car was revealed as a Ford Gremlin, but that was a joke that fit the Looney Tunes musical idiom.)

I do believe the Gremlin was made by American Motors; Ford's '70's subcompact was the Pinto. I had a Mustang, and my brother had a Javelin, so we were both a step or two up from the Pinto and the Gremlin. ;-)

 

[johnnybear]

Always loved that bit of music from The Doomsday Machine and By Any Other Name titled Kirk does it again!
JB